Anytime David Passaro and Bret Hatt team up on a project, you know it will be something pretty cool. TRM NorCal has been fortunate enough to have featured several motorcycles that these two builders have been involved in, but this is a first time collaborative build. And to be honest, the first time I saw this bike on the lift, I had to do a double take and walk around it twice to notice that both sides of the bike had identical paint jobs but in different colors. The story as it was told to us was that the original SoCal builder - Hillbilly was from Ventura had it painted this way to give tribute to the town he lived in as well as the town he grew up in. It’s a unique idea for coming up with how to paint your bike. Dave knew in order to restore this beauty back to its stock condition that he would need to resource some hard to find parts. That’s where Bret Hatt of Hatt’s Motorcycles came to mind. After Bret’s finishing touch, Terri and I rode out to his shop to Marin County for this photo op down the road in Point Arena. Talk about a flashback, old school kind of day! Here is a rundown on this sweet ride.
BIKE SPECS
MAKE: Harley-Davidson
MODEL: 1949 EL Panhead
OWNER: David Passaro
BUILDER: Bret Hatt – Hatt’s Motorcycles / Forest Knolls
ENGINE: H-D Panhead
DISPLACEMENT: 74 CI
CARBURETOR: Link
PIPES: Fishtails
TRANSMISSION: 4 Speed
FRAME: 1949 H-D Wishbone
STRETCH: Shortened by 1”
FORKS: Wide Glide
REAR SUSPENSION: Hardtail
FRONT WHEEL: 19” Spoke with Star Hub
BACK WHEEL: 16” Star Hub
FRONT BRAKE: Drum
REAR BRAKE: Drum Hydraulic
BARS: Drag Bars
FRONT FENDER: Narrowed 1949 H-D fender
BRAKE FENDER: Modified
SEAT: Banana style seat
PAINTER: Hill Billy
COLOR: RED on right / Blue on left
SPECIAL MODIFICATIONS: Hannon Heads
