A flight without wings is what Gasha Aeri achieves as she and the Mahindra Flyte paint the town red Photography: Sanjay Raikar“A car travelling at an average speed of 160 km/h will take 29 million years to reach the closest star.”

A flight without wings is what Gasha Aeri achieves as she and the Mahindra Flyte paint the town red Photography: Sanjay Raikar“A car travelling at an average speed of 160 km/h will take 29 million years to reach the closest star.”

Really, an empty mind is definitely a crappy place, if not a devil’s workshop and mine was wandering in another universe! Not that we have such leisurely weekdays all the time, but after successful completion of all the tasks at hand, that day was extraordinarily free. But not for long. Minutes later I heard the second set of golden words from my boss’ mouth, the first one being, “You’re hired!”  The whole office seemed technicoloured again after those moments of bored black-and-white when he announced that yours truly would get a ride (with a tankful) and some cash in hand to do an interesting story for the upcoming issue. “An Official Pampering Day,” I said to myself and headed to meet my partner for the task – a scarlet red Mahindra Flyte. My technicoloured day got a little glitter too, as my ride was not just good looking, but, thanks to the variomatic transmission, very

comfortable to nudge my way through city traffic too.And what can be more interesting than an account of the weekday when the world turned and toiled in their office chairs and spent just another day in their cubicle, while I made merry around the city.So,the next day was to be marked in my calendar as the Official Pampering Day (OPD, for short). Just to celebrate my release from the shackles of a routine weekday morning, I made the OPD’s morning special with an early morning jog. A bottle holder in the front stored away my sipper and I rode swiftly to the joggers’ park making the day’s start better with my red Flyte. As my fellow joggers in crumpled T-shirts and faded shorts helped their poodles do the business, I parked the Flyte amid a crowd of other odd coloured two-wheelers and headed for my first run in months. The idea of a morning jog sure sounded very healthy and good in my mind, but my lazy legs refused to support the upper torso for even the first few metres. Well, you can’t really blame them, they’ve had a habit of supporting my bulk for only a few steps and not beyond. Hurriedly, I finished my crash course in jogging in just a few metres and returned pleading to Flyte to bear me back home. Farewells and good luck to my fellow joggers and hope their flab vanishes soon

or at least they ‘feel’ fit and healthy.After that gruelling run, my body demanded a quick and immediate supply of nutrition. Meaning, breakfast! Soon after that, I made my way to the city which awaited me with all its grandeur and show and kick-started the day. Fuel indicator smiling at full, I beat the morning traffic with the light weight and quick acceleration of the Flyte.This holy time of the year being sale season, all my ‘shopaholic’ brothers and sisters would pull shame at me if I didn’t mark my attendance at the malls. Some fruits of my day’s shopping hung merrily from the front hook, while others got stored away under the seat. Another level of convenience achieved here!

Compact in size, the Flyte was easy to park on those busy streets and when the lanes got really narrow and required me to pick my ride to cross through those dug up roads, the light weight won songs of praise from me. The suspension felt good for city riding, especially when the roads in our country aren’t exactly that even and often surprise us with a bump or two. Even on the lanes where one finds difficult to find enough oxygen to breathe, the Flyte made its way out without any trouble.

Being a girl’s ride, the Flyte wasn’t very hungry for fuel either. The tankful lasted over 200 km. After riding a geared bike all this while, a day off from the hassles of gear shift and the luxury of front footboard and under-seat storage, the Flyte was a refreshing change from the routine.

Much before I could realise, the clock struck seven and it was time for Cinderella to run back home before the beast of evening traffic got unleashed. The headlamp threw the beam to quite a distance and night riding woes were also solved. Thus came to a happy end my dream day of officially being working, but not really working, something every employee wishes to achieve before they retire. I wish this OPD gets stretched to some more days. Sigh,  the human heart never stops asking for more.

