# Motorcycle oddities
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
**Created:** [November 20, 2004, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776 "2004-11-20T01:19:17Z")
**Posts on this page:** 19
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2004, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/1 "2004-11-20T01:19:17Z")
I’m not a motorcyclist, but here’s a companion thread to the Automobile Oddities thread.
[BMW C1](http://www.bmwworld.com/models/concepts/c1.htm)
[Dodge Tomahawk](http://www.allpar.com/cars/concepts/tomahawk.html)
I figure most everything else would fit in somewhere in the middle. 😃
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### Author:  [@wheelie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wheelie)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2004, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/2 "2004-11-20T03:30:14Z")
[This](http://www.ironhorseclothing.com/roadog/rdh.htm) won’t fit in the middle of anything.
[Behold the Roadog!](http://www.msichicago.org/scrapbook/scrapbook_exhibits/roadog/)
Supposed to be at least two of these out there. I ain’t seen one yet, but [Buzz Walneck](http://www.walneckswap.com/roadog/bestofbuzz.asp) is supposed to have one.
odd enuff fer ya?
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### Author:  [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2004, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/3 "2004-11-20T03:34:31Z")
> [@wheelie](#):
>
> odd enuff fer ya?
Holy crap!
“Well, sir. I started out to build me a motorcycle and I just couldn’t stop.”
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### Author:  [@Berkut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Berkut)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2004, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/4 "2004-11-20T03:34:49Z")
How about a motorcycle with a radial engine…
[…in the front wheel?](http://www.buy-images.com/Megola-Sport-640-CC-Germany-1922.html)
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### Author:  [@wheelie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wheelie)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2004, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/5 "2004-11-20T03:57:06Z")
Oh yeah, [The Megola](http://www.motorcycle.com/mo/mcmuseum/gug.html)
I read once that these were used by spies during WWII in France to smuggle small parcels and documents inside the monocoque bodywork (classic bike or some similar european bike magazine).
The engine rotated inside the wheel, but not at the same speed, as it used a planetary gear transmission. To bring it to a full stop you had to shut it off, so the manufacturer suggested that one “orbit” at stops. Not very practical if you ask me 😃
Easily in the top 10 of wierd bikes.
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### Author:  [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2004, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/6 "2004-11-20T04:00:31Z")
[The Sbarro](http://www.burningart.com/meico/moto/sbarro/index.html)
I always thought this was cool.
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### Author:  [@mike1dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mike1dog)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2004, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/7 "2004-11-20T04:27:26Z")
Not really weird, except for the engine. A [flathead](http://www.honestcharley.com/V860.htm) powered motorcycle.
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### Author:  [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2004, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/8 "2004-11-20T15:51:14Z")
> [@Mr. Blue Sky](#):
>
> I’m not a motorcyclist, but here’s a companion thread to the Automobile Oddities thread.
>
> I figure most everything else would fit in somewhere in the middle. 😃
Dunno. The C-1 is a scooter, really, not exactly a motorcycle. And the Tomahawk is a pretty non-functional bike (all it can do is go in a straight line) and only a few of them were ever made. And it’s got four wheels, which, IMHO, disqualifies it from being considered a motorcycle.
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### Author:  [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2004, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/9 "2004-11-20T16:13:42Z")
> [@LMM](#):
>
> Dunno. The C-1 is a scooter, really, not exactly a motorcycle. And the Tomahawk is a pretty non-functional bike (all it can do is go in a straight line) and only a few of them were ever made. And it’s got four wheels, which, IMHO, disqualifies it from being considered a motorcycle.
Hmmm, that IS odd, isn’t it. :dubious:
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### Author:  [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2004, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/10 "2004-11-20T19:18:42Z")
It was a kit car, based upon a suzuki motorcycle, and made by a company in Milpitas, CA, in the mid to late 1970’s.
They really lloked cool…has anyone a link?
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### Author:  [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2004, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/11 "2004-11-20T20:03:13Z")
> [@ralph124c](#):
>
> It was a kit car, based upon a suzuki motorcycle, and made by a company in Milpitas, CA, in the mid to late 1970’s.
> They really lloked cool…has anyone a link?
[This?](http://www.3wheelers.com/fiberfab.html)
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### Author:  [@wheelie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wheelie)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2004, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/12 "2004-11-20T23:49:52Z")
The [Rokon](http://www.rokon.com/products/trailbrkr.htm) , a 2-wheel drive off-road bike.
