Riding Vintage: Military Machines Page 1 of 13 HOME ADVERTISING HISTORY MILITARY MACHINES PRODUCT REVIEWS RACING RIDE REPORTS TECH ON THE NEWSSTAND SOCIAL MEDIA SEARCH THIS SITE Search Abandoned Harleys Get New Life in Holland Advertise Here 1933 HARLEY-DAVIDSON VL RESTORATION By the end of World War II, the United States had sent hundreds of thousands of military vehicles to Europe, either for their own troops or to their Allies through the Lend Lease Program. Once the War was over, it was impractical to ship all these vehicles back to the US, so many of them were destroyed. For years, stories have been told about how hundreds of vehicles, including Harley-Davidsons, were dumped off of ships, buried in large pits or otherwise destroyed. There has probably even been a quest or two launched to locate these secret dumping grounds filled with now valuable military machines. Read more » on Wednesday, May 07, 2014 1 comment: +51 Recommend this on Google The First Yank and Harley to Enter Germany POPULAR POSTS A Look Inside the Harley-Davidson Factory of Yesteryear Riding with the Hells Angels The Motordrome - Board Track Motorcycle Racing How to Parkerize Motorcycle Parts Motorcycle Chariot Racing http://www.ridingvintage.com/search/label/Military%20Machines 3/15/2015 Riding Vintage: Military Machines Page 2 of 13 Killinger and Freund Motorcycle Images of Outlaws Patti Waggin Aaaaeeeyyy, What Happened to Fonzie's Knucklehead? Hells Angels Ride the Big Apple with Google Friend Connect Members (79) More » Chances are, you've probably seen this old photo of a Harley-Davidson riding through the streets of a German town at the end of WWI. While this in itself may not make for much of a story, the events that led up to it are worth reading. It turns out that after this photo was published in "The Enthusiast" magazine in 1943, the man riding the Harley in the photo turned up at the offices of "The Enthusiast" to get a copy. What follows is an article published in "The Enthusiast" in 1944 which tells the story of that famous picture. Already a member? Sign in Read more » 00x250 on Wednesday, April 30, 2014 No comments: +31 Recommend this on Google Cygnet Rear Car SEARCH THIS SITE Search In the early teens, Cygnet Rear Car Company took the idea of the horse drawn carriage and adapted it so that the horse was replaced by a motorcycle. Their business plan was simple, provide a form of transportation that was cheaper to own than a car, but carried more passengers or equipment than a standard motorcycle. They boasted that their rear cars could be removed in 30 seconds, allowing the owner to switch back to a standard motorcycle with ease. The Cygnet rear cars are pictured attached on both Harley-Davidson and Indian motorcycles, but it is unclear whether they made specific models for each manufacturer or if the rear car was a "universal fit" for any motorcycle. Read more » on Sunday, January 19, 2014 No comments: +53 Recommend this on Google Harley Half Track http://www.ridingvintage.com/search/label/Military%20Machines 3/15/2015 Riding Vintage: Military Machines Page 3 of 13 Another interesting Harley-Davidson based motorcycle from Japan. This vehicle was supposedly a gun platform built before WWII. Two wheels have been added to the rear end to allow for the use of a single track similar to a tank or bulldozer. Read more » on Wednesday, January 15, 2014 No comments: +39 Recommend this on Google Female Gun Crew 7/26/1918-WOMEN’S MACHINE GUN SQUAD, POLICE RESERVE: Practicing the Lewis machine gun which is to be sent to the front. The killing range of this gun is 2 miles, and it fires 600 to 800 shots per minute. Photo shows Captain Elise Reigner, manning the gun. Miss Helen M. Striffler in the side car/rear seat, and Mrs. Ivan Earasoff driving an Excelsior motorcycle. on Wednesday, January 15, 2014 No comments: +55 Recommend this on Google Harley's Last True Military Motorcycle http://www.ridingvintage.com/search/label/Military%20Machines 3/15/2015 Riding Vintage: Military Machines Page 4 of 13 During WWII, Harley-Davidson produced thousands of WLA motorcycles for the United States and it's Allies. Some sources estimate the total number of motorcycles at 70,000 units and enough spare parts to build 30,000 more. Other sources are more conservative, but the fact is, Harley-Davidson produced a lot of motorcycles for the military in the 1940's. This left a huge surplus of motorcycles after the war and with the motorcycle being phased out in favor of the Jeep 4x4, it wasn't until 1957 that the military placed another order for motorcycles with Harley-Davidson. This time they weren't interested in an combat ready