The new Cafe (racer) Society

deviant Art: Rob-Cavanna.

2008-05-26T11:17:00.001-07:00

(click pict to enlarge)-See all of Rob's great drawings at his Deviant art gallery here.

The motorcycle in cinema-Warrior of the Lost World,

2008-05-26T09:02:00.000-07:00

"THE NUCLEAR WAR HAS BEEN FOUGHT!!! THE EARTH IS IN RUINS!!! ALL GOVERNMENTS HAVE COLLAPSED!!! AN EVIL DESPOT NAMED PROSSOR HAS ORGANIZED A DEADLY MILITIA TO RULE, CALLED THE OMEGA. IN THE WASTELANDS SURVIVE A SMALL GROUP CALLED THE OUTSIDERS. THEY STRUGGLE AGAINST THE EVIL PROSSOR AND HIS OMEGAS. INTO THIS CONFLICT RIDES ONE MAN, ON HIS SUPERSONIC SPEEDCYCLE.. HE IS DESTINED TO BECOME THE WARRIOR OF THE LOST WORLD

Wiki:

"Warrior of the Lost World, also known as Mad Rider, is a post-apocalyptic science fiction film written and directed by David Worth starring Robert Ginty, Persis Khambatta, and Donald Pleasence. It was created and first released in Italy under the title Il Giustiziere della terra perduta ("The executioner of the lost earth") in 1983 during the wide popularity of the Mad Max films and many subsequently created post-apocalyptic films of the 1980s. Later the movie was given another italian title for VHS and Tv markets, I predatori dell'anno Omega ("Raiders of the Omega year")

No talking in front!-the boys from MST3K ruin a perfectly bad movie...

The Rider arrives in the land on his technically advanced motorcycle with its loyal intelligent computer Einstein. He crashes and manages to pass through the wall of illusion and is found and healed by the Enlightened Elders who have chosen him to lead them in their fight against the evil Omega, an Orwellian state run by the evil despot Prossor. The Elders are allied with the resistance movement, the Outsiders. The Rider first helps Nastasia and the other Outsiders by rescuing McWayne, father of Nastasia and professor and leader of the Outsiders, from Prossor's clutches. While the Rider and McWayne successfully escape, Nastasia is captured and tortured by Prossor.

(link)

The Rider gains acceptance from various groups of Marginals (amazons, martial artists, truckers, punks, soldiers, Omega defectors) by winning in their ritual brawl which determines who among them is the strongest. The Rider and Outsiders launch their final attack on Prossor's regime, but are intercepted on the road by the Omegas and a giant armored truck called Megaweapon. As the rebels terminate the Omega patrols one by one with their cars,

helicopters, and tankers (with very few losses), the Rider manages to destroy the Megaweapon sending it in short circuit, not before having his speedcycle heavily damaged under the wheels of the truck. The Rider and McWayne storm Prossor's headquarters where they are confronted by the dictator and a brainwashed Nastasia. She wounds the Rider, but when ordered to kill her father, she turns on Prossor and shoots him dead. The Omega has been overthrown and Outsiders and Marginals celebrate as the Rider prepares to move on with the repaired speedcycle. Only in a last-minute twist, it is revealed that the man Nastasia shot was actually a clone, and the real Prossor is still alive. He flies away with an unnamed traitor of the New Way (Fred Williamson) plotting revenge against the "animals" that defeated him.

When Warrior of the Lost World was featured on Episode #501 of Mystery Science Theater 3000, Joel Robinson, Crow T. Robot, and Tom Servo found the Rider to be so unlikeable a character that they cheered for Megaweapon instead. At the episode's end, they called Megaweapon by telephone, and Megaweapon (voice of Michael J. Nelson) revealed "he" had survived apparent destruction in the film and, like the crew, could not remember the name of the actor who played Rider (As a running gag throughout the episode, the actor (Robert Ginty) was referred to by the crew only as "the Paper Chase guy." Megaweapon claimed that Ginty's fellow actors used this nickname as well). Megaweapon was occasionally referred to in the riffs of later episodes"

Brian Zoll's hoverbike.

2008-05-26T08:53:00.000-07:00

Via newtekpro-Created using LightWave 7

Whitehouse's Ryūjin and The Skullman.

2008-05-26T08:22:00.000-07:00

Always one to come up with something interesting, Japan's Whitehouse created the Ryūjin. Based on the Honda Valkyrie, the 1500 cc bike made its debut as costumed antihero The Skullman's choice of transport in the 2007 live action short film.

