Issue 168
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In the previous issue of HD, editor Brumby threw down the gauntlet to the Motor Company to meet the challenge of the new Indian Challenger. He succinctly said the “chassis-mounted fairing is the central element of the whole bike” while the Indian PowerPlus 108 V-twin engine “defines this bike.” From what I’ve seen and read I have to say that the Indian Challenger is the complete package … exactly what I was thinking Harley-Davidson has to release as its next generation bagger. Nothing less will see Harley losing its perch as the touring King of the Mountain. All that said, let me address not the technical supremacy of the Challenger; but rather that “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery” for the Harley-Davidson Road Glide. The fact is, Harley did not invent the fixed-frame fairing. Not by a long shot. It didn’t even invent the first fixed-fairing on a Harley. Like all great designs and inventions, they come from a long history of ideas, challenges (pun intended) and needs. No single source can be given the credit for the Road Glide fixed-fairing. It was a combination of people, ideas and talents from around the world. So I dug around and pieced together a logical sequence of invents that led to the Road Glide and Indian Challenger, and the start of many more challenges down the road. Like Doc said in our last issue about the Burnout Bagger: there is a “growing trend toward very fast and very light baggers.” Proof of this is the winning entry of the 2019 Battle of the Kings at Milan’s EICMA. It was a Softail Sport Glide converted to a fixed-fairing bagger by Matt Laidlaw and company as the FXGTS Coast Glide. In fact there were not one but two Sport Glides with fixed-fairings in the top five!
https://customkings.harley-davidson.com/en_us/bike_detail/217
https://www.motorcyclecruiser.com/2019-harley-battle-kings-champion-is-laidlaws-h-d/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xla8bGtATPs&feature=youtu.be
1912: The First Windscreen
Keeping it simple, the first windscreen I found on a motor cycle was a picture in Popular Mechanics magazine in 1912. It was actually quite sizeable and mounted on the handlebars. I’m sure there is an older example out there but even then cars didn’t always have windshields.
http://www.nationalcycle.com/bible-history-windshield
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motorcycle_fairing
1939: 100mph+ at the Belgian GP
Jumping ahead to 1939 at the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa Francorchamps, Georg Meier on a BMW RS 255 Kompressor with a small handlebar mounted wire-mesh windscreen set a lap record of over 100mph during the race. He also won the Isle of Man TT that year too!
https://www.motorcycleclassics.com/classic-german-motorcycles/bmw-rs-255-kompressor-zmwz12sozbea
1953: Innovation from the Isle of Man’s peel engineering
In the interval before the first fixed-fairing came along on a Harley, we had a lot of brainstorming around the world. Europe was the master of aerodynamics for bikes. In 1953, a little company on the Isle of Man named Peel Engineering made a name for itself selling racing fairings to the local hoons to compete there every year. That year the first Peel dustbin fairing was made for an Australian visitor at the TT Races.
http://www.peelcars.com/bikes/4585741554
1953-59: Bubble Saddlebag
In 1953, William J Harley patented the Luggage Carriers for Cycles “bubble bag” for the FL Hydra Glide. It was a replacement for the traditional old-style leather saddlebags and just in time for the 50th H-D Anniversary. Elvis must have loved them as he had a few. The Wixom-style pannier saddlebags came out to replace the bubble bags on the 1964-65 FL Harley-Davidson FL Duo Glide/Electra Glide.
http://www.scottymoore.net/MC57FLH.html
https://www.harley-davidson.com/us/en/museum/explore/archives/did-you-know/vehicle-profile2.html
1961: Peel Dolphin Fairing
In 1961, a Peel Dolphin fairing was fitted to a BMW 600 at Monterey, France, where a Brit set both the 12 and 24 hours speed records with an average speed of over a 109mph, beating the Velocette record by 10mph.
http://velobanjogent.blogspot.com/2013/04/another-look-at-unsuccessful-velocette.html
1965-70: Dean Wixom, the Aero Guru
Starting in 1960 as an industrial design student in California, Dean Wixom and his brother Stan became the biggest motorcycle fairing manufactures in America. He realised that unlike Europe, where the café fairings were all the rage, Americans rode long distances and even coast to coast like he did on his own BMW with a Peel fairing. So in 1965 he invented the “Batwing” for the long distance rider and in 1966 made a deal with the Motor Company resulting in the hollow-removable Batwing on the 1970 Electra Glide. The Batwing would be joined by Wixom’s own BMW full dress saddlebags and travelcase topbox much like Harley would have later.
