Sunday, August 29, 2010

The life of a hero. Via: Libero Liberati in English
The Sinclair C5 was a battery electric vehicle invented by Sir Clive Sinclair and launched in the United Kingdom on 10 January 1985. The vehicle is a battery-assisted tricycle steered by a handlebar beneath the driver's knees. Powered operation is possible making it unnecessary for the driver to pedal. Its top speed of 15 miles per hour (24 km/h), is the fastest allowed in the UK without a driving licence. It sold for £399 plus £29 for delivery. It became an object of media and popular ridicule during 1980s Britain and was a commercial disaster, selling only around 12,000 units.
The C5's lack of seat-to-pedal adjustment, lack of gears, short pedal cranks, and that the motor overheated on long hills were serious problems; indeed the motor was essentially useless for climbing hills, with even mild gradients necessitating significant pedal assistance, which rendered the vehicle largely pointless.
A superb 1/12 model of the motorcycle from Hiroyuki Yamaga's Dieselpunk anime masterpiece The Wings of Honneamise. Via:

Saturday, August 28, 2010

 Electric motorcycle created in occupied France. (Private collection)
"Tokyo Rider" by Mikael Lugnegård
The art of Tatiana Blass. Via: Ottonero

Friday, August 27, 2010

Ralph Mosher's 1969 "Pedipulator." Via: Cybernetic Zoo
The forgotten customs of Japan in the eighties. Via: Docstyle

Via: Oldbike
Burning Man be dammed: Wasteland Weekend
Tuki's R Bike concept.