The story closely focuses on a journalist name Hayato Mikogami who returns to his hometown at Otomo to investigate strange rumors of killings done by a man wearing a skull mask. Tailed tightly by a young photographer, Kiriko Mamiya, the two soon uncover the many strings of connections between the victims, a local pharmaceutical company, a mysterious new religious sect and strange half human, half animal creatures which roam the night streets out for blood.

The Ryūjin remains a one-off for now. But rumors from whitehouse show that a small batch of the sinister bike may be created for a select few.

flickr: Fear No Snow

2008-05-26T08:14:00.000-07:00

brrr, a elegant shot via minimum's photostream

Building a Gas Powered BMX Bike.

2008-05-26T07:58:00.000-07:00

Step 1) Find a unloved BMX bike. Step 2) Locate a running lawnmower motor. Step 3) Read this.

The Art of Manabu Ito.

2008-05-26T07:29:00.000-07:00

Everyones happy in Manabu Ito's plastic-clay world-His blog can be found here, and website here.
Go out, Be happy and play with clay-words to live by.

Zen Moment.

2008-05-26T07:16:00.000-07:00

Words fail me-pict via oliepeil

The motorcycle in cinema-THX 1138

2008-05-23T11:20:00.000-07:00

(link)

Wiki:

THX 1138 is a 1971 science fiction film directed by George Lucas, from a screenplay by Lucas and Walter Murch. It depicts an Orwellian future, featuring three residents of a dystopia in which a high level of control is exerted upon the populace through ever-present faceless, android police officers and mandatory, regulated use of special drugs to suppress emotion, including sexual desire.

It was the first feature-length film directed by Lucas, and a more developed, feature-length version of his student film Electronic Labyrinth: THX 1138 4EB, which he made in 1967 while attending the University of Southern California, based on a one and a quarter page treatment of an idea by Matthew Robbins.

THX 1138 shares themes with The Machine Stops, Anthem, Brave New World, Nineteen Eighty-Four, The Giver, Ira Levin's This Perfect Day and Yevgeny Zamyatin's We, and was inspired in part by the short film 21-87. The film was produced in a joint venture between Warner Brothers and Francis Ford Coppola's then-new production company, American Zoetrope. A novelization by Ben Bova was published in 1971.

The tunnels used for the car and motorcycle chase scenes, were the Broadway tunnel in San Francisco, and the Alameda tunnel between the Oakland, CA. airport, and downtown Oakland.
The jet cars were actually Lola T70 Mark 3 race cars that had plastic bodywork added to look like they were jet powered. The same was true for the Triumph motorcycles witch had Avon fairings added to create a more futuristic look.

Jake Loniak's Deus Ex Machina

2008-05-23T09:17:00.000-07:00

Via: Hell for Leather

"Challenged to rethink motorcycle transportation, Art Center College of Design student Jake Loniak decided the idea of a machine as an extension of the body should be taken literally. Inspired by Biomechatronics and called the Deus Ex Machina, (not to be confused with that other Deus Ex Machina from Australia), Loniak's concept is an electric vertically parking motorcycle controlled by 36 pneumatic muscles with 2 linear actuators.

The Yamaha-branded Deus Ex concept is worn as an exo-skeleton with seven artificial vertebra as well as the pneumatically attached helmet. The motor is in-wheel, powered by ultra-capacitors and doped nano-phoshpate batteries similar to those already used in hybrids, and is capable of 0-60mph in 3 seconds. Top speed is 75mph with a recharge time of 15 minutes and cycle time of 1 hour."

Sbarro's hubless concepts.

2008-05-23T08:25:00.000-07:00

Pict via intersection magazine

via: MeicoCosmos

"Franco Sbarro the italian inventor/ engineer who designed and built the first working hubless wheels (a patent now held by Globeholding in Geneva) produced these design sketches. Sbarro has built many working "rim rider" vehicles and at least two working rim rider motorcycles (above).

A rim rider wheel is a wheel with no center hub, just a clean empty space. The Wheel itself is in essence the outer race of a very large bearing.

Pict via intersection magazine

Franco Sbarro is the only designer that has employed this type of hubless wheel. Globeholding and their "Orbital Wheel" (or osomoswheel) appears to be agressively defending their intellectual property rights, so lets hope that means they have some great plans in the works."

Anime: Energer Z.

