The 74 Shop
26 Pine Grove School Rd.
Saugerties, NY 12477
ph: 845-389-7197
The74Sho
A little bit of The 74 Shop's history.
This picture was taken around 1979 or 1980. Both Joe and this Panhead were born in 1948. Pictured below is myself and a 1948 that met the same fate as the 48 panhead above, another owner. Joe always said "you can't fall in love with them" so I didn't. This photo was recently taken in the same spot along the side of the shop where the above photo was taken some 27 years earlier.
This was the day Joe fired up this 51 FL for his first time. My mother held the camera while I held the hose in case of fire. Once started this old panhead blew a large flaming mouse nest out of muffler that I'll never forget. This bike was won via phone auction in 1991 from an estate sale in PA. The bike is currently owned and loved by Lloyd Benson of Western, NY.
This photo was taken along our summer of 1991 cross- country trip at Dudley Perkins' HD dealership in San Francisco, CA. Shown here is my father Joe and his cousin Joe to the far left. Their mothers were sisters and if my father had long hair in this picture they could be twins!
The 74 Shop began as a hobby for my father Joe Barber. Over time it developed into a nice side business and into a full-time business. The 74 Shop became official in the spring of 1973 and grew until the day of his passing in July of 1996. He was just 48 years old.
My parents first date consisted of my father buying a 1972 XLCH for resale and thats the way it stayed until the end. Business, family and friends were always mixed together. With the help of my mother, Peg, my father was able to run the business and maintain his work as a union ironworker for Local 417 in Newburgh, NY from 1966 to 1996.
Our greatest vacation was born when my father sold a 1945 UL to a fellow in San Jose, CA in the summer of 1991. We packed up our van with the bike in the back to deliver it to its new owner. Along the way we hit the AMCA national in Minnesota, visited legendary HD dealer Hap Darst in Indiana, and hit many scenic stops including Mt. Rushmore, Devil's Tower and Yellowstone National Park on July 4th 1991. We visited family in California, delivered the bike and wrapped up the trip at the Wauseon AMCA National on our way home. It covered all the bases of friends, family and business in one trip.
My venture into the antique bike scene began with the passing of another friend. My father's best friend, Bob, lost his brother in the Spring of 2002. I heard of Bob's loss through some other friends and decided to call him after many years of not seeing each other. He mentioned he'd be coming up my way and I mentioned I was interested in riding one of my father's old bikes. He made a trip upstate to visit his brother's girlfriend, collect some things and stop off at the Brookfield, NY AMCA National. He visited me on his way back to LI and that's when it all began for me. We got Joe's black 48 EL Panhead fired up and it's been a disease ever since. Shortly after getting the hang of that old Pan I found myself tinkering with every bike in the barn. One by one, I got every single bike up running and on the road. Many of the bikes I ride today my father never got the time to hear them run or ride them.
My passion for antique bikes is on the road while my father's was in the barn. He collected and socked them away purchasing most of them without ever asking if they ran. He knew what he liked and he was just happy looking at them. Towards his last few years, Joe began to ride and enjoy all that he worked for all these years. Bob was a big part of getting him back on the raod with these old bikes and he was a big part of getting me on the road as well.
Although I never got the opportunity to ride with my father, I feel his presence every time I ride one of his old bikes and even more so when I ride with his friends. He never taught me to work on bikes or how to run a business. I just happened to pick up where he left off.
If you have any old pics or stories you'd like to share please contact me so I can get them up here and share them with everyone. Thank you to all of you who have supported me and the rebirth of The 74 Shop.
Any use of the terms "Harley-Davidson, Harley, HD, Big Twin, Panhead, Knucklehead, Shovelhead, Fl, EL, FLH, FX, Superglide, Duo-Glide, Electraglide, Sportster, XLCH, XLH, etc." are used for reference only!
The 74 Shop
26 Pine Grove School Rd.
Saugerties, NY 12477
ph: 845-389-7197
The74Sho