ok, i know no one's gonna take this seriously but i bet we'll see this product soon enough for somebody. how many road bikes have you seen with stereos built into their farings? (ans.:about a jillion)wouldn't it be nice if outlaw could design the first mp3 r/p that'd fit into those same fairings? all it'd take is a little mod-ing to give a rider the controls he/she needs on a bike...larger button for 'play' & volumne, for example. perhaps a built in tuner w/'auto' scan/memory (like the aiwa portable cd units) hey, it's just an idea. i may be doing that myself soon w/ my 20gig portable.
i kinda put that out yesterday as a joke on the '950' page ie: design something for my harley (long wait...rambling). all i got back was a suggestion for an oil drip pan. haha...it's a harley, not a triumph. Harley's quit dripping in '86.

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t higg

Was that the year you quit adding oil? [GDR]

In the various motorcycle magazines there are mp3 player holders and such that will allow you to mount them on bikes. I've also seeen speakers that can mount on handlebars (they look ugly, in my opinion). The Apple iPod is a good mp3 device that has a large hard disc and good interface; you might check into that one.

And oh, I forgot, Triumphs are the ones that drip oil. Harleys are the ones that shake all the bolts out of their engines onto the road.

(Don't take this seriously, I'm a biker too)

OUCH!!!

nah, my new one is a 2003, 100th aniversary model. my third. have owned 2 honda's, 2 yama's, a penton, 2 puchs, and one kawasaki. they all died horrible deaths...cept for the 2 honda's. fact: if u add up all the bikes that all the japanese manufacturers make and sell every year in the usa...it would not equal the amount that harley sells here in the same time frame. by the by, i lived in japan for 2 years...what's the pentultimate bike of chose there? yep...harley. got a friend over there...he served on the other side in ww2...re-built himself a '54 H-D. he's about 80yrs. old now and his harley is his pride and joy. p.s. how many hondas and yamahas have you seen lately that were built in '54? another aside, my entire HT system, save the vcr & cass. dk. comes from ...the USA. and it seriously rocks! (most hi-end & HT japanese...prefer US or european equipment or they just build it themselves.
In japan working for the DOD in crypto...i met many engineers and such...most have macintosh amps w/ home buillt speakers...they rock! not to put down their home built products...companies like marantz (org. USA), yama, nak, etc. are now bulding some wonderful gear. ya just gotta understand that originally, the 60's & 70's, the country was more concerned about mass, mass production...the bottom line was sell sell sell...money money money. witness the evolution of the toyota and honda. still, today, the major roadbike they imitate is the ...tah dah...harley. the cars immulate the germans (although ford and chevy now own most of their market). the triumph motorcycle co. went under in the 70's (now back) mainly because of the '72/73 xs-650 yama...a direct rip-off of their main bike.
harley, a year or so ago, started proceedings to patent their sound, since all the copy cats started designing exact replicas of their road machines. by the way, it was the triumph that was famous for leaking...engine casings were split vertically and all the oil accumulated at the bottom seal and eventually leaked, the copies split their casings horizontally...problem solved...hey those copy cats are darn good. to bad they can't do what we do. domo arigato, tomadachi.


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t higg

You aren't by any chance "The Highwayman" that posts on Motorcycle Online?"

And BTW, have you taken a count of the parts on your Harley that were made in Japan? The carburetors for instance are made by Keihn (a division of Honda), and the shocks are Showa's - all made in there too.

[This message has been edited by soundhound (edited February 16, 2003).]

soundhound, thanks for that. i was just finishing a long winded discourse and funny thing, i mentioned in the reply that, yes, it was the triumph that waas infamous for the dripping engine casing. harley's, in the sixties, were bought by AMF...and very fastly went downhill...falling apart, not cranking, etc. in the 80's the company worker bees bought the company and re-designed everything. they became one of the most successful turnaround companies in the history of america. programs on PBS, manager seminars on how to turn a co. around, etc. focused on H-D as the prime example of what should be done to get ones company back together. unfortunately, just like a lotta hi-fi companies that also 'went cheap', their bad image stuck with them even tho' they also had turned the corner. i used to sell hi-fi in the 80's. marantz was marginal, sherwood was a joke, pioneer and sansuii...oh my god, the race then was on power...untried power chips that blew and hummed, fancy features and mega lites (kenwood) that did mostly nothing. most of these companies have turned round...but unless one keeps up with the market, one retains the 'bad product' image.
oh, and thanks about the mp3 info. see, i havent really checked very far on that one have i? i agree about hanging speakers out on the bars...really ugly. haven't got a fairing on my latest, yet, and came up with an idea that was already out there. still, i think that a company with the name outlaw...belongs on a product that was once known as an outlaw.

