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CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF NORTON COMMANDO CUSTOM & STYLE ISSUE

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BLOOD T H E N E X T G E N E R AT I O N O F C U S T O M BUILDERS AND THEIR BE AUTIFUL BIKES

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#VANLIFE

A SEASON ON SUZUKI— RACING WITH HAYDEN GILLIM

DECEMBER 2017 CYCLEWORLD.COM

PROGRESSIVE.COM

1-800-PROGRESSIVE

DECEMBER 2017

22.

OLD IRON, YOUNG BLOOD The next generation of custom builders and artists is shaping the future of motorcycling. Hint: The future looks very, very good.

By Michael Lichter

30.

CAL'S CALI CAFÉ A custom Honda CB550 with some choice modifications makes its way to the MotoGP paddock for a very special moment with the LCR Honda team and Cal Crutchlow.

By John Stein

34.

HARLEY-DAVIDSON HERITAGE CLASSIC 114 TEST We put the new Softail to the test in town and on the highway to find out if this is the best cruiser H-D has ever made.

By Don Canet

IGNITION 10. FIRST RIDE: 2018 BMW G310GS Inexpensive and compact adventure for the masses.

14. GEAR: Five items to help you treat your twin right.

16. EVALUATION: Shoei RF-SR helmet, a nicely priced fullfeature street helmet with a lot of style.

18. RIDE SMART: Pump it up, or how keeping fit can improve every ride you take.

ON THE COVER: Old Iron, Young Blood Photo by Michael Lichter

44.

FIFTY YEARS OF NORTON COMMANDO There are many vintage British bikes, but why has the Norton Commando stood out as a cultural love object for so long?

By Peter Egan

COLUMNS 7. UP FRONT

By Mark Hoyer 19. WANDERING EYE

By Paul d'Orleans 20. TDC

By Kevin Cameron R A C E WAT C H 54. MAN, VAN, PLAN 2.0 A season racing MotoAmerica

By Mark Hoyer

DEPARTMENTS 8. INTAKE 62. SERVICE 64. SHOWCASE 66. SLIPSTREAM

Visit cycleworld.com every day for a fun mix of two-wheel news, features, and videos!

Online: cycleworld.com | Twitter: @cycleworldmag | Facebook: facebook.com/cycleworld | Instagram: @cycleworld CYCLEWORLD.COM 5

CYCLEWORLD.COM EDITOR–IN–CHIEF MARK HOYER SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, MANAGING DIRECTOR ANDREW LEISNER EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SALES/MARKETING TIM COLLINS CONTENT STRATEGY DIRECTOR KURT HOY DIGITAL DIRECTOR BRIAN SCHRADER

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CYCLE WORLD (ISSN 0011-4286, USPS 571-310), DECEMBER 2017, Volume #56, Issue #11 is published monthly except the January/February issue by Bonnier Corporation, 2 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10016. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY and additional offices. Copyright © 2017 by Bonnier Corp. All rights reserved. Reprinting in whole or part is forbidden except by permission of Bonnier Corp. Mailing List: Occasionally, we make portions of our subscriber list available to carefully screened companies that offer products and services we think might be of interest to you. If you do not want to receive these offers, please advise us at (515) 237-3697. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Cycle World Magazine, PO Box 6364, Harlan, IA 51593-1864. Subscription rates: US and US possessions $15 for 1 year (11 issues). Canada: $25 & Foreign: $45. International orders must be paid in advance and in US funds only. Canada Post Publication agreement #40612608. Canada Return Mail: IMEX Global Solutions, P.O. Box 25542, London, ON N6C 6B2.

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UP FRONT EDITOR’S LET TER

SILENCE THE REASONS YOU SHOULD NOT GO ON AN ADVENTURE

I

t’s important to watch exactly how your world will not end if you decide to get up from your desk to ride motorcycles for a few days.

I was so glad to spend some time dualsporting on my 2013 Yamaha WR250R “ADV LITE” recently that it’s hard to express. But since expressing it is my job, I’m going to take a swing at it…

I do love the bike and the solitary nature of putting on your helmet and interacting with the trail, but the best thing about these rides is the people we take them with. Riding in a group and sharing the struggles and victories and vistas is pure joy.

My new pal Joe Brown, editor-in-chief of Popular Science, came along for a dirt ride we call The Trek recently in the Sierra Nevada range south of Yosemite. At a prime moment watching others conquer the mud bog and slippery roots we just had, he said, “This is really great riding with other people, the camaraderie and shared experience.

I love riding but I always do it by myself.

This is so good.”

And this is exactly the reason Cycle World founding publisher Joe Parkhurst launched the first Trek in 1975 with a trip to Mike’s Sky Ranch in Baja for his closest friends and associates in the industry. It was a true trek—as in a long point-to-point ride—at that time, but the percentage of high-level riders in high-level places in the industry was very high back then. Times were also slower or at least less insistently electronically noisy.

The Trek has been an annual invitational event for us ever since.

My first Trek in 1999 was at a place called Montezuma Lodge in Arizona not far from Sedona. We slept eight in the small cabin where I was bunking, I found out one of the nicest PR guys in the business cussed up a storm in his sleep, and I should say eight humans because the rodent population in our cabin sent the living-creature census

way up. There was but one pay phone, and the nearest cell signal might have been in Flagstaff. Imagine trying to keep 80 people off of Instagram for three days in 2017! The final morning, Lyle Lovett, musician and avid rider, asked me if I’d like another cup of coffee on the porch. “Why, yes, Lyle, yes I would.” At the core, it is the shared experience and common bonds formed during the adventure that have built the lifetime friendships and professional connections I have in the industry.

It’s changed over the years along with communication, culture, and motorcycle technology, but the core shared experience is the same and carries the same value. It’s even more fun now that we can share it all on social media nearly in real time. What could be better than watching (or capturing) your friends crash into a mud bog or conquer a hard, rocky climb?

And while pretty much every part of the motorcycle industry is stressed right now and it’s easy to think if you just work a little harder it might help, you’ve got to stop a moment. You absolutely must remember why we got into motorcycling in the first place, and why we choose to work in the industry is probably more important to the long-term health of yourself and the sport you love. The best message to send about riding motorcycles is to passionately pursue seat time.

Another day at the office doesn’t make memories to last a lifetime. Yes, you have to pay the bills, but paying the bills isn’t the end in and of itself. I work so that I may ride and have adventures with good friends. I feel fortunate that those good friends are also my colleagues and co-workers.

Take a day off and go riding. Parkhurst would approve. In fact, he would insist.

THIS MONTH’S S TAT S

17

AGE OF YOUNGEST BUILDER IN OLD IRON/ YOUNG BLOOD SHOW

1.5

AVERAGE NUMBER OF KICKS IT TAKES TO START MY COMMANDO (I SWEAR)

89,207 COMBINED DYNA, SOFTAIL, AND V-ROD SHIPMENTS IN 2016

MARK HOYER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF CYCLEWORLD.COM 7

WAVE! STICKER SHOCK? BYE, CHAPS TORQUE IS GOOD

KICKSTART THE CONVERSATION

GEORGE RUIZ CYCLEWORLD.COM

COLLUSION, ETC. I'm convinced that your coverage of new Harley-Davidsons is in collusion with the guys who populate their corporate and dealership web pages. The details are thorough and accurate, right down to the last chrome nut, but one rarely sees a hint of the MSRP. They must enjoy that look of shock on customers' faces when they walk through the showroom.

BOB GOMOLA DUBOIS, PA We certainly should have provided pricing in the October issue, but H-D does plainly list pricing in its website, and you’ll find in our Heritage Classic 114 test and Street Bob sidebar prices are clearly listed.

After reviewing the Softail lineup it appears there are no H-D cruisers with a "standard" riding position. That's pretty weak.

PAT CURRAN RED BLUFF, CA Pat, this is the “cruiser” lineup. If HarleyDavidson ever builds another sporting stan8 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

dard like the XR1200X, more people who say they want a standard-style bike from H-D should buy one. But you can fit mid-mount control to the Fat Bob, for example, and that’s pretty close.

NO, IT’S DOMESTIC The cruiser is a foreign country; they do things differently there.

With apologies to LP Hartley.

GRANT ARBUTHNOT AUSTRALIA It appears you took another of his famous quotes to heart. “It's better to write about things you feel than about things you know about.”

WORLD (LESS) SUPERBIKE Kevin Cameron's article on World Superbike summed up the sad future for a series that has brought us epic battles in the past (Bayliss versus Edwards title fight of 2002). As correctly stated, lap times of WSB came close to matching MotoGP. When Dorna purchased the series, I knew their intent. Even the camera angles aren't where they give a greater sense of the battles. I, as a lifetime fan of both series, never felt I had to choose

between the two but enjoyed them both.

JOHN McKENNA CYCLEWORLD.COM

SEAT-OF-THE-PANTS LESSON Sorry, Mr. Hoyer, but better you than me (Up Front, September). Pushing limits while enjoying your “high-flying biker status” that damaged machinery and, apparently, well-chosen safety gear… I immediately thought of the chaps I regularly wear as protection as useless in the type of slide your ass took on the racetrack.

Thank you for the additional lesson on sticking to a riding plan instead of going with seat-of-the-pants feeling when pushing for low lap-time numbers. I am contemplating buying more leather, just in case. Dainese products have seemed expensive to me in the past, but walking away might be…priceless.

PHIL MOYAERT CYCLEWORLD.COM

THE “UN-SOUND FUTURE” As a former operator of a Zap motorcycle some 17 years ago, I can state that while there is a lack of sound on these EVs (Wandering Eye, October), the sensation of instantaneous torque remains alluring. With international legislation coming into focus barring the internal combustion engine, we'll undoubtedly be seeing performance variants of EVs. That said, here in the US, in the not-so-distant future, we motorcyclists may be the sole remnant of operator-controlled vehicles, given the expectation that cars and trucks will be self-driving or robotic. A more elite status of sorts, perhaps.

MARK MERAT SAN FRANCISCO, CA Comments? Suggestions? Criticisms?

Write us at intake@cycleworld.com.

HARLEY-DAVIDSON

I don’t have a lot of passion either way for Harley-Davidson, but I do find it interesting how some people get so mad at them when they change anything from the old ways, and others fillet them because they don’t think the bikes changed enough. Harley’s obviously been doing something right to become the size they are. I’m just glad so many people want to ride motorcycles. I’ll be the guy waving to everybody.

YOKOHAMA DRYSTAR® AIR JACKET

THE WORLD WITH MOTORCYCLES

ALPINESTARS.COM/TECHTOURING

GELÄNDE/STRASSE SLINGSHOTTING STREET SMART SHOEI

Ignition

TAKING THE MODERATE ROAD: Think of the G310GS as the adventure starter kit from BMW. Street-biased, yes, but inexpensive and easy to handle anywhere.

10 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

BY THE NUMBERS

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Million annual production capacity of TVS, BMW’s Indian manufacturing partner and maker of the BMW G310GS

75

Speed in mph when engine vibration becomes noticeable

7.1

Inches of travel on the nonadjustable KYB fork

C W FIRST RIDE

2018 BMW G310GS An Economical And Easy-To-Ride Entrée Into The BMW GS Family

By Adam Child Photography by Amelie Mesecke

T

he BMW R1200GS adventure bike flagship is just that: a flagship.

It’s large, comfortable, capable, and expensive.

For these reasons it can also be a bit intimidating, and it certainly isn’t entry level. But people love the GS, and it’s become the bike BMW is known for. So why wouldn’t the company want to extend its glow to a much more accessible motorcycle for a wider audience?

That bike is the 2018 G310GS, the long-awaited single-cylinder lightweight adventure machine that takes the company’s offerings for multi-surface touring into new low-cost, more accessible territory.

The G310GS is largely based on the G310R roadster and therefore shares the same unusual reverse single-cylinder engine with the intake at the front and the exhaust at the rear, as well as many other common parts, which helps control cost.