 

Ravi Chandnani visits Ego Custom Wheels in Navi Mumbai to take a look at their creation customised for a Bollywood celebrity. Here are his impressions
Photography: Sanjay Raikar

Ravi Chandnani visits Ego Custom Wheels in Navi Mumbai to take a look at their creation customised for a Bollywood celebrity. Here are his impressions
Photography: Sanjay Raikar

Ego Custom Wheels is the brainchild of Jignesh Mistry and Rannvijay Singh. They started this venture because everything related to bikes and biking formed a common bond between the two friends. Since then both of them and their team have been working hard to ensure that they build bikes that would stand apart from the crowd. The motorcycle featured here is an excellent example of how things should be done in a neat manner. This Royal Enfield has been customised for the famous film director-producer and writer Vipul Shah, who has directed films like ‘London Dreams’, ‘Namastey London’ and the latest, ‘Action Replay’. Being a Bollywood personality Vipul Shah was not concerned about the expense involved and asked the chaps at Ego to build for him a bike that would stun everyone. This meant Jignesh and company had complete creative freedom. Many brainstorming sessions later Jignesh and Rannvijay came to the conclusion which is evident in these pictures. Let us explore the fine details that make this bike such a beauty.

Design
Even a cursory look makes it clear that this bike is not an average custom bike. Its low, long and huge stature may look intimidating at first, but one needs to move closer to understand the beauty of it. The fine details include custom-made parts and hand-made fuel tank along with custom wheels that were done in-house and tyres that were especially ordered from the United States. These, combined with four to five months of hard labour, resulted in a spectacular piece of rolling art.

The front fork was sourced from the Pulsar 220, but the triple trees were modified to make them sturdy enough to handle the additional width of the tyre. The forks and the triple trees are finished in chrome to complement the blue and silver front fender. The headlamp cone housing the projector lamp is also a bespoke piece and was not lifted off an auto-rickshaw. The flowing stature of the bike is precise and is quite evident when you look at the tank, seat and the rear fender, which flow in a beautiful curvaceous line. The tank has been hand-beaten and carved into this beautiful tear-drop shape. And the surprising thing is that there aren’t any undulations even on the belly of the tank. It is one of the best elements of this bike. At the end of the tank you will notice a chrome component sticking out, which is actually the air-filter, which rises upwards through a recess at the back of the tank.

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The seat and side panels are elegantly blended together with the tank, cleverly hiding the battery box and the wiring. The biggest piece of body work you will notice on this bike is the rear fender, which has been hand-made in order to accommodate the biggest tyre ever on a custom bike in India. Hold your breath for this – a humongous Avon Venom that has a mind-boggling width of almost one foot! Custom wheel and spacers were created in order to accommodate this giant tyre, sprocket and the brake rotor. Small details such as the handlebar grips, air-filter cover, gear-shifter linkage, handlebar and the rear swingarm were all done in-house by the fabricators at Ego Customs. Almost all the components on the bike were custom-made or modified in-house.

All this hard work and detailing have been highlighted by a shimmering shade of blue, which is accentuated by the use of silver paint with metal flakes specially imported from Singapore. A sky-blue outline completes the simple yet elegant paint job. The finishing is also top class. Minimal use of chrome on select components has resulted in a well-balanced appearance.

The Ride
Well, I have to admit that this is a very heavy bike, but somehow I was able to move it around without starting it. At first the ride might feel a little slow, but you need to open the throttle in order to let it roll smoothly. The riding posture is surprisingly similar to that in a cruiser, but with a lowered handlebar. The front end is quite heavy because of the huge front alloy wheel. However, it does not bother you much in a straight line. It’s round the corners that you really have to work your arm muscles to keep the front balanced. Being a bike equipped with a 500-cc motor, it feels sluggish and that is because of the huge 300 rear section tyre. The building team at Ego insisted that it was an important design element and also that the client loved it. Otherwise, the ride is very similar to that of a normal Bullet, save for the fact that riding it on the road attracts a lot of attention! While riding it on the Palm Beach Road in Navi Mumbai I had a number of people slow down next to me and click snaps of the bike in motion with their mobile phone cameras. They also asked me a number of question about the bike. It makes you feel like a celebrity and that, I think, may be the reason why Vipul Shah chose Ego Custom Wheels for the job.

I feel it is time many of the so-called custom bike builders learned a thing or two from Ego Custom Wheels in terms of quality, finish and concept. These youngsters have been able to change the way custom bikes are made in the country. Nevertheless, I shall recommend to our readers to check the bikes for themselves before jumping to a conclusion as it would give you a better idea of what can be done in terms of customising a motorcycle.

