Finally, here was an American motorcycle that could compete with the Limeys.įor 1958, the XLCH sports model arrived, basically a stripped-down XL, but with an identical engine specification. Power was around 40hp at the crank (Triumph’s 1957 Tiger 110 made a claimed 42hp), which propelled the 460-pound machine to over 90mph. The 1957 XL Sportster got overhead valve heads while the crank used the model K’s shorter stroke with a larger 3-inch bore for 883cc (54ci). A high performance KHK with hot cams and polished ports came in 1955.īut flathead engines were limited in power, and a change was needed to keep up with the Brits. For 1954, the stroke was lengthened to a whopping 4.56 inches (from 3.81 inches) for 887cc, or 54ci, and the new model designated KH. The engine featured a right-side foot shifter - a first for H-D - and a new frame with a swingarm rear end. Cylinders were iron, and displacement was 45ci. On the top end were new alloy, side-valve heads. Introduced in 1952, the model K was essentially a WL bottom end in unit construction cases with a dry clutch and 4-speed transmission. Indian’s parallel twins bombed in the marketplace (and all over the pavement, too), but rather than copy the parallel twin, Harley-Davidson stuck with what it knew: 45-degree, single crankpin V-twins. BSA, Triumph and Norton, among others, began shipping 500cc twins and singles to the U.S., but it was the new crop of 650cc twins (especially Triumph’s 1950 Thunderbird) that demanded a response from Milwaukee and Springfield. The story goes that after WWII, American GIs in Europe became enamored of the sporty, lightweight parallel twins then coming out of British factories and brought some home. So why would you want one now? Conception and birth The Sportster’s future was being written, not as a competitor to the all-conquering four-across-the-frame Universal Japanese Motorcycle, but as a bastion of American durability and timeless style. They also liked its conservative styling and offbeat engine sound. Even so, reviewers liked its torquey, long-legged highway running and easy in-town traffic manners. In a Cycle magazine seven-bike shootout in 1973, the XL Sportster ranked dead last overall and propped up the other six bikes in almost every performance category. Imports easily outperformed and outsold it.
The Sportster was an instant hit in 1957, but by the Seventies it was showing its age. Riding a 2010 model instantly channels the first Sportster of 1957, even though the characteristic engine vibes have now been softened by rubber mountings. With an unbroken production run of 53 years, the overhead valve Harley-Davidson Sportster has outlived all of its early rivals, and is still able to raise its middle finger to the vagaries of the motorcycle marketplace. Engine type: 998cc air-cooled OHV 45-degree V-twin
0 kommentar(er)