The engine design and packaging allows for a lower center of gravity, as well as efficient and direct intake and a shorter exhaust. The small displacement and short pipe means there’s no need for a heavy, bulky, collector box—the catalytic converter is inside the end can. BMW claims 33.5 hp at 9,500 rpm and 20.7 poundfeet of torque at 7,500 rpm.

The bike is small, easy to manage, and ideal for new riders (despite

a fairly tall 32.8-inch seat height).

Clutch pull is light, gearbox action is positive, and the ABS-equipped brakes offer friendly response. Suspension tuning is on the soft side and copes well with bumps, while the tall riding position gives you road presence, allowing you to peer over cars. You have a dominant feeling on the GS, which is unusual for an entry-level bike.

Longer-travel suspension (7.1 inches versus the G310R’s roughly 5.5 inches) and a larger-diameter, offroad-friendly 19-inch front wheel help

with this in-command stance on this claimed 370-pound-wet motorcycle.

The small windscreen is standard as is the large luggage rack, which can accommodate a factory BMW top box. BMW doesn’t offer panniers in the accessories pack, so you’re stuck with an optional top box and tank bag.

On the open road the small screen offers more wind protection than I was expecting. At 60 mph, the single-cylinder four-valve engine is happy revving at 6,000 rpm. Twist the light throttle and increase the

CYCLEWORLD.COM 11

IGNITION FIRST RIDE

G MEANS GO: The 313cc single revs to 10,600 rpm and produces a claimed 33.5 hp. Note the header exiting the rear of the cylinder (below), meaning all of the emissions architecture is inside the muffler (above).

revs to just over 7,500 rpm and 75 mph is easily achievable—and still the claimed 33.5-hp motor isn’t fazed. Once above 7,500 rpm, however, you start to notice vibration, especially through the pegs.

As the digital speedo passes 80 mph, the vibration keeps on climbing.

Thankfully the little 313cc motor doesn’t mind being flogged. Although BMW quotes 33.5 hp, it feels like a little more. It you want the G310 on the boil, keep the digital tachometer above 6,000 rpm and don’t be afraid to push all the way to the 10,600-rpm redline. At 55 mph it’s a fuss-free world, and the bike is far roomier than the 310R. Reach to the levers needs to be shorter for smaller riders, but unfortunately they're not adjustable. Also, the single-cylinder engine can be a little lumpy at low rpm, and the mirrors need to be a fraction wider—small criticisms.

Once off the freeway and into the mountains, I discovered the BMW’s limitations. The handling is user friendly but not sporty. The nonadjustable KYB fork is too soft—it would benefit from more compression and rebound damping—and the softness dilutes the feeling from the front Metzeler Tourance tire. The single rear shock isn’t as spineless but would also benefit from more control. It is also worth noting here the tires are specifically designed with softer sidewalls for the GS, so

that could help explain some of the sogginess in the rear end.

The brakes—which are reassuring in town—lack bite when used aggressively at speed.

There’s plenty of lever travel but a worrying lack of stopping power in extreme conditions. Plus, the ABS isn’t up to the modern standards. I might’ve been riding the entry-level GS a little too hard considering its intended customer, but even at a moderate pace it doesn't feel like a BMW should.

Your experience level and weight (I’m 172 pounds) might give you a different experience.

If you’re new to motorcycling, you’ll have very few complaints because the baby GS is easy to ride and fun. But if you’re thinking of downgrading—like many current maturing BMW GS owners, or alternatively wanting a second bike for commuting—you’ll find the G310GS’s street handling limited.

Quality level is impressive.

The only real giveaway that this BMW is made in India by partner company TVS is the Bybre brakes; Bybre is Brembo’s Indian sister company. In fact, the majority of parts for the G310GS are sourced or produced in India. But, looking at the bike, most will just presume the little GS was made in Germany like the big 1200GS. The G310GS is an economical, easy-to-ride step onto the BMW ladder; you can probably join the GS family for less than $6,000 (price TBA). It’s an impressive alternative commuter that can also take light off-road action. More experienced riders contemplating downsizing within the GS range will discover it’s a significant step down—in power, handling, and specification. But new riders will love the baby 310GS.

2018 BMW G310GS E N GIN E T Y P E Liquid-cooled, four-valve single-cylinder 12 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

DISPL ACE M E NT 313cc

SE AT HE IGHT 32.8 in.

FU EL C APACIT Y 2.9 gal.

CL AIMED WEIGHT 372 lb. (wet)

BAS E P RICE $6,000 (est.)

>> All that’s missing is you, your bike and GEICO Motorcycle insurance.

geico.com | 1-800-442-9253 | Local Office

Some discounts, coverages, payment plans and features are not available in all states or all GEICO companies. Motorcycle coverage is underwritten by GEICO Indemnity Company. GEICO is a registered service mark of Government Employees Insurance Company, Washington, D.C. 20076; a Berkshire Hathaway Inc. subsidiary. © 2017 GEICO

IGNITION GEAR NEW IDEAS

TREAT A TWIN RIGHT Two heads are better than one By Don Canet

4

1

5

3

2

1

2

3

BOXER HEAD GEAR

BRAKE TIME

HOG-TIED

PUT YOUR HANDS UP

SOLO SEAT SUPREME

Outfit your R-Series BMW with protection for the valve cover and its vulnerable front attachment bolt. The Wunderlich Extreme Valve Cover Guard Set ($369.95) is made of anodized, aircraftgrade aluminum alloy and employs force distribution through shaped rubber bumpers between the protector and cover. The slide pad is replaceable following an impact or fall.

(831) 761-1070 wunderlichamerica.com

Spongy feel at the brake lever or pedal can be problematic for twin- and triple-disc brake systems.

Amsoil Dominator DOT 4 Synthetic Racing Brake Fluid ($15.50) is formulated to increase boiling points beyond DOT standards, even when contaminated with up to 3.7 percent water. The 12-ounce bottle is nitrogen charged when factory sealed to purge moisture.

(800) 956-5695 amsoil.com

Losing a load on the road is certain to spoil any cruise. The Kuryakyn Rear Tie-Down Anchors ($39.99) install discreetly to the rear fender struts on select Road Glide, Road King, Street Glide, and Sportster models.

Available in silver or gloss black, the polished steel anchors are said to help minimize potential paint damage from strap contact.

(715) 247-5008 kuryakyn.com

Improve the comfort and stand-up trail-riding posture of your ADV. HeliBars Tour Performance Handlebar Risers ($129) available for the Honda Africa Twin reposition the stock bar 1 1/4 inches higher and 5/8-inch rearward. Made from 6061 aluminum and finished in UV-resistant silver powdercoating, the flex-free design works with standard cables and brake line.

(800) 859-4642 helibars.com

Ride the seat that stunter Rob Carpenter from 1 Wheel Revolution recommends. The Saddlemen 1WR Gripper ($305) for Dyna and Sportster models offers tall lumbar support and diamond waffle pattern Tri-Gripper cover that locks the rider into the bike for enhanced control.

Saddlemen’s UltraFOAM is said to provide a balance of rigidity, compliance, durability, and comfort.

(800) 397-7709 saddlemen.com

14 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

Long Beach, Ca

New York, NY

Minneapolis, MN

November 17-19, 2017

December 1-3, 2017

December 8-10, 2017

cleveland, oh

DALLAS, TX

chicago, IL

Washington, D.C.

January 26-28, 2018

February 2-4, 2018

February 9-11, 2018

February 23-25, 2018

Participating manufacturers vary at each show and are subject to change.

IGNITION EVALUATION CW E VA L U AT I O N

SHOEI RF-SR

T

he helmet as the motorcyclist’s “hat” perhaps hasn’t ever been as important as it is now. No doubt, a full-face helmet is your best defense against head injury, but as a style-conscious generation steps into riding, many are choosing a helmet as much for how it looks as for the protection it may provide.

More subdued colors and designs are proving more attractive to many than the Technicolor explosions popular on the racer side.

16 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

And everybody is attracted to a lower price.

It also seems that everybody who’s seen this Basalt Gray Shoei RF-SR has commented that it’s a cool color, and offsetting it with the Spectra Gold Shield ($99.99) adds a lot of zing.

From a material standpoint, this wallet-friendly Shoei starts with a handlaid fiberglass/organic-fiber composite multi-ply shell Shoei calls Matrix AIM+. The resiliency and energy-absorbing qualities of this type of material are excellent, which is

Economy and luxury in a very cool street helmet By Mark Hoyer

why most makers still rely on some kind of fiberglass composite when making shells.

The workhorse of impact energy absorption is the duallayer multi-density EPS liner (the “foam”) designed to offer a high level of protection in compact dimension, reducing weight and making the overall size of the helmet smaller.

Shoei’s 3-D injectionmolded shields are made in the US by the same company that makes pilot visors for military applications because it can provide perfect optics from every angle. This model uses the

SHOEI RF-SR shoei-helmets.com PRICE: $399

UPS + Awesome Transitions photochromic shield available + Plush, great fitting, and comfortable + Excellent ventilation DOWNS Awesome Transitions shield is $169.99 - Is it artisanal enough?!

- Got nothing…

-

COMPOSITE: Multi-layer fiberglass composite is resilient and shock-absorbing.

Excellent ventilation starts at the adjustable chin inlet. Shield mechanism is among the best. Parts are replaceable and the plate is adjustable for perfect faceshield sealing.

CWR-1 (Pinlock EVO antifog insert included), same as that of the top-line racer model, the X-Fourteen, which is ribbed at its edges for structural integrity. The helmet can therefore also take the racing-oriented CWR-F, which has posts and is vertically flat to allow for tear-off use. I always feel like a jet pilot on a bike, even on my Norton, which is so un-jet-like it is ridiculous.

The QR-E baseplate mechanism holds the shield on, and it’s pretty much my favorite in terms of ease of removal/ installation. Zero trouble and PHOTOGR APHY BY Drew Ruiz

no tricks required. The fiveposition-adjust dial on the plate allows for tuning the excellent seal of the shield to the eyeport. This is a 100-percent leak-free and quiet seal.

Touching your head is the ultra-plush, padded fabric comfort lining that is completely removable and washable. The neck-roll padding provides a slightly larger opening than on the X-Fourteen, which makes it easier to put on and remove the helmet, perhaps at the expense of a bit more noise, though this is a quiet helmet overall.

As a first responder, I really appreciate the Emergency Quick Release System cheek pads that aid helmet removal in case of injury. Those cheek pads are also available in various thicknesses for best fit, and as long as the pads are in new condition, the company will trade sizes at no cost. Four shell sizes accommodate XS–XXL heads.

The Snell M2015/DOT helmet’s design is aimed at street riders, so the orientation of the three adjustable intake vents and two rear vents, plus the eyeport, are

skewed toward more upright seating positions than, for example, the X-Fourteen, which is a racing helmet built to live a lot of its life at full tuck.

The RF-SR is essentially a lot like Shoei’s more expensive helmets and doesn’t give up very much in terms of comfort and quality. Also, for a full-face helmet, the style and colors suit a wide range of motorcycle types, looking good with baggers, bobbers, and sportier streetbikes. It’s an exceptionally nice helmet for the price and has become my daily street-riding go-to hat.

CYCLEWORLD.COM 17

IGNITION RIDE SMART

GET MOVING

PUMP IT UP

B

ikes are not cars, main thing,” says Peter Park, thankfully. Inwhose company Platinum stead of sitting in Fitness trains SX/MX racers them, naturally we Ken Roczen, Blake Baggett, sit on them. In lieu Christian Craig, Adam Cianciarulo, and Chase Sexton. of smooth power steering, we manually operate a vi“Even people who used to be athletic lose mobility from brating handlebar connected to the front wheel. Rather sitting and being inactive. than swigging a caramel Their joints get tight, and macchiato at the stoplight, they can no longer sit down we spend our idle time balin a ‘squat pattern,’ the safe ancing a top-heavy machine position on a motorcycle.” weighing 300 to 900 pounds.

This isn’t just an “old guy” And if you’re a dirt rider or problem, Park notes. “The vintage geek, you may have generation coming up is way to first kickstart an engine, worse, with all the hours old-school style. spent on computers and Yes, riding is a physical texting. We're now seeing task—and like with any sport, ‘computer posture’ in young kids; they have movement you’ll get better if you prepare for it. “Mobility is the patterns of people 50 or 60!”

