A girl on wheels

a GM design of the 1950's

the Aerotrain a futuristic design for passenger trains 1956. two were built and tried by various railroads. Rock Island was the only one to run an Aerotrain for any length of time. they rode rough and lacked power for some hilly runs. both still exist in museums.

my favorite Chinese motorcycle

the Chiang Jiang 750cc sidecar outfit. all of 22hp. slow but very reliable. great around town or on small state or county highways but don't get on the freeway with it. about 60mph top speed but will cruise at 52 as long as you can stand it. it is actually quite comfortable both on the bike and in the sidecar.

inside the cockpit

the driver's post inside the Futurliner. over 11 feet from the road.

more Futurliner

here is the rear view of the Futurliner.

Chinese Motorcycles

There are quite a few Chinese motorcycle manufacturers popping out over there. They somewhat tickles my nostalgic feeling; 60's of Japanese and British Motorcycles or 40's of BMW. Some are looking quite modern now a days and I don't mind owning one.

"Their just cheap garbage." Some said. Yes, maybe so right now but that sounds bit familiar, isn't it? I have heard that before.

Back in the early 1960s, Triumphs, BSAs, Nortons and all bikes British were king of the motorcycle hill. Some said if you ain't riding a Harley, you ain't a real biker...Japanese bikes were small, cheap and sold out of little hole-in-the-wall store fronts... In fact, some Honda Cubs were sold in sporting good stores or even grocery stores. At the time, all the magazines and British shop all said the Jap bikes were junk: Poor quality, unreliable and used funny (JIS) metric tools. Just stay with good, reliable British bikes or King of the road, Harley Davidson.

That really worked out as we all know. Now I hear the same thing about the Chinese bikes. So what is the real truth? According to some mechanics that have worked on Chinese bikes, their quality is just fine but there is a problem. You get what you pay for. There are literally a dozen of Chinese motorcycle factories over there. There are hundreds of parts suppliers. They build a bike and sell it cheap. Trouble is that there is basically no support. No parts support, No shop manuals. No factory training . " We just build them; anything happens to it after the purchase is your problem" attitude. As if they are telling you that they are so busy clanking bikes so fast that there is no time for after care service. I guess when you buy bike that cheap, you are taking over the dealer's job; you are responsible for the support of the bike and we are getting paid for it. Our pay is the money we saved by buying a cheap bike.

I hear that these bikes are well made for the most part. The only real problem is that the Chinese have not totally figured out what is required to make a good reliable motorcycle for the US market... yet. For example. One of the bikes' rear chain was not adjustable from side to side so the chain was not perfectly aligned with the front sprocket. However, they put the heavy duty 630 chain on it. The engine was a 250cc. Even with a lot of side wear, the monster chain will never break. Their philosophy of good reliable machines might be bit off from ours...

I also heard that they are producing so many bikes and models like cell phone companies; two year old models are already obsolete in their book. You will not be able to get parts for it. Yeah they sell parts. But they like to sell complete assemblies rather than tiny individual parts. such as complete carburetor assembly, complete clutch assembly, complete magneto assembly...Yeah they are cheap so you might not mind. But I bet you will have many extra parts in your garage.

I toyed with the idea that becoming a dealer for those Chinese bikes especially the one with a side car. But as I learned those facts, I realize that I should wait at least they start publishing decent shop manuals for each models in decent English language. (They are known for not having native speakers to correct any awkward sentences in any language) Thus the web site page like Engrish.com, or the term Chinglish

Chinese Motorcycle Industry Factoids from Motorcycle.com

1. There are more than 130 motorcycle manufacturers in China

2. Chongqing-based manufacturers produced 10 million units

3. Twenty-three Chinese OEMs each produce more than 100,000 units annually

4. Twelve manufacturers produce more than 500,000 units a year

5. At least five manufacturers produce more than 1 million units a year (four are based in Chongqing)

6. China produced 27.5 million bikes in 2008, nearly half the world's production

7. China has passed Japan as the number-one motorcycle producer

8. More than 15 million motorcycles are sold annually in China

9. Less than 20% of China's production goes to foreign markets

10. Chinese bikes sold in export markets like America are often marketed by independent companies operating under different names.

A Rider of Uyghur

photo by Nicolas Monnot

another design by Harley Earl

this is one of my favorite Harley Earl designs. the 1950 GM Futurliner. this one just sold for a little over $4,000,000 at auction. these were actually designed in the 1930's and first used in 1940. the one pictured represents the way they looked in the 1950's. the driver's cab was changed as was the engine and transmission. originally the top speed was about 40mph.

Sponsor

Nice to have any sponsor if you are competing.

steam rescue on a snowy day

England's newest steam locomotive Tornado rescued stranded passengers in the south eastern part of the country recently. the regular electric service wasn't able to run in the cold and snowy conditions so Tornado filled in and hauled the train.

1949 El Kineno by Harley Earl

"1949 El Kineno: The El Kineno, perhaps the earliest ancestor of today’s crossover SUV/minivan, was custom-designed by Harley Earl for Richard Kleberg, boss of the King Ranch in Texas. Kleberg wanted a vehicle rugged enough to chase game and cattle through the ranch’s rough terrain, yet still sufficiently luxurious to transport visitors to the ranch in style. Earl filled the El Kineno with unusual features, including an oversized radiator and water storage tanks to handle the Texas heat, special brakes sealed to protect against sand and dust, and a tinted windshield to reduce the sun’s glare. A two-way radio telephone made it possible to communicate with the ranch house. One of the other interesting features of the El Kineno was the fully-stocked bar installed behind the front seat."

