Currently on exhibit at the International Center for Photography (ICP) in New York, 'The Mexican Suitcase' refers to three cardboard boxes smuggled out of France at the beginning of WW2, likely by the Mexican ambassador, containing 126 rolls of film, lost for 70 years, from three of the most important photojournalists to cover the Spanish Civil War; Robert Capa, Gerda Taro, and David 'Chim' Seymour. These three young and idealistic photographers entered Spain in 1936 to document the terrible struggle between the elected Leftist government, and a half-successful coup organized by General Francisco Franco, backed by a coalition of monarchists, capitalists, the Catholic church, and Fascists.
Hoping to sway international opinion through the use of their photographs, Capa, Taro (Capa's lover, see both above), and Chim took dramatic photos which changed the course of photography, if not the war. With the mantra 'if the photo isn't interesting, you're not close enough to the battle', these three were intimately involved with the Republican soldiers fighting against the US- and Fascist-backed rebellion. The three photographers weren't the only foreigners helping the Republicans via media accounts; luminaries such as Ernest Hemingway (below), Paul Robeson, Pablo Neruda, and George Orwell (who actually took up arms, and wrote 'Homage to Catalonia' about his experiences in the war) felt the urgency of fighting the European tide of Fascism which arose in the 1930s in Italy and Germany.
The Republican soldier riding the motorcycle was photographed by Gerda Taro (the nom de plume of Gerta Pohrylle of Germany), and is hiding in the forest during an aerial attack by German Heinkel He51s, in the battle of Navacerrada Pass, between Madrid and Segovia, early June 1937. This very battle is the setting for Ernest Hemingway's 'For Whom the Bell Tolls', in which a journalist/Hemingway stand-in, Robert Jordan, is an American who travels to Spain to fight fascism. About 2800 Americans (the 'Abraham Lincoln Brigade') did so, although I doubt any brought their motorcycles, as there was an official US embargo on providing any material aid to the Spanish, and some of the Americans were prosecuted after returning to the US.
The Harley Davidson looks to be a 'VLD' model of 1932-'36, their 74cubic inch sidevalve roadster, hardly suited to the kind of off-road work used in a military campaign... but of course, private motorcycles were pressed into service during war in Spain, and shortly after, the rest of Europe. The Harley has a German Bosch headlamp, which may have been a convenient replacement for the original item, after damage. No other modifications appear to have been made to the bike; Spain had no time to make specialist war equipment or even paint military machines drab or camouflage. In his leather jacket and boots, plus beret and goggles, the rider could be any of us on his Harley, out for a spin in the woods. But the look of anxiety on his face, keeping his hands on the 'bars, means our rider is ready to hightail it at the first sign of an incoming plane...
Thanks to JJ Ward for alerting me to these photos!
Harley-Davidson XR1200 engine combines with a sporty chassis
Harley Davidson XR1200 prototype and proven to make a lot of people in awe. Motor Harley engine combines with a sporty chassis. This opportunity should see this model Harley-Davidson did not give the green light to the production line.
The contemporary tale of Harley Davidson/MV Agusta proves the lessons of the past have yet to be learned, the entire scenario being a poor repeat of H-D's previous of Aermacchi in 1961. At that time, H-D sought an entry into small-capacity motorcycling, as they hadn't developed any lightweight bikes since introducing the Hummer (below), whose design was based wholly on the DKW RT125, blueprints and tooling of which were acquired as war trophies/reparations immediately following WW2. Thus, H-D had a lot of catching up to do, having done no development in the fastest-growing segment of motorcycling in the late 1940s through early 70s. Having done the calculations, I'm certain management concluded it would be more cost-effective to purchase a small company with a successful product line of lightweights, than begin a years-long process of developing a new H-D line of small machines.
Harley was successful initially with their new models, which proved popular, for racing, street, and off-road uses. The move required a huge effort to arm-wrestle dealers into selling bikes they didn't know at all, make space on shop floors, and retrain thousands of service departments to work on unfamiliar models, which were introduced at a rapid pace. Every H-D mechanic also had to buy a complete new set of metric tools! Echoes of their grumbling can still be heard today, and it's a rare true-blue Harley enthusiast/dealer/mechanic who retains fondness for the Aermacchi episode, or frankly, even acknowledge the Italian machines as H-Ds at all.
