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S&S Cycle Acquires Newly Defunct Crane Cams–V-Twin motor powerhouse to move manufacturing in Wisconsin, keep sales, service in Florida
S&S Cycle has acquired a number of assets from Crane Cams with the intentions of keeping the storied manufacturer of high-performance parts running through its network of established dealers and distributors.
Viola, Wis.,-based S&S bought the inventory, intellectual property and trademarks for all Crane automotive and motorcycle electronic products, and for Crane’s motorcycle valve train products at an auction Wednesday in Daytona Beach, Fla.
The Daytona Beach News-Journal is reporting that a bidding team of former Crane Cams CEO Lance Harris and S&S made a high bid of $1.2 million for the patents and trademarks, and another $215,000 for the inventory. The paper also reports that about 100 registered bidders showed up for the liquidation auction being held by Liqui-Tech industries that was held to pay off corporate debt.
Crane Cams closed its doors in February after 56 years in business, andlaid off about 280 employees.
S&S Cycle says that in addition to maintaining Crane’s dealer and distribution network, it plans to move into a new building in Dayton Beach to manage the business and provide customer service and technical support. Manufacturing of the valve train products will be moved to the company’s facility in Viola.
SAXON MOTORCYCLES EUROPE EXPANDS DEALER NETWORK– Saxon Motorcycles Europe announces that from today her dealer network has been expanded with a new official dealer. Recently they have signed the contract with Chopper Spirit in Cascais near Lisbon, Portugal.
The owner of Chopper Spirit Rafael Murjal is enthusiastic: ?next to building extreme choppers, we now can also offer the elegant and tough semi-custom Saxons to motor-lovers/fans. Saxon is a super completion of our current activities. The charisma and quality of the bikes are fabulous?.
The owners of Saxon Motorcycles Europe also respond: ?in more and more countries in Europe we can show our bikes through our dealers. Especially Portugal is an important market for us. Think of the beautiful nature, excellent roads, the beautiful weather and a population who likes to show itself.?
Saxon stands for power and quality, comfort and self expression. It is a custom built bike in the professional factory in the USA and therefore fits the driver excellently. It is a beautiful product, that retains its value.
Making the choice to own a Saxon is a true form of self-expression. Each Saxon is a bike which is custom built and therefore fits the driver completely. It is an elegant machine that retains its value. A motorcycle synonymous with style and abundant with charisma, that is an experience all on its own. Each Saxon represents an unmatched level of comfort, sophistication, and reliability, complete with a 2- year factory warranty. Saxon is in Europe the number 1 USA production custom motorcycle.
This moment Saxon Europe has three models: the Warlord, the Firestorm and the Henchman. All models of Saxon Motorcycles will be present at Chopper Spirit.
For more information:
Saxon Motorcycles Europe
info@saxonmotorcycles.eu
www.saxonmotorcycles.eu
BIKERNET MEDICAL CENTER JOINT PAIN FINDINGS– If you experience arthritic aches and pains when the seasons change, consider Arnica (Arnica montana). This daisy-like mountain flower is used traditionally to help relieve discomfort associated with bruises, sprains, soreness and swelling/muscle spasms from sports activity, and can help alleviate arthritis set off by seasonal change as well as general muscle and joint pain.
Try rubbing tincture, ointment, cream, or gel on sore spots, but don’t use on broken skin. To make an arnica compress, mix one tablespoon of arnica tincture in one pint of purified water. Dip a gauze pad in the mixture, then put it on the troublesome joint or bruised area. Look for pure arnica extract for preparing topical applications.
–Dr.Wiel.com
THE FORMER MAHARAJAH OF BHARATPUR?S 1931 HORCH CABRIOLET, WHICH HE SWAPPED FOR A HORSE,HEADS BONHAMS COLLECTOR?S CAR AUCTION IN AUSTRALIA–An historic Horch, part of the Peter Briggs Collection, will be sold by Bonhams & Goodman in Sydney, Australia, on Sunday, May 3rd for an estimated price in the region of ?200,000.
This fascinating car was presented to Robert Gove of Victoria from the Maharajah of Bharatpur in the 1930s in exchange for horses. The Gove family had supplied the Maharajahs with fine horses of all kinds – polo mounts, racehorses and many thousands of horses for the Indian Army. The Australian horses, known as walers, were renowned in India and Gove’s father, Julius Gove, had been supplying them to the Indian government and it’s aristocracy for two decades before he passed away in 1922.
