Clutch- and Brake Controls 1941-1971

1941 - The Return of the Blech?

In wartime, the need to increase production and efficiency often leads to adjustments in manufacturing processes. The design of the sheet metal levers, which had actually been shelved in the 1920s, was resurrected, but now in cast form. (AMAL in Good Old England had levers similar to this in the 1940s.) The same shape as the levers of the 1940s and 1950s were also available as accessories, even in sturdy 2 mm sheet metal and chrome-plated, even with a ball at the end. But as original as these levers look, they are not.

1965 - Italian influence

Not only because Harley-Davidson had acquired the majority of shares in the Italian company Aermacchi in 1960, no, in general, a turn to Italian design can be observed internationally in the 60's. And Italian mopeds had these straight protruding levers, which is why the Harleys had them the same way from the middle of the 1960s onwards.

Until the 1971 model year, all handbrake or clutch levers were clamped directly to the handlebars, without other (electrical) fittings, which were integrated later.