Big Dog k9 motorcycle, American Ironhorse LSC and Harley-Davidson Fat Boy 360° video ride in San Diego California.
This 360° motorcycle video was done with a Insta360 One X camera. This camera does NOT move. All the movement was done in post-production. Keep in mind that this video camera was mounted on my Big Dog k9 chopper. So, there was a lot of vibration. Yet, the built-in stabilization did a great job of making the video smooth!
The Fat Boy’s frame is derived from the 1984 “Softail” which appears to have a rigid hardtail chassis but which in fact has a swinging arm with concealed springs that was originally designed in a Missouri garage in the 1970’s by “a mechanical engineer” named Bill Davis and later Patented in 1976. Willie G the grandson of Harley-Davidson co-founder William A. Davidson originally turned down engineer Bill Davis’ softail concept; but the company later relented, buying the rights and designing its own softail frame in-house.
After 1994, the exhaust was made seamless.
In 1996 the master cylinder and switch gear were revised.
In 1999 a new 1,450 cc (88 cu in) Twin Cam engine for the 2000 model year was used. This necessitated a bespoke engine variant and changes to the frame.
In 2002 bullet-style indicators, alarm and immobilizer were added.
In 2005 a 15th Anniversary version was sold, with a “Screamin’ Eagle” engine, special paint and custom wheels.
In 2007 the displacement was increased to 1,584 cc (96.7 cu in) and the transmission changed six speeds.
The 2010 “Fat Boy Lo” FLSTFB had the lowest ever Harley seat height.
In 2012 the Fat Boy received the new 1,690 cc (103 cu in) Twin Cam engine along with the rest of the softail range*
The 2018 Fat Boys have a redesigned softail frame with Showa front and rear suspension and new twin-counterbalanced Milwaukee-Eight engines. The two 2018 variants comprise:
The FLFB 1,746 cc (107 cu in) with 109 lb⋅ft (148 N⋅m), and
The FLFBS 1,868 cc (114 cu in) with 119 lb⋅ft (161 N⋅m)
The 2018 Softail frame has a modified swingarm with a Showa rear monoshock suspension mounted beneath the seat (replacing earlier twin shocks). So as to provide a more comfortable and better controlled ride with improved handling, the front forks contain a Showa “Dual Bending Valve” (SDBV), a cartridge simulator using two valves to control compression and rebound damping, giving linear damping characteristics proportional to fork stroke speed. Harley-Davidson claims the 2018 chassis is stiffer and lighter than earlier Softail and Dyna platforms. Further upgrades include an LED headlight and 18-inch “Lakester” rims, with wider 160mm front and 240mm rear rubber.
For 2020, the Fat Boy is only available with the Milwaukee-Eight 114 engine. Harley-Davidson also produced a 30th Anniversary edition for 2020.
It is one of Harley-Davidson’s best selling models, and has appeared prominently in a number of TV shows and movies. The Fat Boy earned a place in American pop culture after appearances in the movie Terminator 2: Judgment Day. One of the motorcycles used in Terminator 2 is displayed at the Harley-Davidson Museum. It appeared again in Terminator Genisys
American Ironhorse LSC – American IronHorse was an American motorcycle manufacturer that was founded in 1995 by Tim Edmondson and Bill Rucker. At one time, AIH was the largest factory producer of custom motorcycles in the USA. Their 224,000-square-foot (20,800 m2) factory was located in Fort Worth, Texas, and housed the complete manufacturing process under a single roof. Although most (305) parts for the bikes were made in-house, such as the seats and wheels, all American IronHorse motorcycles were built with S&S engines and were assembled in-house. In Spring 2008, American Ironhorse ceased production on all motorcycles and most company assets were liquidated at auction. According to company management, In 2004, William (Bill) Rucker sold his majority interest in the company after failing to convince the board of directors’ from proceeding with a public offering of stock and retain the company’s private ownership structure. AIH over the next 4 years hired 5 different CEOs in hope of replicating Rucker’s success during his tenure. Tim Edmondson, President, the second largest shareholder and director of design sold his ownership in the company the following year subsequent to Rucker’s ownership sale. Customer complaints aimed at quality and design of production motorcycles and challenges with employees, the final CEO Buck Hendricson, who ran the company during its second bankruptcy continued to address major problems after the final purchase by Textron Inc in bankruptcy court. Textron liquidated the company in 2008 according to inside sources due to a lack of operating capital, low demand for its motorcycles, and lack of a solid business plan to correct falling custom motorcycle demand in 2008. Several of the company directors continued operating failing dealerships in the custom motorcycle market in Tarrant County, Texas.
Big Dog k9 w/Pitbull tank–
Big Dog produced ten models; the K-9, the Ridgeback, the “Chopper”, the “Husky”, the “Boxer”, the Mastiff, the Pitbull, the Coyote, the Wolf and their most recent addition, the BullDog. The Pitbull model received V-Twin Expo’s 2007 “Excellence In Motorcycling Award” for a production motorcycle. All of their current motorcycles utilize S&S V-twin engines, 6-speed transmission, one-piece fuel tank, wide rear tires, and extensive use of chromed and billet aluminum components. All of these models could be described as cruiser or chopper style motorcycles. Major differences between the models include rear tire width (250mm versus 300mm), front tube length, and rear suspension.
Big Dog Motorcycles were particularly well known for their wide assortment of customizing options for their otherwise stock motorcycles. These include at least 69 paint and graphic options, and a wide selection of accessories, including custom seats, exhausts, grips, storage bags, sissy bars and windshields.
Insta360 One X
The Insta360 One X is the BEST camera for capturing your rides! Below is my affiliate link direct to the manufactures site for a very special deal:
