Hi Bryan >Good luck finding a "scrap" Harley > >Thanks primarily to RUB's buying up all the new production, even a >basket-case HD will set you back a couple grand. (For the uninitiated, >a RUB pronounced "rube" is a Rich Urban Biker generally a doctor, >attorney, accountant or other white collar professional who transports >his bike to rallies on a trailer.) > >Anyway, Harleys are overpriced and overrated.
And you have to get off and push them round corners, don't you? :-) >Your best bet for a >diesel conversion is to go with an older Japanese bike. They are cheap, >well made, and readily available. I would even venture to say that you >might able to scrounge one for free. After all, who wants to buy a >Japanese motorcycle with a blown engine? The Japanese love Harleys, they're fascinated by the lo-tech. There are lots of them here, you see them out on the roads in big packs in the summer, always beautifully kept machines. >The Enfields are intriguing, and there is already information out there >about installing a Hatz diesel in them. I think the Enfields also have separate gearboxes, not unit construction. They're developed from old British bikes, and the Brits only started building unit construction motors in the early sixties. Some may have been earlier, I can't recall any though. Hmm... Triumph Bonnevilles of yore, Norton Dominators, and then Commandos, BSA Gold Stars, AJS, Matchless, Ariel, Royal Enfield... Vincents, wow. One guy had a Vincent Black Prince 1000cc V2 mill in a duplex Norton Dominator frame, squeezed it in with a shoehorn, nice job, what a machine! My brother put a 500cc BSA twin in a 175cc Ducati frame (early Ducatis were small), also a shoehorn job, his usual beautiful work. Amazing torque, and it handled well. Gold Star was the only bike in town my Bonneville couldn't beat (he couldn't beat me either). Kawasaki still make their version of the Gold Star, big single, retro bike, very cool. It must be nearly 50 years old, that design. Sigh... Keith >Good luck. > > > >-BRAH > >-----Original Message----- >From: Dan Maker [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] >Sent: Monday, December 22, 2003 3:56 PM >To: biofuel@yahoogroups.com >Subject: Re: [biofuel] Military diesel motorcycles and other cool >stuff... > > > >Neoteric Biofuels Inc said: > > > > http://www.americanprofile.com/issues/20010930/20010930ne_1354.asp > > > > See link above, ask this chap for plans, maybe. Perkins in a Harley, >on > > biodiesel. > >It's a cool story, but I'm not sure it's the direction I want to go to >build a diesel bike. This bit from the fifth paragraph put me off the >first time I read it, a few days ago: > >"He also spent $15,000 on parts for his one-of-a-kind motorcycle." > >But then he did buy the frame new, it could probably be done for a lot >less if one were to check the local salvage yards for parts. > >Dan >-- >Jack of all trades, master of none. >Fiber Artist - Genealogist - Kilt Maker - Linux Geek - Piper - >Woodworker >http://www.xmission.com/~redbeard > Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Biofuels list archives: http://archive.nnytech.net/index.php?list=biofuel Please do NOT send Unsubscribe messages to the list address. To unsubscribe, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Buy Ink Cartridges or Refill Kits for your HP, Epson, Canon or Lexmark Printer at MyInks.com. Free s/h on orders $50 or more to the US & Canada. http://www.c1tracking.com/l.asp?cid=5511 http://us.click.yahoo.com/mOAaAA/3exGAA/qnsNAA/FGYolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Yahoo! Groups Links To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/biofuel/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
