Can you Date this VL?

Hey Guys, This is a picture of the local dealer in Waverly, NY circa, 193?. William Dimmick, the owner, who's on the the right, and his unnamed buddy have just returned from Maine and a successful Moose Hunt. And something else, not sure what the rack on the top of the pile is. Anyway, I'm trying to date the year the photo was taken. I'm pretty sure the bike was new, or nearly so, when they started out. An interesting fellow, to say the least. By the time I got interested in Harleys, his son was running the store, and he just hung out there, talking about the good ole days. In his youth, he went over to Hammondsport and worked with Glen Curtis. The story goes that motorcycles were o.k, but when Glen started experimenting with aeroplanes, he came back home!
Any and all help with dating the pic would be appreciated.
Thanks, DD

dick

when enlarged i can barely make out a 5 in the lower right corner of the license plate.

1935?

john

The airflow fenders and the Flying Diamond on the gas tank makes it a 1934/'35. I can barely make out the diamond on top of the rear fender which nails it as a 1934.

The other rack is very small caribou ... Which would have probably come out of Quebec, Canada, or thereabouts.

Mark

Just a moose or two, and a caribou,
and a bison cow or so,

.... by one version, anyway.....

is the term'' small caribou rack'' a harley trade name or like knuckle ,pan some thing that the public started.
jib

ok, can we do the joke about "look at the rack on that" now?

Well, this thread went totally out of control Doesn't make no never mind to me, I found out what I wanted to know. However, I'll never be able to think of motorcycles and racks in the same sentence with the clean pure mind I once had
DD

Frankinstien,
Do you have any more great photos like that?

Sorry Chris, I just lucked into this one photo. It hung in the dealership on the wall for years, (along with the Moose rack), and somehow this copy turned up in the local Waverly newspaper awhile back. By the way, a friend bought the window glass seen in the top of the picture with the printing on it. It had been enclosed with a facade for years, he found it and fished it out somehow without breaking any of the panels.
This was one of those great old dealerships that was forced out of their franchise in the early 80's push for the glass and tin boutiques. I think he started up with Harley in the 'teens.
DD

I'M GLAD TO BE OLD ENOUGH, BUT STILL YOUNG ENOUGH TO REMEMBER THAT SHOP AND PHOTO. THANKS FOR SHARING IT.

X-WLCH, If that's the case, you probably tripped over one of my bottom ends waiting for Ted to "get around to it".
DD

What a great picture. Thanks Dick. I'm thinking it's a 1935, short grips on bars and 35 style air scoop.

I'd say '35 as well. I don't see the diamond on the rear fender like Chris does. A '34 would also have the 'diamond' painted on top of the tank, and I can see clearly, the tank does not have the diamond on top. If we could see the gas tank behind the shifter, we'd be able to tell for sure. '34 has no other shape on the side of the tank other than the sticker, '35 has a painted panel in front of the sticker.

I say '35.

The '35's have two toned fenders.

I just revisited this post to refresh my memory as to the consensus on the date taken. I'm framing up a copy to give to a friend for Xmas. In doing so, I noticed the fender on the bike in the window appears to be two toned, as would be the case for a '35. So, I'm going to call the picture as being shot in 1935.
Thanks again for all the help.
Chris mentioned having any other photos, only one comes to mind. A picture of my Dad and his motorcycle buddies in the US Navy Band at the Navy Yard in Wash. DC, in the early '50's. No Harleys, but a Vincent, Norton International, (Dad), Triumphs Matchless, etc. about 7 bikes in all, all lined up in a row, everyone with what we would call a sh**t eating Grin, Garrison Caps at jaunty angles, a bunch of guys enjoying the Fraternity of motorcycling on a Spring day. Unfortunately, it's been lost somehow.
DD