18 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

Your bike is nicely in tune.

How about that body sitting on top?

By John L. Stein Here are four riding-specific workouts that riders can use to boost confidence and control—and thus safety.

than tired,” Park notes. “This means you'll be safer on the motorcycle.”

BUILD THE FOUNDATION. Park’s

You don’t have to conquer every machine in the gym to improve your riding. “To start, focus on core muscle building by doing squats, dead lifts, pull-ups, and push-ups,” Park says. “Even twice a week will build valuable strength.”

IMPROVE GENERAL STRENGTH.

training starts with creating a strong foundation, a.k.a. your “core.” This means strengthening the midsection and improving flexibility. “Think of your core as a chassis,” Park suggests. “With a weak frame, even the best engine and suspension is useless.”

ACHIEVE CARDIO FITNESS.

Run, hike, swim, or cycle moderately for 30 to 45 minutes, three times per week. “You will make a lot fewer mistakes when fit

OPTIMIZE YOUR POSITION.

Watch what the best guys do,” Park says. They all ride with their hips back and a flat back—not slouched. “With good posture, all your power can go into controlling the bike.”

ILLUS TR ATION BY Ryan Inzana

WANDERING EYE IGNITION

THERE GOES MY HERO THE RISE OF INDIA

BY PAUL D’ORLÉANS

I

t’s time we admit it: We don’t ride num. The vast majority of their products much. are under 250cc, but they’re on a buying At least, not in the numbers (or spree; Mahindra now owns BSA, Jawa, hours) of other countries. If you and Peugeot (two-wheelers), while TVS travel abroad, you’ve already clocked it; in builds BMWs, Mahindra builds HarleyParis or Barcelona or Rome, two-wheelers Davidson Street models, and Bajaj is a big crowd their sidewalks, and the Stoplight investor in KTM. Grand Prix is a way of life.

We haven’t seen an Indian buyout Any Asian city makes Europe seem of an active motorcycle brand yet, but car-centric, and the haze of two-stroke Royal Enfield earlier this year reportedly smoke in Bangkok or Saigon can be made an offer of more than $1 billion to choking. China, once the world’s biggest buy Ducati. The next target of an Indian motorcycle market, is steering out of the takeover could be one of the old American smog with eBikes in urban centers, but “Big 3” brands, as Excelsior-Henderson India is going gangbusters with little goes up for grabs in January 2018, when bikes and is now the largest producer Mecum hosts its annual Las Vegas sale. and consumer of internal-combustion How would Harley-Davidson itself antwo-wheelers on the planet. How big swer to a cash offer from Hero? Either is big? Indian manufacturers sold 17.59 one of these would place the only other million motorcycles in 2016… They exmajor American manufacturer, Indian, in ceed annual US sales (in the 500,000 to competition with actual Indians, which 600,000 range per annum) every 11 days. boggles the mind.

But, to paraphrase Sir Mix-a-Lot, “We We’re witnessing the 21st century like big bikes and we cannot lie.” So we version of the Japanese Invasion of the can ignore China and India, no? early 1960s, when great design and savvy No. There’s already a made-in-India business proved to be a one-two punch to “big bike” outselling every US and Europe- slow-moving British/European brands. an manufacturer: Royal Enfield. While its Only today, Asian companies dwarf 350/500cc capacity is beneath the notice their big-bike competition, and it makes of most American riders, to 1.27 billion In- more sense to buy old brands than put dians it’s an aspirational motorcycle. And them out of business. In that regard, while the retro-themed Triumph Bonnevthe Bullet’s story arc is rich in irony, or ille and Ducati Scrambler are the respecperhaps karma. Royal Enfield and BSA tive companies’ most popular models, the were first encountered by Indians in the Bullet—the original retrobike, designed in 1800s, stamped on gun barrels pointed in 1948 and only updated in 2008—outsells their direction. both by a huge margin.

They’ve certainly had the last laugh in In fact, Harley-Davidson, BMW, KTM, that relationship, as the old firms went Triumph, and Ducati combined sell about bankrupt and the world’s fastest-growing the same as Royal Enfield, which built economy snapped them up. The yoke of roughly 700,000 Bullets in 2016. But Royal colonization has been replaced with the Enfield’s output is small compared to whiff of nostalgia and a reputation for other Indian manufacturers, like Bajaj solid quality. Time and business savvy or Mahindra, or the unacknowledged have proved their own Truth & Reconcili800-pound gorilla of the motorcycle world, ation commission, no apologies required.

Hero, selling 7 million motorcycles per an- “May we sell you a motorcycle, sir?”

BY THE NUMBERS

84% OF TOTAL GLOBAL MOTORCYCLE SALES GO TO THE ASIA/ PACIFIC AREA

$4.1 million

PAID BY MAHINDRA TO PURCHASE THE BSA NAME OUTRIGHT

$34,000 BSA’S INCOME IN 2015 (FROM LICENSING)

CYCLEWORLD.COM 19

IGNITION TDC

THE LONG AND THE SHORT OF FASTENERS WHY SHORT FASTENERS COME LOOSE MORE EASILY

BY KEVIN CAMERON

W

hen Harley-Davidson brought out the new design known as the “Evolution” engine, a major goal was to eliminate oil leaks and gasket failures that had made the previous model the butt of light remarks. Earlier engines employed cylinders bolted to the crankcase by short bolts through a base flange. Heads were then bolted to the tops of the cylinders.

A major part of the “fix” was to replace the short base and head bolts with long through-studs that held down both cylinders and heads.

Why would this change keep engines leak-free? Think of bolts and studs as springs. When you tighten a bolt or the nut on a stud, you are stretching that bolt or stud, and the resulting tension keeps parts in place and gaskets tight. Because there are limits to how much you can stretch metal before it yields (the usual mistake here is “I just tightened it until it started to get loose…”), you can put more stretch into a long fastener than you can into a short one.

A long fastener can better tolerate the heat expansion of the parts they are clamping, whereas a short fastener can more easily be permanently stretched so that it loses part of its clamp load.

Other effects contributing to this difference are settling of gaskets (which is why re-torqueing of head or cylinder fasteners after initial engine operation is sometimes called for) and loss of metal from the slight relative movements between fastener and part caused by vibration. A good example of this is the loosening of the large, thin nuts often used to retain engine output sprockets on their shaft splines or of the several bolts used to retain rear wheel sprockets.

Despite the usual presence of a torsional shock absorber, built into the clutch basket, the drive from engine to rear wheel is not smooth. All the tiny motions that result

20 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

the iron oxide that results from “frettage,” the slight vibratory weld-and-break action between surfaces.

Thin sprocket nuts are so notorious for coming loose that many manufacturers provide tab washers to prevent a gradually loosening nut from coming off entirely. Others avoid this by sliding the sprocket onto its splined shaft and retaining it with a circlip— no nut to loosen.

I learned long ago that when the rear sprocket on the bike after last week’s event is the same one needed today, I must still go through the process of unbending the tab washers or safety wire retaining the sprocket bolts then re-torqueing and securing with tab washers or wire. Why? Because I’d found that a weekend of racing mileage had loosened all the bolts. A look at where the sprocket pressed against the wheel showed evidence of back-and-forth motion that had gradually resulted in loss of bolt tension.

At the Canadian GP in 1967 I saw the late Arturo Magni make a kind of “rite” out of changing the rear sprocket on Agostini’s MV 500 Triple. There were no bolts! Instead, the sprocket fitted onto several short drive pins in the wheel hub and was held in place by a single large circlip (which was subsequently wired in place).

Then there was the case of Kawasaki’s F5 off-road 350 single, which was for a time legal in AMA’s 250 GP class. Driving itself forward as it did by a series of large combustion thumps, there was trouble keeping the primary pinion on the crankshaft. This was the result of a couple of factors. Primary was the thumping, which inevitably produced relative motion between pinion and shaft, and secondary was the shortness of the

BY THE NUMBERS

UNKNOWN WHEN THE LATE DON VESCO WAS ASKED HOW MUCH MORE TORQUE HE PUT ON TZ750 YAMAHA CRANK BOLTS THAN THE 35 LB.-FT. FACTORY SPEC, HE CHEERFULLY ANSWERED, “I DUNNO. I JUST PUT OLD BETSY ON THERE [HIS AIR WRENCH] AND KINDA LET ’ER RATTLE OUT…”

400

APPROXIMATE NUMBER OF LB.-FT. OF CHAIN TORQUE ON A MOTOGP BIKE’S REAR WHEEL, TOP GEAR, 217 MPH

6,500,000 SHAFT TORQUE IN LB.-FT. SENT TO THE 35-FOOT PROPELLER OF A LARGE CONTAINER SHIP BY ITS TWO-STROKE DIESEL ENGINE

TDC IGNITION fastener—resulting in too little “stretch” to maintain tightness.

A first-try tab washer just sheared off; the vibratory “unscrewing torque” was too much for the thin metal. The next try: a thicker washer.

The response of veteran racer/ builder (and 1969 250 GP World Champion) Kel Carruthers was, “It could unscrew once for any of us, and we might not get the fix right the first time, but by God I’d weld the thing to the shaft before I’d let it come loose again!”

Perhaps that’s why Nagato Sato, who designed Kawasaki’s next 250 class entry—the tandem-cylinder KR250—gave it pressed-on crank phasing gears. No vulnerable keys, splines, or tab washers giving up at 12,000 rpm for him.

Polaris/Indian may have had to deal with something similar in securing the external flywheel (made in three weights to tailor rear-tire hookup) of its FTR750

race-only dirt-track engine. The slightest backlash in a splined connection encourages frettage and loss of fastener torque.

Then why did the last generation of two-stroke motocross engines attach their cylinders and heads not with advisable long elastic through-studs (as found on all 1970s TZ roadrace engines) but with short base bolts, with the head then bolted to the cylinder?

In this case, designers had previously found those long stud tunnels right in the way of where they needed to route next year’s transfer ports or sub-exhausts. In some cases tuners had resorted to first modifying the ports then pressing thin steel sleeves into the stud tunnels to seal the places where they’d cut into them. Short fasteners—despite their propensity for coming loose—could more easily avoid interference with ports.

In many other cases when short fasteners positively must not come

AT THE CANADIAN GP IN 1967 I SAW THE LATE ARTURO MAGNI MAKE A KIND OF “RITE” OUT OF CHANGING THE REAR SPROCKET ON AGOSTINI’S MV 500 TRIPLE.

loose, locking devices such as Palnuts, safety wire (where there’s room to use it!), or red Loctite must be used. Each of the 18 46-pound aircooled cylinders on a WWII P-47’s R-2800 radial piston engine was held to the forged aluminum crankcase by 20 short studs and nuts, each secured by a Palnut (a type of locknut formed from spring steel). No wonder aerospace has pretty much abandoned safety wire in favor of self-locking fasteners; imagine reaching 20 inches into that forest of cylinders to wire all 360 nuts.

The first time I tried to secure a slotted cam sprocket to its cam I foolishly applied the otherwise usual drop of red Loctite. It came loose because 1) the sprocket bolts are very short and 2) cam drive is a very “lumpy load.” Point taken: I should have drowned those bolts in red. No shortcuts! Build to be sure.

Learn and use best practice, and update it with your own hard-won experience.

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OLD IRON, YOUNG BLOOD Paul Miller built "Mint Condition" using mostly Yamaha XS650 parts at Panic Rev Cycles in Calgary, Canada.

"Kitchenmade," a Pearl White S&S evo chopper built

by Savannah Rose in Viola, Wisconsin.

22 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

OLD I RON/

YOUNG BLOOD MOTORCYCLES & THE NEXT GEN

Wo rd s a n d p h o t o g ra p h y b y Mi c h a e l Li c ht e r

“YOU’RE CRAZY!”

That’s what I was told in August of 2016 when I first presented the idea of devoting the Motorcycles as Art exhibition of 2017 to today’s up-and-coming generation. “It can’t happen,” “They’ll never show up,” and a barrage of epithets were quickly hurled in my direction. At the same time, younger builders and artists I’d discussed it with were excited at the prospect. I learned a lot over the year it took to put this exhibition together.

