This! So much this! Really at this point I kinda think it is a troll by the manufacturers. Like yeah we could easily do that, no problem, but what about fully linked navigation and entertainment systems? Computer controlled ride height? Customizable displays? What, you guys just want your turn signal to turn off after you turn!?!? Why don't you just buy a car then, these are motorcycles.
My experience with twist grip shifters was that they were awkward to use, particularly after a bit of wear which could make them a bit clunky and imprecise.
Someone else has probably already mentioned it, but on the Guzzi linked brake system, it did have two independent systems. The foot pedal operates the rear and one front disk, the handlebar lever engaged the second front disk.
@Phil Davies - As did the Goldwing from 1981 -2000 (rear with right front brake, 'balancing' side to side) which was NOT the best idea for lowered adhesion surfaces. such as sand, snow, rain or grass clippings! After the 2nd ride on my 1986 Goldwing (late-February in northern Illinois) where it unexpectedly snowed through my 40 mile ride home, and I inherently skidded the front tire while using only the foot brake (that'll definitely make your butt pucker something fierce!) I decided to split my braking on that bike the proper way by summer. With the 1800 series, the calipers themselves were split ( 3 piston or 6, I don't remember) so the center front pistons and the outer rear pistons were operated by the foot control and the outer front and center rear pistons were by the hand control. This way the stronger front/ weaker rear balance was by hand with stronger rear/ weaker front by foot, giving a 'balanced' linked-braking with a feel closer to a non-linked system. As for the Guzzi linked system, I've heard that in some markets (definitely not U.S./ North American) there was no 2nd system, all braking was by the pedal. That would never fly in the States because there is a DOT requirement (since 1968) for multiple brake systems - just in case of one failing - on all street legal vehicles.
I still have a 87 California 2 with this -at that time- innovative break system. And it is really well working, once you get used to it. The 40:60 share between the back and left front break enables nice decelerations without any risk of blocking. And with the second front disc on the hand lever you can reinforce this, or just use it in stop and go as the only break.
early 1980's yamaha venture royal, had linked brakes, as does honda's VFR800, in fact my 09 VFR8000 has linked brakes and ABS. In EU all new bikes must have either linked brakes or abs, so many lightweight bikes have linked brakes to keep the costs down.
@@MadMaxxMoto - I don't now about other markets, but Moto-Guzzis sold in Britain had the 'one front + the rear disc' operated by the pedal, and the second front operated by the hand brake lever. As to the balance between the two brakes, when you pressed the foot pedal, 60% of the hydraulic pressure went to the front disc, with 40% to the rear. I rode my Moto-Guzzi all year round, including on icy and snowy roads, and never had a problem with either wheel locking up.
@@Herr_Bone Great to hear you like it. My 85 Lario still has linked system and once used to it you never find an issue. Confuses the heck out of NZ WoF issuers though as they struggle to understand why and how it works,
I literally had this exact same thought as he talked about it. EXPLAIN the advantages, don’t just TELL me. Motorcycle makers haven’t done it for a REASON
BMW has built their Telelever, then Duolever/Paralever suspension, still in some models, for over 25 years. It's in my 2007 K1200S hot rod. The bike will not wobble, even tipped in over potholes and the front end barely dives, even when the Brembos are clamping speed down with prejudice. Straight line or when in a corner, it's like the bike is on rails. On does need to keep ahead of the machine, as "twitchy" is not an adjective used when describing its handling.
Oval pistons were Honda’s attempt to get around the MotoGP rules that limited manufacturers to 4 cylinders/pistons, and get more valve area so as to make more HP
My Honda Varadero has linked brakes. Pulling the front brakes, brakes front 75%, and back 25%. And the reverse is also true. Works on tar and dirt. And I think it is better than expensive ABS.
One friend of mine spent 2 years working for Honda racing, he said the inside name for "NR" was Never ready. Honda spent way too long and too much money and although I'm sure technology was gained, it was a waste of time.
@@davidgibbings6085 I seem to remember they were 4 piece rings, did not last long but they were built for racing not road use, so did not matter as long as they lasted the race.
The twist grip gear change was used on a number of scooter style bikes. MV Augusta made a version. Husqvarna made dirt bikes with automatic transmissions. Originally designed for the military but excellent on sand.
Back in the 1970s I had a German moped made by 'Hercules'. It had a 2 speed transmission which was selected by twisting the clutch lever assembly. You could also way that this technology is widely used on bicycles with twist grip shifting 🙂
Here in the Netherlands there a whole lot of "brommers", 50cc mopeds with a legal max speed of 40 kmh that had handshifting, not only European and Dutch brands using Puch, JLO etc engines but also big brands like Zundapp and Kreidler . Kreidler became world champion 50cc with a foot actuated AND a handlebar actuated gearbox liked behind each other to get enough different speeds to cope with the narrow power band of the Kreidler engine. Also Honda 4stroke and Yamaha with handlebar gear change were well sold in our country.
My first two wheeled vehicle was a 1966 Vespa Smallframe. The CC’s went up after that as I finished high school and wanted to travel outside of school, town and scooter rallies. But of all my vehicles my Vespa’s and Lambretta’s are still my number one favourite way to travel.
Greetings from India.. We still have some of the features you mentioned in the video common sight on our roads.. 1. Left hand side grip gear shifters are still used on some scooters and three - wheeler auto rikshaw (Tuk -Tuk) to this day.. 2. Combined front and rear brakes are a common feature on modern bikes in India, but you also have a seperate front brake on these motorbikes and scooters. It's only when you press the rear brake the combined brakes are triggered, my Honda CD110 has this. 3. TVS tried to make the clutch less automatic transmission mainstream with the TVS Jive but that didn't attracted many buyers so it was ditched... Great video BTW..
Most mopeds back in 70s and 80s (yes, I'm that old 🙂) had manual gearbox selectors, like the Vespa's. It is indeed very, very old. And quite horrible. Speaking from years of experience it shifts slow, cables tend to get out of tune and it will be difficult if the bike has more than 4 gears. Als the angle of the clutch handle changes, ergonomically also not great. So there are good reasons this type of gear selection disappeared.
Well.... de gustibus etc coloribus non EST disputandum.... I've learned riding with my father's Iso Diva, four gears on the left grip, and, with 10 years old hands ....it was not the best. But motorcycles are for ( or intended, at least....) for grown ups! I find it comfortable for the kind of ride a scooter can give you. Wouldn't want that on a race bike or enduro of course, but the system proved to be ok for that kind of bikes... Clean, cheap, reliable, and easy to fix and maintain. Cheers!
The Simson Schwalbe also had a Gripshift. It was also quite common in the mountain bike industry. BMW used a system called Telelever that is different from the usual teleforks. The main reason to favor this system is that these bikes literally have no diving in under front braking. You always have full front travel even under hard braking. In the 90's a man from Austria invented a parallelogram front fork for mountain bikes that works similar to the telelever front suspension. But in the bicycle industry it did not catch on.
Interesting video. However, I reckon BMW's telelever front suspension has made it into the mainstream and definitely has it's advantages on the road with regard to separating suspension and braking effects
Yes, I love that my front end doesn’t dive when I brake my big GS. I once heard a criticism that it makes the front end feel dead, but it’s dead nuts reliable to me.
Twistgripps was quite common in Europe in the 1950s and 1960s, on small bikes, usualy 50-175 cc. I have had with both 2-3-4 gear models, but man, was it good to get it to hand and foot!
