Written by / Story by Mark Barnett
Excerpted from Barnett’s Magazine Print Article
I have to admit, this concept bike deal is even more fun than I thought it would be. Last issue I explained that Barnett’s Magazine had retained the services of Italian designer Oberdan Bezzi to put pen and paper (actually a mouse and keyboard) to some of the ideas for future Harleys that I’ve been kicking around for awhile. I’ve also invited the staff and some outside bike builders to help me out on this project. Once we have about ten designs finished, we’ll load them on the online magazine at www.barnettharley.com and let you vote on which ones strike you as most interesting. Or, let you deride them mercilessly in the comments section with that special anonymous Internet forthrightness.
The first bike presented is a no-brainer, an inexpensive chopper. The FXD Super Glide got the boot from the line up this past year. Why not add five- or six-inches to the frame’s downtubes and an equal number to the fork tubes and bring back a Super Glide Chopper? You could keep the silver engine and make it a super budget bike, a guaranteed seller. Then people could either just ride it as it is, or personalize and customize the crap out of it themselves. I know it is about five years after the peak of TV chopper mania, but the chopper is always going to be around. If The Motor Company nailed the geometry and had customers sign a waiver that they know choppers don’t turn sharply or handle as well as regular bikes, they’d have no major liability problems. After all the reliability hassles of the homemade customs over the last twenty years, a turn-key, low-maintenance, dead- reliable chopper would be a blessing. Hopefully this bike is already on H-D’s drawing board.
Of course this chopper could develop over time; there could be chromed-out versions, painted frames, large and small engines, Screamin’ Eagle models, etc. If it really caught on and some money could be spent, H-D might consider putting their Twin Cam B counterbalanced engine into this model and solidly mount the motor. That’s a personal deal, but I thought I’d throw it out there. What can I say, I like looking in calm mirrors while sitting at stoplights.