Motorcycle Museums

[MIAirhead]

What Museums have you visited,

I've been to AMA, disappointed.

I liked Kersting's Museum in Indiana, going to try and go to Antique Motorcycle Museum in Plymouth, IN this weekend.

I plan on going to National Motorcycle Museum and Barber as soon as I can.

I not found a list with all the Motorcycle Museums list, Car museums are cool to but I tend to lean to the two wheel ride.

[warredon]

Barber is truly impressive! It is motorcycle history overload where I felt like a newborn.

[SHAG]

Been to Barbers 3 times

http://wheelsthroughtime.com/

http://www.billsbikebarn.com/

[R100R Rider]

Wheels Through Time Museum, Maggie Valley, NC

[GSA Girl]

Dan Rouit has a vintage Flat Track Museum in Clovis California. It is geared toward the AMA Style Flat Trackers who would have raced at places like the Springfield Mile. We have a wonderful free open house in late May every year. Come see us. Tell Dan that Alicia sent you.

http://www.vft.org/rouit.html

[henzilla]

Not huge by most standards and in a very remote part of the TX Hill Country.

http://lonestarmotorcyclemuseum.com/

Nice collection and owners, great riding in the area including the Three Sisters loop. Best times are Fall/Winter/Spring as this is bordering on the Hill Country meets desert West TX warmth.

We usually zip on by as we try to avoid the Cruiser Crowd that stops in regularly...not that there is anything wrong with that... These pics were from 2007, have been back since and always seem to find a surprise.

http://henzilla.smugmug.com/Motorcycles/Lone-Star-Motorcycle-Museum/3365625_5pymM


The bikes get ridden, the British singles take an annual trip out to Big Bend National Park on some really old & classic machines. We have run into their group out that direction twice.
http://henzilla.smugmug.com/Motorcycles/British-Singles-in-Big-Bend-09/9867366_rAzds

[rvb1019]

+200 Wheels through Time in Maggie Valley but you need to do soon. Word is he's giving up on Maggie Valley and moving the museum.

There is a new one in NY- Motorcyclepedia in Newburgh. Guys in my club have been there twice and have enjoyed their visit. They even have a Wall Of Death exhibt inside the museum:

http://nachtflug.smugmug.com/Motorcycles/td/DSC8663/1099298184_88YMZ-X2.jpg

Here is alink tho the thread on Adrider- Motorcyclepedia (http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=565482&page=1) Sadly, they have no BMWs on display.

[tbourque]

[QUOTE=rvb1019;702550]+200 Wheels through Time in Maggie Valley but you need to do soon. Word is he's giving up on Maggie Valley and moving the museum.]

Depends on what day of the week it is! Dale has talked about moving the museum for a couple of years now only to stay put. My guess is he will not move (if he ever does) anytime soon.

With that being said, it is a great museum. All U.S. made motorcycles, cars, and other items, with plenty of memorabilia. Dale (owner/curator) is usually there and will give tours in addition to cranking up a few bikes and riding them.

[Walking Eagle]

Solvang Vintage Motorcycle Museum

Excellent collection, and a little of everything. Overall the collection is about twice the size of the bikes on display, so you can spot something new, all the time. Roughly 75 bikes on the floor at any one time.

Great place, and several bakeries nearby to slake the sugar lust, AND every kind of Danish kitsch you can possibly imagine. Pinot Noir wine country, as seen in the movie, Sideways.

Walking Eagle

[Jogitu]

The Auburn Cord Duesenberg Museum in Auburn, IN had several bikes last times I visited including very old BMW's. Obviously as the name implies this is a car museum but at the factory there are actually two museums. There is the ACD Museum and another located right behind. The big happenings there are over labor day when they have the ACD Festival. I will tell you that as cool as cars museums generally are I have never seen any car as beautiful and massive as a Duesenberg. I get the saying "it's a doozie" after visiting the museum. There is also a aviation museum and another car museum located in Auburn. They have a passport you can get that will save you some cash if you hit all 4. I think there may be a military museum as well.

[Lee200]

[QUOTE=rvb1019;702550]
With that being said, it is a great museum. All U.S. made motorcycles, cars, and other items, with plenty of memorabilia. Dale (owner/curator) is usually there and will give tours in addition to cranking up a few bikes and riding them.

Yes, Dale is a great guy and the Wheels Through Time Museum is definitely worth a visit.