Hey...62 years of consistent motorcycle touring in a number of different countries are my credentials. I owned a CX500 Turbo at one time and it was maybe the best touring motorcycle I have ever owned. The model attracted some bad press and most riders didn't know that you need RPM to make them perform. Anyhow, it suited me and my riding/touring style and was very reliable.
Some off these motorcyclists are brain dead,I used the entire rev range in all gears not just knock it into top and the call it gutless,Yamaha made the YPVS the thinking was to widen the power across the whole band but some off the brain dead could not understand why it didn't have a powerband
European mopeds up to 60 kph max speed had 2 or 3 gear grip shifters. By the late 70s these were almost completely replaced by centrifugal clutch or variomatic automatic transmissions like in scooters.
Nice review! 2 things missing in my own opinion: - my BMW R69 had a swing arm for, known here in France as "Earles" fork. Amazing thing was that the drummer brake was mounted on the horizontal arm, and when braking, the front of the bike and the head light
In sweden the R69 (euro model)'s front suspension is could "ölgaffel" the translets to "bear"(that you drink)-fork, but the usdm models had normal "right" way turned forks (by old standard, meaning hydraulics on the bottom).
I have used an Earles front end on a bike I was building and when it came to riding and braking, it had both good and bad habits, as follows... When braking, application of the lever caused the front of the machine to thrust UPWARDS instead of down. On normal bikes, using the front brake will tighten your cornering ability. With an Earles, it takes you to the high side of the turn, but, it also applies more downward force on the rear wheel. In short, it imitates the motions and results of a panic stop by a horse. This, in a motorcycle, is not to be despised. I became rather adept at juggling these reactions and hoped they would become something more of the norm, but with the exception of the R-69, I never saw another. Mine came from a junk pile that was all that was left of some antique European bike that had been between a concrete barrier and an 18 wheel truck.
Just to finish my comment, before I got pissed by my computer keyboard errors... I was surprised you didn' mention the Moto Guzzi 1000 Convert, which had a real "convertisseur" and not a computerized operated gearbox. I chickened out at the time, and bought the 5 gears manual version. In my very early days of riding, I had a Honda PS50, wich had a 3 speeds gearbox controlled by handlebar rotating grip. Very slow bike, but gearbox and 4 stroke engine were not common on mopeds at the time!
@@russbilzing5348 in the 60s Sachs,down& Greece's dirt bikes had leading link front forks,which were handy. They didn't dip when brake's we're applied,so you had full travel when you hit bumps after braking, but hard to wheelie ,cause extra front end weight
I started riding in 1965, and almost all scooters and mopeds then had twist shift, it was considered standard equipment. One noticeable scooter that had foot shift was the C-Zeta, and that was also made in New Zealand under license as the N-Zeta. Front Suspension: You didn't mention BMW's amazing Telelever front suspension. I was given a ride on one when they first came out and it is astonishing. Totally stable, you could apply full front brakes and there is no dive and the front end is completely stable. Remember that BMW were the first company to have hydraulically damped front forks, too, in the 1930's.
On the subject of automatic transmissions, they have taken off in a big way in the scooter/light motorcycle vehicles that are common all through SE Asia. Some are the "it does everything for you" types, but what's also common is a transmission that allows you to shift, but you don't have to use the clutch at all. These are really popular all through SE Asia, and the smaller Honda bike I ride around town and for errands uses this kind of transmission.
The BMW moped with a roof, seat belts, no helmet, bare arms and T shirt. Such a great add for safety? About as safe as a gyrocopter ! And about zero chance of getting me in either.
My friends and I used to ride our German-made Puch and Zundapp mopeds (49cc) to highschool back in the '70s. Left hand side grip gear shifters were very common back then. But it required some serious hand-strength to hold and twist the grip (to the right gear!) at the same time. It was just NOT a convenient system!
It was indeed common on a lot of 60's and 70's mopeds. Never found it hard to shift, maybe you rode a bike with bad rusty cables. And this is one of the problems, the control cables have to be adjusted right to get in to the right gear. The way the system works means it is also not suitable for higher power bikes, say >150cc.
@@thorman1742 My first motorcycle was a Puch, an early 60's moped, and I was 14. It had a left foot shifter and true to it's moped name you could pedal it although up hills was almost impossible.
There were people making grip shifters as an aftermarket product. The guy I bought one off of (for my mod'd Vespa) said he designed it for a friend that was paraplegic and wanted to race. They also tied both brakes to the handle bar lever.
My Ural has a universal spare mounted, swapped it when my original pusher tire started wearing down. The problem is that most motorcycles use different front and rear wheels.
@@BikerMage There are also those small Isuzu cabover trucks, that have different size front and rear wheels: 2 spares bolted together, hanging under the tray, or van body.
I didn't see anyone else mention the dual-wishbone front suspension that Honda introduced on their 2018 Goldwing. I, personally, found it to be much smoother riding front end than any other bike I've ridden.
Honda had a great linked braking system where the rear brakes engaged the middle piston of the front caliper, as well. It works amazingly well, I have it on my VTX1800, and it adds stability to stops that really helps on larger bikes. You can still skid, since the front has3 pistons on each side, total of 6, you're only engaging 2 of the 6, just barely noticeable, but very helpful in some situations. I believe the front brake lever works the same way, engaging about 20% of the rear, but I'm sure.
I rode a 1999 Honda VFR Interceptor for years. It had a linked brake system that worked quite well. I consider it the best performance road bike I have ever ridden.
I think a small to medium capacity supercharged bike would work well. Plenty of torque and great fuel efficiency would be perfect for real world riding.
I've been on K1600s since 2012. Their linked braking system is so good that, to be perfectly honest, I rarely use the rear brake, alone, even at walking speeds. Probably not the best habit, but the linked brakes truly are that good.
Our boy here thinks BMW only makes cars. Telelever front fork and linked braking "didn't catch on?" How does he think ABS works on a motorcycle without linked braking?
@russmiller7284 - "I rarely use the rear brake, alone, even at walking speeds. Probably not the best habit." Why would anyone think that using the rear brake alone is a *good* habit, when it's the surest and easiest way to lock up a wheel and get into a skid?
@@jackx4311 ...That shouldn't be answered in the uTube comment section. Instead of watching top ten videos, search for motorcycle safety videos, or find a class.
I have Vespas and have ridden motorbikes. The twist grip is very practical, you can easily see what gear you are in, and you can feel the vibration with your hands to know its gone into gear. Makes a lot of sense.
many small mopeds in germany also had a grip shift system. they had mostly 2 or three gears and where used in mopeds/mofas from many manufactorys like Hercules, Puch, KTM, Zündapp, NSU or Simson. some also had an 2 speed automatic transmission
a self driving self balancing motorcycle would completely take all the enjoyment out of cycling altogether like lets make a dirt bike that drives itself seriously what fun we will all have while we sit in the chair and watch our bikes drive around in circles.
There's one other bike I know of which has the gear shifter and clutch on the handle bar is a 1960s German motorbike called the NSU Quickly, I could definitely see why it didn't stay
I always wanted to see someone develop a real-life "Keneda's Bike" from Akira. I'm surprised you didn't mention anything like the single-side swingarm or dual-spar frame (both included on Honda's amazing 1988 NT650GT "Hawk".
Handle bar shifting: The older German Zundapp and Kreidler light bikes used this kind of shifting… And for combined braking: this is used on BMW’s as standard, where the rear brake is engaged together with the front brake in order to stabilize the bike.