The flabbergasting conclusion to this whole tale isn't the fact that H-D sold MV Agusta for a reported 3Euros - that's typical when a corporate buyer must assume the debts of the seller's company. No, it's that BOTH deals involved the Castiglioni brothers, who purchased Aermacchi from Harley in the 1978. The Castiglionis have repeated the exercise, decades later, of buying an Italian motorcycle company for a song when H-D was in financial trouble. A remarkable case of déja vu - haven't we been here before? The Castiglioni's won't have it easy to revive MV Agusta from its current moribund state, but they managed in the 70s to prosper after buying Aermacchi back from H-D, and seem to have come out just fine in the end. Their tale, and that of their father Giovanni, deserves to be told on these pages, as Giovanni founded Cagiva in 1950 and sons Claudio and Gianfranco inherited the company - changing the focus in 1978 from metals production to motorcycles.
George Santayana famously wrote (in 'The Life of Reason', 1905), "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it". It would seem H-Ds venture with MV Agusta was doomed from the start.
"Motorcycle maker Harley-Davidson completed the sale of MV Agusta, its sport-bike business based in Varese, Italy. The company’s announcement didn’t include the sale price but its 8-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission revealed the company essentially paid MV Agusta’s former owners to take it back.
In the filing Harley said it “contributed 20 million Euros to MV as operating capital” that was put in escrow and is available to the buyer over a 12-month period. The buyer is Claudio Castiglioni, who, with his brother Gianfranco, ran MV Agusta for years before selling it to Harley two years ago for about $109 million.
At the time Harley was concerned that its core baby-boomer customers were getting older and losing their will and ability to ride motorcycles. So it bought MV Agusta, a maker of expensive, exotic, high-performance sport bikes as a quick way to attract younger buyers. But the strategy never worked out. While MVs are wonderful bikes for purists who treat each motorcycle ride almost like a gym workout, riding them in traffic or as casual transportation can be a chore. They are also prohibitively expensive for many motorcycle enthusiasts.
In the filing Harley also said it received “nominal consideration” from the buyer. In a subsequent interview the company said the specific amount it received was $3 Euros. A company spokesman said the terms of the transaction “reflect the realities of the current economic environment and the difficult conditions” in the sport-bike market. Motorcycle sales in the U.S. have been sagged in the past few years after more than a decade of steady growth. Unlike cars, which began a recovery this year, motorcycles are typically discretionary purchases — the type consumers give up during difficult economic times.
Harley has previously write-downs totaling $162.6 million for the fair value of MV Agusta and began treating the unit as a discontinued operation after announcing its intention to sell it a year ago. The company said it anticipate additional related losses from discontinued operations in the third quarter of 2010.
A footnote: There is a certain element of should-have-known-better in this story. This isn’t the first time Harley-Davidson has had a hard time with an Italian acquisition. In the 1960s it bought a stake in Aermacchi, a maker of small off-road bikes as a way to expand into new markets. Eventually it bought the whole company, but that move also eventually failed and Harley sold Aermacchi in the late 1970s. The sellers and buyers: the Castiglioni brothers."
of the motorcycle 2, we can keep score. that the two were in bike into the category of extreme modification because he has a strange appearance. when compared with the modification of another motorcycle. harley davidson of color in the paint with air brush has a unique character. namely using the concept of choper. and the blue harley davidson was using the concept of the modern modifications. because we can see a lot of accessories that use high technology, such as the audi system installed on the bike. please if you are interested in, treat your eyes to look at this bike.
Lowrider Vario with Harley Davidson Steer from Bali
Habits sometimes die hard, as shown when modifying Thinq Honda Vario. Used to modify the Harley-Davidson, some characteristics of the motor that American products were seen in this 2007 scooter production. Most thick, it looks at the handlebars with a clothesline pole model high as 60 cm. He said, hell, adjust the height of 180 cm Thinq. Then, the two wheels wearing large size, 8-inch rear and the front 4 inches. The front was a little change. Note deh, more tilted position so sokbreker tires become more backward. “This change alone only after the display,” explained Thinq. And changes made at the corner of the triangle making new ones. Incidentally, he continued, the front wheels are 4 inches needs a new triangle.
