Pro-Street
“We kind of got into the game late,” said Michael, who had just three months to complete the build in time for the S&S deadline. The frame was designed using a CAD system and created with Revolution’s carbon fiber expertise. Choosing the S&S 124” cubic-inch V-series engine to lead the charge was a no-brainer. “I knew I wanted to use the carbon chassis that was an Evo-based platform so we went with the biggest one we could fit in the chassis,” he said. For other components Michael admits to pulling some strings for the things like the dual-carb setup and the B2 race heads and some other little widget pieces. “At the time there were only two of those carburetor systems when we built the bike, and one was a prototype,” said Michael. “It was the kind of stuff where you just couldn’t call up and say, ‘Hey, I want this’ and it’s on the shelf.”
“The bike is nice and steady. Thanks to the carbon fiber frame, it doesn’t transmit vibration,” Michael said. “Because of the size of the motor and being a B2, basically it’s a 124 with all the race parts on it, it doesn’t like to putt around. It likes to go basically Mach Nine, you know, wide open. Stop light to stop light, or in traffic, the bike gets really unhappy. That’s why I don’t ride it that often. It’s rare that I can just get out and zoom around on it.”
All the CNC machining for this bike was done in-house, including the two aluminum gas tank halves that weigh just 11-pounds each. That’s a huge difference from the original 80-pounds of billet he began with. “Each side took 16 hours,” he said.
The S&S logos on the tanks were micro-machined in-house. Carbon fiber grips and pegs play their part in keeping up Revolution’s reputation for high-tech craftsmanship. Another of Michael’s favorite aspects of this bike is the way it looks in the sunlight. “The Pagan Gold was something that I wanted to use, I just didn’t have the anything to do it to,” he said. “We were gonna do a client’s bike and I had that black and gold scheme in mind for it, but he didn’t like it. So I said I’m gonna do it on something and you’ll be sorry you didn’t use it. Basically when we finished S&S bike he said, ‘I want that color!’ I told him, ‘hey it’s a one-time thing, pick another one.’ ”
Builder: Michael Kamalian Revolution Manufacturing, Inc.
Michael Kamalian of Marietta, Georgia, has garnered lots of awards since starting Revolution Manufacturing and is well known for his use of lightweight carbon fiber technology, which doesn’t come cheap. With a price tag of $350,000, Revolution’s entry in the S&S 50th Anniversary build-off could have easily remained unsold, but recently a buyer has come forward. “It’s almost sold,” Michael said. “But we haven’t finalized everything…I don’t know if I want to sell it, that’s my problem. The money doesn’t mean anything to me; I mean, yeah, $350,000 is $350,000. But I just don’t know if I want to sell it.”
When not building fantastic show bikes, Michael’s devoted to his two dogs: Rottweiler Dozer and Lab-mix Echo. He also races prototype cars, goes skydiving, snowboarding, and “all that stuff.” Up until a year ago he was racing all over the world. “Then the economy hit and sponsors dry up and you know. So I’m just concentrating on some new product lines and stuff I’m getting ready to release,” he said. Currently, Revolution is finishing up a 250-horsepower super-charged bagger. “Then I’ve got a couple of other things in my head I’m trying to get out,” he said.
As for getting by during the recession, Michael said he’s doing fine. “We’re doing okay. I’m still open,” he said. “The way I see it, the guys who are here now are gonna come out of it ten times stronger on the backside.”
At the time of this interview Michael was working on updating his website. “I’ve got some new bikes and new parts that we had in Cincinnati, floorboards and that kind of stuff, so I’ll have all that back up on the site,” he said. Revolution’s Innovative line of King Kunrl bagger parts, floorboards, shifter pegs, gas cap lids, speaker grills, can all be seen at www.RevolutionSpeed.com.
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