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About Ego Custom Wheels
The bunch of guys at Ego Custom Wheels are all passionate bikers, who always wanted to stand out of the crowd. So, to fulfil this longing they all came up with the idea of starting their own enterprise that would churn out custom bikes of high quality with hand-crafted components. Jignesh Mistry and Rannvijay Singh, the face of MTV Roadies, a VJ and a die-hard biker, started Ego Custom Wheels with a clear aim – delivering bikes that they themselves would like to spend money on. They formed a team comprising a skilled fabricator a hard working mechanic and a few helping hands without whom the team would be incomplete. This hard working association of individuals has been able to entice many rich and famous people from various walks of life and their first big client has been Vipul Shah, the Bollywood producer-director. Apart from this, Ego Custom Wheels have also been active in modifying cars for many Bollywood flicks. So, if you are interested in transforming your everyday workhorse into a rolling piece of art, then you may get in touch with Jignesh on 09819850069
(e-mail: Egocustomwheels@gmail.com)

Why is it that powertrain evolution in motorcycles has not kept pace with that in motor-cars? Were attempts made to devise bikes with front-wheel or both-wheel drives? Intrigued by these questions, Piyush Sonsale decided to dip into motorcycle history. As he garnered fascinating information, he also got in touch with companies involved in such innovations overseas to get a complete picture

“Now I know how owls feel,” I thought to myself as my head pointed towards the corner exit and my body swayed laterally out of control with the bike. Legs stuck in ankle-deep slush, the helmet visor still mud-stained from my last fall, I struggled to find traction on the rear wheel of my bike while the spectators witnessed my helplessness. Finally, I steered out of my misery by stepping out and pushing the bike. Well, my first off-road experience on a motorcycle wasn’t exactly, er, smooth, but it gave birth to an idea in my head. What if motorcycles were all-wheel driven? Now, most of us have seen the wonders of all-wheel drive cars on YouTube and sported a 4 X 4 vehicle wallpaper on our desktops some time or the other, but, as they say, you don’t get it till you do it. So back to the question. As Leonardo DiCaprio says in ‘Inception’, “What’s the most resilient parasite? An idea!” I was possessed by the idea and had enough faith in human curiosity to believe that such experiments had been done in the past and, maybe, some exist even now. I was right.

Wiping the dust off motorcycle history, I found a treasure-trove of what can only be called marvellous engineering feats. Before getting nerdy, however, let’s find out what this ‘drive’ term I have been using means. The ‘powertrain’ (engine-transmission-countershaft-final drive) transmits the engine’s power and torque to the wheels. The wheels transmit the same to the ground by spinning and as a reaction the motorcycle moves. Conventionally it’s the rear wheel that gets the honour and is said to be ‘driven’. The front wheel in this case is called a ‘dead wheel’ as it only steers (directs) the motorcycle.

There are three ways in which motorcycle wheels can be powered or ‘driven’: a) rear-wheel drive (RWD), b) front-wheel drive (FWD), and c) all-wheel drive (AWD). Among these, the rear-wheel drive system is the only one conventionally used in on-road, off-road and even racing prototype bikes. However, in this article we are concerned with the unconventional, with experiments that never made their way to the mainstream. Let’s examine why.

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All-wheel drive (AWD)
The all-wheel drive system is probably a communist idea since it involves distribution of the engine’s power and torque to both the wheels of a vehicle. But the distribution of power may not be equal. A capitalist intrusion? Well, whatever the case, the AWD gives pulling power to both the wheels and amazing climbing and off-roading ability to the vehicle.

The second chain powering the gearbox on the frame

The under tank gearbox and shaft drive

There are two types of AWD systems: i) Both the wheels are constantly driven. ii) The front wheel is powered only when the rear one loses traction. Used only to regain traction.
An American brand called Christini has developed a mechanical linkage to power the front wheel. Their patented technology makes use of a combination of chain and shaft linkages to transmit the engine’s power and torque to the front wheel. They use a second chain drive apart from the one powering the rear wheel. Mounted on another countershaft sprocket, this chain powers another gearbox located on the frame. A shaft drive from this gearbox, passing from under the fuel tank, enters the head tube of the bike. Counter-rotating bevel gears then pass the power to the lower triple clamp. A chain-sprocket mechanism in the triple clamp further passes the power by rotating two telescopic counter-rotating shafts. These run down the length of the forks and finally transfer the engine power to the front wheel. Phew!