The most important being that millennials hate being called millennials.

CYCLEWORLD.COM 23

OLD IRON, YOUNG BLOOD

THE FACT THAT 37 BUILDERS, 10 HELMET PAINTERS, SIX GRAPHIC ARTISTS, AND FOUR PHOTOGRAPHERS CREATED THEIR RESPECTIVE WORKS AND GOT THEM TO THE GALLERY ON TIME IN ITSELF TESTIFIES THAT THE STEREOTYPES ABOUT MILLENNIALS DON’T FIT. The fact that 37 builders, 10 helmet painters, six graphic artists, and four photographers created their respective works and got them to the gallery on time in itself testifies that the stereotypes about millennials don’t fit—at least not for this group of artists. Most of the builders built their bikes just for the exhibition, and none of the bikes were more than a few months old, other than Ross Tomas’ bike, which was built not long before he died in 2014 at the age of 20. In fact, almost all of the bikes were unveiled to the public for the very first time at the Sturgis Buffalo Chip this past August.

Technically, “millennial” as a term just defines the generation that came of age in the 2000s. For the purpose of this exhibition, I included 35-year-old artists and builders born in 1982 right down to 17-year-old Duran Morley of RSD who was born in 2000. Generally speaking, the term has evolved into

Custom builder Jay Donovan of British Columbia finds out his Yamaha XS-650 on display at the Old Iron/Young Blood just won a trip to be displayed in Verona, Italy, for the Motor Bike Expo, a major European show.

24 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

one loaded with negative connotations, but by choosing to stick with the theme, I hoped to reject stereotypes and preconceptions to create a survey of work from which we can all discover what this rising generation is all about.

Creating an exhibition themed around the next generation of builders, bikes, and motorcycle artists ensured a diverse display. From café racers and street trackers to old-school choppers and modern customs, all styles were represented.

Eight of the builders, Jody Perewitz, Karlee Cobb, Len Kodlin, Matt Olsen, Matt Walksler, Nikki Martin, Ross Tomas, and Zach Ness, grew up in family-owned motorcycle businesses, while some like Brad Gregory, J. Shia, Jesse Srpan, Matt McManus, and Savannah Rose pointed to the impact of parents who rode and their time wrenching with them as they were growing up.

Kevin "Taco" Rodriguez of Taco Kustoms in Daytona Beach, Florida, built "Ol' Fancy," a Seafoam Green Panhead.

"Manta," a Yahama café racer built by Jay Donovan of BareSteel Designs in Victoria, British Columbia.

CYCLEWORLD.COM 25

OLD IRON, YOUNG BLOOD "Pipe Hitter," a pink Shovelhead chopper built by Nick Pensabene of Mad Pen Cycles in Edgewater, Florida.

"Project Princess,� built from an Indian Scout by Karlee Cobb of Klock Werks Kustom Cycles.

26 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

Whether it was family that brought the “Old Iron/Young Blood” builders to the custom bike world or if they came to it on their own, all the builders were influenced by the power of television when the “motorcycle years” of the early to mid-2000s catapulted a small group of custom builders to rockstar fame. The nation was riveted to TV screens as fabricators were pitted against each other in biker build-offs, and then there was the Teutul family on American Chopper where custom bikes were built despite whirlwind drama and familial dysfunction. Not that anyone really wanted to build the often overweight and oversize theme bikes they saw on these shows, but the idea of building something with one’s own hands definitely came across. That’s what these builders all have in common, regardless of whether they make a living with their craft or work day jobs to help pay for their addiction—a common passion for motorcycling consumes their waking hours.

Tattoo and graphic artist Christina Platis (above).

CYCLEWORLD.COM 27

OLD IRON, YOUNG BLOOD There are a number of things we know are different with this generation compared to all prior generations: They have a different way of communicating; they have been exposed to more information than anyone could have dreamed of 20 years earlier; the rate of change, in all its manifestations, has accelerated to the frenzied pace we see now; and the world appears less safe than once believed.

Each of these factors have influenced the way young people have chosen to live their lives as well as their outlook on life. Perhaps as a reaction to modern life, many in this generation look back to simpler times for inspiration as often as they may look forward, and this is what many did with their bikes. That may have been a predictable route for second- and third-generation builders, but it really rang true with most of them.

As we all know, it’s hard to be different and come up with your own look, but most of us have been there and understand the struggle. I saw this with many of today’s master builders like Billy Lane, Brian Klock, Dave Perewitz, Jesse James, and Paul Yaffe when I photographed them before they had turned 36 and were still developing their styles just like the “Old Iron/ Young Blood” builders in this exhibition.

I also saw this with my own personal photography of the biker lifestyle that goes back to my early 20s. We had our aspirations and stumbled along the way toward achieving them. I, for one, wish I could go back—not back in time but back in age to be part of this exciting next generation today. How lucky they are with their entire careers before them in one of the most exciting times motorcycling has ever seen.

This exhibition reminds me of an interaction during the 2004 filming of the Dave Perewitz-versus-Billy Lane Biker BuildOff. Early before sunrise on the first morning, as I was standing by myself next to Lane’s orange “Down N’ Dirty” drop-saddle chopper in Jacksonville, Florida, someone not much older than

28 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

I was came over and simply said, “I don’t get it.” In an effort to help, I asked if he had any kids and he said, “Yes.” I then asked if he liked their music, to which he quickly said, “No!” and that he wasn’t interested in it either. It didn’t matter whether we were talking music or bikes because it was really the exact same thing.

We all have choices to make, and while I don’t think we have to like every new flavor that comes along, it seems important to be open-minded. So this is what I ask of you today as you take in the “Old Iron/Young Blood” exhibition on these pages: Take your time looking over the bikes and the art and try to fathom the creative energy and talent it all represents. If you can, try to put yourself in their shoes. Hopefully, if the exhibit was a success, we will all better understand what this very capable group of artisans is about and what will be coming around the bend.

Lastly, watch this group closely over the next few years because I guarantee some of these artisans will emerge as the superstars of tomorrow.

"SMW 61-B," an LSR-style custom built using a BMW R nineT by Cristian Sosa of Sosa Metalworks in Las Vegas, Nevada.

A de-raked style evo custom built

by Brad Gregory of Glenwood, Iowa.

CYCLEWORLD.COM 29

HON DA CUSTOM CB550 FOUR

CAL’S CALI CAFÉ For most people, reality TV is little more than vicarious entertainment. But for transplanted Irishman Paul Crozier, the Cafe Racer program on Velocity five years ago became pure inspiration. After seeing one particular episode, Crozier decided to craft a vintage custom of his own—and then impressively followed through.

In his first effort at bike building, all Crozier wanted initially was to upgrade a classic Japanese bike with contemporary parts that would allow enthusiastic trackday use. This vision later evolved to imbue the bike with a full LCR Honda racing theme, since Crozier had gotten to know team owner Lucio Cecchinello personally.

The bike started life as a 1976 Honda CB550 Four, to which Crozier added a 2009 Suzuki GSX-R600 front end fitted with RhinoMoto crash sliders. Curt Winter at BTR Moto performed frame mods to clean up appearances and also added a rear frame loop and brackets for custom rearset controls. Cognito Moto turned out a billet front hub, and fitting 17-inch black Excel rims let the bike accept modern Avon 3D Ultra Sport rubber, 120/60ZR front and 150/60ZR rear.

The swingarm retains its original length, but BTR Moto triangulated it with steel tubing, similar to the early AMA Superbikes’ flex fix. After being introduced to Öhlins suspension importer Dan Kyle, Crozier had a pair of Öhlins shocks for a twin-shock Kawasaki streetbike lengthened 10mm to match the ride height of the GSX-R fork.

30 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

BUILT F OR TR ACKDAYS AND INSPIRED BY THE LCR HONDA MOTOGP TEAM, PAUL CROZIER’S CB550 FOUR IS EQUAL PARTS NEW AND OLD, ART AND SOUL. B y J o h n L . S t e in P h o t o g ra p h y b y S t o n e y 's Ph o t o g ra p h y

CYCLEWORLD.COM 31

HON DA CUSTOM CB550 FOUR

LCR Cafe owner Paul Crozier (left) is with Cal Crutchlow and Curt Winter (who modified the frame and swingarm) at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, presenting the bike to the LCR team. Crutchlow's signature adorns the handmade fiberglass tailsection.

Honda CB500 and CB550s from the ’70s are sweet-running bikes but not powerful in stock form. To give his build some muscle, Crozier had the engine cylinders bored 3mm to achieve 605cc, had the crankshaft lightened by 3.75 pounds and balanced, added a mild street cam, ported the head, and fitted 26mm Keihin CR carbs. An open 4-into-1 MotoGP style stainless-steel exhaust was specially fabricated by BTR Moto. It features a laser-cut exhaust screen and carries the distinctive Arrow logo plate, just like the LCR bikes. He also replaced the stock ignition with an optically triggered system by C5 Ignitions. “Magnetic pickups are an improvement over the old points systems but can still be off by 5 to 7 degrees,” Crozier says. “Optical ignitions are much closer—1 to 3 degrees.”

The fuel tank is a late 1960s Wards Mojave 360 steel unit—now considered one of the hottest tanks for retrobike builders—for which Crozier’s father-in-law, O’Neal Durgin, created a matching seat base and tailsection in fiberglass. The tail holds the battery and electronics, giving an extra-clean look to the middle section of the bike, which originally housed an airbox, battery, and electronics.

Fenders and headlight stays were fabricated in aluminum by BTR Moto, gracefully patterned after the tank and tailsec32 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

tion. For some extra bling, Crozier added various Rizoma components, including a clutch lever, front master cylinder, reservoir, and brake lever with racing guard, throttle and handgrips, turn signals and bar-end mirrors, and swingarm spools.

The pièce de résistance is the LCRpatterned paint job by Owaga Designs, white with the same array of sponsor logos as the MotoGP bikes wear…plus

TO GIVE HIS BUILD SOME MUSCLE, CROZIER HAD THE ENGINE CYLINDERS BORED. CBR1000RR badges on the gas tank.

“Although the build took years, a point came when I had to pick a color scheme,” Crozier explains. “I thought, ‘LCR has been very kind to me over the years; why don’t I try to build a bike honoring the team and its sponsors Arrow, Rizoma, and Öhlins?’ That’s how it evolved.”

As for the unique “LCRCAFE” California license plate, Crozier ordered that shortly after starting the project.

Although he didn’t connect it at the time, the plate features the abbreviation “CAL”

(for California) in one corner. This was met by a rather startled Cal Crutchlow when Crozier took the bike to the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) MotoGP round in Texas in 2016, its coming-out party.

“Cal sat for photos on the bike in full leathers,” Crozier grins. “He was freaking out. He said, ‘My name is on the plate! Is this a real license plate?’”

While showing the bike to the LCR Team, Crozier got a surprise. “Lucio was inspired and asked if it would start up,” he explains. “It was finished only a week before COTA, and I was a nervous wreck because we had wired the bike but never fired it. I kept thinking, ‘Did I get the firing order right?’ I said, ‘It’s wired but there’s no gas or oil in it.’

So we filled it with Castrol and pump gas and engaged the rear-wheel starter from Crutchlow’s racebike!”

Fortunately, the Honda started immediately (with the LCR and Repsol teams and even Marc Marquez’s dad looking on), its engine wailing through the open collector just as Crozier had dreamed about four years prior. And in a happy numerical coincidence, both the fourcylinder machine and Crozier turned 40 years old last year, which was also the 20th anniversary of the LCR Team.

That’s a great result for a first build and an even better redemption for an old CB550 Four.

CW TEST

2018

HARLEY-DAVIDSON HERITAGE CLASSIC AN ALL-NE W SOF TAIL HIT S HOME

34 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

B y D o n C an e t Photography By Jef f Allen

CYCLEWORLD.COM 35

CW TEST 2018 Harley-Davidson Heritage Classic

Anticipation has mounted since The Motor Company announced its newly designed family of 2018 Milwaukee-Eight-powered Softail models.

