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The Indian 841 was a motorcycle designed by the Indian Motocycle Manufacturing Co. for desert warfare. It pioneered the drivetrain configuration later popularized by Moto Guzzi , having a longitudinally-mounted air-cooled 90-degree V-twin with shaft drive to the rear wheel. HISTORY During World War II , the US Army requested experimental motorcycle designs suitable for desert fighting. Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum - 1941 Military Model 841 In response to this request, Indian designed and built the 841. The Indian 841 was heavily inspired by the BMW R71 motorcycle used by the German Army at the time, as was its competitor, the Harley-Davidson XA . However, unlike the XA, the 841 was not a copy of the R71. Although its tubular frame, plunger rear suspension, and shaft drive were similar to the BMW's, the 841 was different from the BMW in several aspects, most noticeably so with its 90-degree longitudinal-crankshaft V-twin engine and Girder Fork . In order to reduce costs, the new V-twin shared several internal components with the existing Indian Sport Scout, resulting in the same bore and stroke of 2.87" x 3.50" (73 x 89 mm). The Indian 841 and the Harley-Davidson XA were both tested by the Army, but neither motorcycle was adopted for wider military use. It was determined that the Jeep was more suitable for the roles and missions for which these motorcycles had been intended. Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum - 1942 Harley-Davidson XA Surplus 841s were eventually sold from the corporate warehouse in Springfield. DRIVETRAIN CONFIGURATION Similar drivetrian configurations, using wide-angle longitudinally mounted V-twins with shaft drive, were later used on the 1953 - 1956 Victoria Bergmeister motorcycle, the Honda CX Series , and, most notably, on medium- and large-sized Moto Guzzi motorcycles.Wilson, H. "The Encyclopedia of the Motorcycle" p. 191 Dorling-Kindersley Limited, 1995 ISBN 0 7513 0206 6 REFERENCES |
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