The bevel gear mechanisn in the head tube which  allows angular linkage in the front powertrain

The chain- sprocket mechanism in the lower triple clamp and the counter rotating shafts it powers

Approximately 80 per cent of the engine’s power is transmitted to the front wheel and is used to regain traction when the rear wheel slips. Otherwise, under normal conditions, one-way clutches in the front wheel hub keep the front wheel passive. Christini use this mechanism to modify frames and forks of standard rear-wheel driven KTM and Honda off-roaders and sell these modified frame kits under their brand-name. The mechanism, though complicated, is the only one available in a production line and their decent success in the arena of off-road motorsport has proved its worth.

Suzuki’s 1985 2wd concept, the Falcorustyco

The Nuda, showcased in 1986

Another interesting innovation and, perhaps, one of the most successful implementations of a mechanical all-wheel drive system has been done by an American firm called Rokon. They were the first to make the concept digestible and offer a whole range of two-wheelers based on the same. The first Rokon concept, the ‘Trail-Breaker’, was tested in the late 1950s and later evolved into a three bike production range. The Rokons are, shall we say, a mutated motorcycle sub-species aptly called ‘Mototractor’, characterised as they are by a huge but simple chassis design and chunky off-road tyres like the ones seen on tractors and industrial cranes.

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First production Rokon — the ‘Trail-Breaker’

Rokon offers a host of accessories such as side panniers or a front tray to suit your purpose

The 2-Trac-powered AWD Yamaha WR450F off-roader that surfaced in 2004

The alien looking ‘oily’ concept bike Dryvtech 2x2x2 with its maker, Ian Drysdale

Is it a robot? Is it a lunar rover? No! It’s the Dryvtech 2x2x2’s handlebar and headlamp assembly!

Ian Drysdale riding the two-wheel driven, two-wheel steered Dryvtech 2x2x2 cocept. A dream come true!

The Japanese giant Suzuki were the first to play with the hydraulic AWD idea. They displayed a dummy concept bike, called the Falcorustyco, at the Tokyo Motor Show in 1985. A year later, they came up with a GSX-R750-powered concept, called the Nuda, which actually worked.

Yamaha and the Austrian brand KTM have also developed their own hydraulic solution to power the front wheel of a bike. The Yamaha system, called 2-Trac, was developed along with suspension maker Öhlins. The system had been under development since 1985 and was tested on various models, mostly off-roaders. A 2-Trac-powered YZF R1 was also tested and showed noticeable improvement in lap times on a race track. The system uses a chain drive to power the rear wheel while the front isdriven by a hydraulic motor in the wheel hub. The KTM version has a similar design and also shares the technology partner (Öhlins) with Yamaha, but the two bike-makers have separate patents for their respective innovations.

However, the most ground-breaking innovation I came across was the Australian inventor Ian Drysdale’s Dryvtech 2x2x2 concept. The third 2 is not a typographical error. The Dryvtech was a 2 (wheel) X 2 (wheel drive) X 2 (wheel steered) motorcycle! It had a specially built 250-cc, two-stroke internal combustion engine as the main powerhouse. The engine actuated a hydrostatic (positive displacement) pump, which pressured hydraulic oil through steel tubes. This oil transmitted the engine’s power and torque to both the wheels by actuating a hydraulic motor located in the wheel hubs. The all-wheel steering system also used hydraulics to steer both the wheels, but the handlebar-to-wheel ratios varied for both the wheels. The rear wheel turned a little late to allow the front wheel counter-steer in a turn.
The list of innovations does not end here. The brakes worked using the hydraulic system used to drive the wheels, both wheels had single-sided swingarm with monoshock suspension and the wheels were concave, depressing in towards the hub on the side where the hydraulic motor was attached. The Dryvtech 2x2x2 was a working prototype and, at a basic level, proved most of the theories of its creator. Sadly, it never underwent further development or production and the prototype exists as a museum exhibit at the Donnington motor museum in the UK.