http://capttop.blogspot.com/2008/02/motorcycle-years-from-motorcycle-design.html?zx=1cd550f07df8b600
http://potlach.org/2011/03/wixom/
1967: Fixed-Fairing Boom Box
In 1967, a young East Coast wannabe motorcycle designer graduated from school and decided to interview his idols over on the West Coast: Floyd Clymer, Bruce Meyers, Bill Van Tech and Dean Wixom. From that experience, Craig Vetter became perhaps the largest aftermarket provider of fixed-fairings in the world with his Phantom (very similar to the Peel Dolphin but upright for touring) and Windjammers. But the important one for us then was his design of the first fixed-frame fairing on a touring Harley.
http://www.motorcyclemuseum.org/halloffame/detail.aspx?RacerID=93
1968-69: Daytona winners
In 1967, the team of Dean Wixom (designer of the Peel-like fixed-fairing), Jerry Branch (flowed the engine heads) and legendary Harley Racing Manager, Dick O’Brien with rider Cal Rayborn won both the 1968 and 1969 Daytona 200. Using the Branch 1953 flathead KRTT engine against a field of OHV foreigners, they raised the previous top speed of the KR from 135mph to 150 and even lapped the field in 1968. But the real key to the wins was the Wixom designed and wind tunnel tested fixed-fairing.
http://www.motorcyclemuseum.org/halloffame/detail.aspx?RacerID=76
https://www.mecum.com/lots/LV0118-315558/1968-harley-davidson-krtt-road-racer/
https://eatsleepride.com/c/9896/1952-1977_harley-davidson_krtt_750
1973-77: The Vetter Liberator
In 1973, Vetter called the Motor Company and asked “Would they like a big, frame-mounted fairing for the FLH?” And the answer was yes! The next year Willie G approved the design and, in 1975, the Vetter-Harley Liberator was introduced to the world in Las Vegas. One of the first and most notable customers was Elvis Presley who bought several. Almost 5000 Liberator fairings were sold but production suddenly ceased as the fibreglass molds for the Liberator and Hondaline were destroyed in a disastrous factory fire in 1977.
http://craigvetter.com/pages/Vetter_Fairings/Liberator.html
http://craigvetter.com/pages/Vetter_Fairings/Every_Vetter_Fairing_made.html
http://www.scottymoore.net/MC76FLH1200Lib.html
1976-1981: Project Nova
In 1976, Harley-Davidson and Porsche began a collaboration to design the world’s most advanced road-going motorcycle, the Project Nova. The water-cooled Nova V4 was both a cruiser and tourer with an all-new wind tunnel tested fixed-fairing. The instrument cluster was all inclusive with stereo speakers built into the fairing. It was very similar to the Wixom full dress Batwing, saddlebags and topbox. The rest is history … all done a year before 1980 Honda’s GL1000 fixed-fairing touring bike. However, Project Nova was cancelled in favour of the Evolution engine after the AMF buyout as Harley only had enough money for one project.
https://ultimatemotorcycling.com/2016/09/19/harley-davidsons-project-nova-look-might/
http://big-diesel.blogspot.com/2007/09/nova-harley-davidson-which-was-never.html
1980: FLT Tour Glide
The Nova fairing was fitted on the 1980 FLT Tour Glide – the direct predecessor to the Road Glide. It had a larger frame than the older FLH and a rubber mounted 80ci engine. In order for it to handle acceptably, the front forks were given a radical steering geometry and mounted behind the steering head. In 1983, the FXRT Sport Glide and police bikes were fitted with Nova fixed-fairing. But that is all a huge story that deserves its own book.
https://www.baggersmag.com/harley-davidson-evolution-during-1980s#page-16
https://www.motorcyclespecs.co.za/model/h-d/harley_davidson_flt%2080.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harley-Davidson_FL
1998: The Road Glide & the rest
In 1996, the Tour Glide was retired and replaced, in 1998, by the Road Glide as we know of today. Almost all motorcycle manufactures have adopted fixed-fairings on their sport and touring bikes. The small fairing manufacturers are all gone except for a few like Klock Werks. Wixom went on to design the Nor’sea 27 Sailboat which is hugely successful. Vetter was commissioned to design the fairings for the 1986 Buell RR1000 concept bike and now works on environmentally friendly projects. At the end of the day, the fairing story continues. I think Harley has its mind set on a modern day 1994 VR1000 sport bike if not a mid-sized touring bike as it recently patented a new fairing. The future is exciting as no one solely owns all the new ideas. The future will be More Roads and more Challengers.
https://www.cycleworld.com/harley-davidson-plotting-faired-sportbike/