When I was there a few years ago, I casually mentioned to the ticket person that my grandfather owned a Henderson way back in 1918. Over my shoulder, Dale heard me and not only did he give me a personal tour of his Henderson, but he started it up so I could hear what it sounds like. :)

Lee

[rvb1019]

[QUOTE=tbourque;702558]

Yes, Dale is a great guy and the Wheels Through Time Museum is definitely worth a visit.

When I was there a few years ago, I casually mentioned to the ticket person that my grandfather owned a Henderson way back in 1918. Over my shoulder, Dale heard me and not only did he give me a personal tour of his Henderson, but he started it up so I could hear what it sounds like. :)

Lee

Not only will he start up any bike in the place, he will even do a burnout if he is so inclined.

Once, on a rainy spring visit, he let a buddy of mine ride one of the 1930 something Hardleys. Very cool guy!

[rickyD]

The museum of Springfield History in Springfield, MA houses the Indian collection and there are several other museums there in a real nice area that are interesting as well.
The Glen Curtiss museum in Hammondsport, NY has several of his bikes, including a faithful reproduction of the v8 powered bike he built and rode to 137 mph in 1907(!!). I think the original is in the Smithsonian. There are numerous planes of his as well. He was definitely a character worth learning more about.
There is a nice little motorcycle museum on the main drag in Sturgis if your ever out that way. I think its run by the town.

[dadayama]

There are two on Route 66 in Oklahoma

Seaba Station Motorcycle Museum (http://www.seabastation.com/index.html)

Seaba is cool, nice little place worth stopping at if you are in the area. They don't have a charge but you can leave a donation.

Route 66 Vintage Iron Motorcycle Museum (http://www.route66vintageiron.com/)

I have not been to Vintage Iron, so you'll have to go off of the web-site...

[brewmeister]

Harley museum july 21. With my r1100rt parked front-center on the concourse to the entrance of the museum. With my new bush-tec full of beverages. The licence plate frame:one less harley,Priceless. Boy did it ever get it's picture taken that night. They rode in all the new 2012 model harleys to show the croud of 5000 the new bikes. WOW i'd be missing at least a arm and a leg on one of those! It was a lot of fun!!

[Clay]

Right here in Philly..

http://simeonemuseum.org/events

p.s. Go Phillies!:dance

[jopars]

A bit hard to get to for some, but the British National Motorcycle Museum in Birmingham, UK is second to none. Four halls chock-a-block full of every motorcycle Britain ever produced (hint: that's a lot of bikes).

JP

[barryg]

A nice little motorcycle museum in Memphis Tn. is Super Cycle. Address 620 S. Belvedere Blvd. About a 1/2 block north of Lamar Av. and 1 block east of midtown I-240. A lot of vintage Harleys and Indians. Some of the smaller Harley imports. Also lots of Memphis motorcycle memorabilia. This shop built some bikes and trikes for Elvis. No admission charge. Owned by Ron and Lew Elliott

[TomDac]

Solvang Vintage Motorcycle Museum

Excellent collection, and a little of everything. Overall the collection is about twice the size of the bikes on display, so you can spot something new, all the time. Roughly 75 bikes on the floor at any one time.

Great place, and several bakeries nearby to slake the sugar lust, AND every kind of Danish kitsch you can possibly imagine. Pinot Noir wine country, as seen in the movie, Sideways.

Walking Eagle

+1 - a great museum.

[32232]

A bit hard to get to for some, but the British National Motorcycle Museum in Birmingham, UK is second to none. Four halls chock-a-block full of every motorcycle Britain ever produced (hint: that's a lot of bikes).

JP

The selection at the National Motorcycle Museum is simply too much to comprehend. Lots of exceedingly rare factory one-off stuff as well.

Hall after hall of this:
http://i444.photobucket.com/albums/qq163/bikebits/Misc%20Motorcycle/IMG_0240.jpg
http://i444.photobucket.com/albums/qq163/bikebits/Misc%20Motorcycle/IMG_0239.jpg
http://i444.photobucket.com/albums/qq163/bikebits/Misc%20Motorcycle/IMG_0231.jpg

[na1g]

The Glenn Curtiss museum in Hammondsport, NY, the Finger Lakes region of New York, is a good visit. Curtiss was an early motorcycle pioneer who moved into aircraft and competed with the Wright brothers. There are a lot of bikes and aircraft on display and you can see the restoration shop in action, too. Don't go looking for a CB750 or V4 MotoGP bike. Great area for riding around there, too.

pete

[nplenzick]

I've been to most of these listed and all are great. But there's only one that stands head and shoulders above the rest and that's Barber. Nothing else is even in the same ball park. It's truly overwhelming. One of the best times to visit is during their Vintage Festival in October. If you can make it you won't be disappointed!