2008-05-23T08:08:00.000-07:00

look carefully-you can see the hero's little cafe racer peeking out of the top of Energer's head-Photo via Limit's world

Wiki:

"Mazinger Z creator Go Nagai reveals that he had always loved Tetsuwan Atom (astro boy) and Tetsujin-28 (gigantor) as a child, and wanted to make his own robot anime. However, for the longest time he was unable to produce a concept that he felt didn't borrow too heavily from those two shows.

and here's the ramp-photo and toy reviewvia Limit's world

One day, Nagai observed a traffic jam and mused to himself that the drivers in back would surely love a way to bypass the ones in front. From that thought came his ultimate inspiration: a giant robot that could be controlled from the inside, like a car. In his original concepts, the titular robot was Energer Z, which was controlled by a motorcycle that was driven up its back via a ramp and into its head. However, with the sudden popularity of Kamen Rider, Nagai replaced the motorcycle with a hovercraft, and the idea was soon forgotten."

The Brudeli 625L.

2008-05-23T07:58:00.000-07:00

Via: Faster and Faster

"Brudeli Tech, the makers of the Brudeli 625L three-wheeler you see here, say that theirs is ‘a unique new vehicle providing an extraordinary riding experience,’ and that it is ‘best described as something in between a motorcycle and an ATV-quad.’ The machine is expected to be launched by mid-2007.

Designed by one of Scandinavia’s leading design houses, Hareide Designmill, the Brudeli 625L borrows its engine and various chassis components from the KTM 625 SMC supermotard, and utilises Ohlins suspension components. The specially designed front wheel mechanism lets the two front wheels lean at an angle of up to 45 degrees. With some practise, even moderately skilled riders should be able to ride the Brudeli harder than they would be able to ride a motorcycle, without falling off!"

Gone but not forgotten-the Capricorn planetary gear wheel.

2008-05-23T07:45:00.000-07:00

Via: motorcyclingmag

"The unique, if esoteric, pleasure of watching gears whirr and mesh has long been the province of lovers of grande complication watches. Motor-cyclists, being kinetic art aficionados, can find similarly transcendental pleasure in contemplating the unique workings of Involution, Capricorn Cyclo-Works’ planetary gear system motorcycle wheel. At rest or rolling speeds, its baroque visual effects are nothing short of mesmerizing.

Capricorn co-founder Ro Lehew explains: “The wheel is, in fact, inspired by classic watch movements. We’ve taken an existing engineering concept and applied it in a purely decorative manner. The gears bear no load, so the performance of the wheel is not impacted. Using high-grade aluminum and composites, we balance weight and mass carefully, so the weight remains within normal parameters. In fact, the entire system is safety-verified. If an object, such as a small stone, introduces itself into the mechanism, the gears will continue to rotate with the wheel.”

Sadly Capricorn seems to have vanished from the interweb....

When is a motorcycle not a motorcycle? the Brennan Gyrocar.

2008-05-23T07:34:00.001-07:00

The future happened for a brief moment in Farnborough-but nobody wanted it.

Via: The brilliant Self Site

"In 1926 or 27, after his torpedo, monorail and helicopter ventures, Brennan, then 73, wrote to the Secretary of State for War (Sir Laming Worthington Evans) suggesting that a gyrocar should be developed for military use- just like the intended use of the Schilovsky gyrocar. The War Office refused to finance it, but funding of £12,000 (plus a £2000 per year salary for Brennan) was found from John Cortauld.

The Brennan gyrocar worked on the same basic principle as the gyro-monorail. Two contra-rotating gyros were housed under the front seats, spun in a horizontal plane at 3500rpm by 24V electric motors powered from standard car batteries. This was the greatest speed obtainable with the electric motors available, and meant that each rotor had to weigh 200lb to generate sufficient forces. Precession was in the vertical fore-aft plane.

The car had a Morris Oxford engine, engine mountings, and gearbox. Two sidewheels (light aircraft tailwheels were used) were manually lowered on stopping; if the driver forgot and switched off the gyros and walked away, the car would continue to balance itself using the gyro momentum for a few minutes, and then the wheels would automatically be dropped to stop tipping.

The Brennan gyrocar at Farnborough in 1929

The car was completed in 1929 and proved to work well and bank correctly on turns. It was demonstrated to the leading British car manufacturers- Austin, Morris and Rover- at Farnborough aerodrome, but after consideration they said they could sell all the conventional cars they could make, so why should they take the risk of a radical new technology? Other firms said the same thing, and the project was abandoned.

