Texas Stroker

[kitabel]

Thanks.
The dual carb setup looks remarkably like the future S&S Dual Throat manifold. Can't tell from the picture whether the 2 mixture streams merge in the manifold (each carburetor supplies 1/2 of the flow to both cylinders) or are completely separated to the individual ports (each carburetor serves only one port)?
Assuming the 1-1/4" carbs are the common M-51 etc. size, the combined 1-1/16" venturi area is 1.77 square inches vs. the OEM M-74 with 1-5/16" venturi at 1.35 square inches, +31%. Comparing the throttle areas, the M-51s total 2.93" vs. 1.92" for the M-74, +53%.
If each only supplies one cylinder the carburetors are way too small, as was the S&S.

The flywheels pictured are certainly not 105" - the crankpin is much too close to the shaft center. They don't give the stroke length, but with std. bore even 5-1/2" stroke is only 102". We can assume that the bore of the original barrels has been increased!

[T. Cotten]

...The dual carb setup looks remarkably like the future S&S Dual Throat manifold. Can't tell from the picture whether the 2 mixture streams merge in the manifold (each carburetor supplies 1/2 of the flow to both cylinders) or are completely separated to the individual ports (each carburetor serves only one port)?..

Here's another one like it, Kitabel!

Sorry I can't remember where I snagged the pic...

With all that weight hanging on one side, you'd think the bike would want to go in circles.

....Cotten

[chuckthebeatertruck]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]28989[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]28990[/ATTACH]Back to the Texas Stroker topic. Here is the complete article from May 1950 Cycle magazine. Tom

Thanks for sharing!

It's interesting because we have two different things going on. On the one hand, this article exists and uses the name "Texas Long Strokers."

The original question was: increasing displacement of 61 Knuckleheads to 74 or 80 cui by installing Flathead flywheels is commonly referred to as "Texas Stroker".
can someone of the experts pls explain the reference to Texas and not Wisconsin or California, etc.

If I read the article correctly, the gent in 1950 was machining new flywheels, not installing flathead wheels.


So, we still don't have answer as to whether "Texas Stroker" is a "common" term (it seems not to be) or why the reference is Texas. If this article was THAT influential -- I think more people would know the term after some 70 years.

And, yes, I'm being totally tongue in cheek here :-)

[chuckthebeatertruck]

I've met him, Chuck!

He's an axxhole.

You can't argue with him.

He'll just tell you "if you can't see it, neither can the judges."

....

I'll miss the in-person wit at Davenport.

[T. Cotten]

I'll miss the in-person wit at Davenport.

Nobody will miss him more than I will, Chuck!

....Cotten
PS: Sorta back to topic maybe: What about all the other 'pop' euphemisms for motorcycle hardware, like "fat bobs", and the immortal "suicide shift"?
Were they regional, like "California Styled"? (I've got a chainguard like that for sale.)

[RichO]

I will put this out there and I'm sure there are some, in fact I'm sure of it, that will argue the point but here it is. In 1946 just after THE war the Boozefighters MC was formed in SoCal and their first President was C.B. Clausen. He and fellow member Gil Armas built one of the first, some will say the first, 80' stroker knucklehead using ULH flywheels. Soon after Bud Hood the MONEY man joined C.B. to build the very successful Brute and Brute Jr. stroker knuckleheads that ruled SoCal dry lakes, drag strips, and held records at Bonneville. Lloyd Krantz and his HOT knucklehead finally took out C.B. in the early fifties. C.B. went on the found Motorcycle Supply Co. which sold out to Harry's Dixie Distributing in 1970. What was left of the Brute was given to Bob George who went on the drag race a BAD Knuckle stroker and then turned to Shovelheads. His machines held many records at Bonneville. He an the editor of Easyrider magazine built the cigar shaped streamliner for Bonneville. It now rests in the museum in Iowa north of Davenport.

[govmule84]

Thanks for sharing!

It's interesting because we have two different things going on. On the one hand, this article exists and uses the name "Texas Long Strokers."

The original question was: increasing displacement of 61 Knuckleheads to 74 or 80 cui by installing Flathead flywheels is commonly referred to as "Texas Stroker".
can someone of the experts pls explain the reference to Texas and not Wisconsin or California, etc.

If I read the article correctly, the gent in 1950 was machining new flywheels, not installing flathead wheels.


So, we still don't have answer as to whether "Texas Stroker" is a "common" term (it seems not to be) or why the reference is Texas. If this article was THAT influential -- I think more people would know the term after some 70 years.

And, yes, I'm being totally tongue in cheek here :-)

I've heard that term plenty before. I think two issues are being conflated here. One is the fact that early Knuck strokers were built using 80" flattie wheels, as no aftermarket source existed. Next came welding up the crankpin tapers and remachining them farther out, lengthening stroke yet again. So early strokers, yes, used flathead wheels.

The Texas Stroker was simply a triple-digit displacement mill, no? 'Cause everything's bigger in Texas...

[41craig]

Thanks for posting that, Tom!

I like the crank assembled without rods, presumably for dynamic balancing.

Definitely "New School".

....Cotten

Tom; I had my 80" flywheel assembly put together without rods in late 1973 or early 1974 for balancing after shaving the left flywheel. Had to true the wheels without rods and take it and the rods, bearings, pistons, pins, lock rings to a hot rod machine shop for balancing. It had good top end. ( ticket for 85 in a 55 zone ) But you had to slip the clutch at take off because of the lightened flywheels. I went back to stock flywheels a year or two later.
Craig

[T. Cotten]

Tom; I had my 80" flywheel assembly put together without rods in late 1973 or early 1974 for balancing after shaving the left flywheel. Had to true the wheels without rods and take it and the rods, bearings, pistons, pins, lock rings to a hot rod machine shop for balancing. It had good top end. ( ticket for 85 in a 55 zone ) But you had to slip the clutch at take off because of the lightened flywheels. I went back to stock flywheels a year or two later.
Craig

Craig!

By "slip the clutch", I take you mean you had to get your RPM up to launch.

Yeah. Hard on the clutch, too.

Herbert Wagner's "Revolutionary Motorcycles.. etc." gives a great explanation why the left wheels were so fat!

....Cotten
PS: I served some duty on a Stewart-Warner dynamic balancer. It has its time and place, but highly over-rated.

[kitabel]

One of the rudest shocks ("I didn't expect that") was the owner trying to kick-start his 84" (4-1/2" stroke) knucklehead (low compression, stock cam) which had S&S 8-1/4" OD flywheels to use the longer 4-1/2" stroker pistons.
The combination of the narrow left side (25 lbs. total) + the OD reduction made a stroke-through impossible for a strong man weighing 170. It also predictably chain-snatched, and loaded the rear tire (the axle went up & down as the engine fired) at low speed. We never had a gauge on it, but he could stand on the pedal and bounce and nothing moved. My fault, sorry Bob!
Fast? Yes. but you don't want to ride it in traffic.

I did the first reverse (the other way) 88" big flathead engine I know of (roller bearing 4-3/4" stroke flywheels in a UL) 45 years ago. Stock (7.90625") UL rods, FL pin, 164" Corvair pistons.