I loved the linked breaks on my Honda ST1300. It was very reassuring to know that if I panicked and forgot to use both brakes, they would still both engage to some degree.
I learned to ride motor equipped bikes on a twist grip shifter equipped scooter. My dad owned a Vespa knock off. It took an good amount of strength to get it to shift because the mechanism uses cables. Also, the position of the clutch lever would keep moving and put it way out of a comfortable position if it had more than 4 gears. The clutch lever position was already drastically different between 1st and 4th gear. The clutch develops all sorts of up and down play because all the twisting torque from the left hand passed through it. Good riddance I say. Nothing beats the cost, weight advantage and simplicity of a fork. Good enough for MotoGP, Motocross or Hard Enduro, or even downhill mountain biking, good enough for all consumers. Some suspension dive is desirable for motorcycles because it reduces wheelbase and makes a bike more willing to turn under braking, and often, the fastest way around a turn involves trail braking.
Dude, twist grips were the only gear changing mechanism on Vespa scooters, from the 1940s though to 2017 - bajillions of them were made, and people were quite happy with them.
Talking about grip shifters. We got that in India.. especially in the 90s for scooters and auto rickshaws .. but when the automatic transmission was introduced to scooters. This now remains in the auto rickshaws.
Funnily enough because of restrictions in the EU and UK, all wheel drive is kind of making a comeback in e-bikes. Because the limit is 250W, manufacturers realised it doesn't specify how many 250W motors you're allowed.
I think as motorbikes become electric then driven front wheels will possibly start to come into place on bikes where it will benefit, such as the off roaders. This is because they can easily be powered by hub mounted motors, thus the installation only requires power to the front axle, rather than potentially complex direct drive from the motor.
The twist grip gear change was cable operated and needed to be adjusted often as it became difficult to use. It might have improved from the early 1970s I'm talking about though.
It has always struck me as odd that the simple pair of front forks remains the standard on basically anything that isn't a BMW R-bike, whereas dual rear shocks/springs have been relegated to "classic" models for decades now. When I've ridden Bimmers with the telelever, it really does make the bike feel more controlled under hard braking. I don't know what it's supposed disadvantages are, or why it isn't more common, but I dig it.
I have a 2016 Kawasaki Concours 1400 and it has linked braking and works very well plus ABS it was bought brand new in Vallejo California USA. If you choose to can use only the rear brake to brake when doing this the front brakes are applied without touching the front brake lever. The same is true if you use only the front brake lever. Using only the front brake lever will activate the rear brake without touching the rear brake pedal. You said linked braking was not allowed in the United States. The Kawasaki Concours is still sold in the USA in 2022. This bike is also known as the Kawasaki GTR 1400.
My first bike was a 1982 Honda C50 LAG, a 3 speed 50cc automatic transmission Cub. Great fun to ride as a 16 year old and it did a whopping 42mph! On the left handlebar where you would expect a clutch lever on regular geared bikes was a strange handbrake lever which you pulled in to lock the rear wheel. It was called the 'parking brake' I think. I've not seen it on another bike so I guess motorcycle handbrakes never caught on!
Well, I have to say that I do like the linked brakes with ABS on my Honda VF1200F. Makes it much safer when there is sand, water or anything that may cause the front wheel to lock up or slip when braking.
The Honda ST1300ABS does have proportional linked braking. When you apply the rear it will apply up to 30% to the front, depending on how much the rear brake is applied. I live this feature, especially if you have to hit the brakes when your right hand is off the handlebars, for the one time in 5,000 miles. Sounds goofy, but it happened just like I said, but maybe it’s just me.
The linked brakes still exist in some Asian markets. In some markets the smaller capacity bikes are fitted with CBS ( combined brake system) which basically operates similarly. Irrespective of whether you use front or rear brake, both brakes engage in a bike with CBS. In India every bike under 150cc are required to at least have CBS and bikes above 150cc are required to have ABS.
Twist grip shifters fall under the category of 'No problem to solve here' As do many of the others. But innovation involves experiments, and experiments never fail.
Christini AWD Motorcycles builds a series of AWD race and off-road bikes, in 300 2T and 450 4T displacements, including a street legal, adventure model. They even have a military version available. They also build chassis kits that allow you to convert some Honda and KTM models. They are working with KTM to develop an AWD conversion for their large adventure bikes. Granted, they are a small company, but they are the tip of the spear for AWD motorcycles.
When I was in the Marines, one of my "jobs" was a messenger. We basically rode dirt bikes to transport messages, maps, TS information or even ammo to and from various places. We tried out a few different types of motorcycles/dirt bikes, and I remember riding a Rokon. While it was nice for extremely hilly terrain, is was way, way too slow, compared to a 2 wheeled dirt bike.
The Honda Gyro Canopy are still super popular as food delivery vehicles in Japan, it rains often and the roads are small and low speed so they make a lot of sense over there.
You are pretty knowledgeable about bikes. And you seem like someone who wants all the knowledge you could get. So with that being said i wanted to share with you a fact about grip shifters. I have a 1965 Harley m50. The m50 and leggero 65 both used grip shifters. Until your video I thought they were the only ones. It makes sense though considering those scooters you were showing were probably Italian. So were the small harleys.
Years ago Harley sold a a handle bar shifted 50cc 2 stroke made from Italy that me and my two brothers had but they also sold a transfer shift kit to transfer it down to the left foot peg which we did it was something hard to get used to on the handle bar for sure .
Back in the early 1980s, I liked the linked brakes on my mate's V50 so much that I converted my T140E Bonneville to use them. Second disc on the front linked to the foot brake. Wet weather pads on the rear and the handbrake front, dry weather racing pads on the linked front. In the wet the brakes reverted to normal. Still got her. Grog.
About the hand shifter.. that was pretty common to see in the netherlands. Almost every zundapp, kreidler, Samson, and other moped of that time had it. Only if you imported it (like my zundapp) you would have a foot shifter Greets from holland 🇳🇱
Heinkel Scooters had this lefthand grip shift. With four gears the clutch sits at awkward angles in first and fourth. The 4-stroke engine was the strong point in this scooter, while the cheap shift mechanism a serious argument against it.
The grip shifters are actually fairly common among the mopeds and low CC bikes (125-250cc) with the oldtimer club I'm in. Quite a lot of European brands had them, even Honda has a couple of old models with grip shifters. And yeah, on one hand it's a good thing because now you only need to use 1 limb to shift but the massive downside is that when your clutch cable breaks, you're stuck where you are. Though not recommended in the slightest, if you know how to it's quite easy to shift a foot shifter without the use of a clutch. It's going to be a bumpy ride, but at least you'll be able to get home. Another problem with them is that is that you can go from first to last gear in one motion, the one's I rode were fairly intuitive 3 speed gearboxes but I can imagine it becomes easier to select the wrong gear when you have 5 or 6.
Norton actually made an oval piston engine before ww2, which produced more hp than a conventional engine at the time, but it never saw production line because it was too expensive. And furthermore, a yamaha gts1000 is not a hub centre steered bike, because steering does not pivot inside the hub,> steered mono upright.
