|
The Best of of the EJ Cole Motorcycle AuctionMarch 20-21, 2015 - Las Vegas, Nevada |
Sold for $190,000 on March 21, 2015 This 1917 Henderson Model G was purchased at the Steve McQueen estate auction at the Imperial Palace in Las Vegas, November 1984, where it was offered as Lot #642 and features an older restoration. Any early Henderson is worth celebrating, but Steve McQueen’s Henderson is really something special. |
| 1917 HENDERSON 4 EX-STEVE MCQUEEN | |
|
By 1915, Henderson finally gained a two-speed
rear hub, and by Spring a much shorter wheelbase was available as an
option at 58 inches instead of the original 65 inches, in an effort to
bring the Henderson more in line with other manufacturers’ dimensions.
The price dropped to $295 for both the short wheelbase Model E and the
standard Model D. For 1916, the Model F was a single-speeder, and the F2
had the two-speed hub, and the price, which had gone down with more
efficient manufacture, was raised back to $325 for the two-speeder. As
the U.S. became involved in World War I, priorities for many suppliers
went to government contracts first, and Henderson found themselves
suddenly paying far more for machining, raw materials, and labor, with
many materials in short supply. The 1917 model range (the Model G), announced in September 1916, had a three-speed gearbox, the ‘short’ frame, a proper kickstarter, stronger forks, and a new induction tract, which fed the cylinders more efficiently, and generated more power. Full electric lighting was offered, and even Henry Ford bought himself a Henderson! The year 1917 was the last of ‘true’ Henderson production, as the company was purchased by Ignaz Schwinn in October of that year, and production was moved from Detroit to Chicago, while the Henderson Motorcycle Company was no more – from then on it was Excelsior-Henderson, a branch of the mighty Schwinn empire. |
