![]() The Model A flipped that, with a frame that was meant for the motor first, pedaling second. Indians so far had been built on modified bicycle frames, meaning that the frame was oriented towards pedals first, motor second. However, to keep customers interested, innovation and evolution were needed, and that's where the 1910 Indian Single Model A comes in. Please see the linked video to the bottom of the right column to see one in action.Īs the first decade of the 20th century ended, Indian had sold enough of their Indian Single motorized bicycles to be a secure and even profitable business. ![]() Note: The image above is of an Indian Single Model A, but is missing its engine sprocket and two chains. It was also the first motorcycle with a chain final drive, instead of the leather belts or shafts that other manufacturers used.įour total F-Heads were made, all of the prototypes, and upon seeing the marvel of the motorized bicycle with its engine "built in," investors flooded Indian with money, and soon mass production of the Indian Single, the first production model based on the F-Head, was underway. What earned him the genius badge is that instead of simply attaching the engine to a bicycle like all the other companies, the Indian F-Head was the very first motorcycle to include the engine as a stressed frame member. In 1900, Oscar Hedstrom, a genius engineer, joined Indian and designed the first fully in-house single cylinder engine, which produced 1.75 HP. That name became synonymous with the company, so in 1898 they renamed to American Indian, then quickly to just Indian Bicycles. Instead, the Hendee Manufacturing Company was formed in 1897 to produce bicycles, of which one was called the American Indian. The story of the 1901 F-Head is an interesting one, as it wasn't even supposed to be branded as Indian. See also: Indian Motorcycles research center Therefore, here are what we think, in our subjective opinions, are the best 9 Indian Motorcycles ever made up until 2023. Operations resumed nearly half a century later, in 1999, and today Indian rivals Harley-Davidson for the title of "America's Motorcycle Company." We here at webBikeWorld discussed how we wanted to tackle this list, having one pre-1953 list and one post-1999 list, but in the end we decided to combine the two into the entire 122 year history. The material rationing and drop in sales revenue pitched the company onto a slippery slope down to 1953, when it effectively suspended operations, although motorcycles built by other companies did sometimes license the name. They continued to innovate and produce some truly classic motorcycles, until the second World War occurred. This led to widespread exposure, and by the end of the 1910s, Indian was the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world by volume. What brought Indian to fame, however, was the fact that almost as soon as they created their own "sport" motorcycle, they took it racing, and often winning at those races. All of those companies had a motorcycle model out on the road between 19, although most if not all were motorized bicycles (hence, motorcycles) with a tiny 50cc or less single. In sheer technical terms, Indian Motorcycles is one of the oldest companies in the business, right up there with Harley-Davidson, Royal Enfield, and Triumph.
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