I have a old Rokon. It was old when a neighbor gave it to me around 1982. I didn't know it was a factory made bike for years. I figured some home handy man made it from ideas or plans he bought from ads in a magazine. The motor was shot and I found a used engine from a Gravely walk behind mower fit right in. Things I learned years after owning it. Rokon started in 1958. They still make and sell bikes. I have seen newer ones but really not different than mine. So no point in buying a newer one. I have always kept it running because as a machinist I remade or repaired parts as they wore or broke. Didn't know a factory was still making parts. Currently I have a Harbor Freight 22hp engine in it. The bike is the most fun you can have at slow speed in the dirt. See guys charging up a steep hill and most not making it, just idle up while sitting on seat.
On #8 The suspension you are talking about was copy of the springer forks. I guy went on to build the Girvin suspension on mountain bikes. Not a great setup even though it was adjustable but very limited in travel.
I traded in my Yamaha FJ1200 in the mid 90’s for a new bike. I tried the GTS1000. It stuck to the road like Velcro when cornering, a fantastic ride. Then I hit traffic in Canterbury (in the UK) and was sat in the bike moving it forwards with my feet a metre at a time for about 30 minutes. (Yes, traffic can be that bad in Canterbury). It weighed a ton. I ended up buying another FJ1200, this time with ABS, with a free set of Giwi luggage as a sweetener.
I had 5 telelever front suspended BMWs. I liked that suspention and it didn't look odd and had ABS brakes where front brakes partially applying back brakes and the back brake separately.
The reason Vespa and Lambretta used a twist grip shift is because of the type of transmission they use. Hard to explain but if you look at a diagram of the transmission it will be clear. It's a simple and elegant design. A few motorcycles used a similar transmission such as Jawa and CZ. It works well enough on a low horsepower bike but wouldn't work on something with more horsepower.
Many bikes, especially small scooters have linked brakes. Honda has CBS (Combi Brake System). Front brake can be applied independently, however application of back brake applies a bit of front brake.
I have two Guzzis with linked brakes and they are fantastic especially in emergency situations, almost impossible to lock up either front or back when you stamp on it. I pretty much only use the front hand brake at lights. Amazed other manuf didn't pick up on this especially BMW. So smart. I also had a GPZ turbo in the mid 80s. A fantastic touring bike, it was basically a GPZ1100 frame with a detuned 750 cc motor with the turbo. It was a bit slow off the mark but from 80kph to 240kph pulled your arms out of their sockets, overtaking trucks was a dream, fzzzzzzz. The long wheelbase meant it was steady as a rock but having a 18 inch wheel up front meant it wasn't a true sports bike, like the 900R with a 16, and I had both, but the 900 had a narrow uncomfy seat while the turbo's wide seat you could sit on all day. Rode that thing all over Australia with the girlfriend and a gearsack and sold it after 4 years ownership for the same price I paid for it. Also great for burn outs outside the pub at closing time, so I hear.
At 6:44 The linked brakes works perfectly on touring bikes with secondary shaft transmission. It will pace the suspensions because the shaft effect is the contrary on a secondary chain transmission and is "bad" and more violent. It also allows you to "jump" on any of the two brakes when being surprised without having brakes locked ( this was OK before Anti Locking Brakes ). It also allows you to brake efficiently in the winter when your hands are frozen.
Honda and Yamaha both make what they call "Combo" brakes on their overseas scooterettes. When you pull in the front brake lever, it engages both brakes.
As for the single front suspensions, clear advantage to me is that there are no more death wobbles, ironically the only motorcycle i know of that uses it, is a lesser known electric motorcycle company, i forgot the name, i think it was forrest car reviews.
Under Euro standard bikes either have to have ABS or linked brakes, as such 125s trying to keep costs down will usually have linked brakes rather than ABS
linked brakes is surely around, just not exclusively linked. Front applying 20% rear on Triumph Rocket 3 for example. Still has seperate rear, but linking is extant. I like it.
Nice video! I would also think of centrifugal clutch, automatic clutch disengage (old Jawa got these), turbine power and rotary power. Also steam motorcycles. And radio sound systems. And diesel engines.
I would have thought that Wankel engined bikes deserved a mention in this list. On the face of it, those made a lot of sense for motorcycles, and several different companies produced bikes using that type of engine.
The old-ish Puch mopeds, especially the smaller ones almost all had the option of a twist/hand shifter, it actually take some complexity away from the engine as a result compared to a foot shifter
I’d be happy with self canceling turn signals.
Fr
Lmaoo whyyyyyy can’t we get this advanced technology
This! So much this!
Really at this point I kinda think it is a troll by the manufacturers. Like yeah we could easily do that, no problem, but what about fully linked navigation and entertainment systems? Computer controlled ride height? Customizable displays? What, you guys just want your turn signal to turn off after you turn!?!? Why don't you just buy a car then, these are motorcycles.
My 03dyna has them
There's an Indian scooter called TVS Jupiter 110 that has started offering this feature very recently.
My experience with twist grip shifters was that they were awkward to use, particularly after a bit of wear which could make them a bit clunky and imprecise.
Cables always snap when older
I totally agree. One ride was all I needed to wonder why anyone would even try the idea!
Indeed. And the strange position of the wrist, right where you hit a bump on the road.
they look shite in design anyway as the entire lever has to change angle, it should have been made to reset back to normal but was designed too cheap
They were common on mopeds in the 50’s and 60’s, at least here in Sweden.
Someone else has probably already mentioned it, but on the Guzzi linked brake system, it did have two independent systems. The foot pedal operates the rear and one front disk, the handlebar lever engaged the second front disk.
@Phil Davies - As did the Goldwing from 1981 -2000 (rear with right front brake, 'balancing' side to side) which was NOT the best idea for lowered adhesion surfaces. such as sand, snow, rain or grass clippings! After the 2nd ride on my 1986 Goldwing (late-February in northern Illinois) where it unexpectedly snowed through my 40 mile ride home, and I inherently skidded the front tire while using only the foot brake (that'll definitely make your butt pucker something fierce!) I decided to split my braking on that bike the proper way by summer. With the 1800 series, the calipers themselves were split ( 3 piston or 6, I don't remember) so the center front pistons and the outer rear pistons were operated by the foot control and the outer front and center rear pistons were by the hand control. This way the stronger front/ weaker rear balance was by hand with stronger rear/ weaker front by foot, giving a 'balanced' linked-braking with a feel closer to a non-linked system.
As for the Guzzi linked system, I've heard that in some markets (definitely not U.S./ North American) there was no 2nd system, all braking was by the pedal. That would never fly in the States because there is a DOT requirement (since 1968) for multiple brake systems - just in case of one failing - on all street legal vehicles.
I still have a 87 California 2 with this -at that time- innovative break system. And it is really well working, once you get used to it. The 40:60 share between the back and left front break enables nice decelerations without any risk of blocking. And with the second front disc on the hand lever you can reinforce this, or just use it in stop and go as the only break.
early 1980's yamaha venture royal, had linked brakes, as does honda's VFR800, in fact my 09 VFR8000 has linked brakes and ABS. In EU all new bikes must have either linked brakes or abs, so many lightweight bikes have linked brakes to keep the costs down.
@@MadMaxxMoto - I don't now about other markets, but Moto-Guzzis sold in Britain had the 'one front + the rear disc' operated by the pedal, and the second front operated by the hand brake lever. As to the balance between the two brakes, when you pressed the foot pedal, 60% of the hydraulic pressure went to the front disc, with 40% to the rear. I rode my Moto-Guzzi all year round, including on icy and snowy roads, and never had a problem with either wheel locking up.
