update 042304 Well, the biggest news since the last update is that I have rented a shop to work on the bike in.
Amazingly, I was able to fit the dissassembled bike into my Subaru. About a dozen trips and the contents of the garage were moved to the shop.
Let me thank everyone who emailed me about the NEO-FUKYOKO project unveiled at the Tokyo Motorcycle show. For those who don't know about it an allegedly functional motorcycle inspired by Kaneda's bike from Akira was presented. As I have been saying to people who have emailed me on the design of an Akira inspired motorcycle, there is more than one way to do it. It is interesting to see an actual Akira inspired bike which has a drivetrain and powerplant.
However, I have many objections to the design used for the NEO-FUKUOKO project. As you can see from the picture above, one objection would be size. Clearly the riders head sticks up way over the 'head rest' of the bike.
As you can see from my earlier test renderings of the finished bike, the headrest clearly rises above the head of the vehicle operator. Do a google search on the NEO-FUKUOKO bike for more info From what I understand they are still undecided on when / if it will be sold and how much it will cost. Additionally, the engine is in the front, requiring some 8' of chain spanned over three seperate sprocket pairs to get to the rear wheel. The front cowling does not appear to raise / lower either. A more detailed analysis of my design and the NEO-FUKUOKO design will be presented in the future, when my project is further along.
With the new shop ready the pace of this project should pick up. However, finances have slowed the progress of this bike considerably, as there have been numerous parts I have had to get custom made. Until next time - Matus - Back to Status - To Next Update - |
