Harley-Davidson: Design and Development (Hardcover)

by John Tipler (Author) "Like most of the motorbikes made by pioneering motorcycle manufacturers a century ago, the machine that spawned the revered Harley-Davidson icon that we know today..." (more)
Key Phrases: tubular cradle frame, horseshoe oil tank, hardtail chassis, Electra Glide, Harley-Davidson Carburation, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Harley-Davidson is the most famous name in the world of motorcycling. No other motorcycle can match the style, look or sound of these polished chrome masterpieces with rumbling engines evoking images of cruising on the open road and the Easy Rider lifestyle. This exciting book celebrates the best of this magnificent heritage, detailing more than 50 machines. The most famous production models are included, from the Silent Gray Fellow of 1911 to today's motorcycles with their Twin Cam 88 and water-cooled engines. In addition, the book covers sports bikes, racers and three-wheelers, as well as some magnificent custom machines built by specialist manufacturers. Stunning specially commissioned photography highlights every aspect with superb double page pictures and close-up detail shots. The book fully examines the parts of each machine, and explores the fascinating history that makes each bike so special. Comprehensive specifications accompany each model.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Thunder Bay Press (CA) (September 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1571457836
• ISBN-13: 978-1571457837
• Product Dimensions: 11.9 x 9.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 1.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,349,123 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Harley-Davidson design and development, October 29, 2002

By	"robsterman" (IJsselstein, (Ut) Netherlands) - See all my reviews

As a technical officer for the local HOG chapter I read HD books and magazines for over 25 years. I frequently visit Amazon.com to see if there are any interresting new books on the market. And even though sometimes a few pages can be seen online you can only have a good book impression after it arrived at home. And normally it does, but not this time.
So I just got this book recently. And as always I started nosing through the book, not reading all the lines but first the picture describtions. After a few minutes I already found several 'big' technical mistakes. Pictured Twincam Fat Boy and Road King is listed as an Evolution powered bike (?) A Heritage Softail is called an Electra Glide, even though in the same lines the softail suspention is mentioned (?) The 80 CID Shovelhead has 10 cooling fins on the cylinder instead of 9. This is also not true, because the 74 CID V-twin has 10. Just count them and you know, right? The belt drive runs on the right side of a 80 CID big twin Harley. I never seen one, but the Sportster. The 80 CID Evolution makes 58 hp at 7200 (!) rpm. Everybody knows that the V-twin revs die at engine speed about less over 5000 (Twin cam some more). The Twin cam has its name after the rocker covers who resemble the overhead camshaft layout. Are we talking V-Rod here or what? Every 80/88 CID V-twin has the cam below and the valves are actuated by the pushrods. Evolution big twins have ONE cam and the Twincam has TWO cams, hence the name. These mistakes go on and on. So I had a real quick thought about the reliability of the rest of the describtions.
It seems to me that you can write a book after reading some recent sales brochures. Oups, did I say that.
One thing is OK and that are the pictures.
I am not telling you that such a book should 100% serve the needs of technical die-hards like myself, but telling fact that are not true over and over again, goes too far. I'm sorry. It doesn't happen much that I regret purchasing a new Harley book, but where can I have my refund?