Brennan died in 1932 at the age of 79, from the effects of being knocked down by a car while visiting Montreux in Switzerland."

The restoration of the Back to the Future 2 Police Hover Bike.

2008-05-21T20:23:00.000-07:00

Via: codeoneauto

"This vehicle, which was once together as a whole and was last seen gliding across the screen in the film "Back to the Future Part 2", was now in at least three locations at once, more that 50 miles apart. If you include the cracked windshield, which was still at Ohrberg Star Cars in Los Angeles, then it would be 4 locations and 3000 miles. A weekend flight to LA returned the windshield to the East Coast. Having prepared for this trip, I brought along a large duffel bag that was capable of successfully containing the windshield yet still qualified as "carry on" luggage. It was quite amusing to see security X-ray an obviously heavy and quite full bag that appeared to carry nothing inside. After a brief explanation to airline security, we were on our way back home.

While we were diligently coming up with many ideas on how this windshield, made of plexiglass and now broken into several large pieces, some of them missing, could best be re-engineered to serve as a model for a reproduction. We were fortunate enough to acquire a large assortment of original molds for a great deal of Hollywood Star Cars. Among these molds was a set from the Back to the Future production, which included the windshield mold for the Police Hoverbike. My "carry on cargo" was rendered scrap plastic. Within a few hours, we had a replacement.

Anything that could not be straightened was removed. One of the dual exhausts, with its custom shroud, was so badly crushed that it had to be removed and discarded, the other, we managed to save. The gauges were so badly damaged as to be almost unrecognizable.

Once we had removed all that need be removed, it was time to start putting some necessary items back on. A trip to our nearby Kawasaki dealer, who was happy to once again be supplying parts to such a strange project, took care of that problem.

After a few days, the replacement parts arrived and this moviecar was once again standing on its own. Interestingly enough, we found that Ohrberg Star Cars had opted to modify the center stand for this vehicle to make room for the custom exhaust system. Their modifications would have rendered the center stand non-functional. Only a stretch of highway in California knows for sure. We decided to modify the exhaust system instead of the new center stand as quite often, a young visitor to an exhibit will find some way to slip under the ropes and seat himself upon our cycles. A functional center stand is a priority for us. It did amuse me to once again view the original footage of the Police officers arriving on our bikes and using the side stands, knowing full well that at the time, they really didn’t have a choice.

The bikes were sold to a moviecar musuem in the fall of 2000"

Lego: Noddy's Bike models.

2008-05-21T20:06:00.000-07:00

Norton Cafe racer

Noddy's amazing 1936 Bohmerland

..and a very smart police bike, see the rest of Noddy's elegant work here.

The Harley Davidson armoured sidecar of the Danish army.

2008-05-21T19:52:00.000-07:00

"The Danish goverment between the wars was not generous with any military budget. So the army came up with the idea of "The Armored Motorbike". The Swedish factory Landsverk AB built the armor to the drawings made by the Danish army, and it was put on top of a Harley Davidson armed with a light machinegun. This was more than even a Harley could cope with. It was difficult to control on ordinary road, and a 3x1 vehicle with overloaded suspension wasn't impressive in terrain. It was decided to abandon the project. However, Danish motorbikes knocking out German armored cars and light tanks shows, the idea wasn't totally without merit. This was built 1932 and and dropped in 1935."

-Source

Craig Vetter's Torpedo scooter.

2008-05-21T19:39:00.000-07:00

The Vetter question of the day: "Do I want to look like everyone else?"

Via: Craig Vetter.com

"I had a lot to do with the development of this kind of motorcycle. Today's touring machines are sophisticated and comfortable, but essentially the same kind of motorcycle I designed in 1977! Modern touring cycles are hard to get on and off because you must climb up and throw your leg over all that stuff. Frankly, I'm surprised we put up with this.

The bright '56 Chev red and cream paint stood out among the black Harleys and death's head decorations. Nobody was afraid when I rode in."

The bikes of the Huxley universe.

2008-05-21T19:25:00.000-07:00

Steal this bike-the three wheeled bike in the Huxley game universe

Via teamxbox

"Huxley, as its name suggests, is inspired by the novel “Brave New World ” (Its) a MMO game that delivers the excitement and freshness of “a brave new world” to gamers. Although it is a big challenge.