I don't know, but those appear to be rifle cases in the front fenders. I like the seat on the passenger side front fender. I wonder what the huge eye-bolt in the running board was used to tie down. Check out the cowhide flooring.

After the Rain

Russia. Military police in guerrilla territory.
July 1941
Via Wikipedia

Remove me from your mailing list

I hate chain mails.

A typical chain letter consists of a message that attempts to induce the recipient to make a number of copies of the letter and then pass them on to as many recipients as possible. Common methods used in chain letters include emotionally manipulative stories, get-rich-quick pyramid schemes, and the exploitation of superstition to threaten the recipient with bad luck or even physical violence or death if he or she "breaks the chain" and refuses to adhere to the conditions set out in the letter.

In the United States, chain letters that request money or other items of value and promise a substantial return to the participants (like the infamous Make Money Fast scheme) are considered a form of gambling and therefore illegal.^[1] Other types of chain letters are viewed as a general nuisance in that frequently multiplying letters clog up the postal system and do not function as correspondence mail, but rather, a game. Some colleges and military bases have passed regulations stating that in the private mail of college students and military personnel, respectively, chain letters are not authorized and will be thrown out. However, it is often difficult to distinguish chain letters from genuine correspondence.

The Garage is My Church

GBR

the amazing George Bennie Railplane. 1935 an experiment with a mode of passenger transportation meant to replace the railways. it worked and was very smooth in operation. unfortunatly no one was willing to pay for such a thing and no more than this test track and vehicle were ever built or operated. powered by electrically driven propellors the motors of which drew their current from a live rail.

Redrup radial 1919-1922

this is the Redrup radial engine designed by Charles Benjamin Redrup. a 3cyl, 120 degree, 303cc radial engine which unlike a rotary does not revolve in the frame.

a little something

here's a little something for those made nauseous by my former posting of a fat woman. after this you'll feel much better.

rotary engine

this is the supercharged, rotary engine in the 1904 Barry Motorcycle. designed by Charles Benjamin Redrup, the entire engine rotates around the crankshaft which is held rigidly inside the frame of the bike.

Happy Birthday, Bridget!!

Today is Bridget Fonda's birthday. She is 46. I always adored her and she is still gorgeous.

Did you know she was in "Easy Rider"? She played a little girl in commune. She recalls her father complaining about the famous bike being hard on his body during the shoot.

Request by Mitch

The picture Buck posted made many people nauseous.

Running Away from Fatty

I am still in Pain

back to skinny now

can't get much thinner than this. a 50cc Kreidler Grand Prix machine. this in particular is Jan de Vries motorcycle. no cellulite here!

Kaw Z1000 to cleanse my soul...

Yeah I like it from the back.

More

More to save myself from the trauma

I am still grossed by the picture.

Say No to Obesity

No pictures of cellulite and stretch marks, please

To erase the memory of the picture of grease dripping woman

To forget the fat chick picture that Buck posted

To Cleanse My eyes from Big ass woman picture

To Cleanse My eyes from Big Mama post

To cleanse my eyes from previous post

motorcycle mama won't you lay your big spike down

this picture made me think of our friend Kirk. I don't know for sure but she could be pregnant too.

lets go sailing

it's been so windy lately we should get out our bicycles and go sailing. I did this once when I was about 11 or 12. used a bed sheet and some kind of pole. I put it up in too strong a wind and was barely able to stop before running into a large deep ditch at the end of the road. I thought I was gonna die! or at least get hurt badly. luckily I didn't. I just got my first case of road rash.

Black Military Police

I could not find any info on this unit. Other than "An MP on motorcycle stands ready to answer all calls around his area. Columbus, Georgia." April 13, 1942.

I wonder why they have to segregate the police as well.

Via flickr.com

Buell Assets Liquidation About to Begin

"In what is sure to be a painfully long and tortuous process for the former Buell Motorcycle Company (from Eric down to the graveyard shift janitor), the final act of its disassembly will be handled by Grand Rapids, Michigan – based Liquid Asset Partners.

In a release from Liquid Assets, the company states the “liquidation sale will start January 28th and run everyday for 30 days until everything is sold. Regardless of cost or loss, millions of dollars worth of equipment and tools will be sold directly on the factory floor.”

But don’t think this is just a sell-off of the last few skeletal remains of bikes. This is a soup-to-nuts type sale. From things as simple as wrench sets, to office chairs, to the Buell Factory tractor-trailer rig, it’s gotta go!

For the right person or company, this is a chance (how ever regretful it may seem since no one wanted to see this happen!) to acquire start-of-the-art tooling and manufacturing equipment. Or even a nice rolling tool chest!

Download the 368-line spreadsheet list of items up for sale from Liquid Assets website and you’ll note a couple non-Buell scoots. None of the four bikes listed (2 KTMs, a BMW and a Triumph) are late model, but they are all low mileage.

The reason these non-Buells are up for sale, in case it isn’t obvious, is that Buell, like all OEMs, purchase competitor’s bikes for thorough evaluation, and possibly even for some reverse engineering, to see how the company’s own product can be made better than the next guy’s stuff.

As sad as this is, the opportunist (scavenger?) in me wishes I had a few grand to throw around…"

Via Motorcycle.com

Anything with beginnig also has its ending....

Open Road