Harley-Davidson track racing machine

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Harley-Davidson track racing machine (model with Merkel fork )
V2 engine (One-Cam)

The Harley-Davidson track racing machine (1916 to 1921) was the first racing motorcycle with a two-cylinder engine and eight valves developed by Harley-Davidson exclusively for track racing .

Development and technology

The 988 cm³ large and 6: 1 compression V2 engine (bore / stroke 84 × 89 mm) with hanging valves and a hemispherical combustion chamber, presented in 1916, had eight valves and initially made 14 (10) later almost 20  hp (15 kW). The engine of the first copies was controlled by a camshaft; In 1919, the two-cam model (two-cam model) appeared with a larger oil pump. The mixture was prepared by a Schebler carburetor and ignited by a Bosch magneto ignition. The motorcycle frame was a tubular steel rigid frame open at the bottom (with an unsprung rear wheel). A pushed short swing arm with a friction damper led the 28-inch front wheel. The wheelbase was 1308 mm (1270 mm until 1919) and the curb weight was 125 kg. A brake was not provided and, because of the single-speed gearbox, no clutch either. The olive green motorcycle had to be pushed to start. The driver needed two to three helpers for this.

The racing motorcycle was available for private drivers for the astronomical price of 1,500  US dollars (today corresponds to approx. 36,000 euros ); a comparable Indian track racing machine was offered for $ 350. There is no proof of purchase outside of the racing team. How many racing machines were built is not known. Estimates assume that at least 10 to 50 were built, as the eight-valve engine was still available until 1928. Today there are still five copies.

Wrecking crew and records

The racing division of Harley-Davidson under the direction of William (Bill) Ottaway, former chief engineer at the Aurora Automatic Machinery Company , became famous after the First World War under the name "Wrecking-Crew". All well-known American racing drivers, including Jim Davis, Ralph Hepburn, Maldwyn Jones, Fred Ludlow , Red Parkhurst, Otto Walker and Ray Weishaar drove for Harley-Davidson from 1919 to 1921, outclassed the competition and "stamped" all of them over time Records on oval tracks. The team had a little pig as a mascot , which was taken on the motorcycle, especially by Ray Weishaar, on the lap of honor. The superiority of the Harley-Davidson racing machine at that time is seen in the more thorough technical preparation and the higher resilience of the material. On February 2, 1921 Otto Walker achieved a speed of over 100 mph (over 160 km / h) for the first time in a race with a Harley-Davidson track racing machine  . At the end of 1921, Harley-Davidson withdrew from racing for economic reasons and dissolved the racing department.

On September 7, 1923, Freddie Dixon set an official speed record for motorcycles in Boulogne (France) with a Harley-Davidson track racing machine of 171.350 km / h .

literature

  • Thomas Krens and Matthew Drutt (Eds.): The Art of the Motorcycle. Guggenheim Las Vegas. 2003, ISBN 0-8109-9106-3 .
  • Death Rafferty: Harley-Davidson. Motorbuch Verlag Stuttgart, 1st edition 1997, ISBN 3-613-01796-2 .
  • David K. Wright: The Harley-Davidson Motor Company. Motorbooks International, Osceola, Wisconsin 1983, ISBN 0-87938-103-5 .

Web links

Commons : Harley-Davidson track racing machine  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Tod Rafferty: Harley-Davidson. Pp. 28 to 29.
  2. ^ A b David K. Wright: The Harley-Davidson Motor Company . P. 161.
  3. ↑ a b Thomas Krens and Matthew Drutt (eds.): The Art of the Motorcycle , p. 153.
  4. ^ Erwin Tragatsch : Motorbikes - Famous Constructions. Motorbuch Verlag Stuttgart, 1st edition 2000. ISBN 3-613-02038-6 , p. 64.
  5. ↑ motorcyclemuseum.org Jim Davis (accessed May 1, 2015)
  6. ↑ motorcyclemuseum.org Ralph Hepburn (accessed May 1, 2015)
  7. ↑ motorcyclemuseum.org Maldwyn Jones (accessed May 1, 2015)
  8. ↑ motorcyclemuseum.org Red Parkhurst (accessed May 1, 2015)
  9. ↑ motorcyclemuseum.org Otto Walker (accessed May 1, 2015)
  10. ↑ motorcyclemuseum.org Ray Weishaar (accessed May 1, 2015)
  11. ↑ Wolfgang Wiesner: Harley-Davidson. Motorbuch Verlag Stuttgart, 2nd edition 1986, ISBN 3-613-01097-6 , p. 46.
  12. ↑ motorcyclemuseum.org Otto Walker (accessed April 27, 2015)
  13. ^ David K. Wright: The Harley-Davidson Motor Company. P. 173.
  14. ^ LJK Setright: The Guinness Book of Motorcycling. Facts and Feats. 1982, ISBN 0-85112-255-8 , p. 179 ff.