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t higg

yeh, u got me there. parts for most anything come from the far and near east. es cheaper, of course. still, in defence, just like the tubes and circuitry made in china and russia, manufacturers here usually go over there and ask for processes and building techniques that are in line with their company philosophy. the unions here have outpriced themselves to make a decent product and keep it within a price range that is realistic. ford's are mazda's, chevies are toyotas, macintosh...is owned by a japanese group (well, it was, don't know bout now). the forks on a harley are from over there. welcome to 'a new world order'.
did you know that the english word for bathroom; 'loo', is from the french idiom...'en guard de loo' (watch out for the water! cause before 'loo's'...early england spoke french and they would throw the 'pan' of last nite's ...defication...out the window and onto the street...'watch out for the (stinky) water, mon ami.
i gotta put on some music now and listen to my new 950 over me 'made in usa' maggie system. en guard de music!

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t higg

I see the ‘bike wars’ go on, occasionally on the fringes of the speed channel etc, being default here. Every time I leave the room it magically gravitates to those channels, (the guys all say they did not touch the remote).
In the last 5 years for some reason I have run into ‘antique’ Harleys sitting in front of the grocery store etc, which are perfectly restored. Regardless whether or not these things need …uh hum…a drip pan. They are beautiful pieces of machinery and wonderful to look at.

I get dragged into the edges of that world (cars) due to the hobbyist around here. They entered our 68 Mustang project to the 50 something annual ‘Autorama” here in Dallas at Market Hall this weekend. ‘Autorama’ …isn’t that just the most ‘bubba’ type name you’ve ever heard?

It was my first foray to something like that, and I have to say that while there are some extreme and strange concepts of what is beautiful in machinery at these shows, It’s amazing to see what everyone who loves these , - puts into their ‘trailer queens’ at these type events. A novel experience….had to go support the home crowd. It did help that I got to sit in my personal #1 pick, (if I won the lottery this weekend). A Shelby Series One, I was speaking to the group that brought it to the show, A Carol Shelby tied business group, who had also brought the ‘Eleanor’ fastback to this show, - that just sold at Barletts auction for 180.K When I mentioned to them, that barring finances, over all current choices, the Series One was what I would personally drive off the lot. They invited me over the ropes to sit in it.

Silly stuff, but I have to say……..I WANT ONE. (and it fit me like a glove). I have to admire the ‘heart’ and work that goes into these machines which have so many hours lavished on them by their respective owners…(I admire passion, - in any field, - whether its my daily cup of tea or not)
Today is the last day of this show, and I was not going back (one day attendance was plenty for me) but the Shelby guys (there not with Shelby but only handle Shelby cars) said if I wanted to hear (ride) in the Series One when the show ends today and everyone packs up, to be there at closing. I am very tempted!

You ought to paste a pic Thigg, SH did (of one of his two) and it was beautiful!

oh yeh soundhound, no i'm not the 'highwayman' or whatever. sorry. where is that site? also, just for grins, what kinda bike do u have? please understand, am not trying to knock the other bikes. i have had a bunch of many kinds as you probably read. my penton dirt bike was just awesome...if one could keep it running. had an mx 250 yama..bored to 280...holy moly it was scary, i loved my little 450 honda (2), just needed more power. my xs650 yama (triumph copy...not the 650 they make now) was one sweet running mosheen. built a little flimsy but i drove everywhere for years. as to the reply after that, can't remember who it was. i can agree with part o what you say...heck, even indian is back in gear and they were the real american dream till harley won the military contract for ww2. is this forum turning into a bike thing?
let's get back to the crux o the bisquit.
i gotta put on some j. buffet (or perhaps some zapa) and pretend it's not raining outside. oh yeh, i have the archos mp3 jukebox...fell in love with the mac but at cnn, well, we're all on pc's(cept for editors who have pc's for internet to cnn, and g4's for digital editing...now does that make any sense?

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t higg