Based on the Unreal Tournament game engine The world of Huxley is not the same as ours. It is the world in our near future that both new and degenerate technologies exist together. Fossil energies are exhausted and everything is changed. People fight for new energy sources, and wars never end. Players can play various roles such as commanders to lead other gamers or operators to drive vehicles."

Cabin cruiser: The Pereaves Ecomobile

2008-05-21T19:06:00.000-07:00

By Eric Tegler Via autoweek

"Say you live in an ecologically correct country cabin and need a ride. What would be apropos? A cabin motorcycle of course. Swiss builder Peraves has just the thing, the aptly named EcoMobile. The name might sound a little weedy, but enthusiasts need not fret—it was originally called the Rocket.

Cabin motorcycles, your basic motorcycle enclosed in a hull of sorts, have been around since the 1920s. Though never a major vehicular segment, they drew interest in postwar Eastern Europe where pioneers like Czech aeronautical engineer Jan Anderle sought to develop frugal all-weather transportation from meager resources.

(link)

The concept caught on with East German manufacturer NSU, which produced a series of such vehicles nicknamed “flying hammocks” in the 1950s. BMW and Honda have revisited the idea in the modern era with their own semi-enclosed cabin motorcycles (the C1 and Gyro Canopy). A new example (the Acabion) was on the floor at this year’s Geneva show, but no company has as thoroughly developed the cabin motorcycle as Switzerland’s Peraves.

Peraves was originally a glider manufacturer, a venture launched by former Swissair pilot and engineer Arnold Wagner. Bored with his commute from Winterthur, Switzerland, up to Bavaria, Wagner noticed a motorcyclist passing by on the ’bahn and realized the rider was having fun—at least in good weather. “The motorcycle,” he says, “is a very agreeable toy. But, I thought, wouldn’t it be possible to design one that would have the practical usefulness of a car?”

(link)

Wagner changed course with Peraves and built his first cabin cycle prototype in 1982. The single-seater’s performance inspired him to dub it the Rocket, a name he reconsidered when applying for Swiss road registration. “I thought, if I tell them I have a Rocket in my garage, they might not like the idea,” he remembers. “So I thought of its efficiency, and called it the Eco Mobile.” It worked. Peraves has sold nearly 100 examples in 18 years.

Two have made it to the States, including the two-seat Super Eco owned by Greensboro, North Carolina’s Dan Whitfield. Super Eco weighs 1015 pounds, sits on a 9.5-foot wheelbase and is powered by a 1200-cc BMW K1200RS motorcycle engine making 130 hp. The package is good for a 5.5-second 0-to-60-mph sprint and 160-mph top end. Before you recoil in horror, my green friend, understand it achieves 50 mpg at 80 mph, 57 mpg at a steady 55 mph. Other versions offer more performance or more frugality, depending on your priority.

The Eco is registered as a motorcycle, but its light, crash-tested structure (Kevlar/carbon fiber/ Araldite monocoque with encapsulated chromoly steel roll cage and engine mount) and three-point seatbelts obviate the need for a helmet. Instead of a visor you look out through a plexiglass canopy, from a limate-controlled interior equipped with stereo and GPS. Driving the Eco has been compared to flying on terra firma, and—like flying—it requires some training.

Driver controls are a mix of car and cycle elements with floor-mounted clutch and brake pedals complementing handlebar-mounted gearshift, starter and stabilizer rocker switches and throttle. The Eco’s retractable, driver-controlled stabilizer wheels, looking much like the training wheels on your child’s bike, deploy at speeds below 15 mph for stability."

Otaku alert: The type Char 3 helmet.

2008-05-20T19:09:00.000-07:00

There's nothing wrong with wanting to look like a cartoon robot-Available through lalabitmarket

Pussik's virtual Lego trike.

2008-05-20T19:00:00.001-07:00

Pussik's virtual Lego trike. Every block is rendered singly. The model has 126 255 tris and 53 829 polygons and can be downloaded for $50.00 via turbosquid

flickr: Zach Norman's electric chopper.

2008-05-20T18:45:00.000-07:00

Zack and his electric chopper at El Mirage. See more of The Adventures Of Zack Norman and His Fantabulous Electric Motorcycle! via his flicker photoset.

deviant Art:mangacat.

2008-05-20T18:40:00.000-07:00

mangacat's Motorcycle pinup of Tim Drake (aka Robin) from DC comics. The motorcycle itself is taken directly from a photo that he played with in Photoshop and then colored in.