Indian Motocyles

928ram · 01-08-2006, 10:11 PM

Since this group always comes up with the answer....

Breif history: 1941 Sport Scout w/(Indian) sidecar, been in the family forever, Dad's owned it since early 70's. Some years ago, it came apart for a resoration, which was partialy completed, the got wrapped up and stored on the farthest back burner. It's time to make it whole again.

Way back, Dad had found a fellow who could rebuild and update the eng/trans with "better" parts; not to hot-rod, but rather a restoration quality build that produced an every-day reliable set-up. Most of what he did from what I understand was to replace some of the old-tech internals with repros of modern metalurgy and machining. The problem is that who and where has been misplaced, so I turn to the PPOT of endless wisdom for links, leads, conacts. I've done a little googling, so far no one has turned up that fits the description (might be retired..or worse by now)

666 · 01-09-2006, 01:54 AM

look under kiwi indian

he has everything

Joeaksa · 01-09-2006, 05:17 AM

Photos... we need photos! Love the old Indians!

singpilot · 01-09-2006, 07:25 AM

Nothing in the post tells us where you are. Might help in the search for the guy.

BlueSkyJaunte · 01-09-2006, 07:56 AM

While we're on the subject, I'm looking forward to this:

http://www.worldsfastestindian.com/

666 · 01-10-2006, 04:35 AM

928ram,

hope you don't mind me sharing these pics here

they are pics of my 2000 chief

2000 indian chief

BlueSkyJaunte · 01-10-2006, 08:14 AM

You're going to think I'm a ***** for saying this. And you'll be right.

But Indian Motocycle Co. died in 1953 and was never resurrected.

666 · 09:16 AM

A dick? Not really. More like a purist. I love the Springfield Indians too, they're the reason I got into motorcycling. But I would own one only as a show piece.

They are to small for the big and tall, kinda like sitting on my sportster. They only rate 22HP for the 45ci & 44 HP for the 80ci engines, kinda like my 914/4, twist the throttle and wait for the bike to catch up. The technology on the Springfield bikes are dated back to the early part of the last century. This isn't the kind of bike I will ride to work daily or ride 800 miles to AZ.

I can show you the title to the bike that says Indian. Same with the DMV registration. As well as the manufacturers info on the frame which reads Indian. I've heard it said many times before you. But I will like to know why you think Indian was never resurrected? And will you believe the same if Porsche failed and was resurrected 50 years from now.

BlueSkyJaunte · 01-10-2006, 11:05 AM

Purist describes me to a 'T'.

Anyway, a 44 HP bike can be plenty fast if you get rid of everything you don't need.

For their day the Indians were pretty decent motorcycles. You didn't need to be able to do sustained 85mph for hours...even though IIRC the transcontinental speed record was set by two brothers riding an Indian in the 40's.

FWIW, I think Harley died in 1984.5 (?) when they went to the blockhead and Porsche died in 1998 when they went to the wasserpumper. That's why I'm building a Shovelhead and drive a '81 911.

As for your bike being an "Indian"--yes, the names are all there. But "Indians" were *alternatives* to Harleys, not Harleys with flared fenders. Is that an Evo-type motor I see there...? They were on the right track with the PowerPlus motor but I'm not certain it was all that different.

Polaris/Victory had the right idea. They took the the V-twin platform and said, "Let's make it better across the board". Their softail-style frame handles much better than any equivalent size/weight HD, the motor is better, the tranny shifts better, the brakes are better and (IMHO) their first gen model even looked better (I know, many disagree with that notion).

Superman · 01-10-2006, 01:33 PM

One summer we were towing a boat to the lake and stopped at a gas station for fuel. We followed a stripped-down older American MC into the station being rode by a grungy biker longhair with few teeth. While fuel flowed I noticed it was an old Indian. A big one with all the goodies stripped. I asked "Gosh, it's got to be hard to find replacement parts for those things these days." His response was excellent.....

He looked at me like I was from outer space and said "don't need 'em."

Jeff Higgins · 01-10-2006, 03:58 PM

Kind of like Huschke von Hanstein to Vic Elford in 1966: "We don't have spare parts. Porshces don't break."

The proud Indian name has been sullied for far too long. There have been almost half a dozen guiless opportunists making use of the "Indian" name since '53. None have ever had any connection whatsoever with the original Indian. I hear rumors lately that they are set for yet another return; some investment firm that purchased the rights to Chris Craft now owns the name. What a shame.

This seems to run rampant in the motorcycle industry. We have seen Indian, Excellsior Henderson, Triumph, Norton, Vincent, and others "resurected". All the entrepeneurs that start up these companies are doing is cashing in on name recognition and nostalgia. None of the new companies carrying these proud names from the past ever had any connection with the original.

This is not to say they are not great motorcycles in their own rights. So why not use an original name, instead of riding on the coat tails of some one else's past glory? I think it actually detracts from them, cheapens them, and dooms them to be forever compared to the machines that wore those names in the past. It's a proven losing game - nostalgia ensures the originals will always be "better", regardless of modern advances.

Steve Carlton · 01-10-2006, 06:54 PM

I think Triumph is making some of the best motorcycles in the world, in the spirit of the originals. I hardly think of the company as a resurrection. It would be much harder to launch a new company from scratch, without any history to provide context. Many other companies have gone bankrupt, or lost their key personnel and evolved in that sense, so they're different as well. Things change. What's important to me is the quality of the new product and how well it honors its past. I don't think John Bloor of Triumph or Kenny Dreer of Triumph are trying to "cash in" on the famous names, rather I think they're men with tremendous passion in what they believe. I welcome the return of many of these bikes, such as the new Commando. I couldn't see owing a real one as practical, but I could enjoy one of these:

666 · 01-11-2006, 06:58 AM

Damn, I'd ride that ***** over a rice rocket.

Steve's got it right.

666 · 01-11-2006, 06:59 AM

Alright, who edited my post?

BlueSkyJaunte · 01-11-2006, 08:03 AM

It automagically does away with profanity. I usually substitute 'i' with '!' in that case.

666 · 01-11-2006, 10:20 AM

Checkin' out the new Nortons web site, this is a beautiful bike.
$20K is a steep price.

My Chief has an S&S evo engine. If the new S&S engine (New Generation V-Twin) will fit the Cheif, I'll put it in. It looks more like HD old 45 ci engines.

BSJ, what year is the shovel?

BlueSkyJaunte · 01-11-2006, 11:21 AM

It's a mixed bag...'05 frame, '05 tranny, late 70's HD jugs and heads, '05 S&S cases, JE pistons, Andrews cams, etc....

Eventually when I finish it'll be titled thru my buddy who's getting a mfgr's license. Guess it'll be an '06.

Steve Carlton · 01-11-2006, 06:48 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by 666
Checkin' out the new Nortons web site, this is a beautiful bike.
$20K is a steep price.

I remember hearing $20K was the estimated price, which is understandable with limited production. But the 961 spec sheet says $11,000, which is amazing. And the 961S is $13,200.