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Difference between revisions of "Harley-Davidson history"
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But in 1941, the USA hadn't yet declared war on Germany, and plans for next year's peacetime Harleys could go ahead. The 80ci (1300cc) side-valve received aluminum cylinder heads in 1940, or better cooling, and 1941 saw a 74ci ( 200cc) version of the Knucklehead, whose new centrifugally controlled oil pump finally solved the old problem of too much lubrication in some places, not enough in others. Not many of them | But in 1941, the USA hadn't yet declared war on Germany, and plans for next year's peacetime Harleys could go ahead. The 80ci (1300cc) side-valve received aluminum cylinder heads in 1940, or better cooling, and 1941 saw a 74ci ( 200cc) version of the Knucklehead, whose new centrifugally controlled oil pump finally solved the old problem of too much lubrication in some places, not enough in others. Not many of them | ||
reached civilian hands though. Also under discussion was a 45ci (750cc) overhead- valve engine, which was logical, given the success of the Knucklehead. It had been discussed for some years, and Bill Harley was a strong advocate of the idea. Three prototypes were built, one of which was taken on a 5,000-mile (8050-km) proving ride into Texas and back. There were no major problems, and the new baby Knucklehead looked promising; but it would have cost as much to build as the bigger side-valves, and the idea was dropped. It would be nearly 20 years before Harley-Davidson finally produced an overhead-valve 'baby' V-twin - the [[Harley-Davidson Sporster|Sportster]]. | reached civilian hands though. Also under discussion was a 45ci (750cc) overhead- valve engine, which was logical, given the success of the Knucklehead. It had been discussed for some years, and Bill Harley was a strong advocate of the idea. Three prototypes were built, one of which was taken on a 5,000-mile (8050-km) proving ride into Texas and back. There were no major problems, and the new baby Knucklehead looked promising; but it would have cost as much to build as the bigger side-valves, and the idea was dropped. It would be nearly 20 years before Harley-Davidson finally produced an overhead-valve 'baby' V-twin - the [[Harley-Davidson Sporster|Sportster]]. | ||
In any case, even by the late 1930s. The Board had had more pressing things to consider, notably the potential of big orders from the army for a standard do-everything motorcycle. Harley's solution was the [[Harley-Davidson WLA|WLA]], basically a militarized version of the standard W-series 45. With its low compression motor, big oil bath air filter and off-road skid plate, the WLA was a truly ragged workhorse. The extra weight of all the army equipment depressed top speed to around 50mph (80km/h), but that hardly mattered unless you were being chased by [[BMW]]-mounted Germans. What did matter was that nearly 90,000 were supplied to the forces, along with a [[Harley-Davidson WLC|WLC]] version for the Canadians, which introduced thousands of servicemen to motorcycles in general and Harleys in particular. | In any case, even by the late 1930s. The Board had had more pressing things to consider, notably the potential of big orders from the army for a standard do-everything motorcycle. Harley's solution was the [[Harley-Davidson WLA|WLA]], basically a militarized version of the standard W-series 45. With its low compression motor, big oil bath [[air filter]] and off-road skid plate, the WLA was a truly ragged workhorse. The extra weight of all the army equipment depressed top speed to around 50mph (80km/h), but that hardly mattered unless you were being chased by [[BMW]]-mounted Germans. What did matter was that nearly 90,000 were supplied to the forces, along with a [[Harley-Davidson WLC|WLC]] version for the Canadians, which introduced thousands of servicemen to motorcycles in general and Harleys in particular. | ||
There were plenty of other military projects at Milwaukee, not all of which saw the light of day. The [[Harley-Davidson XA|XA]] produced, basically a copy of the contemporary BMW, because that's what the army wanted. A civilian prototype of this flat-twin, shaft-drive bike was actually running in 1946. Though it came to nothing, the XA motor was also mooted for a mini-Jeep, which could he parachuted into battle zones, for a generator set, and as an updated modernized Servicar. | There were plenty of other military projects at Milwaukee, not all of which saw the light of day. The [[Harley-Davidson XA|XA]] produced, basically a copy of the contemporary BMW, because that's what the army wanted. A civilian prototype of this flat-twin, shaft-drive bike was actually running in 1946. Though it came to nothing, the XA motor was also mooted for a mini-Jeep, which could he parachuted into battle zones, for a generator set, and as an updated modernized Servicar. | ||