[HINK]

An improved larger displacement version of their model 841 would have been a more advanced step in the post-war Indian Motocycle Company's future

Absolutely ~~ coulda saved the company…

 

[Bird Dog]

Absolutely ~~ coulda saved the company…

I agree. I knew people who were contemporaneous fans of Indian motorcycle after World war II. That shaft drive bike was not a secret. There were lots of motorcycle riders. Looking forward to having a chance to purchase one of them once they became available for civilian use, and of course being made A model with a bigger engine displacement as well. Dupont was going dealers showing them the bike towards the end of the war, telling them that that's what they'd be selling once the war was over.
I understand what Ralph Rogers was thinking when he purchased Indian. But for as smart as that guy was, I don't understand how he didn't see that there was no way they would have been able to have made those small parallel twins here in the states as cheap as they were being made over in England and elsewhere. That was as true back then as it is today.
I also do continue to remind myself that Indian motorcycles manufacturing equipment was completely worn out. It was shot. Companies a lot bigger and more important than Indian motorcycle were having trouble getting new equipment to make their products....... Maybe in the end it wouldn't have mattered which direction they went. But it sure would have been fun if they had gone the shaft drive route. My dad's dad was a motorcycle fan and motorcycle rider for a good part of his life. I remember him telling me that had they went that route after World war II that he would have purchased one. Instead he remained riding Harley-Davidson motorcycles. Other motorcycle riders that I met throughout my younger life, who were riding motorcycle back then, told me pretty much the same thing. Indian might have had a winner on its hands.

 

[myershomesvcs]

Indian motorcycles saw service in both world wars. In WW1 the motorcycle was an experimental concept, along with tanks. Indian learned well from this experience, realizing that government contracts could be a lucrative source of income. When WW2 unfolded, Indian immediately prepared, offering the Scout (model 500) as their primary platform (military designation 741). Harley was concurrently offering their WLA, which had more power and was accordingly preferred by the troops. Indian responded with the innovative model 841, based on the Chief platform. It offered a more powerful engine to match the WLA, configured in the transverse 45 degree configuration later made famous by Moto Guzzi. The 841 also had shaft drive (as did the Harley XA). The 841’s were produced in much smaller numbers, however, and as the vet’s entered civilian life most were accordingly more familiar with the Harley WLA. Harley thus had a leg up on the post -war competition.

Harley had also had the foresight to pay more attention to their dealer network during the war, while Indian focused almost exclusively on their war production (allowing their dealerships to languish). To their detriment, Indian never capitalized on their model 841 after the war, making very few civilian examples and instead reverting to their pre-war engineering and marketing concepts. These civilian errors do not detract from the military service of Indian motorcycles during both world wars, where they served with honor.

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What a great set of pics of the war time Indian Motorcycles! Good read as well. Thanks for sharing.