While the V-twin engine is the very heart of Harley-Davidson’s brand today, for their first six years of production, only single-cylinder machines bore the legendary bar-and-shield logo. The Davidson brothers and William Harley commenced actual production in 1905 in a small wooden shed, a recreation of which can be found in the Harley-Davidson museum.

Harley-Davidson built a mere five machines that year and those first motors were 440cc and produced about 4 horsepower, which was very respectable in the day. By 1906, a new factory was built on Chestnut Street (this was later renamed Juneau Avenue and still functions as Harley-Davidson headquarters today) and about 50 bikes were built in the single-story building. These first models are known as the ‘strap tanks’, for the nickel-plated steel bands suspending the fuel and oil tanks from the frame.

In 1907, the Harley-Davidson company was officially incorporated, and they built 150 machines, displaying their first V-twin prototype of 880cc in February at the Chicago Automobile Show, although it took 4 years to start production. Harley-Davidson was one among 150 motorcycle manufacturers in the USA in 1908, when their production leaped to 450 machines.

By 1910, the year of this single-cylinder machine, they built 3,168 motorcycles, all of which were singles. This machine includes factory credentials and paperwork certifying it as a genuine, and very rare early Harley-Davidson, which cost USD 210. Harley-Davidson would offer a 2-speed rear hub in 1914 and a 3-speed gearbox in 1915, but in 1910 a belt drive with a jockey tensioner was the best Milwaukee had. The belt drive makes for a surprisingly silent and smooth transmission, without chain or gear whine.

This 1910 Harley-Davidson Model 6 from the Dr. J. Craig Venter collection, is a very rare machine which is documented as original and the result of a comprehensive restoration. Serial number 6551 has always been serviced and maintained in running condition by his resident mechanic, and was sold by Mecum Auctions in Monterey, California on August 18-20, 2016, right before the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance on August 21.