Ankit , I am not asking anyone not to wear the patches , nor I am looking down on anyone. I too do not ride much , there are people who would have covered 5 folds more than me in same kind of time, I did not say anything bad even about people flaunting badges bought of ebay without having a bike.
like you rightly said ,Biking means different thing to different people , they should enjoy it the way they want to!
What I feel I put forward on the table.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ebonho And the Harley Club scene is the Bullet club scene with deeper pockets.
Glad you said this.
Because when I've been saying this for months now, I have been accused of Harley bashing. |
Yes Harley and bullets have lot in common!
Both work on rubber wheels! both are made of steel , both work on petrol and are air cooled , both vibrate or rather throb .
Harley has lot of things in common with other things as well .
But their are differences as well.
Unlike any other motorcycle Harley have gas tanks without edges.60 years ago all bikes had this type of tanks
- all other bikes now have gas tanks where the top case meets spine tunnel and sheet metal over laps.
these days on other bikes its Resistance welded where in you simply pass these two overlap sheets between the rollers carrying 400 or so amps and edges are welded shut.Easier and cheaper to do.
Harley believes in making them retro as retro should be (made as they have always been made), they do not overlap sheets ( which makes an ugly and sharp edge) , instead they bring in sheet end to sheet end and then TIG weld them. No ugly sharp edge left on which otherwise is a curvy tank.
Of course this process is at least 100 times more difficult to repeat in production and quality control as tig weld often leaves leaks.
Then Master tig welders draw nice salaries and one gas tank costs 60k bucks in india!
Also they machine most of the components out of billet aluminum , instead of Investment cast , thats why even the foot peg mounts or the gear/brake lever have been made in one piece rather than welding few simple bits together as in Bullet or other bikes.
Gas Tank shows off the Center crest running down from gas cap to rear , reminding of custom gas tanks made on English wheel by master craftsmen by joining two sides on top by TIG and then grinding .
OEM seats made of LAMB leather and hand stitched , not modern day fake polymers.
Switch cases/ Indicator housing made of machined aluminum not plastic.
Handle bars bent on constant radius benders not their modern but faster cousin that leave bend start and end area kinked and Identifiable .
All aluminum parts are polished even if they are out of sight!
Side covers / AC cover fenders are all steel.
Paint process is patented 16layer with clear coat in 3 layers , unlike only one clear coat for every other automobile except possibly Ferrari .
even wheel spacers are made of machined aluminum (not even cast aluminum) unlike steel on bullet.
Head light is Hung downwards instead of mounted upwards on Lower triple tree using a bracket! they believe it spoils the One piece look and flowing lines of Triple tree!
and There must be a million things I do not know about.
With all that retro touch , they have brought in modern tech to keep with the Norms and times.
Tappets have been upgraded to Hydraulic activation making them adjustment free forever. These is absolutely nothing to adjust on tappets on a Harley!
Drive train now sports adjustment free Belt , made from Kevlar aramid (Kevlar as in Real bullet jackets not riding gear Kevlar) fiber it is unstretchable and adjustment free for life ,
Gear box has all spur gears sporting zirconium & chromium coat to withstand all that modification to power but still retain classic engagement sound.
ECU and its Strategy for engine management is worlds ahead of what cars are Using ( at least cars in India) .
Switch gear is micro switch type instead of Direct current draw type , where in user button only directs another electronic to switch on / off something without actually passing the whole current through itself. Reducing chances of electrical death in rain or washing due to short circuit.
Engine Internals are so over engineered that people have employed turbochargers with out changing engine internals!