Technical Editor Kevin Cameron whetted our appetite with an in-depth analysis of what has been touted as “the largest product development project in company history.”

In that very same October 2017 Cycle World issue, EditorAt-Large Peter Egan provided his take following a brief ride aboard each of the eight new Softails.

Much like a year ago when I joined a select handful of motojournalists at Blackhawk Farms Raceway near Beloit, Illinois, to be the first to sample the then-new eightvalve V-twins, Egan’s seat time at Blackhawk amounted 36 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

to the same rapid-fire two-lap stints on the 2018 Softails and their respective 2017 predecessor. That’s a whole lot to digest in a single day—an intoxicating tasting that would leave even the most disciplined connoisseur wobbly with wonder.

While I can’t speak for Egan, I identify as a beer man who prefers the full-body experience of a large-displacement jug of Milwaukee’s finest consumed on the home front. To this end we’ve wrangled a 114ci Softail Heritage Classic and took to some favorite Southern California roads to learn how this latest breed Harley-Davidson Big Twin cruiser rides in the wild.

ADHERING TO SOFTAIL DOCTRINE, THE SOLID-MOUNT ENGINE TRANSMITS A PLEASING LEVEL OF MASS-RICH VIBRATION AT IDLE.

Our Vivid Black test unit (color and two-tone options are also available) projects a purposeful no-frills appearance that forgoes shiny distractions that can blind one’s measure of a bike’s performance, handling, and functionality. Before I had even thumbed the starter and brought the easy cranking air-/ oil-cooled twin to life, I noted a standout feature that’s given the Softail line a new leg to stand on: The newly designed sidestand is much easier to deploy and retract. My boot located the tang without fail, and there’s more clearance swinging through its motion when parked on an uneven surface.

Fob-sensing keyless ignition is another new convenience, and the traditional barrel-key steering-head lock has been replaced by a quarter-turn conventional-style key. I like the new larger LCD multi-function display integrated into the lower portion of the boldface speedometer located on the fuel tank console. The old display was “harley” bigger than a stick CYCLEWORLD.COM 37

CW TEST 2018 Harley-Davidson Heritage Classic A DARKER HERITAGE The jukebox has left the building.

Previous Heritage style was a bit more sparkle and a lot more candy.

Counterbalanced Milwaukee-Eight V-twin features twin sparkplugs, hence four plug wires from its coils.

of gum, whereas one can now more easily read engine rpm, tripmeter, or fuel range remaining at a glance. The LCD features a fuel-level bar graph and gear position indicator that both remain persistent as you toggle through the other functions with the left thumb switch.

Adhering to Softail doctrine, the solidmount engine transmits a pleasing level of mass-rich vibration at idle. Its assist-style clutch requires only moderate effort at the lever, and while engagement was a bit grabby initially, it soon became more linear as I rode.

This and a bit of difficulty engaging neutral when at a complete stop was possibly due to dragstrip testing the previous day. While the new Heritage lacks the heel-toe shifter of its predecessor, I didn’t mind, as the M-8 Cruise Drive six-speed box has very good shift action under way and there’s unobstructed aft foot placement on the floorboard to boot.

Short-shifts at low revs produced truly relaxed chugging from one traffic signal to the next. Even in top cog the engine pulls cleanly from low as 1,400 rpm equating to 40 mph but feels happiest running between 2,000 and 4,000 rpm, producing more than 100 pound-feet of torque throughout this range and only begins to feel busy once revs surpass 4,000 and approach the 5,500-rpm rev limit. A good twist of throttle in any gear unleashes linear acceleration and a very hearty exhaust note accompanied by amazingly little mechanical clatter reflecting off the windscreen.

Cruising the freeway en route to the desert community of Borrego Springs shed light on a number of key areas. Given its 114ci capacity, the dual counterbalanced M-8 runs remarkably smooth at speeds beyond 80 mph, the cruise control is simple to operate (tap it rather than hold it for smooth acceleration response), the mirrors remain 38 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

STREET BOB

CALL ME BOB, BUT DON’T CALL ME DYNA

By Mark Hoyer P h o t o g ra p h y b y Je f f A l l e n

A

mong the letters that came in following the October 2017 “Softail Supreme” issue, there were those essentially saying, “Yay, Harley!” and, “Boo! Harley,” in roughly equal measure.

Some folks were comparing the new Softail frame with single shock to that of the first Yamaha Virago and saying, “Welcome to 1982.” Others were very interested in what sounded like the best-performing Harley-Davidson cruisers ever.

But a few were confused. “What’s a Dyna? Why do I care? Why does Harley put so many letters and stuff in their model names?”

Yep, it’s been somewhat impenetrable, all the nomenclature and two different cruiser lines, Dyna (FX) and Softail (FLS), alongside Sportsters (XL), Touring (FLH), Street (XG), and V-Rod (VRSC). Honestly, I’m not even sure I have it right.

What I do know is that I was a fan of the Dyna with its twin exposed shocks and rubber-engine mounting (not unlike that used on Norton Commandos, by the way). They were sporty for a big cruiser, and the 2017 Low Rider S (Best Cruiser last year) expressed the bike beautifully. It smoked anything with Softail in its name, thanks in part to having much more cornering clearance.

What we wanted to know was how one of the bikes formerly known as Dyna, such as the 2018 Street Bob shown here, is expressed as a Softail.

Like, does it feel legit? Is it better than the Dyna?

Yes. It doesn’t feel the same, but it feels good. Our Street Bob with its Milwaukee-Eight 107 is super quick, thanks to how comparatively light it is. It isn’t, of course, as burly at the Heritage 114, which produces 81 hp and 108 pound-feet of torque on the CW dyno, versus the 107’s 77 hp and 101 pound-feet. The 2017 Street Bob 103 we dyno tested recently made 65 hp and 88 pound-feed, by comparison. A useful increase, and combined with the reduced weight, makes for spirited blasting around on Mr. 2018 Bob.

Chassis feedback, damping, and steering feel are all superior to that of previous Dynas. This is quality damping at work, and the first time I felt the “squish” of rebound-damping control at play I was pleasantly surprised. Turn-in is crisp, steering is far more neutral, and the bike held its line well. It’s still a cruiser in terms of cornering clearance, but in a cruiser state of mind, you can ride hard. The profile is similar to that of the previous bike, and it’s pretty stripped down in terms of styling and presence. This is reflected in its $14,499 base price.

This bike is now lettered up as FXBB, and, at least, you won’t have any trouble wondering by its code name if it’s a Dyna. Because this is definitely not a Dyna, and there’s nothing wrong with that at all.

CYCLEWORLD.COM 39

CW TEST 2018 Harley-Davidson Heritage Classic clear, the mid-height ape bars are comfortably positioned and angled, the saddle is oh-so plush, and the floorboards rock.

I soon achieved a good sense of what the Heritage Classic offers over its Softail stablemates.

All-day ergonomics, storage, and wind protection top the list. Its new hard-formed “sagless” leather saddlebags provide a deep rectangular cavity that appears capable of consuming a 12-can case of PBR (not that I tried) and has a locking flip lid for blue-ribbon security.

I did fill one bag with a change of clothes, quilted hipster jacket, beanie cap, and toiletry bag, while the other swallowed my backpack containing a laptop.

While tall enough to keep bug splat from soiling my jacket, the top edge of the PD-style windscreen sat just below my line of sight. While I appreciated the coverage (doubly so had it rained) I have to report that helmet buffet proved tiresome at sustained speed above 75 mph. The screen can be removed in mere seconds without tools, so I logged some miles without it, to air out the pits and take in the unobstructed view of the headlamp nacelle while enjoying clean airflow at helmet height.

Speaking of headlights, a moonless desert night provided a good test of the new LED Daymaker lamp’s excellent side coverage and illumination.

Leaving the desert floor the following morning and heading up Montezuma Grade, a serpentine ribbon composed of tight hairpin, medium and fast sweeping corners put the all-new Softail chassis through its paces. Manhandling the bike produced rider-induced wiggles and wobbles. Steering is light effort and rewards a gentle touch. Give the Heritage its head, bank smoothly into corners and it tracks sweet and true. Despite being sprung and damped foremost for comfort, the Showa bending valve fork and single shock also proved up for a spirited pace. Aside from the hinged floorboards grounding, ridden in a swift-yet-sensible manner the frame and lower muffler were spared from contact when exploring the claims of improved cornering clearance. The fork felt supportive under hard braking, and the rear resisted bottoming in all but the most extreme hits. It took some extensive searching for my 180-pound weight to find a G-out bump that used all available rear travel, and even then, after repeated passes I remained impressed with the chassis composure and improved ability to take a sharp blow.

If the 114ci Heritage Classic is any indicator, Harley-Davidson has brought the Softail family in line with the times, delivering the most refined powertrain and chassis The Motor Company has brewed to date.

40 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

WE ALL HAVE BAGGAGE But Harley-Davidson's comment regarding the hard-formed leather bags on the Heritage Softail this year was, "No more saggy bags." They are lockable, easy to use, and carry enough for a solo weekend trip. If it's a weekend at the beach, maybe you can bring a friend.

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CW TEST 2018 Harley-Davidson Heritage Classic EDITORS’ NOTES

2018 H-D HERITAGE CLASSIC 114 SPECIFICATIONS GENERAL

SUSPENSION & TIRES

PRICE

FRONT SUSPENSION

LIST PRICE:

$20,299 (black), $20,699 (color), $21,049 (two-tone), $21,199 (anniversary)

IMPORTER:

Harley-Davidson Motor Co. Inc. 3700 W. Juneau Ave. Milwaukee, WI 53201

SE A N M ACDONA LD D I GI TA L C O N T E N T M A N A G E R

The Heritage 114 surprised me the most out of all the bikes from Harley-Davidson’s new Softail lineup. It’s ready to ride across the country as soon as you get it off the showroom floor with super-comfy ergonomics, a potent powerplant, and a chassis that begs to drag floorboards.

Pull the fairing and bags off and the perfectly swept bars and triple headlight come into their own aesthetically to make for a tastefully blacked-out take on the classic cruiser that’s perfect for a daily rider. Birds, meet stone.

CUSTOMER SERVICE PHONE:

(414) 343-4680

WARRANTY:

2 years/unlimited mi.

MANUFACTURER: TUBE DIAMETER: CLAIMED WHEEL TRAVEL: ADJUSTMENTS: REAR SUSPENSION

ENGINE & DRIVETRAIN Air-/oil-cooled 45º V-twin

BORE & STROKE:

102.0 x 114.3mm

FRONT:

130/90-B16 Dunlop D401F

DISPLACEMENT:

1868cc

REAR:

150/80-B16 Dunlop D401T

COMPRESSION RATIO:

10.5:1

VALVE TRAIN:

Single cam, eight valve

VALVE ADJUST INTERVALS:

N/A

FUEL DELIVERY:

EFI

OIL CAPACITY:

5.0 qt.

ELECTRIC POWER:

390W

BATTERY:

TIRES

PERFORMANCE 1/4 MILE: 0–30 MPH: 0–60 MPH: 0–90 MPH: 0–100 MPH:

40–60 MPH: 60–80 MPH:

17.5 Ah AGM

MEASURED TOP SPEED:

N/A 2250 rpm

42 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

HIGH/LOW/AVERAGE:

45/42/44 mpg

5.0 gal.

AVG. RANGE INC. RESERVE:

220 mi.

WHEELBASE:

64.0 in.

RAKE/TRAIL:

30/5.5 in.

SEAT HEIGHT:

28.5 in.

GROUND CLEARANCE:

4.7 in.

GVWR:

1160 lb.

LOAD CAPACITY (TANK FULL):

432 lb.

CORRECTED REAR-WHEEL HORSEPOWER

There’s this thing called “Dyna bounce,” and if you spent any time on the now-discontinued rubbermount cruisers from H-D, you’ll know what I’m talking about. It was real. I felt it a lot on the old Dyna Switchback long-term testbike we had. This Heritage Softail is a much better light touring bike, and the 114ci kick is a nice touch. As for the old Heritage Softail, there’s no comparison with this all-new design.

