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Hattix t1_iu0wknu wrote

Reply to comment by LOL_L_Player1 in Harley-Davidson Model 1, the first motorcycle ever produced by the motorcycle company. by swizchaksih74

Almost? The Harley-Davidson motorised bicycle was, in fact, a motorised bicycle!

Benz had been making them earlier, but while Benz had good engines, he had no idea what made a bicycle work. There had been experiments with rotary wheel-engines, trikes, Benz came back with the Patent-Motorwagen, etc.

Millet's design of the 1890s set the scene for how to do it, however.

The Thomas Auto-Bi is even more obviously a bike with a motor bolted on it! By the time of the FN Four, it had become pretty ridiculous, but people wanted power.

Oh, and I best not leave this without mentioning the Roper Steam Velocipede, which is exactly what you think it is.

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