103
I was asked to evaluate some items from English Custom Polish, which I had not gotten 
to because of the project. This seemed to be the ideal opportunity, and as you can see, 
the results were stunning. I used the restorer then the super fine show polish, and without 
a doubt, this job is every bit as good as any pro would do. The stuff works. I’m sure, by the 
time I finish with the bike, I’ll need to order more as most of my stuff is polished aluminum. 
You can order this stuff online from their web site at www.englishcustompolishing.com. 

I prefer polished aluminum personally since, when it gets scratched, it’s easy to fix and clean up. If you 
chip or mess up a chrome piece, you’re screwed! I’ve even dinged the wheels on my truck, sanded them 
out and polished them so you’d never know.

104
Set the front wheel into the center of the fork. You can tie a nut to a piece of string and 
hang it from the center of the fork to find the center. Now measure for the spacers 
you’ll need to find or make.

Don’t forget to subtract the thickness of the fender supports and the brake caliper 
bracket on one side. 

You will need one spacer for the brake side to go up against the wheel that is about 1/4” thick. This will 
space the brake bracket away from the rotor bolts just enough to clear. Then a 3/4” chrome washer from 
Gardner-Westcott seemed to be about the right thickness. The fender support then goes on and what’s 
left is the length you’ll need.

The right side spacer was about .200 up against the wheel. After you slide on the fender support, you 
should come up with a measurement of 1-1/4” left. Harley-Davidson does make a standard front wheel 
spacer that is 1-1/4” long and it can be ordered aftermarket, already chromed.

If you check with your local shop, many distributor catalogs have the measurements isted in the spacer 
section with the axles. You might find many of the spacers you need are available off the shelf, thus saving 
you some time and effort.

Since everything else was polished aluminum on this project, I just made a spacer. I might also mention 
that your local machine shop can help you with this part as well.

105
Once you have everything mocked up, you should have something like this.