FUEL MILEAGE 698 lb.

728 lb.

BRAKING DISTANCE FROM 30 MPH: FROM 60 MPH:

33.7 ft.

132.2 ft.

SPEEDOMETER ERROR 30 MPH INDICATED: 60 MPH INDICATED:

29.5 mph 58.6 mph

110 100 90 80 70 60 50

107.84 HP @ 3,190 RPM

40

81.47 LB.-FT. @ 4,680 RPM

30 20 10

OFFICIAL DYNAMOMETER OF CYCLE WORLD

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4.0

RPM X 1000

4.5

5

5.5

6

6.5

TORQUE IN POUND-FEET

E D I T O R- I N - C H I E F

FUEL CAPACITY:

4.4 sec.

4.9 sec.

ENGINE SPEED @ 60 MPH:

WEIGHT TANK EMPTY: TANK FULL:

13.23 sec. @ 100.7mph 1.9 sec.

4.4 sec.

9.4 sec.

12.9 sec.

TOP GEAR TIME TO SPEED

CHASSIS

RO A D T E S T E D I T O R

M A R K HOY ER

Showa Single shock 4.4 in.

Spring preload

MANUFACTURER: TYPE: CLAIMED WHEEL TRAVEL: ADJUSTMENTS:

ENGINE:

DON C A N ET

Radical change can be difficult to accept, particularly for those vested in a bike that’s been around for decades.

For many Harley faithful, the wholesale update to the Softail platform may carry elements of bittersweetness.

That’s only natural, but don’t be quick to judge until you’ve ridden the new machine. As often is the case, time marches on and the new generation soon becomes the status quo. I like the direction Harley-Davidson has taken the Softail and look forward to where it’s headed.

Showa 49mm 5.1 in.

N/A

norton Commando

THE

NORTON C OM M A N DO AT

FIFTY

44 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

H A L F A C E N T U R Y O F G L O R Y, T I N G E D W I T H THE THRILL OF UNCERTAINT Y B y Pe t e r E g an Il l u s t rat i o n s b y Mi c k O f i e l d

CYCLEWORLD.COM 45

norton Commando

It's funny how your tastes can change with time.

For instance, when I first tried a sip of homemade corn liquor as a youth I thought it tasted like paint remover. But I tried some again recently and decided just the opposite is true.

Also, when the first Norton Commando was introduced in September of 1967 at the Earl’s Court show in London, I examined the photos of the new Fastback and immediately decided it was not 46 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

for me. Too swoopy and radical, not traditionally British enough. “Repelled” is probably too strong a word, but the look of that bike drove me firmly back into the Triumph camp, where I normally resided, at least in my dreams. I owned a secondhand Honda CB160 at the time, which was all I could afford as a college sophomore, what with squandering perfectly good bike money on textbooks.

Now, half a century later, when I see a Commando Fastback at a vintage bike show, it stops me in my tracks and I find it to be quite a lovely thing, and if I were collecting Nortons I’d probably have to have one. But, at the time, that too-daring styling put me off, as it did many others. The Commando was initially a slow seller, despite its impressive superbike performance and the magical rubber engine mounts that gave it an almost unearthly smoothness (for a British vertical twin) on the highway.

In any case, it took the more conventionally restyled Commando 750

Illustrations and modeling of the never-produced Commando Mk 4 from the sketchbook of Mick Ofield, Norton employee 1972-'80. Merger brought parts sharing with Triumph models.

and then 850 Roadsters of the early ’70s to win my heart. I spent hours gazing at those full-color Commando ads inside the front cover of every major bike magazine, charmed by the pure elemental beauty of the bike and of course the beauty of the “Norton Girl” who stood alluringly nearby, pouting at me because I didn’t yet own a Norton. The Roadsters had a spare and rangy look about them, without flab or artifice. As with early Harley Sportsters, they were like the Chesterfield or Lucky Strike of motorcycles: pure nicotine, no filter.

Gears meshed in my febrile brain, and I knew beyond any doubt that I would eventually own a Commando. And in 1975 I finally bought one, brand new, by selling a dead-reliable Honda CB350 and using all the money I had in the world. It was, by far, the most expensive thing I’d ever purchased.

The dream wilted somewhat on my ride home from the dealership when the bike quit running at every single stop sign and stoplight. And during my first few months of riding, about six major things went wrong with the Commando, but none of them (I was told) could be covered under warranty. The dealer pronounced every failure a clear case of “abuse.” By default, I learned to fix everything myself and became a selftaught British-bike mechanic.

So you might say I owe the Commando for a free technical education—except for the parts, of course, and the cost of

the Whitworth wrenches I still own.

Later that year, the Commando seized and bent an exhaust valve in Montana while Barb and I were attempting a ride from Wisconsin to Seattle, and we had to ship the bike home from Missoula in a Bekins moving van, continuing the trip by bus and train. I wrote a story about the trip and got my first article published right here in Cycle World.

So it seems I owe my journalism career to that Norton as well. If I’d bought a Honda, god knows what I’d be doing now. Possibly something useful to humanity. That or sleeping under a bridge.

Incidentally, that valve seizure in Montana was attributed to “abuse” and naturally not covered under warranty, so I learned how to install valves, guides, and pistons. Self-taught, again. The Norton was making me brilliant.

I sold the bike soon after that, chafing under the travel restrictions dictated by the bike’s apparent lack of long-distance stamina. I loved looking at the Norton in the garage, but I also wanted to go places far away and the Commando had an invisible bungee cord of doubt that kept me near home.

But that was a long time ago, and time either heals all wounds or causes Alzheimer’s because I’ve owned four more Commandos since then and just did a full restoration on another blackand-gold 850 Roadster about two years ago. It appears I’m addicted to them.

Friends have accused me of having a

“love/hate relationship” with Nortons, but it might be more accurately described as a “love/hope relationship.” I know all their foibles but keep thinking that just the right upgrades to modern materials, electronics, and sealants will render them virtually as useful and reliable as any modern motorcycle. And I know people who have made that theory work for them. My friend Bill Getty, who owns a British parts business called JRC Engineering, has now put 130,000 miles on his 1974 850.

And of course Editor-in-Chief Mark Hoyer has an 850 Commando that he rides everywhere with impunity—after a certain amount of (ahem) “sorting out.”

He now swears by this bike far more often than he swears at it. And then there’s my old friend Brian Slark, who was West Coast service manager for Norton from 1969 to 1975, and he affirms that there is now “a fix for everything.”

The big question, of course, on the 50th anniversary of the Commando, is why has so much latter-day development time, expense, and sheer effort been lavished on a British twin that’s now half a century old?

Along with the 1959–1970 Triumph Bonneville, the Commando has clearly emerged as one of the two most popular and venerated bikes of its era. It has a world-wide following and support network, not to mention a cultish aura of cool that seems to work on riders of all ages. Why so?

I put this question to Brian Slark this morning, and he said, “For one thing, it’s really the only classic British bike you can ride at current speeds and not have it shake apart. Also, it’s eminently tunable, with many upgrades available, and great parts availability as well.”

He also pointed out that the parallel twin is a compact, sensible, and generally CYCLEWORLD.COM 47

norton Commando charismatic engine design for motorcycles and that nearly every major manufacturer is now building one for those very reasons. “Interesting,” he said, “that after all these years we’ve come full circle, back to the parallel twin.”

I asked him about Norton’s sketchy reputation for reliability and he said, “Well, when you own a bike you’re more aware of its problems. We tend to forget that a lot of Japanese bikes at the time also had serious problems: transmissions that packed up, crank failures, piston seizures, and so on.”

Fair enough. I had friends in that era who found the repair of worn Japanese bikes economically unfeasible and simply abandoned them. Conversely, I’d never heard of anyone throwing a Norton away.

But of course much of the Commando’s appeal lies outside the bounds of mere reason. There’s romance to consider.

The Commando is really almost an accident of history, an unlikely amalgam of old and new ideas put together as a stop-gap solution to the problem of rapidly advancing technical progress in the motorcycle market. Norton didn’t have enough money or engineering staff to design an entirely new engine, and many British bike enthusiasts (me included) didn’t want them to. We wanted something that looked more or less like a Norton Atlas but that didn’t shake as much or leak oil.

So Norton tilted the Atlas engine forward and adapted it to a new frame that isolated the entire drivetrain from the rider, using shimmed rubber motor mounts that allowed the engine to jump up and down but not sideways.

Thus good handling was retained and the dreaded Atlas engine vibration no longer caused the screws in your sunglasses to fall out.

Use of the old Atlas 750 engine (mildly updated) allowed Norton to retain the charisma, torque, and sound of this venerable long-stroke twin while building a superbike that could go head to head in performance with the latest Japanese multis and Italian V-twins.

Also, they took a bike already festooned with beautiful pieces and castings and added more, with a polished aluminum primary cover, stainless-steel fenders, and lovely steel footpeg brackets. The result was a bike of bone-deep beauty that I once remarked looked like a collection of exquisite paperweights, all harmoni48 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

ously blended into one motorcycle.

And when the Commando was updated to an 850 in 1973, it got even more torque, much improved “Superblend” crank bearings, and a mild styling update of the seat and instruments, resulting in what is probably my favorite version, the 1974 Roadster. In black and gold, of course.

In 1975, Norton added an electric starter that was incapable of turning the engine over, so they called it a “starter assist” and changed the air cleaner and mufflers to a less traditional—but US compliant—design. But touches like this didn’t help much. It seemed the inability to make an electric starter that could spin the crank of an internal combustion engine was no longer amusing to customers, and years of indifferent execution of an essentially good design finally came home to roost. By the end of that year it was all over for a once-great company with a long tradition of racing excellence and classic beauty.

But the bikes are still with us, now as popular as they were when new—or more so. And they still have that heady combination of smooth locomotive power and untamed wild-animal spirit that’s not quite like anything else I’ve ridden. And the Commando is still my wife Barbara’s favorite motorcycle. It’s never been bested, in her opinion, for its combination of acceleration, sound, and sheer presence.

A heartfelt endorsement, coming from a woman who helped me push a broken Commando through the streets of Missoula, 41 years ago.

As a postscript here, I should mention that I no longer own that last black-and-gold 850 Roadster I restored. It turned out beautiful, but I suffered a stroke while trying to kickstart it for a first ride in the spring last year. Thanks to a clot-busting drug administered at the VA hospital, I made a complete recovery, but I soon sold that bike to my friend Bill Hall.

Even though it was guilty of nothing but clogged idle jets, the bloom was off the relationship, and my doctor recommended I buy a bike with a starter button on the handlebars.

When I wrote about this last year, a couple of physicians weighed in and suggested that the Norton probably did not cause the stroke. More likely, I was already having one that morning,

and the Commando’s failure to start saved my life because I had the stroke at home, 6 miles from a hospital, rather than out on a distant country road while riding alone.

It’s quite possible they’re right. In which case I can now thank the Norton Commando for my mechanical training, journalism career, and current good health.

And the ownership of all those Whitworth wrenches. Which I used just yesterday on a 1965 Triumph engine with low oil pressure and a rod knock.

Some of us never learn. And don’t really want to.

The first Norton Commando 750 Fastback brochure, complete with the Green Globe.

Later Globes were redesigned with linear gradient. The Fastback was a leap in ’67 but still had a drum brake at the front, and much was carried over from the Atlas. More of the Mk 4, with electric start and design updates.

FRIENDS HAVE ACCUSED ME OF HAVING A “LOVE/HATE RELATIONSHIP” WITH NORTONS, BUT IT MIGHT BE MORE ACCURATELY DESCRIBED AS A “LOVE/HOPE RELATIONSHIP.”

CYCLEWORLD.COM 49

norton Commando

TA K I NG T H E R I DE B y M ar k H o y e r P h o t o g ra p h y b y J e f f A l l e n

D A I LY L I F E O N A NORTON COMMANDO Is it weird that the vintage-bike owner’s proudest moments come when impressing others who own the same kind of bike? Well, call me a weirdo for being so satisfied that a Norton guy at the Quail Motorcycle Gathering in Carmel, California, this past May said, “Damn, that thing sounds great.”