@@Herr_Bone Great to hear you like it. My 85 Lario still has linked system and once used to it you never find an issue. Confuses the heck out of NZ WoF issuers though as they struggle to understand why and how it works,
I wish you had explained the advantages of Britten’s suspension and the hub-steer suspension.
I literally had this exact same thought as he talked about it. EXPLAIN the advantages, don’t just TELL me. Motorcycle makers haven’t done it for a REASON
Bike doesn't dive when braking - go deeper into corners before braking.
@percy tom - Thanks!
too heavy, complicated and expensive@@Rudenbehr
BMW has built their Telelever, then Duolever/Paralever suspension, still in some models, for over 25 years. It's in my 2007 K1200S hot rod. The bike will not wobble, even tipped in over potholes and the front end barely dives, even when the Brembos are clamping speed down with prejudice. Straight line or when in a corner, it's like the bike is on rails. On does need to keep ahead of the machine, as "twitchy" is not an adjective used when describing its handling.
Oval pistons were Honda’s attempt to get around the MotoGP rules that limited manufacturers to 4 cylinders/pistons, and get more valve area so as to make more HP
How do you even make piston rings for that thing 🤯🤔
My Honda Varadero has linked brakes. Pulling the front brakes, brakes front 75%, and back 25%. And the reverse is also true. Works on tar and dirt. And I think it is better than expensive ABS.
One friend of mine spent 2 years working for Honda racing, he said the inside name for "NR" was Never ready. Honda spent way too long and too much money and although I'm sure technology was gained, it was a waste of time.
@@davidgibbings6085 I seem to remember they were 4 piece rings, did not last long but they were built for racing not road use, so did not matter as long as they lasted the race.
@@davidgibbings6085 easy to make them , not easy to make them last , don't run a second race on them ,
The twist grip gear change was used on a number of scooter style bikes. MV Augusta made a version. Husqvarna made dirt bikes with automatic transmissions. Originally designed for the military but excellent on sand.
Back in the 1970s I had a German moped made by 'Hercules'. It had a 2 speed transmission which was selected by twisting the clutch lever assembly. You could also way that this technology is widely used on bicycles with twist grip shifting 🙂
don't forget the puch maxi two speed manual had the same arrangement
Here in the Netherlands there a whole lot of "brommers", 50cc mopeds with a legal max speed of 40 kmh that had handshifting, not only European and Dutch brands using Puch, JLO etc engines but also big brands like Zundapp and Kreidler . Kreidler became world champion 50cc with a foot actuated AND a handlebar actuated gearbox liked behind each other to get enough different speeds to cope with the narrow power band of the Kreidler engine. Also Honda 4stroke and Yamaha with handlebar gear change were well sold in our country.
Linked brakes is commonly used on Honda scooter here in Indonesia. They called it CBS (Combi-Brake System).
And the Blackbird.... I love CBS on the Blackbird.
All new 125cc bikes in europe now must have CBS or ABS.
My first two wheeled vehicle was a 1966 Vespa Smallframe. The CC’s went up after that as I finished high school and wanted to travel outside of school, town and scooter rallies. But of all my vehicles my Vespa’s and Lambretta’s are still my number one favourite way to travel.
Greetings from India..
We still have some of the features you mentioned in the video common sight on our roads..
1. Left hand side grip gear shifters are still used on some scooters and three - wheeler auto rikshaw (Tuk -Tuk) to this day..
2. Combined front and rear brakes are a common feature on modern bikes in India, but you also have a seperate front brake on these motorbikes and scooters.
It's only when you press the rear brake the combined brakes are triggered, my Honda CD110 has this.
3. TVS tried to make the clutch less automatic transmission mainstream with the TVS Jive but that didn't attracted many buyers so it was ditched...
Great video BTW..
For decades(!) left hand side grip shifters have been used on mopeds of many brands from Italy, Germany, Austria, France etc. Worked very well
Combined front and rear brakes are also a common feature on modern bikes in Brazil. Today, all small cc Hondas has some sort of it.
Bhai aap bajaj ke scooters bhool gaye eg bajaj super and chetak
Bajaj m80 bhi
Most mopeds back in 70s and 80s (yes, I'm that old 🙂) had manual gearbox selectors, like the Vespa's. It is indeed very, very old. And quite horrible. Speaking from years of experience it shifts slow, cables tend to get out of tune and it will be difficult if the bike has more than 4 gears. Als the angle of the clutch handle changes, ergonomically also not great. So there are good reasons this type of gear selection disappeared.
It started on mopeds already in the late 50's. From one gear up to 3 gears.
Well.... de gustibus etc coloribus non EST disputandum....
I've learned riding with my father's Iso Diva, four gears on the left grip, and, with 10 years old hands ....it was not the best.
But motorcycles are for ( or intended, at least....) for grown ups!
I find it comfortable for the kind of ride a scooter can give you.
Wouldn't want that on a race bike or enduro of course, but the system proved to be ok for that kind of bikes...
Clean, cheap, reliable, and easy to fix and maintain.
Cheers!
Where was this? I've been all over Europe, the only one like that that I've seen was the Vespa, everything else had a variator, or foot shifter.
@@noth606 It was some time ago....
French, German, Italian scooters and small bikes.....
Not the Japanese bikes, of course....
@@noth606 Sweden for sure!
The Simson Schwalbe also had a Gripshift. It was also quite common in the mountain bike industry.
BMW used a system called Telelever that is different from the usual teleforks.
The main reason to favor this system is that these bikes literally have no diving in under front braking. You always have full front travel even under hard braking.
In the 90's a man from Austria invented a parallelogram front fork for mountain bikes that works similar to the telelever front suspension. But in the bicycle industry it did not catch on.
The BMW Telelever was invented in the UK by Saxon-Motodd.
@@peterwilliams2152
Norman Hossack is credited with the design.
@@VintageSG Learn to read - Telelever was designed by Saxon-Motodd. Duolever was designed by Hossack amongst others.
Interesting video. However, I reckon BMW's telelever front suspension has made it into the mainstream and definitely has it's advantages on the road with regard to separating suspension and braking effects
Same exact thing with GS having linked brakes as well
Yes, I love that my front end doesn’t dive when I brake my big GS. I once heard a criticism that it makes the front end feel dead, but it’s dead nuts reliable to me.
I agree. There are ideas out there that do not make sense, and someone actually proved it by trying. Great video!
Twistgripps was quite common in Europe in the 1950s and 1960s, on small bikes, usualy 50-175 cc. I have had with both 2-3-4 gear models, but man, was it good to get it to hand and foot!
NSU & Puch...
@@bsimpson6204 Everyone that used Sachs engines and Zündapp.
@@florianvelling6427 also JLO
Hey...62 years of consistent motorcycle touring in a number of different countries are my credentials. I owned a CX500 Turbo at one time and it was maybe the best touring motorcycle I have ever owned. The model attracted some bad press and most riders didn't know that you need RPM to make them perform. Anyhow, it suited me and my riding/touring style and was very reliable.
Some off these motorcyclists are brain dead,I used the entire rev range in all gears not just knock it into top and the call it gutless,Yamaha made the YPVS the thinking was to widen the power across the whole band but some off the brain dead could not understand why it didn't have a powerband
European mopeds up to 60 kph max speed had 2 or 3 gear grip shifters. By the late 70s these were almost completely replaced by
centrifugal clutch or variomatic automatic transmissions like in scooters.
