March 28, 2024

Wall-To-Wall Harleys

Local has incredible, if hidden, collection
Jan. 15, 2016

We’ve all heard the expression, "You never know what goes on behind closed doors." Truer words couldn’t be said of longtime Wexford County resident Gene Payne and what lies behind the doors of his garage. That’s assuming you could even find his home; if you’re lucky enough to be invited. There’s no mailbox with a street number; you have to know what to look for, the equivalent of a secret code. Once inside, you’ll see something you can’t find anywhere else in the state of Michigan or likely beyond: A museumworthy collection of vintage Harley-Davidson racing motorcycles. The sight could inspire even the most risk-averse to snap on a helmet and burn some rubber.

Motorcycles are packed in handlebar-tohandlebar, two-deep on one side, with only a small aisle to maneuver through. Payne can’t provide an exact number of motorcycles he’s collected. "Around 40 or so," he said, though it can feel like much more.

Payne’s collection isn’t limited to motorcycles. The walls are a curated chaos of racing memorabilia: Vintage oil cans, framed racing jackets, helmets precisely turned on the diagonal and stacked across shelves, glass cases of tachometers, row over row of tireless rims, Harley Davidson spark plugs in their original boxes, old gas tanks waiting to make a bike go. Motorcycle-size license plates from the 1930s checker the walls next to large paintings of motorcycle races.

Everything in the shop is spotless and in perfect order, much like the man who created it. He’s neatly dressed, in clean Levi’s and a button-down shirt topped with the requisite leather biker vest, which he insisted he wears to keep warm.

Payne’s firm handshake is likely strengthened by years of wrenching on bikes – and before that, cars and trucks. He owned Payne Truck Service in nearby Buckley for 43 years, until he sold it a few years ago to focus on his collection full-time. Payne has lived on his property, roughly 40 acres, since 1983.

Having grown up in Madison Heights, Payne came to know northern Michigan through visits to extended family. Once his first child was born, he moved Up North permanently in the late "˜60s to raise his own family and he’s been here ever since.

Payne seems at right at home in one of the three vintage barber chairs that accent his front room. His eyes light up when he discusses each of his bikes, usually accompanied by an intriguing tale of how it was acquired. His first motorcycle at age 13 was a Czechoslovakian bike called a Jawa, but it was the Harley he landed next that set him on his path toward collecting, an endeavor he described as "investing his children’s inheritance"¦ in precious metals."

What makes the bulk of Payne’s collection particularly unique is it includes the rare Harley racing bikes, known as "KR" models, which were limited editions made between 1952 and 1969. For some of those years, a mere 30–40 bikes were produced, while other years, only 2 or 3.

"When you think about the whole world, it’s a pretty low production," he said. "I’m not into mass production. My production is pretty slow and low." Unfortunately, taking one out for a ride is out of the question. These aren’t your typical street bikes; in fact, most aren’t even street legal. These bikes were built for dirt tracks and road tracks, and sometimes a combination of the two.

Payne did some racing himself, but "not a lot," he said. "I was never a natural." Instead, he took up collecting and restoring the bikes.

In 1969, engine requirements for race bikes changed, so these motorcycles effectively became obsolete overnight – at least to the racers.

"That’s what’s, for me, the unique part of it. That after 1969, everybody just junked them. They were worth nothing back in 1969," he said.

Indeed, many of the pristine bikes now housed in his shop arrived in large tote bags. From those "piles of parts," Payne built them to what they are today – colorful marvels of steel and polished chrome.

"It’s just become an obsession. It used to be a hobby. For a long

time, when I first started, it was kind of a hobby"¦ " His voice trailed off as he slipped out to fill his empty mug. From the next room, he asserted, "But it’s not a hobby anymore."

When possible, Payne researches each bike, tracing its history and rider in an effort to restore it to its original condition. Many were ridden professionally, with riders often tweaking their bike to their personal liking, with features Payne would later try to replicate.

"Sometimes it’s difficult. I have to use my imagination on what other people did, because I don’t have good photographs or I don’t have stuff to go by," he said. "But usually it shows up. You’ll find something in books, or magazines."

"I follow up on the particular riders, and how his bike was built. Everybody did things a little different. I study what they did, why they made little parts the way they did."

Payne is a storyteller, and the collection serves to tell the story not only of the bikes, but those original riders who owned them. Each piece adds to the story, such as the scuffmarks from the track visible on the arms of the "leathers" – the custom-made one-piece suits the racer wore during competition – which are also becoming highly collectible. The narrative continues through the iron shoe soles that racers wore to protect their feet, which they pressed into the dirt as they cornered on the track in the absence of a brake.

Payne’s painstaking attention to detail and financial investment have paid off. A number of his bikes have received high acclaim at national events, landing in the Winner’s Circle by the Antique Motorcycle Club of America (AMCA); it’s a designation achieved after a minimum of three rounds of intense judging where vintage bikes are scored based on how similar they are to the "the way they would have appeared when they were first delivered to the dealer decades ago." Another of his bikes earned first place from judges at the renowned LeMay Museum in Tacoma, Wash. That bike was also "a pile" when Payne purchased it.

Collecting and restoring is a laborious process; it’s not uncommon for Payne to spend two to three years working on the same bike. One of his has been nearly 12 years in the making – and it’s "nowhere near ready," he added.

Payne is also well known among other owners and collectors seeking information on their own motorcycles of the same era. "My phone rings a lot," he said.

It’s the same expertise that led to his latest venture involving a vintage 1972 XR-750 bike with a storied past: It was once used by Evel Knievel in his famed yet unsuccessful attempt to jump 22 cars back in 1972. Payne was hand-selected to prepare Evel’s bike for daredevil Doug Danger to attempt the same record-breaking jump last August in Sturgis, S.D, which Payne refers to as "the biggest party in the world." (Unlike Evel’s original jump, this time it was a success.)

Apart from researching, wrenching, and helping break world records, Payne stays active throughout the year, traveling to 6 or 7 events across the country and meeting up each month with members of the local chapter of the AMCA. His garage is not open the public, but he has hosted tours for groups with a genuine interest.

Aside from the Harleys, Payne also owns some newer Honda motorcycles he uses for cruising around town. Whenever possible, though, he prefers to ride his 1956 Harley KHR – a former race bike he made street legal. When asked why, he said, "It’s old. It’s more fun." Pointing at a Honda, "And this? It’s like a belly button," he said. "Everybody has one."

Walking through the garage, he paused at an orange Harley drag bike, built in 1975. Payne thinks they only made one. Though he’s owned it for 8 years, he has never even started it.

When asked what he was waiting for, he responded: "Time."

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