OLD BIKES. . .we need another thread ( ! )

[Marty_d]

Somehow I can't see those dudes dealing drugs & guns while living at strip clubs.

 

 

[Phil Perry]

1914 Harley single cylinder two speed rear hub all chain drive. Quite useable machines. for the time. The light s are compressed gas with a filament like a Tilley lamp.. Nev

Thanks Nev,. . . I forgot to mention that the photo was tagged (L to R), Mr. Harley and Mr. Davidson; the Men themselves !

 

 

[old man emu]

Somehow I can't see those dudes dealing drugs & guns while living at strip clubs.

That's right. It wasn't until after WWll that the gangster types (with an extra dollop of "America saved the world") created the darker image of motorcyclists. It took a while before these bikie gangs adopted the H-D as the only bike to ride. In the early 50's British bikes made big inroads into the US motorcycle market. If you look at the bikes in Brando's "The Wild One" you will see more British bikes than American. The dominance of H-D as the American bike in the 50's and 60's was no doubt due to the demise of the Indian brand.

 

Sorry, Phil, but the caption has been proved to be incorrect. The men are simply two happy Harley riders.

 

 

[facthunter]

Yes the Indian died after the Blackhawk 80 in the 50's The engine was stretched,. The tooling was worn out and the bike was beyond the "safe" state of development. The gears were virtually no different from the 1916 box and the crankpin dates back to 1922 ( as an example.). Indian went Public early in the 20's and many of the directors were not motorcyclists (much the same as the BSA board) The Indian would have needed a ground up redesign which has sort of happened now with the recent revival of the name. The 750 has a very modern motor with the early style retained to a point. The bigger bike is a real retro look with nice leatherwork but I wouldn't buy one myself. I think Polaris make them. Seem like good quality. The metal polishing is costly so that is "going" to keep the price competitive. Nev

 

 

[spacesailor]

"Sorry, Phil, but the caption has been proved to be incorrect. The men are simply two happy Harley riders."

 

Today it would read,

 

"Two gay Persons on their steads"

 

spacesailor

 

 

[facthunter]

They liked riding so much they keep putting money into the company, which is now the oldest bike company still running under it's original name and form.. At that time Indian was the biggest manufacturer by far(in the world) with engines designed by a Swede, Carl Oscar Hedstrom who was kicked out (retired) about 1915 and the Bikes then designed by an Irish rider of some note, Charles B Franklin who designed the Powerplus Sidevalve model (1916 to 1924) and the 1920 on Scout and Chief. engines which remained relatively unchanged till the company went out of production in the 50's. Indian went Public (listed stocks) early in the piece, and had constant board policy changes. like BSA in the final days, the board were not riders. Many parts were outsourced and quality variable. At the end the tooling was in poor state after 2nd war production and design was truly dated.. The Blackhawk chief of 1340 cc was stretched by stroking and put piston speeds through the roof on a bike already notorious for piston ring wear.. Nev

 

 

[old man emu]

There's a lot to be said for the original owners of businesses keeping the business in the family, especially for American businesses. It seems that as soon as there is a boardroom full of "businessmen" the raison d'etre for the business is cast aside in favour of bolstering the bottom line.