Nice review!
2 things missing in my own opinion:
- my BMW R69 had a swing arm for, known here in France as "Earles" fork. Amazing thing was that the drummer brake was mounted on the horizontal arm, and when braking, the front of the bike and the head light
In sweden the R69 (euro model)'s front suspension is could "ölgaffel" the translets to "bear"(that you drink)-fork, but the usdm models had normal "right" way turned forks (by old standard, meaning hydraulics on the bottom).
I have used an Earles front end on a bike I was building and when it came to riding and braking, it had both good and bad habits, as follows... When braking, application of the lever caused the front of the machine to thrust UPWARDS instead of down. On normal bikes, using the front brake will tighten your cornering ability. With an Earles, it takes you to the high side of the turn, but, it also applies more downward force on the rear wheel. In short, it imitates the motions and results of a panic stop by a horse. This, in a motorcycle, is not to be despised. I became rather adept at juggling these reactions and hoped they would become something more of the norm, but with the exception of the R-69, I never saw another. Mine came from a junk pile that was all that was left of some antique European bike that had been between a concrete barrier and an 18 wheel truck.
Apart from BMW, most seem to be aftermarket systems for sidecar use.
Just to finish my comment, before I got pissed by my computer keyboard errors...
I was surprised you didn' mention the Moto Guzzi 1000 Convert, which had a real "convertisseur" and not a computerized operated gearbox.
I chickened out at the time, and bought the 5 gears manual version.
In my very early days of riding, I had a Honda PS50, wich had a 3 speeds gearbox controlled by handlebar rotating grip. Very slow bike, but gearbox and 4 stroke engine were not common on mopeds at the time!
@@russbilzing5348 in the 60s Sachs,down& Greece's dirt bikes had leading link front forks,which were handy. They didn't dip when brake's we're applied,so you had full travel when you hit bumps after braking, but hard to wheelie ,cause extra front end weight
I started riding in 1965, and almost all scooters and mopeds then had twist shift, it was considered standard equipment. One noticeable scooter that had foot shift was the C-Zeta, and that was also made in New Zealand under license as the N-Zeta. Front Suspension: You didn't mention BMW's amazing Telelever front suspension. I was given a ride on one when they first came out and it is astonishing. Totally stable, you could apply full front brakes and there is no dive and the front end is completely stable. Remember that BMW were the first company to have hydraulically damped front forks, too, in the 1930's.
BMW have always tried something different with front ends. Dont forget they used leading link well into the 70's
@@malcolmgee6812 I have an R75/5 that was made in 1973, it has telescopic front forks. The Earles front forks were gone in 1972.
On the subject of automatic transmissions, they have taken off in a big way in the scooter/light motorcycle vehicles that are common all through SE Asia. Some are the "it does everything for you" types, but what's also common is a transmission that allows you to shift, but you don't have to use the clutch at all.
These are really popular all through SE Asia, and the smaller Honda bike I ride around town and for errands uses this kind of transmission.
It is now common on really big bikes as well.
It's not automatic It's belt drive,Just because you don't change gear make it a automatic and the second is clutchless which does have gear probably 3
The BMW moped with a roof, seat belts, no helmet, bare arms and T shirt. Such a great add for safety? About as safe as a gyrocopter ! And about zero chance of getting me in either.
My friends and I used to ride our German-made Puch and Zundapp mopeds (49cc) to highschool back in the '70s. Left hand side grip gear shifters were very common back then. But it required some serious hand-strength to hold and twist the grip (to the right gear!) at the same time. It was just NOT a convenient system!
It was indeed common on a lot of 60's and 70's mopeds. Never found it hard to shift, maybe you rode a bike with bad rusty cables.
And this is one of the problems, the control cables have to be adjusted right to get in to the right gear.
The way the system works means it is also not suitable for higher power bikes, say >150cc.
AFAIK the Puch was also sold with left foot gear shifter, but I remember the left handlebar shifter on several 50 cc mopeds back then.
@@thorman1742 My first motorcycle was a Puch, an early 60's moped, and I was 14. It had a left foot shifter and true to it's moped name you could pedal it although up hills was almost impossible.
There were people making grip shifters as an aftermarket product. The guy I bought one off of (for my mod'd Vespa) said he designed it for a friend that was paraplegic and wanted to race. They also tied both brakes to the handle bar lever.
Vespas also have spare tires, and that could be an eleventh innovation: Kudos, very informative and well made
My Ural has a universal spare mounted, swapped it when my original pusher tire started wearing down. The problem is that most motorcycles use different front and rear wheels.
@@BikerMage There are also those small Isuzu cabover trucks, that have different size front and rear wheels: 2 spares bolted together, hanging under the tray, or van body.
I didn't see anyone else mention the dual-wishbone front suspension that Honda introduced on their 2018 Goldwing. I, personally, found it to be much smoother riding front end than any other bike I've ridden.
I do believe the big GS has something similar also
Honda had a great linked braking system where the rear brakes engaged the middle piston of the front caliper, as well. It works amazingly well, I have it on my VTX1800, and it adds stability to stops that really helps on larger bikes. You can still skid, since the front has3 pistons on each side, total of 6, you're only engaging 2 of the 6, just barely noticeable, but very helpful in some situations. I believe the front brake lever works the same way, engaging about 20% of the rear, but I'm sure.
I have the same on my Honda Silverwing scooter. Works great! It was invented by Moto Guzzi :-)
I rode a 1999 Honda VFR Interceptor for years. It had a linked brake system that worked quite well. I consider it the best performance road bike I have ever ridden.
Linked brakes have became pretty common on low CC bikes here in brazil in the last few years or so
my 2010 honda NHX110 Elite (Lead everywhere outside the North america) has linked brakes on the typical rear only lever
I think a small to medium capacity supercharged bike would work well. Plenty of torque and great fuel efficiency would be perfect for real world riding.
I've been on K1600s since 2012. Their linked braking system is so good that, to be perfectly honest, I rarely use the rear brake, alone, even at walking speeds. Probably not the best habit, but the linked brakes truly are that good.
Our boy here thinks BMW only makes cars.
Telelever front fork and linked braking "didn't catch on?"
How does he think ABS works on a motorcycle without linked braking?
@russmiller7284 - "I rarely use the rear brake, alone, even at walking speeds. Probably not the best habit."
Why would anyone think that using the rear brake alone is a *good* habit, when it's the surest and easiest way to lock up a wheel and get into a skid?
@@jackx4311 ...That shouldn't be answered in the uTube comment section.
Instead of watching top ten videos, search for motorcycle safety videos, or find a class.
I have Vespas and have ridden motorbikes. The twist grip is very practical, you can easily see what gear you are in, and you can feel the vibration with your hands to know its gone into gear. Makes a lot of sense.
many small mopeds in germany also had a grip shift system. they had mostly 2 or three gears and where used in mopeds/mofas from many manufactorys like Hercules, Puch, KTM, Zündapp, NSU or Simson. some also had an 2 speed automatic transmission
a self driving self balancing motorcycle would completely take all the enjoyment out of cycling altogether like lets make a dirt bike that drives itself seriously what fun we will all have while we sit in the chair and watch our bikes drive around in circles.
There's one other bike I know of which has the gear shifter and clutch on the handle bar is a 1960s German motorbike called the NSU Quickly, I could definitely see why it didn't stay
I always wanted to see someone develop a real-life "Keneda's Bike" from Akira. I'm surprised you didn't mention anything like the single-side swingarm or dual-spar frame (both included on Honda's amazing 1988 NT650GT "Hawk".