This change is not no consequences. He admitted, swivel angle becomes greatly reduced and that the risk for the sake of appearance. Try lyrics CVT cover, the motor was contrived style of Uncle Sam. So was the back. He is more sip a rigid model alias no shock absorbers. He just make retaining arm with a framework using stainless steel pipe sizes 2 inches. The most extreme, low flow rider has a different touch than the other skutik. Back axle is not remarkably after the back-large use retreat retreat to 43 cm. “Deliberately created so because it wants all look fit if the long view,” Thinq call. via:kompas.com
The Sportster is a line of motorcycles produced continuously since 1957 by the Harley-Davidson Motor Company. Sportster models are designated in Harley-Davidson's product code by beginning with "XL". In 1952, the predecessors to the Sportster, the Model K Sport and Sport Solo motorcycles, were introduced. These models K, KK, KH, and KHK of 1952–1956 are not always considered to be Sportsters, but are definitely the precursors and inspiration for the line.
I've had so much response to the Hacker-built Harleys at the Grossglockner Hillclimb, it seemed appropriate to give a littl background on these enigmatic and compelling machines. First mention on these pages was the appearance of the 8-Valve Harley at the Bonhams Pamplona collection sale; photographs of the machine from the Bonhams press kit had me immediately cross-eyed.
It was clear the machine was special, and very likely indeed A Special, as four-valve cylinder heads weren't used on J-model crankcases... but you never know what you'll find in the motorcycling world, and there was a slim chance it was some factory-built European roadracer, a la the OHV 1926 Indian 750cc, of which 3 were built to compete in Europe, complete with brakes, mudguards, and megaphones. The black Harley was very clearly built in this spirit, although 'modern' touches like the twin Amal TT carbs gave a hint to some modern thinking. The bike was clearly built for speed, with a period aspect, giving the whole ensemble a unity which is very convincing. Plus, an applied patina to all parts gives a feeling of real period authenticity. Full marks.
The black Harley sold at Bonhams for £29,000, to an English rider/collector, who was kind enough to bring it to Grossglocker so all could revel in its glory. Unfortunately, serious magneto trouble prevented a run up the hill, even after long hours spend on Friday night; only one cylinder would cooperate, so the bike was shelved for the weekend. Sad, as the bike was built by Harry Hacker to make some serious horsepower. Note in the above photos how slim is the machine; those 1920s Harleys were lithe and fast, giving no hint of the bloated dinosaurs the marque would produce in years to come.
I spoke with Harry Hacker, proprietor of his own shop and perhaps best known as partner of Fritz Simmerlien in the Harleysons motorcycle club and website, during the weekend, to prise the secrets of his build on the two OHV Harley conversions at the Hillclimb. The Black machine used standard Harley 'J' crankcases, with cylinder barrels and 4-Valve heads provided by Fred Lange Restorations. A standard J rolling chassis is used, with the addition of a front drum brake, from a later model; the rear brake is the typical contracting-band item which grips the outside of the brake drum. Kind of humorous, that brake, given that Harry reckons the bike puts out around 70hp! That's almost 3 times the original output of the inlet-over-exhaust J... expect wheel-spinning antics from the new owner of the machine... although he seems a civilized sort, sporting a tie underneath his Belstaff jacket - a Vintagent for sure!
The Second Hacker machine, in green, was hitched to a vintage Harley sidecar, ridden by the man himself, with wife Otilie as active ballast. The green bike is similar in general configuration to the black, although the engine is entirely new, with beefed-up crankcases, all new internals, and replica Peashooter cylinders and heads. It makes a little more hp than the earlier black machine, around 72hhp Harry says, but sports the same patinated condition, lagged exhaust pipes (four of them!), English saddle, and later front brake, this one looking identical to a BSA 8" item, but methinks it is actually a Harley 'K' model item?
A Harley such as this would have no problem hauling a chair and passenger up a steep incline, if those hp figures are accurate. The Peashooter heads share a single Schebler carb of large diameter, making a tune-up much easier, and perhaps a better low-end mixture - very important when carrying a bunch of weight alongside.
The result of all Hacker's work is a pair of extremely appealing vintage motorcycles, with serious performance and an eye towards authenticity. To the uninitiated, they look like 'the real thing', even though such bikes never existed in the 1920s...would that they did! But, it would add another zero to the selling price...