machine, but instead a patrol vehicle to use on base. Harley's answer was the Sportster XLA. Read more » on Monday, October 28, 2013 No comments: +120 Recommend this on Google Harley's Machine Gun Flathead Here is Harley's answer to the US Military's desire for a motorcycle mounted machine gun. This prototype is based on a 1940 model UL. The UL was powered by a 74" side valve motor, commonly referred to as a flathead. This was the big twin model, not to be confused with the smaller 45" side valve motor which powered the WLA during WWII. The motor was mated to a tank-shifted four-speed transmission that drove the rear wheel via a chain. Mechanically, it's basically your standard issue UL, but to make it battle hardened, Harley added some interesting options. Read more » on Thursday, August 22, 2013 No comments: +65 Recommend this on Google http://www.ridingvintage.com/search/label/Military%20Machines 3/15/2015 Riding Vintage: Military Machines Page 5 of 13 Motorcycles Join the US Cavalry Even though the motorcycle had proved itself both in the Pershing Expedition and throughout WWI , the US Army still relied on horses for it's cavalry regiments. In 1928, the US Army put together it's first experimental regiment composed solely of vehicles than ran on gasoline (rather than hay). The regiment was given the nickname "Gasoline Brigade" and was made up of trucks and tanks. Oddly enough, some of the trucks were used to transport horses and riders so they would be well rested when they reached the battlefield. Initial tests were promising, but the vehicles could not stand up to the sustained high speed maneuvers and soon the regiment was plagued with mechanical failures. This led to the disbanding of the regiment, but the idea of a fast attack motorized unit was not abandoned. Finally in 1931, a new cavalry regiment was formed in Fort Eustis, VA and this time it included motorcycles, armored cars and fast tanks. Read more » on Wednesday, August 14, 2013 No comments: +62 Recommend this on Google The Harley-Davidson XA During the first half of WWII, BMW produced the R71 motorcycle for the German Wehrmact, while Harley-Davidson produced the WLA for the US Army. Both motorcycles used side-valve air-cooled twin cylinder engines, but the R71 had a couple of distinct design differences when compared to the WLA. First of all, it used an enclosed shaft, instead of an exposed chain, to drive the rear wheel. Besides keeping out dirt and debris, shaft drives also do not need constant adjustment nor do the wear out as quickly as a chain. This results in a machine that is much easier to maintain and more reliable, something that is very important for an army on the move. The R71 also had opposed cylinders which provided better cooling since both cylinders stuck out of the sides of the engine versus the WLA's 45-degree V-twin which had trouble cooling it's rear cylinder. As fighting moved into the deserts of North Africa, these advantages became important enough that the US Army contracted http://www.ridingvintage.com/search/label/Military%20Machines 3/15/2015 Riding Vintage: Military Machines Page 6 of 13 with both Harley-Davidson and Indian to produce a shaft driven desert-ready motorcycle. Borrowing heavily from the R71, Harley-Davidson produced the Experimental Army (XA) model. Indian also developed a shaft driven motorcycle, but used a 90-degree longitudinal-crankshaft V-twin engine similar to a Moto-Guzzi in their 841 model. Read more » on Wednesday, July 17, 2013 1 comment: +49 Recommend this on Google The Wrens: Female Dispatch Riders in WWII As Americans, when we think of the role of women in WWII, we often envision factories filled with women wearing headscarves, riveting together airplanes. That may have been what was happening here in the US, but across the Atlantic in Britain, things were definitely more dangerous for the women that helped with the war effort. Read more » on Thursday, June 20, 2013 No comments: +99 Recommend this on Google A 1934 Harley-Davidson VL, Built for the Japanese Imperial Navy http://www.ridingvintage.com/search/label/Military%20Machines 3/15/2015 Riding Vintage: Military Machines Page 7 of 13 At the end of the Great Depression, Harley-Davidson sold exclusive rights to the Sankyo Corporation to manufacture both Harley-Davidson motorcycles and spare parts in Japan. As part of that agreement, Sankyo would continue to purchase motorcycles directly from Harley-Davidson until their factory was completed and ready for production. It took Sankyo almost five years to complete their factory during which time Harley-Davidson sold them the VL pictured here for use by the Japanese Imperial Navy.