Here’s an older 3-wheeler by [Messerschmitt](http://www.messerschmitt.co.uk/index.php?set_albumName=album10&option=com_gallery&Itemid=25&include=view_album.php) .
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### Author:  [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2004, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/13 "2004-11-21T00:08:48Z")
3 wheels? 2 wheels? Let us simplify more:
Yes, a motorized Unicycle!!
> **[Bombardier EMBRIO](http://www.gizmohighway.com/transport/bombardier-embrio.htm)**
>
> Gizmo Highway - Bringing togeather technologies, past, present and future
> [@](#):
>
> The EMBRIO concept is a recreational and commuting vehicle that uses gyroscopic and electronic technology. It is a means of transportation, as well as a way of enjoying transportation as a positive activity. The main power source is a hydrogen fuel cell. In stand-by configuration, the vehicle’s front wheels deploy to the ground like a jet plane landing gear to increase longitudinal stability. Thus stabilized, the Bombardier EMBRIO looks perfectly at home in the urban landscape, displaying the beauty of its sculptural lines until it’s time to go for a ride.
>
> Riding the Bombardier EMBRIO concept in the real world would be a thrill. With a riding position similar to a motorcycle, the EMBRIO uses a complex series of sensors and gyroscopes to balance one or more human passengers on a single wheel. Technology will be used to harness the laws of physics, with the gyroscopes and sensors, a high-performance braking system, active suspension, night vision and robotic assistance. A digitally encoded learning key will start the engine. To move forward, the rider activates a trigger on the left handlebar. The landing gear retracts when the speed reaches 20 km/h. To turn, the rider leans in the desired direction. The brake is activated by a trigger on the right handlebar. When the speed drops to 20 km/h again, the landing gear redeploys automatically. Even without the landing gear, the EMBRIO would be stable when motionless because of the gyroscope.
I am making a model of this for my 3D project for College, Which is why I had this info handy.
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### Author:  [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2004, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/14 "2004-11-21T02:28:11Z")
The entire product line of Harley-Davidson?
“If 30’s technologies were good enough to defeat Hitler, thar good enough for me!”
He He! 😃
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### Author:  [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2004, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/15 "2004-11-21T02:36:52Z")
> [@gatopescado](#):
>
> The entire product line of Harley-Davidson?
>
> “If 30’s technologies were good enough to defeat Hitler, thar good enough for me!”
>
> He He! 😃
Speaking of that, anybody know about those tank-treaded cycles used by the Germans for towing in WW2?
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### Author:  [@unclviny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/unclviny)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2004, 7:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/16 "2004-11-21T07:30:09Z")
I nominate the Neracar
[http://mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/neracar/index.jhtml](http://mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/neracar/index.jhtml)
**BOSDA** , here you go
[http://www.kettenkrad.de/](http://www.kettenkrad.de/)
Unclviny
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### Author:  [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2004, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/17 "2004-11-21T16:32:28Z")
> [@gatopescado](#):
>
> The entire product line of Harley-Davidson?
>
> “If 30’s technologies were good enough to defeat Hitler, thar good enough for me!”
>
> He He! 😃
Well, given that Harleys are the best-selling motorcycles in the country right now (or at least recently, according to an article I read somewhere in the motorcycle press), one can hardly call them “oddities.”
Yes, they’re kind of old-tech, although they’ve finally gotten around to putting counterbalancing on some models, and they’re adding fuel injection gradually throughout the whole lineup (no doubt so that their old technology can meet increasingly stringent EPA emissions regulations).
That said, they still make some decent bikes. The Sportster is a really fun motorcyle. And the various Electra-Glide models are not bad tourers, if one isn’t in too much of a hurry. They’re comfortable, simple, and quite reliable these days. The days when people were afraid to ride a Harley more than a hundred miles from home are long gone.
That said, I don’t ride one, because their performance simply isn’t up to modern standards. I don’t ride a sportbike, either, and I prefer mechanically simple bikes, but I do want a bike with some power, reasonable cornering clearance, and decent brakes. So I ride a BMW.
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### Author:  [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2004, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/18 "2004-11-21T18:04:55Z")
Thank you, **unclviny**. 🙂
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### Author:  [@SpectBrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpectBrain)
#### Post date: [November 22, 2004, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/motorcycle-oddities/275776/19 "2004-11-22T00:13:22Z")
Submitted for your appreciation:
[The Spagthorpe Airedale](http://www.spagthorpe.com/production/airedale.html)😃