Beschrijving
This is Lot 444 in the Bonhams Spring Stafford Sale on April 20 & 21, please see the Bonhams website for full details.
Unique 48-cylinder motorcycle
Sixteen Kawasaki KH250 engines
Offered for sale by its creator
Road legal
This 48-cylinder Kawasaki behemoth is the work of prolific special-builder Simon Whitelock and was created with sole purpose of setting an unbeatable Guinness World Record as the land vehicle with the most cylinders. The machine takes its name from a B17 Flying Fortress bomber of WW2, one of Simon's other interests being the multi-cylinder aero engines of the period. (Tinker Toy is the American equivalent of Meccano.)
A died-in-the-wool Kawasaki fan, especially of the KH250 triple, Simon built his first Kwacker special, a triple-based four-cylinder, around 1987, following up with a nine-cylinder triple-triple, seven-cylinder inline triple, and then an H2R replica. At the same time Alan Millyard, the well known motorcycle engineer and builder of some of the most spectacular specials of recent times, was also creating multi-cylinder designs. Determined to put an end to the multi-cylinder 'arms race', Simon hit upon the idea of building a 48-cylinder monster using sixteen KH250 engines, the latter being chosen for their cheapness and availability. The bike would not be built for power or speed, but solely to put the record beyond anyone else's reach.
The project commenced in 1998 and was not completed until 2003, with 80% of the work being done in the final year. The cylinders have been configured as six straight-eights, each with its own ignition and Mikuni carburettor, while the exhaust is laid out as a 24-into-1 on each side. The 'tank' is a stretched KH250 component the serves as a cover for electrical and ignition components, while the actual fuel tank (made from 150mm diameter stainless steel tubing) is located between the middle and lower cylinder banks. There is also 125cc single-cylinder two-stroke scooter engine, which serves as the starter motor.
Needless to say, the frame was custom made. The front end is from a Honda Gold Wing, the Hagon wheel rim being laced with heavy-duty spokes, as is the rear, while the transmission was taken from a BMW K100. Extra springs were fitted to the front forks. The clocks are Scitsu, as is the modified tailpiece, while electrical power is provided by a car-type alternator. The bike weighs 600kg, amazingly, it is road legal. When it first fired up, without the exhaust system, Simon says the engine sounded just like a Rolls-Royce Merlin, which he must have enjoyed as a devotee of WW2 aviation. The machine is said to be very smooth when running.
A recent attempt to get the machine running failed, although the engine did 'fire up' a little. The starting motor fired up OK but it would appear that the Mikuni carburettors' jets are blocked (the engine last ran in 2015). Thankfully, there are only six such carburettors to deal with! Simon has said that he is willing to help the successful purchaser get the machine running. There is a two part film on Youtube of Simon discussing the build of this machine and a wonderful video of him riding the bike! Viewing is highly recommended.
Guaranteed never to be upstaged, no matter what the company, this breathtaking Colossus of a motorcycle comes with its framed Guinness World Records certificate and a UK V5C registration document.
