Canadian Kid gets'r Done!

The UNO is a northern design from an exciting young designer. Check out the other concepts by typing "Concept" in the search bar on the top left of our page. There is another mono wheel by bombadier but Bens design is on its way to production!



18-year-old Canadian, Ben J. Poss Gulak, has always done a lot of tinkering, model trains, rockets, that sort of thing, but the Uno, is something else entirely. The Uno, is a parallel wheel, electric motorcycle that operates like a Segway, lean forward to go forward, lean backwards to go in reverse. Ben unveiled his creation at the 2008 National Motorcycle Show in Toronto, where he was surrounded by the usual V-twin crowd, in fact his booth was right next to Russ Mitchell of Exile Cycles, but he managed to get a lot of attention, anyway.

Ben started his design with hand sketches and then moved to Google SketchUp. A Solidworks salesman tried to sell him a copy of the CAD software but Ben said it was more than he could afford. After he showed the salesman what he was doing, a copy of Solidworks showed up the next day. Cool.

The frame was adapted from a Yamaha R1, the body is custom built from foam which was eventually used for a fiberglass mold. He got some help with the gyro setup from robotics and gyro expert Trevor Blackwell in California. The Uno has 2 gyros, one for the forward and reverse movement, the other for turning. Once those were sorted out the Uno was in operation.

If this is the sort of thing Ben is building at 18, I can only imagine what we'll see in the future. Very well done, Ben!

New Mac from the UK!

I wanted to take something from the simplicity and non-conformity that unites the chopper builders with the philosophy of the Italian singles manufacturers from the 1950s and 1960s and the spirit of competition specials that of taking something standard and improving it. Uniting all this in a belief that the riding experience and the stories that go with motorcycle journeys seem to have been sanitized by technology and plastic. We took all this, wrote the design brief and started 'Mac Motorcycles'.

-Elis Pit (Founder)

Mac Motorcycles are powered by the Buell® single cylinder, air-cooled, 2-valve, push rod, 492cc, 5-speed 'Blast' engine. They're called "thumpers" and with good reason, with one combustion for every 720° of crankshaft rotation when that cylinder fires, it's really an "event".
Motor Photos

Valve adjustment is automatic, using hydraulic lifters. The transmission is down low giving a low centre-of-gravity that helps great handling. The fuel is enriched en route to the pot. Mac bikes exploit the power-to-weight ratio principle with this great little motor and a very light rolling-chassis.

Stock motors produce 34 HP at 6500 RPM but a bolt-on big-bore kit (515 cc), Andrews Cams, a Mikuni HSR 42 carb', Screamin' Eagle ignition and a Supertrapp exhaust will produce around 50 HP at 7200 RPM. A Blast running an NRHS 515 kit set a record at Bonneville in the 650 class, whilst much of the tuning potential of the motor has been exploited by the short and flat track racers in the States.

CHECK THEM OUT AT WWW.Mac-Motorcycles.com

Deus Ex Machina Concept Bike

There is a new Motorcycle Design Program at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA. Previously well known for their ability to churn out some outstanding automobile concepts, it seems that just recently a student named Jake Loniak is making some waves and bringing a lot of positive attention to this particular program. Another shot of this awesome looking bike after the jump, as well more info on how this baby can work.

The concept is called ‘Deus Ex Machina’ and it’s not your everyday motorcycle. It’s an exoskeleton, allowing the driver to “wear” the vehicle. 36 pneumatic ‘muscles’ maneuver the bike based on the rider’s movements, so it seems that you would not be able to eat a bagel, drink your coffee, or stay updated on your boss’s emails while commuting to work…unless of course you were able to blend all of that in a mixer and hook it up to a bendy straw.

H1N1 Mask

A quick solution for an H1N1 mask...but remember what mama used to tell you before leaving the house!

Suzuki's Future Retro '80s Concept Bike

Suzuki has been working on a couple of concepts to see how the public will respond. Even the more popular companies are working hard at keeping their edge and finding out what the people will spend their hard earned cash on.

BMW 2010 "Simple" Concept.

This three wheel wonder is the new concept from BMW. The "Simple" is designed to keep people feeling comfortable on the road with a little more safety then the average two wheel ride. Look for this bad boy to hit the roads in the near future.

WARNING!

GOVERNMENT HEALTH WARNING!
DON'T SWALLOW YOUR CHEWING GUM!