Most BMW and Ducatis have single side swingarm, and some Hondas too besides the amazing 1988 Hawk... I love the Hawk too.
Googling the word "Keneda's Bike" and this one came up. ua-cam.com/video/xag80zTh774/v-deo.html
Handle bar shifting: The older German Zundapp and Kreidler light bikes used this kind of shifting… And for combined braking: this is used on BMW’s as standard, where the rear brake is engaged together with the front brake in order to stabilize the bike.
I loved the linked breaks on my Honda ST1300. It was very reassuring to know that if I panicked and forgot to use both brakes, they would still both engage to some degree.
I learned to ride motor equipped bikes on a twist grip shifter equipped scooter. My dad owned a Vespa knock off. It took an good amount of strength to get it to shift because the mechanism uses cables. Also, the position of the clutch lever would keep moving and put it way out of a comfortable position if it had more than 4 gears. The clutch lever position was already drastically different between 1st and 4th gear. The clutch develops all sorts of up and down play because all the twisting torque from the left hand passed through it. Good riddance I say.
Nothing beats the cost, weight advantage and simplicity of a fork. Good enough for MotoGP, Motocross or Hard Enduro, or even downhill mountain biking, good enough for all consumers. Some suspension dive is desirable for motorcycles because it reduces wheelbase and makes a bike more willing to turn under braking, and often, the fastest way around a turn involves trail braking.
Dude, twist grips were the only gear changing mechanism on Vespa scooters, from the 1940s though to 2017 - bajillions of them were made, and people were quite happy with them.
Talking about grip shifters. We got that in India.. especially in the 90s for scooters and auto rickshaws .. but when the automatic transmission was introduced to scooters. This now remains in the auto rickshaws.
Funnily enough because of restrictions in the EU and UK, all wheel drive is kind of making a comeback in e-bikes. Because the limit is 250W, manufacturers realised it doesn't specify how many 250W motors you're allowed.
I think as motorbikes become electric then driven front wheels will possibly start to come into place on bikes where it will benefit, such as the off roaders. This is because they can easily be powered by hub mounted motors, thus the installation only requires power to the front axle, rather than potentially complex direct drive from the motor.
The twist grip gear change was cable operated and needed to be adjusted often as it became difficult to use. It might have improved from the early 1970s I'm talking about though.
It has always struck me as odd that the simple pair of front forks remains the standard on basically anything that isn't a BMW R-bike, whereas dual rear shocks/springs have been relegated to "classic" models for decades now. When I've ridden Bimmers with the telelever, it really does make the bike feel more controlled under hard braking. I don't know what it's supposed disadvantages are, or why it isn't more common, but I dig it.
2:45 Grip Shifts was used also in Polish Komar and Pony 50 bikes, produced mid to late 1970s
I have a 2016 Kawasaki Concours 1400 and it has linked braking and works very well plus ABS it was bought brand new in Vallejo California USA. If you choose to can use only the rear brake to brake when doing this the front brakes are applied without touching the front brake lever. The same is true if you use only the front brake lever. Using only the front brake lever will activate the rear brake without touching the rear brake pedal. You said linked braking was not allowed in the United States. The Kawasaki Concours is still sold in the USA in 2022. This bike is also known as the Kawasaki GTR 1400.
Grip shifts were also available for a soviet motorcycle Karpaty. Only 2 gears, but reliable variators weren't the thing in USSR
My first bike was a 1982 Honda C50 LAG, a 3 speed 50cc automatic transmission Cub. Great fun to ride as a 16 year old and it did a whopping 42mph! On the left handlebar where you would expect a clutch lever on regular geared bikes was a strange handbrake lever which you pulled in to lock the rear wheel. It was called the 'parking brake' I think. I've not seen it on another bike so I guess motorcycle handbrakes never caught on!
All of today's Honda bikes with DCT have a parking break
@@dw8931 I have no idea what DCT is which shows how up to date I am!
Its important to note that Christini makes their own AWD enduro bikes and conversion kits for the KTMs and Husqvarna 450 bikes.
Well, I have to say that I do like the linked brakes with ABS on my Honda VF1200F. Makes it much safer when there is sand, water or anything that may cause the front wheel to lock up or slip when braking.
The Honda ST1300ABS does have proportional linked braking. When you apply the rear it will apply up to 30% to the front, depending on how much the rear brake is applied. I live this feature, especially if you have to hit the brakes when your right hand is off the handlebars, for the one time in 5,000 miles. Sounds goofy, but it happened just like I said, but maybe it’s just me.
oh the Vmaxx turbo was sick!!!
For automatics, you forgot the Moto Guzzi 1000cc Convert a very usable motorcycle.
Good presentation. Thanks for sharing Bart :)
I had a GTS1000 with a sidecar. The sidebike Mega-comete, a 2 person sidecar. That thing was still stable at 180km/h
The linked brakes still exist in some Asian markets. In some markets the smaller capacity bikes are fitted with CBS ( combined brake system) which basically operates similarly. Irrespective of whether you use front or rear brake, both brakes engage in a bike with CBS. In India every bike under 150cc are required to at least have CBS and bikes above 150cc are required to have ABS.
Im pretty sure the auto tranny based on description, is the Honda WAVE, XRM and RS125 which dont have cluches but still have shifters
Twist grip shifters fall under the category of 'No problem to solve here'
As do many of the others. But innovation involves experiments, and experiments never fail.
im surprised desmodromic valves werent in this video
Missed the BMW front suspensión
Christini AWD Motorcycles builds a series of AWD race and off-road bikes, in 300 2T and 450 4T displacements, including a street legal, adventure model. They even have a military version available. They also build chassis kits that allow you to convert some Honda and KTM models. They are working with KTM to develop an AWD conversion for their large adventure bikes. Granted, they are a small company, but they are the tip of the spear for AWD motorcycles.
linked brakes definitely still exist. combined ABS on Honda's I think grabs front and rear when you grab the lever, but only rear on the pedal
Flare fenders! They were awesome.
When I was in the Marines, one of my "jobs" was a messenger. We basically rode dirt bikes to transport messages, maps, TS information or even ammo to and from various places. We tried out a few different types of motorcycles/dirt bikes, and I remember riding a Rokon. While it was nice for extremely hilly terrain, is was way, way too slow, compared to a 2 wheeled dirt bike.
There was a Swedish moped brand that during the 60's and 70's made some with a hand-gear shifter instead of foot shifter..
The Honda Gyro Canopy are still super popular as food delivery vehicles in Japan, it rains often and the roads are small and low speed so they make a lot of sense over there.
You are pretty knowledgeable about bikes. And you seem like someone who wants all the knowledge you could get. So with that being said i wanted to share with you a fact about grip shifters. I have a 1965 Harley m50. The m50 and leggero 65 both used grip shifters. Until your video I thought they were the only ones. It makes sense though considering those scooters you were showing were probably Italian. So were the small harleys.
Years ago Harley sold a a handle bar shifted 50cc 2 stroke made from Italy that me and my two brothers had but they also sold a transfer shift kit to transfer it down to the left foot peg which we did it was something hard to get used to on the handle bar for sure .
Back in the early 1980s, I liked the linked brakes on my mate's V50 so much that I converted my T140E Bonneville to use them. Second disc on the front linked to the foot brake. Wet weather pads on the rear and the handbrake front, dry weather racing pads on the linked front. In the wet the brakes reverted to normal. Still got her. Grog.
