Some classics from Triumph, AJS, and Panther…
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Tag: Motorcycles (page 1 of 2)
Clunky wingtip boots are probably the first thing to come to mind when thinking of Tricker’s, but like the other Northampton firms, they have a very wide catalog of shoes available. Motorcycle boots are among them.
It is a hard to find design and they’re reminiscent to the older equestrian boots and puttees (leg coverings) that were popular with motorcycle riders up until the 1940’s. I passed up on a pair in my size years ago and I’ve regretted it ever since, but I wonder if a custom order might be an option I should ask about.
Another source, also available in brown.
Puttees, as shown in Rin Tanaka’s Harley Davidson Book of Fashions.
More boots and puttees worn in a group photo in front of a Harley-Davidson dealer in 1925.
Here’s a piece of motorcycle history up for auction on eBay. The headlight runs on gas.
For more reading on the background of Indian motorcycles, the Selvedge Yard has a great series of posts that you should check out:
* America’s First Motorcycle – The Early Years of Cool Innovation
* America’s First Motorcycle – The Golden Powerplus Era
* The Golden Age of Icons – The Scout, Chief, and the Big Chief
I haven’t been able to stop studying this old photo on shorpy that Pete linked to this morning on twitter. If you were to summarize Rin Tanaka’s Harley Davidson Book of Fashions into one picture, this might do a pretty good job.
Washington, D.C., circa 1925. “H. Addison Bowie.” A motorcycle dealer on H Street. With “Harley-Davidson” in the big window under “Distributors,” and a smaller sign upstairs. National Photo Company glass negative.
Make sure you view the large hi-res version. Some highlights:
Above: Images from Harley-Davidson, Books of Fashions 1910s-1950s by Rin Tanaka.
Above: Images from Men’s File, Issue 2.
Written in 1966 by Steve McQueen for Popular Science, he reviews several motorcycles out in the desert.
“Honda Design: Motorcyle Part 1 1957-1984” is a great new book that was just published and is a must buy for anyone interested in the history behind motorcycle designs. It documents just about every model that Honda and its teams have produced up until the mid 80’s and a DVD is included with interviews with several noteworthy designers. Best yet, the text is written in both Japanese and English – order it from Rakuten or get it from your local Kinokuniya bookstore.