All it was doing was idling, but it was a beautiful sound and a great moment. We just want our bikes to be loved and our mastery of the fickle machine to be known.

I have found myself loving my 1974 Norton 850 Commando more than a lot of other vintage bikes, especially when I’d 50 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

like to get there without, ahem, stopping. Nortons combined the traditional qualities people love about British parallel twins (beautiful design, compact dimensions, and a fine sound) with lots of power and torque and sublime smoothness thanks to Isolastic rubber engine mounts. My bike made 47 hp and 45 pound-feet of torque on the Cycle World Dynojet 250 dyno. And it’s delivered magnificently on the road.

The best thing of all that there were many Commandos made, so prices have remained sane.

As is the case with most combustion-powered vintage love objects, modern solutions abound to improve reliability and running/turning/stopping quality. I tend to enjoy the period riding experience, so I stick with minor and largely invisible modifications.

The profile that launched a thousand dreams… The Norton Roadster is burned into the world's motorcyclists' brains and hearts. It still makes a great daily rider and in many ways is still more pleasurable to ride than the modern 961 equivalent, though the latter is much higher performance.

While there are lots of engine performance parts available, I left mine stock since mine’s got just 20,000 miles. Switching to Amal Premier carburetors, which look like factory units but offer material and design upgrades that improve performance and tunability, perked the bike up quite a bit.

Electronic ignition options abound; Boyer has been the traditional choice, but Pazon (as used by Peter Egan on his former 850) has a great reputation. Some years ago I opted for the TriSpark unit and have been very happy with its performance and idle-stabilizing circuitry. And no one is the wiser.

The original Lockheed front disc brake master cylinder has an inordinately large-diameter piston and therefore offers all the feel of a mahogany block and not much mechanical advantage. I bought a Miles Vintage Brake master cylinder

the company sleeves to 13mm. The good part is it looks perfect and offers significantly more braking power at the pads with far lower effort. The bad part was my first unit’s Delrin piston was machined too close in tolerance to the bore and in hot weather or sunlight would expand and seize (locking the front brake!) until it cooled off. I liked the master enough I bought another one (the piston is now a smaller diameter) but was not delighted to pay for two of them.

There are many other options like more elaborate brake replacements, belt primary drive conversions, suspension upgrades—more than can be covered here. Companies such as Colorado Norton Works (look it up and be lost in the shiny bits…) make extensive resto-mod parts, and Andover Norton and others offer abundant parts and technical support. But even with my simple mods, the Norton will run 75 mph all day long and return 45 to 50 mpg without skipping a beat or even breathing hard.

And it idles so nicely that even other Norton owners are impressed.

CYCLEWORLD.COM 51

norton Commando

Dennis Poore NORT ON’S SAV IOR OR SCOURGE ?

By Gaz Boulanger

Il l u s t rat i o n b y Mi c h a e l K o e l s c h

B

ritish ish entrepr entrepreneur Roger istoun Poore Po (1916–1987) Dennistoun risk-take from the cradle was a risk-taker to the grave, bbest remembered for sifying th diversifying the Manganese Bronze ldings fam Holdings family business of marine pr p anufacturing to t fund the takeover of propeller manufacturing Mot Cycles (AMC) to form failing Associated Motor A Norton-Villiers in August 1966. Five brands were l d d NNorton, AJS, Matchless, James, and included: Francis-Barnett, with the jewel being Norton.

The London native quickly decided to push for the development of a Norton model to debut at the Earls Court Cycle Motorcycle Show a year later, led by one of his college tutors, former Rolls-Royce engineer Dr. Stefan Bauer. Poore was eyeing the lucrative US market and its appetite for 650 and 750cc twins.

Poore was a qualified engineer with a degree from King’s College at Cambridge and a wing commander with the British RAF during World War II with a knack for finance and business. His hunch with the Commando proved correct; the press and riders loved it. Poore analyzed every aspect of retail trends and best distribution options, even touring the US during the winter of 1968–’69 to see firsthand what Harley-Davidson and General Motors were doing right. Poore decided his company should own its distribution network worldwide.

Norton needed to grab eyeballs and wallets, so Poore himself organized and booked an advertising campaign featuring model Vivien Neves to be “The Commando Girl” in the inside front cover of Cycle World and Cycle magazines exclusively for five years. This Steve Jobs-style of leadership was unheard of in the late ’60s, especially in Great Britain. Poore’s maverick business style evolved from his days behind the wheel of a race car, which began immediately after the war.

Starting with a supercharged MG J4, Poore stepped up to Tipo 8C-35 Alfa Romeo. He won sprint events and hill climbs and placed fourth driving for the Connaught Formula One team at the 1952 British Grand Prix. His entrepreneurial spirit and lust for speed prompted his launch of Autosport magazine in August 1950, published by Gregor Grant. Poore got involved in British motorcycle manufacturing just when the Japanese 52 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

were making their efficient mark on an antiquated industry. Peter Williams persuaded Poore to enter racing in late 1971 with support from Imperial Tobacco, forming the John Player Norton racing team. Mick Grant, Phil Read, Williams, and Tony Rutter flew the Norton flag with moderate success until sponsorship was dropped at the end of 1974.

By then BSA Triumph had stumbled mightily, going cap in hand to the British government for assistance, which recommended a merger with Norton-Villiers. By July 1973 Norton-VilliersTriumph was formed with 5 million pounds from the Department of Trade and Industry. Poore’s plan was to close the underperforming and outdated Triumph Meriden factory, which led to an 18-month workers strike. Money had remained

tight and the consolidation of the brands under one roof led to a general lack of passion. Dated tooling and technology just widened the gap. By this time the booming global motorcycle market had all but collapsed—with excessive inventory levels of Japanese bikes in the US—leading to a price war. Leadership squabbles delayed production. Poore’s dream of a healthy British motorcycle industry went out with a whimper.

How does history view Poore’s management of Norton? He brought the Commando to America, leaving a legacy still talked about 50 years later. Could he have done better by letting BSA Triumph wither on the vine and focus his attention on Norton-Villiers? Either way, all great businessmen have to gamble, and Poore’s four of a kind was no match for the royal flush.

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PRESENTS

MOTOAMERICA SUPERSTOCK 1000 AFT SINGLES LIFE IN A VAN WHAT'S FOR BREAKFAST?

THE VIEW FROM INSIDE THE PADDOCK

54 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

PHOTOGRAPHY BY Brian J. Nelson, Nikolaus Wogen, Andrea Wilson

MAN IN A VAN WITH A PLAN RACE WATCH

RACER LIFE

Our Man in a Van with a Plan attacks his second MotoAmerica season on a GSX-R1000 and manages to win a few American Flat Track TT races along the way.

By Mark Hoyer, with reporting

by Larry Lawrence

Y

ou know, 100 percent doesn’t make the grid.”

It’s a saying offered by Technical Editor Kevin Cameron, who’s spent his share of time as a tuner and crew chief riding in a van with a motorcycle, tools, and all needed possessions going from race to race in search of victory on the national roadracing circuit.

It’s a good thing to remember—that perfection can be strived for, but the reality is nothing is ever perfect and you’ve got to show up and race, no matter what.

And so it was with our Man in a Van with a Plan, Hayden Gillim, and his crew on the Cycle World Suzuki GSX-R1000.

How so? There was no luxury of preseason testing, with piles of race parts at the ready and plenty of time to methodically explore the performance potential and experiment with setup. In fact, developing the new racebike—the completely redesigned 2017 GSX-R1000—had to start at the third round of the season while the team awaited delivery of the bike. The well-developed but now-dated 2016 GSX-R1000 served well at the first two rounds (four races), and then the team dug in, developing the new bike on the fly during the rest of the race season.

CYCLEWORLD.COM 55

RACE WATCH MVP 2.0

“Bike development started slow,” Crew Chief Rick Matheny explained. “We got the bikes late. Wasn’t anybody’s fault.

Then it’s all new, with throttle by wire, a lot of electronics, variable valve timing, so we worked and worked and worked.”

Adding to the challenge was the grassroots nature of the MVP program, with a small crew and Gillim himself piloting the van.

At least he’s experienced after last season. In fact, the 22-yearold from Owensboro, Kentucky, is already a 10-year veteran of roadracing. This season Gillim was on the road going to races from April to October. Over six months he logged nearly 30,000 miles on the road and crisscrossed the country a half-dozen times en route to 13 national races in 11 states, as well as several independent test sessions.

In addition to his highway miles, Gillim racked up more than 1,500 miles in the saddle of his racebikes—approximately the distance from Los Angeles to Springfield, Illinois, riding on the edge!

In the MVP Ford Transit van Gillim carried his Cycle World Suzuki GSX-R1000 for MotoAmerica Superstock 1000 races and the Cycle World Suzuki RM-Z450 for select American Flat Track Singles class national events. And most of his other 56 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

worldly possessions.

Thousands of miles alone on the road in a van can be tough, but Gillim’s support system is nationwide, so he got breaks to stay with friends and train along the way. He also spent as much time at home in Kentucky and in his Southern California digs to help stick with his training routine. Along the way, Gillim met and became friends with elite track cyclist Roger Ainslie.

“He was a great training partner early in the year,” Gillim said.

Fellow roadracers Josh Hayes and Melissa Paris also were great friends and training mates.

“During the off-season I lived in one of their rental properties,” Gillim explains. “I was with them a lot at the races. Josh and I would play golf a lot and go and ride motocross. And at the races if I was having a rough time figuring something out I could go have a talk with him.”

Once the season starts it can be tough keeping fit and eating right on the road, but Gillim took advantage of his travels to train in some of most scenic destinations in the country.

“Driving all over the place I got to stop and ride my bicycle at some awesome areas like up in Park City, Utah,” Gillim explained of his on-the-road routine. “Eating well can be tough. I try to eat halfway healthy. I’m a

fan of the Food Network’s Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. So, whenever I get the chance I try to stop somewhere that’s been on that show and try some different foods. And obviously whenever I see a Cinnabon on the road I’ve got to stop.”

That might be the halfway unhealthy part of the diet.

At least the preseason was spent riding his bicycle about 300 miles per week and getting lean. Everybody needs a treat once in awhile.

The finishes from the first two MotoAmerica rounds were solid

SIGN LANGUAGE: Gillim talks with Crew Chief Rick Matheny about bike setup, hand in motion trying to relate what happens on the track. The rider/ crew chief relationship is key to success.

MVP 2.0 RACE WATCH

VICTORY: Struggles in Superstock 1000 were left behind when Gillim hit two AFT TT races, taking decisive wins at Springfield and the Buffalo Chip in Sturgis.

but not particularly inspiring, but when the 2017 was finally ready for racing at Virginia International Raceway in mid-May, good results came quickly, even with limited development time. At Road America, the second outing for the 2017 bike, Gillim scored his first Superstock 1000 podium of the season, taking third in race two.

All the more impressive considering this was following the heartbreaking low point of the season when Gillim’s second cousin Nicky Hayden was killed in a cycling accident in Italy, a tragic loss for the entire racing community. Nicky’s death hit home especially hard for Gillim, not only because Nicky was a lifelong hero, mentor, and training partner, but it also opened up the emotions of Gillim losing his younger brother Ethan in a racing accident, almost 10 years to the day before Nicky.

A form of redemption came in flat-track racing as well when at the Springfield TT in late May, Gillim served up an extended masterclass session. He not only clocked the fastest time in qualify-

ing, but he won his heat and owned his semi. He then continued his domination right to the checkered flag in the Main Event, taking the win (on the only Suzuki in the field) with a loose front brake master cylinder that caused the lever to drop straight down. He coped by pushing it up with his thumb when he twisted the throttle then quickly grabbing the lever before braking zones! Even on his fully developed 450 flat-tracker, 100 percent didn’t make the grid!

It was fitting that Gillim stood atop of the podium for the Springfield TT, 15 years after his cousins Nicky, Tommy, and Roger Hayden swept the podium in the historic race, particularly in the wake of Nicky’s tragic passing earlier that week.