[mrtnfischer]

There is a new one on the Hudson, near Newburg, cant give ya more and in Norcwhich NY the is a 100 car Museum and has some Bikes..
Looks good at Norwhic, near the catskills

[bmwrider88]

I've been to most of these listed and all are great. But there's only one that stands head and shoulders above the rest and that's Barber. Nothing else is even in the same ball park. It's truly overwhelming. One of the best times to visit is during their Vintage Festival in October. If you can make it you won't be disappointed!

i might have to agree that the Barber Museum is absolutely over the top. i haven't been to many of the others mentioned in this thread but Barber just has SO much!

i was there for the October Vintage meet a few years ago (2007?) and opted for the pass that allows unlimited access to the museum and grounds. we were there for 3 days and spent untold hours gawking about inside the museum. it takes that long to get a good grip on just about everything on display, and from what i understand the display is only the tip of the iceberg!

BARBER- ya just gotta go. do the vintage meet in October and you surely will not regret it.

as an aside,
the Wheels Thru Time Museum is also really really fantastic. Dale calls it the Running Museum, and claims that over 95% of his bikes actually run. he is very accessible, and just a super guy. i would simply call first to arrange a tour not certain at this time what his actual hours are, if any. Dale can be seen at just about any Vintage Bike meet at least here on the east coast, and he'll talk to just about anyone. great guy, what's not to like and support there?

[RickG]

Barber should be on the top of any motorcyclists museum wish list. First time I was there, my buddies and I struck up a conversation with the top curator who was in charge of acquistions and restorations and finangled a tour of the lower level which houses the restoration and fabrication shops. He also took us into what he called his "job security" room. A small warehouse sized room with wall to wall bikes, at least 500 from early 1900's to the present. Most were donations and all of them had to be gone over and determine if it was a keeper, parts bike or ??? Really nice guy to have taken the time out of his busy day just to make ours.

Met Dale a couple of times at Wheels Through Time. After the RA at the Biltmore Dale offered me a short ride on a rare HD BMW clone from the war years. He is quite the character doing burnouts in the middle of the floor among pricelss bikes. As for him moving, I think he is serious this time. I signed up for the Museum email list and he sent one out saying they are officially seeking a new location. I heard through the grapevine that the main issue in Maggie valley is that they won't grant him "Museum" status which offers a tax break instead taxing him as a for profit display of motorcyles. I think he is looking for a town that will appreciate what his museum can do for their town in the way of tourism and offer him some incentives. I have no insider info just my impression from what I have read.

Curtis as mentioned is also great. Motorcycles, Cars, Planes & Boats. A gear heads dream museum.

Visted Cycle Mo's in TN http://www.cyclemos.com/ and it was nice for a 30 minute visit. They don't have an admission but a donation bucket.

I really want to get to the National Motorcycle Museum in Iowa as well as a few of the others mentioned.

Rick G

[nardowell]

Although I have not been there yet, I heard that the one in Anamosa IA is very nice.

http://www.nationalmcmuseum.org/

It was moved from Sturgis to Anamosa in an effort to increase attendance and it is working out very well. It is suppose to have the motorcycles displayed by make and there is one area just for BMWs.

[JavaD]

http://www.themotomuseum.com/
In West ST.Louis, with a nice "Triumph Cafe" attached.

http://www.classicmotorcyclesllc.com/
This was one of the most impressive I've seen due to the number of bikes, different bikes, and various memorabilia

http://www.donelsoncycles.com/aboutus.htm
Donelson's also had (era, 2006 when I was last there) a small room full of their racing and shop memorabilia

http://www.route66vintageiron.com/
Site has been posted, and this is a very, very good museum. A very accurate reproduction of board track racing, a historic board track racing video (the owner found it in Czechsolvakia, but has not converted it to a DvD for sale), and a lot of Evel Knevel stuff.

[Rpbump]

I've been to most of these listed and all are great. But there's only one that stands head and shoulders above the rest and that's Barber. Nothing else is even in the same ball park. It's truly overwhelming. One of the best times to visit is during their Vintage Festival in October. If you can make it you won't be disappointed!

:clap :clap +1

[bunkyone]

Hey all: The Gilmore car museum just south of Hastings MI has a section on motorcycles. While primarily a car place, they have lot's of really neat stuff for any gear head. Not an ugly (or cheap) car in the place, and some truly unique ones. As far as bikes go, not a huge selection, but if you like unusual, this is the place..Like a twin engine Bonneville street bike built by the master wrench's at Midwest Cycles.