About the hand shifter.. that was pretty common to see in the netherlands. Almost every zundapp, kreidler, Samson, and other moped of that time had it. Only if you imported it (like my zundapp) you would have a foot shifter
Greets from holland 🇳🇱
Guzzis did have separate brakes, the foot pedal operated the rear brake and one front disc, the hand lever operated the other front disc.
Heinkel Scooters had this lefthand grip shift. With four gears the clutch sits at awkward angles in first and fourth. The 4-stroke engine was the strong point in this scooter, while the cheap shift mechanism a serious argument against it.
Zündapp, Hercules and other German Mopeds also came with grip shifters.
Grip shift was also standard on PUCH VZ50 mopeds.
@10:29 "honey can we keep it? It followed me home."
The grip shifters are actually fairly common among the mopeds and low CC bikes (125-250cc) with the oldtimer club I'm in. Quite a lot of European brands had them, even Honda has a couple of old models with grip shifters.
And yeah, on one hand it's a good thing because now you only need to use 1 limb to shift but the massive downside is that when your clutch cable breaks, you're stuck where you are.
Though not recommended in the slightest, if you know how to it's quite easy to shift a foot shifter without the use of a clutch. It's going to be a bumpy ride, but at least you'll be able to get home.
Another problem with them is that is that you can go from first to last gear in one motion, the one's I rode were fairly intuitive 3 speed gearboxes but I can imagine it becomes easier to select the wrong gear when you have 5 or 6.
I remember that in the 50's, you could find Vespas with the 75mm recoilless rifle option.
A bit sad it was discontinued!
Norton actually made an oval piston engine before ww2, which produced more hp than a conventional engine at the time, but it never saw production line because it was too expensive. And furthermore, a yamaha gts1000 is not a hub centre steered bike, because steering does not pivot inside the hub,> steered mono upright.
I have a old Rokon. It was old when a neighbor gave it to me around 1982. I didn't know it was a factory made bike for years. I figured some home handy man made it from ideas or plans he bought from ads in a magazine. The motor was shot and I found a used engine from a Gravely walk behind mower fit right in. Things I learned years after owning it. Rokon started in 1958. They still make and sell bikes. I have seen newer ones but really not different than mine. So no point in buying a newer one. I have always kept it running because as a machinist I remade or repaired parts as they wore or broke. Didn't know a factory was still making parts. Currently I have a Harbor Freight 22hp engine in it. The bike is the most fun you can have at slow speed in the dirt. See guys charging up a steep hill and most not making it, just idle up while sitting on seat.
On #8 The suspension you are talking about was copy of the springer forks. I guy went on to build the Girvin suspension on mountain bikes. Not a great setup even though it was adjustable but very limited in travel.
I traded in my Yamaha FJ1200 in the mid 90’s for a new bike. I tried the GTS1000. It stuck to the road like Velcro when cornering, a fantastic ride. Then I hit traffic in Canterbury (in the UK) and was sat in the bike moving it forwards with my feet a metre at a time for about 30 minutes. (Yes, traffic can be that bad in Canterbury). It weighed a ton.
I ended up buying another FJ1200, this time with ABS, with a free set of Giwi luggage as a sweetener.
I had 5 telelever front suspended BMWs. I liked that suspention and it didn't look odd and had ABS brakes where front brakes partially applying back brakes and the back brake separately.
Very informative.
You should add this: "hard-chrome plating on the bores" on the1966 Bridgestone 175cc rotary valve 2-stroke engine to your list.
I'd say the point of cabin bikes is to be the lightest car. That's it. Fuel saving
The reason Vespa and Lambretta used a twist grip shift is because of the type of transmission they use. Hard to explain but if you look at a diagram of the transmission it will be clear. It's a simple and elegant design. A few motorcycles used a similar transmission such as Jawa and CZ. It works well enough on a low horsepower bike but wouldn't work on something with more horsepower.
Many bikes, especially small scooters have linked brakes. Honda has CBS (Combi Brake System). Front brake can be applied independently, however application of back brake applies a bit of front brake.
I have two Guzzis with linked brakes and they are fantastic especially in emergency situations, almost impossible to lock up either front or back when you stamp on it. I pretty much only use the front hand brake at lights. Amazed other manuf didn't pick up on this especially BMW. So smart. I also had a GPZ turbo in the mid 80s. A fantastic touring bike, it was basically a GPZ1100 frame with a detuned 750 cc motor with the turbo. It was a bit slow off the mark but from 80kph to 240kph pulled your arms out of their sockets, overtaking trucks was a dream, fzzzzzzz. The long wheelbase meant it was steady as a rock but having a 18 inch wheel up front meant it wasn't a true sports bike, like the 900R with a 16, and I had both, but the 900 had a narrow uncomfy seat while the turbo's wide seat you could sit on all day. Rode that thing all over Australia with the girlfriend and a gearsack and sold it after 4 years ownership for the same price I paid for it. Also great for burn outs outside the pub at closing time, so I hear.
At 6:44 The linked brakes works perfectly on touring bikes with secondary shaft transmission.
It will pace the suspensions because the shaft effect is the contrary on a secondary chain transmission and is "bad" and more violent.
It also allows you to "jump" on any of the two brakes when being surprised without having brakes locked ( this was OK before Anti Locking Brakes ).
It also allows you to brake efficiently in the winter when your hands are frozen.
Honda and Yamaha both make what they call "Combo" brakes on their overseas scooterettes. When you pull in the front brake lever, it engages both brakes.
As for the single front suspensions, clear advantage to me is that there are no more death wobbles, ironically the only motorcycle i know of that uses it, is a lesser known electric motorcycle company, i forgot the name, i think it was forrest car reviews.
Honda goldwings are full automatic transmission now. Also, my vtx1800 has linked braking the brake pedal does 80/20 rear front brakes
Under Euro standard bikes either have to have ABS or linked brakes, as such 125s trying to keep costs down will usually have linked brakes rather
than ABS
linked brakes is surely around, just not exclusively linked. Front applying 20% rear on Triumph Rocket 3 for example. Still has seperate rear, but linking is extant. I like it.
In South'east Asia, most small cc japanese scooters have linked brakes. It's called Combi Brake System (CBS).
And I think you forgot about shaft driven motorcycles and Rotary Engines. Anyway, good videos🔥
I seem to remember riding an Alstate sold from Sears with a handlebar twist-shift.
Nice video! I would also think of centrifugal clutch, automatic clutch disengage (old Jawa got these), turbine power and rotary power. Also steam motorcycles. And radio sound systems. And diesel engines.
I would have thought that Wankel engined bikes deserved a mention in this list. On the face of it, those made a lot of sense for motorcycles, and several different companies produced bikes using that type of engine.
We talked about Wankel bikes already in the comments: Suzuki RE5, Hercules W2000, Van Veen OCR 1000 and several Nortons.
The Rokon wheel hubs are also liquid storage tanks.
Linked brakes were first seen on the Rudge 500cc, and was still available on the 2003 BMW 1100s Boxer Cup Replica. I know as I have one.
there used to be Kreidler mopeds with 3 speed gripshift. I have ridden one briefly.
The old-ish Puch mopeds, especially the smaller ones almost all had the option of a twist/hand shifter, it actually take some complexity away from the engine as a result compared to a foot shifter