| Author | Message | ||
     Tbs_stunta |
http://www.engmore.com/home.html http://thekneeslider.com/archives/2006/07/18/wakan-1640-new-french-v-twin-motorc ycle/ Have you seen the latest bit of French tastiness?  | ||
| Ceejay |
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| Skyguy |
I like the bike as well. It pops up here on BWB every couple of weeks. Now if I could just find a buyer for my bike............... One that would pay me the 35,000 I need for the for the Wakan of course. | ||
| Roadsurfr |
OK...Lets see here,$35000, that's two new Buells and enough left over to hop-up the 'ol M2 and buy insurance on all three. Or possibly 'stage 2' all three. | ||
| Pwnzor |
that thing is straight up badass. | ||
| Ceejay |
if you followed the links the reporter guy even said it rode very much like a Buell XB12r, course I like the look of the above much more, I guess that's where the extra 25 grand comes from... | ||
| Alanshouse |
WOW | ||
| Kdan |
OK...Lets see here,$35000, that's two new Buells and enough left over to hop-up the 'ol M2 and buy insurance on all three. Or possibly 'stage 2' all three. Or one Buell, 3 hookers, twelve cases of tequila and a 5 day weekend in the keys. Don't ask. | ||
| Skyguy |
Kdan, I hope the other two hookers did not have man boobs........................... Then again it is Key West.........  | ||
| Ctyxrnr |
FRENCH?????? WOW!!!!!!!!!!!! just put some pegs on the rear and that would be an awsome stuntin machine. that bike is sooooo coool. love the rear fuel tank idea. i still LOVE my Buell though! | ||
| Tnm2 |
My first reaction when I saw the pic was thinking that that was a really slick looking package - and it is. But the more I looked at it, the more I realized it really is just a French Buell knock-off. Big, single disk inverted fork front - small rear. High performance Sportster powerplant, hung from the frame as a stressed member. The "gas tank" is the air box - fuel moved back and down. Minimalist styling Etc... Erik should be flattered, or maybe pissed. | ||
| Firebolteric_ma |
 Thats Sick! | ||
| Trojan |
But the more I looked at it, the more I realized it really is just a French Buell knock-off. I think you'll find that the spine frame is based on an Egli design that predates the Buell company by a few decades. If anything the bike takes more influence from Vincent than Buell. | ||
| Tbs_stunta |
>>Big, single disk inverted fork front Buell didn't invent this, I do think it needs duals. Since the Ghezzi/Brian specials were running perimeter brakes do you just dismiss Buell as a knockoff? >>- small rear. Buell copied streetfighters doing this, hell the Monster's rear is about that size as well. >>High performance Sportster powerplant, hung from the frame as a stressed member. Buell has a rubber mounted engine in either a tube frame or a perimeter frame. >>The "gas tank" is the air box - fuel moved back and down. Shit dude, even the VMax stuck its tank under the seat freeing up that area. >>Minimalist styling Etc... Again, custom scenes were doing this before Buell Kind of like saying since the Buell has two wheels everything else is a knockoff. Buell isn't the only one thinking differently, and this bike isn't a Buell knockoff. PS. None of my examples are slights against Buell, I just think its dumb to call everything a Buell-knockoff without knowing your motorcycle history. (Message edited by tbs_stunta on August 15, 2006) | ||
| Tnm2 |
Tbs - You missed my point. Some of the individual design elements can be found in other bikes, for sure. However, Buell was the first to put them all together in one bike, and mass produce. How long is the list of Sportster engine powered sportbikes? At least in any kind of quantity, I can think of only one. If the Wakan takes off, two. "Knock off" might be a little harsh. But, I stand by the opinion that the Wakan is a reinterpretation of someone else's idea - Erik Buell's. "Dumb"? No knowledge of motorcycle design ("history")? All that, because my opinion differs from yours? Trojan - Interesting take! The Egli is a work of art. | ||
| Tbs_stunta |
I guess I did miss your point, but just because Buell used some ideas that were on other bikes and put those together in one mass produced bike doesnt make this a Buell copy. Yes Buell has a lot of innovative ideas as well, I'm just talking about the ones you mentioned that make the Wakan a Buell copy. The Wakan doesn't use many of the ideas that Buell used. Different frame design, different swingarm, fluids in different locations, single rotor up front sure, but thta's not Buell's idea. Is the KTM a Buell clone just because Buell also had a tube frame? What does that mean of older bikes that used tube frames? I'm not going to write an M2 off as a clone just because a previous bike had a tube frame as well. Is the XB a Triumph clone because the old ones had the oil in the frame as opposed to an oil tank? As far as engine, well its kind fo a cop out to call the bike a Buell copy just because they chose to use the shorter and smaller Sportster engine. Is a Spondon streetfighter a FZ1 clone just because it uses a Yamaha engine. Are Bimotas clones of the bikes they took their engines from? I'm not questioning your motorcycle knowledge just because your opinion is different, I'm questioning it because you consider this a Buell clone despite it not using many of Buell-specific ideas. You might as well claim that USD forks are another example of it being a Buell copy. By all means have a differing opinion, you know, so we can discuss bikes because this is a motorcycle discussion forum. (Message edited by tbs_stunta on August 15, 2006) | ||
| Tbs_stunta |
>>If anything the bike takes more influence from Vincent than Buell. I agree as well (especially with that Egli Banana tank shape), but equally I wouldn't call this an Egli copy. | ||
| Brucelee |
I love it and the sheer size of the motor out there for all the world to see. Sign me up! | ||
| Tnm2 |
Tbs - it's the overall theme I am referring to. The individual parts themselves don't interchange. But, the IDEA does. Namely, an H-D Sportster powered sport bike. Imagine this scenario, and you'll see where I am coming from with this. It's not just about the engine: H-D Sportster, and the Wakan, parked side-by-side. The hearts of these two are identical! Yet, these two machines are very different. Buell S1, and the Wakan, parked side-by-side. The similarities between these two machines would be apparent to even the most casual observer. Alan Cathcart, by no means a casual observer of motorcycle design, immediately began drawing comparison to the Buell on his first outing on the Wakan. I'm confident he has probably forgotten more about cycle design than I will ever know. It is about design, the total package, the whole. The whole of the Wakan is very similar to Buell products, past and present. To argue about the individual pieces is to argue semantics. To my mind, this is Joel Domergue's vision of what the Buell should have looked like. It is inconceivable to me that he set out to build the Wakan without looking hard at a similar bike that came before it. That influence is evident in the finished product. | ||
| Jayvee |
Wow, I thought it was a Big Twin engine. Either way, it's way cool. The $35,000 price is right in line with other "custom" makers. A factory Big Dog, for example, MSRP is $32K. The really custom guys can easily double that. |
