A 1949 Harley Panhead Chopper Goes Green
This is the first Harley-Davidson Panhead chop job that I’d describe as green and leafy. That’s usually a better descriptor for a lawn or a supermodel’s diet. Gregg Underwood’s bike has plenty of green paint and gold leaf to really make it pop; the color factor does give it a bit of an herbivorous vibe, which actually works. Traditionally, green was never the color of choice for custom iron back in the day, and, for that reason alone, it’s always refreshing to see on a vintage chopper.
Here, the green also looks great on a chopper that’s about as classic for the era as it gets. Underwood’s 1949 Panhead mill displaces 74ci and resides in a Santee frame from the early 1970s; there’s no replica or modern knockoff going on in the basic foundation for his scoot. With parts like that 14-inch-over Harman girder fork and H-D drum brake out back, the old-school street cred just keeps coming too.
All of that adds up to a rigid chopper that’s the real deal. So much so that I’m pretty sure Gregg got away with bucking tradition in the paint department. Slathering the bodywork in copious amounts of killer gold leaf and metal flake were a good way to balance out the green, though.