Harley's history of supplying the armed forces with motorbikes stretches back into WWI. The bikes which have rendered up almost all of the military inventory have generally been private motorcycles that have been redesigned for rugged application. The First World War saw the utilization of the H-D JD, several loaded with side-cars for crew use or gun platforms for enemy engagement.
World War II witnessed the common use of the Harley-Davidson 45" flathead, even though well known XA model made short appearances in the field. Vietnam-era motorcycles included Sportsters and full dressers used by military police for surveillance and escort assignments. Time travel to the late 80's when the armed forces was looking for a mixed-style motorcycle which was extremely versatile for usage on different terrains. Enter the MT 500, today's motorbike spotlight.
The bike was first developed by SWM of Italy during the start of the 1980s, the motorbike experienced some victory in trail auto racing, garnering a couple of prizes and championships during its brief manufacture under that name tag and marketed under the model XN Tornado. Sometime around 84', SWM had gone bankrupt, and the production legal rights were attained by CCM Armstrong Motorcycles of Bolton, Lancashire, England. From 1985 to 1987 this corporation produced the Armstrong MT 500 as well as the MT 350 and offered somewhere north of 2,000 pieces to the British armed forces, Canadian military, and Jordanian forces.
H-D bought the rights to the machine as well as its manufacture from Armstrong in the later 1980s and commenced making them during the early 1990's. Harley-Davidson produced the bikes in restricted numbers up through 2000, in fact it is said about 2,250 machines were made. In line with Nick Rymond, a noted specialist on this model and owner of Force Motorcycles, an outfit in England who specializes in these and other ex-police machines, Harley engineered the motorcycles in batches on an "as needed" basis. Nick guesses that close to 1,700 units were MT 350s built.
What made these motorcycles so eye-catching for Harley was the Rotax motor. These 1 cylinder, 4-stroke, overhead-cam motorcycles were reported to be bullet proof, and lots of US racers were employing the Rotax motor for dirt track racing back then. The engines were designed by Bombardier in its Austrian plant and installed with the frame in the York, Pa, plant according to the information from the Harley Gallery.
These air-cooled motors are with a rating of 32 horsepower, and weighing only 380 lbs, is capable of a top speed of 90 miles per hour with a motorcyclist. A Mikuni carburetor feeds the gas and a five-speed transmission puts the action to the roads. The steel-boxed chassis carries oil in its tubing, plus the swing-arm rear utilizes dual shocks and an 18 inch rear rim with disc braking system, while up front the telescopic front forks carries a 21 inch wheel with a disc brake. The floor clearance is 8.6inches, good enough to clear the toughest of terrain. The gas tank supports 2.85 gal of petrol, and the motorbike runs a 12-volt alternator electric system.
It seems forces specs have revised after some time, and the thought ended up being to go on to a one-army, one-fuel philosophy, with diesel the fuel of choice. And so, the MT 500 faded into history.
The featured Harley-Davidson is owned by Davey Katz of Connecticut, who got it in a trade with Bridgeport Harley-Davidson for audio visual projects he did for the store in its Hog Room.
World War II witnessed the common use of the Harley-Davidson 45" flathead, even though well known XA model made short appearances in the field. Vietnam-era motorcycles included Sportsters and full dressers used by military police for surveillance and escort assignments. Time travel to the late 80's when the armed forces was looking for a mixed-style motorcycle which was extremely versatile for usage on different terrains. Enter the MT 500, today's motorbike spotlight.
The bike was first developed by SWM of Italy during the start of the 1980s, the motorbike experienced some victory in trail auto racing, garnering a couple of prizes and championships during its brief manufacture under that name tag and marketed under the model XN Tornado. Sometime around 84', SWM had gone bankrupt, and the production legal rights were attained by CCM Armstrong Motorcycles of Bolton, Lancashire, England. From 1985 to 1987 this corporation produced the Armstrong MT 500 as well as the MT 350 and offered somewhere north of 2,000 pieces to the British armed forces, Canadian military, and Jordanian forces.
H-D bought the rights to the machine as well as its manufacture from Armstrong in the later 1980s and commenced making them during the early 1990's. Harley-Davidson produced the bikes in restricted numbers up through 2000, in fact it is said about 2,250 machines were made. In line with Nick Rymond, a noted specialist on this model and owner of Force Motorcycles, an outfit in England who specializes in these and other ex-police machines, Harley engineered the motorcycles in batches on an "as needed" basis. Nick guesses that close to 1,700 units were MT 350s built.
What made these motorcycles so eye-catching for Harley was the Rotax motor. These 1 cylinder, 4-stroke, overhead-cam motorcycles were reported to be bullet proof, and lots of US racers were employing the Rotax motor for dirt track racing back then. The engines were designed by Bombardier in its Austrian plant and installed with the frame in the York, Pa, plant according to the information from the Harley Gallery.
These air-cooled motors are with a rating of 32 horsepower, and weighing only 380 lbs, is capable of a top speed of 90 miles per hour with a motorcyclist. A Mikuni carburetor feeds the gas and a five-speed transmission puts the action to the roads. The steel-boxed chassis carries oil in its tubing, plus the swing-arm rear utilizes dual shocks and an 18 inch rear rim with disc braking system, while up front the telescopic front forks carries a 21 inch wheel with a disc brake. The floor clearance is 8.6inches, good enough to clear the toughest of terrain. The gas tank supports 2.85 gal of petrol, and the motorbike runs a 12-volt alternator electric system.
It seems forces specs have revised after some time, and the thought ended up being to go on to a one-army, one-fuel philosophy, with diesel the fuel of choice. And so, the MT 500 faded into history.
The featured Harley-Davidson is owned by Davey Katz of Connecticut, who got it in a trade with Bridgeport Harley-Davidson for audio visual projects he did for the store in its Hog Room.
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