Sunday, July 13, 2008

Long live the two-stroke Part Deux: FUD in the marketplace

Two-stroke technology is not banned. Never was. Yet this myth continues to run rampant over the internet. Two-stroke technology is changing, getting cleaner, but this is a story about how purposeful misdirection and a campaign of Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt created a myth, killed development of a promising technology for over a decade, and changed the face of a sport.

Let's assume that a large, multi-national corporation (for simplicity we'll use a fictitious entity called Company H) manufactures everything from inexpensive lawn mowers and power generators to motorcycles and $40,000 SUVs. Every item in their massive product line is powered by a four-stroke motor. Every item, that is, except a small group of dirt bikes. The company has enormous investments and intellectual property in the development, marketing, and sales of four-stroke-driven products.

Company H is aware that certain proprietary methods, techniques, or technologies for lowering two-stroke emissions are either available or under development, some by their primary competitors. But Company H doesn't own any of the intellectual property (patents) associated with this improvement. Further, two-stroke engines do not fit the company's financial model — costing extra for development (since they can't leverage their vast institutional knowledge of four-strokes) — while generating lower margins in sales and service parts.

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Thursday, July 10, 2008

FIM to put 2-strokes on even footing in 2010

According to this Dec 21, 2007 press release (pdf) from the Federation Internationale de Motorcyclisme, the Permanent Bureau has decreed the following:

Motocross Classes: as of 2010, single cylinder engines will be used in MX1 and MX2 and multicylinder in MX3, whether 2 or 4-stroke (open concept). The cubic capacity will be 250cc in MX2, and up to 650cc in MX3. Discussions are currently being held about the cubic capacity in MX1. A decision should be taken in the next three months. Concerning the MX2 class, a maximum age limit of 23 years will be introduced. Moreover, a World Champion will be allowed to defend his title only one time (in the following year).

The FIM Junior World Championship will have an additional class as of 1.1.2010: 65cc. All the classes (65cc, 85cc, 125cc) will be exclusively 2-stroke.

I think this is a move that's long overdue. I'd prefer that there not be a specific technology...

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Friday, July 4, 2008

Surface Guard Tape

Here's an interesting product I came across recently from ISC Racers Tape — Surface Guard Tape. According to the company it's "a bullet-proof, 8 mil clear, urethane paint protection tape. You cannot puncture this tape with a pen." It has a semi-permanent adhesive and protects against UV, extreme temperatures, and automotive solvents.

I've been using a product called Snider's Paint Guard from Aerostich to protect the paint on my Guzzi from saddlebag rubs and such. It's a clear plastic film that adheres like static film. It work pretty good, but it's hard to apply to compound curves. But it removes easily. I don't know how well the Surface Guard removes after it's been on a few weeks or months - especially if it's been in the sun a lot. But I'm going to get a roll and see. I can see how this would be really good to protect the frame from rub marks around the footpegs after you've spent a few hundred dollars for a nice powder coat job.

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Long live the two-stroke

Michael Scott's "In The Paddock" column in the new Cycle News, (pg 60, July 2, 2008) is all about the two-stroke motorcycle engine, its past, present, and future. Some interesting stuff there. Mostly Scott talks about road racing and the death of the 250 GP class, which DORNA has killed effective 2010. But he also interviews Jan Witteveen, legendary Aprilia two-stroke engine designer and gets his views on the state of the two-stroke, plus discusses possible changes at the FIM to bring the two-stroke back to MX.

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Sunday, June 22, 2008

Big balls, American style. MotoCzysz C1.

I've been watching a two-hour documentary from Discovery Channel on MotoCzysz (pronounced moto-siz), the 100% American-made, from scratch, MotoGP machine. Yes, you read that right - one dude from Portland, OR (who isn't even an engineer) decided he could take on the world and build a world-class MotoGP prototype racing machine from scratch. It's taken him 3+ years and approximately $5 million, but he's gotten damn close. Here's a Cycle World web article from this past March, and there's a full story in the July '08 issue of Cycle World.

Of course, there's a little problem that DORNA changed the MotoGP rules last year to require 800cc bikes and the MotoCzysz C1 is a 990 like the rules required when he started, but Michael Czysz is not giving up. He recently had a breakthrough test at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and now lists among the believers several GP-caliber road racers.

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