AWD Hypothesis

• Reduction in power wastage as power is distributed between both the wheels

• Reduced wheel spin, tyre wear

• Increased climbing ability due to increased traction

• Benefits in racing: Tighter corners, increase in corner speeds. Lesser high side crashes

• Benefits in off-roading: More traction, faster jump recovery

• Reduction in power wheelies

Reality Check

• Complex design

• Increase in weight, mass

• Complexity in division of power and splitting torque

• Leakage and resultant part failures a big area of concern where the system is hydraulic

• Difficult to repair, high maintenance cost

• Increased production cost

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One of the very few surviving Megolas

Front-wheel drive (FWD)
Here, the front wheel is the protagonist; it steers as well as drives the bike while the rear (dead) wheel follows. FWD systems have been tried and tested on motorcycles by modifying rear-wheel drive bikes, but the innovation that intrigued me was an attempt back in the 1920s. A motorcycle called Megola was produced in Germany for a brief period between 1921 and 1925. Although not very efficient mechanically, it was a production model and was popular for its ground-breaking design. The Megola had a 640-cc, five-cylinder Gnome Monosoupape (single-valve) rotary engine as seen in World War I fighter planes with radially arranged cylinders. It produced almost 15 PS of power in the standard version and over 25 PS in the sport version, attaining speeds upto 140 kph. The engine was mounted in the front wheel (between the spokes) and the cylinder valves were mounted sideways on the cylinder heads. The axle doubled up as the crankshaft, which remained stationary while the cylinders rotated radially with the wheel. Furthermore, the crankshaft was hollow and also served the purpose of the inlet manifold.

The Megola’s front wheel-mounted engine

The bike had no flywheel, no clutch nor a gearbox. The engine was fired by spinning the front wheel and stopped by switching the ignition off. The fuel was stored in the frame and fed a reservoir located over the axle. Fuel from this reservoir was then fed into the engine by gravity. The tyre tube was like a sausage (closed at both ends), so it could be pulled out without dismantling the wheel assembly. And the air striking the rotating cylinders cooled the engine as the bike moved. Genius!
About 2,000 Megola bikes were produced, but only a handful survive today.
In 1935, a group of German engineers (Killinger and Freund) created a front-wheel drive prototype by modifying the Megola design to improve its handling, aerodynamics and reduce engine weight. However, their production plans never materialised on account of the outbreak of World War II. This makes the Megola the only production FWD motorcycle ever made.

FWD Hypothesis (Based on the Megola)

• Greater traction under braking and otherwise too as the heavier front end loads the front wheel to     increase tyre contact patch

• Better handling due to low centre of gravity,     especially in racing. (The Megola won the      German Motorcycle Championship in 1924)

• Less lateral movement of the front wheel is required to maintain balance as the centre of mass     is closer to the front wheel

• Reduction in rear wheel slides round corners as the front wheel is powered

• Lesser power losses in the powertrain

Reality Check

• The wheel-mounted engine increases unsprung weight (mass not supported by the     suspension) and adds greater load on the suspension, reducing braking force and     acceleration. Also the undulations on roads may damage the engine

• Heavy steering as the front wheel is heavy

• Since the centre of mass is near the front wheel, the rear end is lighter, which may result in frequent stoppies while braking

Overview
My find gave rise to a question: are motorcycles less fascinating than cars? My mind immediately cried out, ‘No way!’ Then why is it that ever since Gottlieb Daimler gave us the first motorcycle, the basics have not changed much while all the three drive systems (front, rear, all-wheel) have steadily evolved in cars? The answer is that bikes are not flexible enough. It’s the whole two-wheel business. Motorcycles evolved from bicycles and the basic geometry remains the same. Lateral movement of the front wheel is easiest by using forks since the front swingarm linkage has a complicated mechanism. Transmitting power to the front wheel while allowing it a free lateral movement is difficult and the powertrain losses are heavy.
Motorcycle chassis are built to be supported by two wheels, which puts restrictions on the weight and mass of a motorcycle. In order to counter the gyroscopic, inertial and centrifugal forces, motorcycles have to lean in the direction of the turn. So a bike needs to be thin, especially at the wheel level.
The simplest solution to all these was to power only the rear wheel. Motorcycle design and ergonomics evolved with this geometry. So did the way motorcycles are ridden. Billions were then spent in refinement. Hence the extra bit of traction was not worth the increase in weight, complexity and expense. However, with giants like Yamaha and KTM working on such systems, it won’t be wise to rule out the possibility completely. For the time being, though, I had better learn off-roading!