Article And Photos By: Chris Callen
w
hether you ride your springer a lot or if you picked one up at a good deal through a swap meet, basic maintenance and care can take you a long way. Most importantly, with only a few items on a springer that really wear, it’s an easy fix that can keep you safe. Since my ’49 Panhead, “The Ticket” has had very little love over these past five or six years since she was launched, it was way past the 40,000-mile maintenance interval that Paughco, the manufacturer of its springer, calls for. I headed out to Carson City to the shop and got a first-hand lesson in the proper care of my Springer from Rufino. He’s been at Paughco for over 25 years and has more than 15,000 Springers under his belt. Every one that rolls out of their door has been built by
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February ‘18 - CYCLE SOURCE MAGAZINE
hand by this one man, so what he says… I listen to.
The first step is to separate the springer from the motorcycle. Now, some people will tell you that you can do this while it’s on the bike, but I like to have my work in front of me firmly placed on a solid table.
While Rufino has a snazzy jig for building and rebuilding his frontends, it can be done on a bench with a ratchet strap. Just think about what you are doing and follow the steps closely.
