A great Harley-Davidson motorcycle video history of what many consider the most iconic motorcycle and well-known brand in the world today … Harley-Davidson Motorcycle!
Personally, my first motorcycle was an old Harley. I think it was in 1940’s something, with the suicide shift.
The main thing this first bike taught me, was with all the continuing problems that seem to pop up, I had to learn how to work on the bike and make the necessary repairs myself.
Actually, most of the time I rode with a set of tools and a spare master link for the chain, just so I could be able to do emergency roadside repairs if necessary.
In 1901, 20-year-old William S. Harley drew up plans for a small engine with a displacement of 7.07 cubic inches (116 cc) and four-inch (102 mm) flywheels. The engine was designed for use in a regular pedal-bicycle frame. Over the next two years, Harley and his childhood friend Arthur Davidson worked on their motor-bicycle using the northside Milwaukee machine shop at the home of their friend, Henry Melk. It was finished in 1903 with the help of Arthur’s brother, Walter Davidson. Upon testing their power-cycle, Harley and the Davidson brothers found it unable to climb the hills around Milwaukee without pedal assistance. They quickly wrote off their first motor-bicycle as a valuable learning experiment
As one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depression (along with Indian), the company has survived numerous ownership arrangements, subsidiary arrangements (e.g., Aermacchi 1974-1978 and Buell 1987-2009), periods of poor economic health and product quality, as well as intense global competition — to become the world’s fifth largest motorcycle manufacturer and an iconic brand widely known for its loyal following — with owner clubs and events worldwide as well as a company sponsored brand-focused museum.
Noted for a style of customization that gave rise to the chopper motorcycle style, Harley-Davidson traditionally marketed heavyweight, air-cooled cruiser motorcycles with engine displacements greater than 700 cc — and has broadened its offerings to include its more contemporary VRSC (2001) and middle-weight Street (2014) platforms.
Harley-Davidson manufactures its motorcycles at factories in York, Pennsylvania; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Kansas City, Missouri; Manaus, Brazil; and Bawal, India — and markets its products worldwide.