“Seeing Nicky, Tommy, and Roger put it up on the podium, all three in one night, that’s always made me want to get here and get this win,” said Gillim on the podium. “Team 95 [his late brother Ethan’s race number]… This one is for my little brother, and it’s for Nicky too. This is for them.”

A schedule conflict meant Gillim missed the Peoria TT, a big disappointment after his decisive win there in 2016. But there was time for more TT dominance later in the season when in front of a huge crowd in Sturgis Gillim put on a clinic. He got so far ahead in the main that he spent nearly the entire last lap doing wheelies for the crowd.

“I was just having a lot of fun with it,” Gillim said of his flat-track excursions. “Going to those races is stress free. I didn’t feel like I had to prove anything to anybody at the dirt tracks, so I was just having fun riding my dirt bike.

Everything kind of clicked at those events, which made them seem kind of easy.”

Which was nice because Superstock 1000 racing remained challenging. Three-quarters of the way through the season, an issue with his bike’s front brake forced Gillim to retire from race two at Sonoma. Then Gillim survived one of the scariest crashes of 2017 in MotoAmerica when he flew head first into a tire-lined barrier at high speed in the race at Pittsburgh

BANG!: It was a bad crash when Gillim ran off-track at Pittsburgh and into a tire wall.

Fortunately injuries were minor, but the bike was destroyed.

CYCLEWORLD.COM 57

RACE WATCH MVP 2.0

International Race Complex. He came through with not much more than a massive headache, which was an incredibly lucky outcome considering the force he hit the barrier with. Gillim credited his Bell helmet and particularly the Alpinestars Tech-Air airbag suit for saving him from worse.

It wasn’t enough that Gillim’s bike cartwheeled through the grass as it perfectly vaulted over the tire wall and down an embankment. At least it missed hitting Gillim. But the bike was destroyed causing Matheny and crew members Josh Day and Glen Veatch to once again burn the midnight oil to get their second machine ready to race.

The payoff for all the hard work was awesome but late coming. By the time they’d worked out all the kinks and finally had the 2017 machine dialed in, Gillim had his best roadrace week-

end of the season by far, with a pair of MotoAmerica Superstock 1000 podium finishes at Barber Motorsports Park, including a season-best runner-up finish in race two.

“They say you’re only as good as your last race, so if that’s the case we’re good,” Matheny said.

“The last three races we really had a good bike. Earlier we had some brake problems. We had a crash, but it got better and better. Then at Barber it just sort of came together and we’ve made it all work. It’s really promising for next season.

I’m looking forward to it.”

The season ended on such a high note that Matheny wasn’t ready to see it end.

“No, give me another race tomorrow,” he said at Barber. “I just have to thank Glen Veatch and Josh Day. They’ve been a fantastic crew this year. I’ve really been proud of them. Both of them are new to us. We lost our

other guys. They did a fantastic job and Hayden at the end of the year he really focused and bore down and it paid off. So, I’m proud of the team.”

Gillim was also encouraged with the way he and the team closed out the year.

“It was a great way to end the season,” Gillim concluded. “I’m hoping we can do this again and we’re talking about next year.

I can’t thank the whole team enough: Rick, Glen, Josh, Eric Vallarta [K-Tech Suspension], and Chris Gardell [Flash Tune]. Everybody that’s been a part of this. It’s a blessing to have them all.”

One lesson from this year is, truly, that 100 percent doesn’t make the grid. The freedom in that is that there is always room to improve, room to control more of the variables, and have a better bike and better outlook. In victory and defeat, there is equal motivation.

#VANLIFE: Is anything better than a van for hauling all your worldly possessions from track to track? Ford Transit became the official "V" in MVP this season. The new GSX-R1000 proved to be a weapon for Gillim by season's end and helped Yoshimura's Toni Elias win the MotoAmerica Superbike championship.

TEAMWORK: Emphasis is on the man in the van, Gillim, but without the support of sponsors and crew there would be no Plan. Former racer Josh Day (with Gillim and Matheny) served as coach and wrench alongside Glen Veatch (not pictured).

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SEEKING 250CC ADV NINJAS SHOULD BE STEALTHY CARBING A BUELL FINDING YOUR BEARINGS

BY RAY NIERLICH NOISY NINJA

Q:

I own a 2014 Kawasaki Ninja 300. When I am on the throttle, I hear a whistling-squeaking noise. When I let go of the throttle, it goes away. Wondering what that is? Is it a big concern?

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FUELING DOWN UNDER

I recently purchased a 2017 CRF250L Rally. I’m truly in love with this bike. However, the 250 engine isn’t quite enough. I was wondering if you could recommend a custom shop that could bore out the engine to a 350, add some much-needed suspension performance, and turn this bike into the lightweight adventure bike it’s pretending to be.

My intentions are twofold. First, I’ve always wanted a custom bike that could grace the pages of Cycle World (like the Yamaha DT-07 Street Tracker). Second, I’d like to show the Big Four what they should be building: a lightweight dirt-bike-based adventure-touring bike.

ART SERNA CYCLEWORLD.COM

G’day from Australia! My query concerns a desire to put a carburetor on my XB Buell so that I might ride without all those sensors interfering with things. See, I’m not up with the computer side of these neat bikes, and since Harley-Davidson flushed Buell away, its dealers seem uninterested in dealing with us Buellsters.

Harley-Davidson also doesn’t seem interested in releasing software to blokes like me so that we might try to work issues out ourselves, alas. So, Cycle World, could you help with info regarding putting a carby on my Buell or perhaps tell where I might source software allowing me to work on my bike?

Yeah, there are six XB Buells in my shed, and my two sons have three more.

BRUCE LINNELL AUSTRALIA

Q: A:

The $4,999 Honda CRF250 Rally is a stomping deal, but we are more than happy to lead you down the rabbit hole to spending more money.

The CRF engine is borrowed from the CBR250R, with some changes for its dual-sport role. A Dynojet Power Commander is the simplest upgrade like-minded folks should do. But you sound serious, so for you Takegawa makes a “Hyper Bore Up 305cc” kit that includes a new 84mm cylinder, 13.0:1 CR forged piston, sport cams, and FI controller. As of this writing it’s about $870 but will need installation by you or a qualified mechanic.

As to suspension improvements, Dan Kyle at Kyle Racing that the stock CRF250 Showa suspension bits are a decent kit. Upgrading to Öhlins components would allow for the best tuning to your weight and usage (kyleusa. com). Be careful—peering down the rabbit hole you may easily spend more than if you just cheated and traded up to a WR250R ($6,699 MSRP) or even a Husky or KTM 350 ($10,499 and $10,399, respectively). But do it anyway because we want to see what you come up with.

62 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

Q:

A:

Fitting a carb would be a big step backward. Those sensors aren't interfering with anything and in fact help the bike run its best from cold start at sea level to high altitude and at any reasonable temperature. Fuel-injec-

PHOTO BY JEFF ALLEN

A:

Go back and look at whatever was the last thing you had apart.

Modern bikes are super good, so chances are you or the last mechanic left something amiss. My best guess is your air filter or airbox is adrift.

tion, in general, will allow an engine to make more power and use less fuel.

The XB also uses a downdraft intake, so fitting a carb would be tricky. The OE Dynamic Digital Fuel Injection (DDFI) was reliable and worked well. Direct Link Software from technoresearch. com allows ECU tuning. There are also a number of add-on tuners!

WHEEL-BEARING WOES

Q:

My 2013 Harley-Davidson has 30,000 miles on it. Recently I felt a sudden violent shimmy as the rear wheel began to wobble from a worn bearing. I have friends who have 100,000 miles on their HarleyDavidsons with the original bearings.

On Facebook, others tell me they change them every other tire change as part of routine maintenance. What would you recommend?

PHIL CENCI STATEN ISLAND, NY

A:

You don't mention if you pressure-wash your motorcycle, but if you do, stop now and never do it again. The vast majority of wheel bearing “failures” are due to corrosion caused by water forced past seals into bearings. On recent models, HarleyDavidson recommends checking wheel bearings for play or roughness at every 5,000-mile service. You certainly may replace them every other tire change (your mileage may vary), but given proper checks, why not save money and effort by continuing to use perfectly serviceable bearings?

A SIMPLE QUESTION

A:

It's likely to be hydraulically locked by excess oil. Your best bet is to drain the oil and refill, using the right amount. If you don't have a manual, the oil volume is sometimes shown on the engine casting near the filler.

YEARS SOLD: 2000–2006 MSRP NEW: Sport $11,900 (’00) to $14,490 (’06) BLUE BOOK RETAIL VALUE: Sport $3,855 (’00) to $5,345 (’06) BASIC SPECS: Sporting the iconic longitudingally mounted air-cooled 90-degree, pushrod 1,064cc V-twin, the V11 was Moto Guzzi’s shot at a factory café racer-styled sportbike. This was evident in the equipment that the bikes had over the many years it was made. The two-valve-percylinder engine produced a very streetable 91 hp with 69 pound-feet of torque. Most models came with two 320mm front discs with four-piston Brembo calipers along with a 282mm disc two-piston caliper in the rear. Some models also came with factory Öhlins suspension, while most others had a Marzocchi fork and Sachs shock. A 5.0-gallon tank gave it a range of about 200 miles, ensuring you can get to the coffee shop and your favorite canyon road.

WHY IT’S DESIRABLE: Beginning production just before the turn of the millennium, the Moto Guzzi V11 helped lay the groundwork for the resurgence of “café” styled bikes conceived and built by manufacturers.

V11 models are generally naked or with a small café fairing to fit the look. For performance, the traditional Guzzi platform had many updates to the 30-year-old design—a lighter clutch, six-speed gearbox, fuel injection, and stiffer frame, to name a few. The V11 was produced in many versions, each with unique style, from the naked Sport in Guzzi yellow to the sleek Le Mans Nero Corse in black and red. The Tenni (pictured) is a particularly desirable model.

THE COMPETITION: Ducati Supersport 900, Triumph Sprint RS, Kawasaki ZRX 1100, Suzuki Bandit 1200, BMW R1100RS, Yamaha V-Max

Photo by Craig Olson

BETTER FIT GUARANTEED aerostich.com 7 201

Q:

I have one of those Chinese 150cc scooters. I rode it about 40 miles and did the first oil change myself. I put in too much oil, right up to the very top. Now the scooter won't start.

Did I screw up the scooter?

ELISHA BLOCK CYCLEWORLD.COM

MOTO GUZZI V11 (SPORT, LE MANS, SCURA, CAFÉ, ETC.)

YO

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YO IT .

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©2017

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SLIPSTREAM

66 CYCLE WORLD DECEMBER 2017

WORLD CHAMPION

Photographer: Ray Archer/KTM/Red Bull Content Pool

Editorial/Production: Offices are located at 15215 Alton Pkwy., Ste. 100, Irvine, CA 92618; (760) 707-0100. Editorial contributions are welcomed but must be guaranteed exclusive to Cycle World. We are not responsible for the return of unsolicited material unless accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope. Letters: All letters cannot be answered, and neither can all Service inquiries be answered. We appreciate correspondence sent or emailed to the editorial offices and will use the most interesting and appropriate letters in the magazine. Slipstream: We’re looking for stunning photos that capture the essence of our sport and remind us why we love motorcycling so much. Send your best shot to intake@cycleworld.com, being sure to include the word “Slipstream” in the subject line. Subscription/customer service: One year: US & Possessions = $15, Canada = $25, and Foreign = $35. International orders must be paid in advance and in US funds only. Call US and Canada: (800) 456-3084, (515) 237-3697. Mail: Cycle World, PO Box 6364, Harlan, IA 51593. Web: cycleworld.com/cs. Back issues: To order a back issue dated within the past two years, please go to backissues.cycleworld.com.

READER INFORMATION

Tony Cairoli celebrates victory at Assen, round 18 of the MXGP series, where the 32-year-old became a nine-time world champion riding for KTM Red Bull Factory Racing.

THE ALL-NEW ARAI DT-X

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