The Indian Scout's introduction into the market happened in the 1920s. This specific type of motorcycles proceeded to be the most famous when it came to speed racing. The 1928 101 Scout became the favorite motorcycle even in the line of India's most popular motorbikes.
In the 1920s, the Four, The Prince, the Big Chief and the Chief became available. This decade receives the credit for laying the foundation that made Indian motorcycles to become very well liked in America.
In the 1920s, Indian needed something totally new to replace its Powerplus engine, specifically with Harley Davidson putting out more advanced bikes. To that end, Indian charged Charles Franklin, a racer and an engineer, with coming up with new things. Not only were Harley Davidson bikes giving Indian some competition, cars were starting to be made in huge amounts also.
The bike that Franklin introduced in 1922 had a 61 cubic inch (1,000cc) V-twin engine. Its shape was more refined compared to other Indian Motorbikes along with having a lower seat. This bike also had helical gears instead of the conventional chain drive transmission. The new motorbike's weight was 425 pounds and it had the ability to get to the speed of 90 miles per hour, which was a new thing in those years. Its name was the Chief.
On the other hand, Indian improved their motorcycle further in 1923. Despite the fact that the Chief was a great motorcycle, Indian increased the size of new motorcycle motors to be 1,200 cc or 74 cubic inches. Therefore, Indian introduced the Big Chief in 1923.
Another enhancement to the motorcycle was that the Big Chief had a side car and a large number of people used this combination for transport. This was convenient because not many people used personal cars as a means of transport. Even though it was possible to fit a side car onto the 1923 Scout, the motorbike that could carry the extra load more proficiently was the Big Chief.
However, several individual riders considered the 1,200 cc engine of the Big Chief enough. This motorcycle became Indian's top seller in 1923, but there were more changes to come for Indian in the same year.
The main changes that occurred include the change of name of the company into Indian Motocycle Company with the word Motorcycle missing the letter "r". The other change was the change of name of the PowerPlus engine into "Standard". This was a means to clarify the fact that the later engine was more efficient than the previous engine.
No matter whether Indian knew it at that time or not, the Big Chief was a classic. A 1923 Indian Big Chief in great condition can fetch over $40,000 today.
In the 1920s, the Four, The Prince, the Big Chief and the Chief became available. This decade receives the credit for laying the foundation that made Indian motorcycles to become very well liked in America.
In the 1920s, Indian needed something totally new to replace its Powerplus engine, specifically with Harley Davidson putting out more advanced bikes. To that end, Indian charged Charles Franklin, a racer and an engineer, with coming up with new things. Not only were Harley Davidson bikes giving Indian some competition, cars were starting to be made in huge amounts also.
The bike that Franklin introduced in 1922 had a 61 cubic inch (1,000cc) V-twin engine. Its shape was more refined compared to other Indian Motorbikes along with having a lower seat. This bike also had helical gears instead of the conventional chain drive transmission. The new motorbike's weight was 425 pounds and it had the ability to get to the speed of 90 miles per hour, which was a new thing in those years. Its name was the Chief.
On the other hand, Indian improved their motorcycle further in 1923. Despite the fact that the Chief was a great motorcycle, Indian increased the size of new motorcycle motors to be 1,200 cc or 74 cubic inches. Therefore, Indian introduced the Big Chief in 1923.
Another enhancement to the motorcycle was that the Big Chief had a side car and a large number of people used this combination for transport. This was convenient because not many people used personal cars as a means of transport. Even though it was possible to fit a side car onto the 1923 Scout, the motorbike that could carry the extra load more proficiently was the Big Chief.
However, several individual riders considered the 1,200 cc engine of the Big Chief enough. This motorcycle became Indian's top seller in 1923, but there were more changes to come for Indian in the same year.
The main changes that occurred include the change of name of the company into Indian Motocycle Company with the word Motorcycle missing the letter "r". The other change was the change of name of the PowerPlus engine into "Standard". This was a means to clarify the fact that the later engine was more efficient than the previous engine.
No matter whether Indian knew it at that time or not, the Big Chief was a classic. A 1923 Indian Big Chief in great condition can fetch over $40,000 today.
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The 1948 model Indian motorcycle was one of the first models built after WW2. To get more details about the 1923 model Indian motorcycle follow the hyperlink.