In late 1933 or early 1934 Robert Gove and the then 17 year old Maharajah made an unusual deal in which Gove took possession of a 1931 Horch 480 from the Maharajah’s garage as a gift or in part payment for a prize horse.
The extremely rare and valuable automobile created a sensation upon its return to Melbourne. Following the depression years, luxury cars were few and far between and rarely seen in public. The Horch was the 25th car built out of a total production of a few more than 50 cars in its two-year production life, so even in the 1930s these were rare cars indeed.
The Horch is being sold as a part of the Peter Briggs collection which also includes a 1926 AC Royal Roadster, a 1933 Aston Martin Le Mans 1 1/2 litre ‘Long Chassis’ Sports Tourer, a Jaguar SS 2.5 litre Sports saloon, and a 1910 Napier 15hp Colonial Model Roi de Belges Tourer amongst others.
Sale Enquiries: Robert Glover, National Head of Collector’s Motor Cars, Sydney, Australia 0061 (0)2 8306 2206 or e-mailrobert.glover@bonhams.com.
UPCOMING BONHAMS MOTORING AUCTIONS
May 9: Quail Motorcycle Gathering, Carmel, California
May 9: Aston Martin Works, Newport Pagnell, England
May 18: Les Grandes Marques a Monaco, Monaco
June 7: Greenwich Concours d’Elegance, Greenwich, Connecticut
August 14: Quail Motorsports Gathering, Carmel, California
PPG REACHES MVP GREEN BELT TRAINING MILESTONE–STRONGSVILLE, Ohio ? April 27, 2009 ? PPG announced it has crossed the 600 mark for the number of collision center owners, managers and technicians that have graduated from its MVP Green Belt Training program. MVP Green Belt is a 4-day comprehensive training program that is a blend of Lean Six Sigma fundamentals along with practical application implementation detail that is critical for collision shops to make simultaneous improvements in their operations.
?While it is an accomplishment to attain this number of graduates through a class as comprehensive as Green Belt,? says Jim Berkey, director, Business Solutions for PPG, ?the end game is implementation and performance improvement. It is especially rewarding to see these shops make real improvements and take leadership roles within their markets.?
Berkey continues, ?Today?s performance challenge in the collision industry requires that collision center operators simultaneously improve quality, cost and speed. We have seen the interest in applying Lean Six Sigma / TOC principles and tools to collision grow exponentially over the last few years and are fortunate to have been in front of the curve in our ability to not only train our shops, but to work with them through implementation challenges,?.
According to Rich Altieri, senior manager, MVP Business Solutions group, the training program, started in 2006, evolved from four years of extensive research and development led by a team of Master Black Belt Lean Six Sigma experts and MVP collision center consultants. Key program elements include:
?The success factors that allow some organizations to thrive in rapidly changing environments
?Use of simulation games to learn Lean Six Sigma fundamentals and what cycle time reduction means to the collision repair processes
?Practical application of Lean Six Sigma principles through X-Ray Repair Planning and fundamentals such as 5S and Workplace Organization
?Leadership and implementation modules that address the need for everyone in an organization to participate in building stronger processes and a process improvement culture
?Integration of shop tours and assignments into the training to reinforce the understanding and confidence critical to successful implementation
?Our Green Belt training and workshop programs have been very well-received,? says David Knapp, senior manager, Business Solutions. ?The program provides constant education and execution support in all the critical areas of collision center operations. Many of our graduates are well along on their Lean Sigma Six journey, solidly on the path of continuous improvement.?
Car West Auto Body, Danville, CA, CEO/president Craig Moe says, ?Our same store sales from ’07-’08 are up 12-1/2 % with net profits up 25%. All our managers have gone through the program. Now we’re bringing the second tier production managers, assistant managers, and some estimators into it. We’ve had huge paybacks doing so.?
In 2008, the MVP Business Solutions group delivered the Green Belt Training program 10 times in locations including Syracuse NY, Los Angeles CA, and Albuquerque NM. The program will also be offered in Dallas TX, Sacramento, CA and Nashville TN in 2009.
For more information contact the local PPG Territory Manager or PPG Distributor, call MVP Business Solutions at 440-572-6199 or email MVPmailbox@ppg.com, Jim Berkey at jberkey@ppg.com or Rich Altieri at altieri@ppg.com .
BIKERNET RACING REPORTER GETS THE FINGER–I run 28 races a year for 3 years straight?..I miss ONE race, and look what I get?
Feel the love, yeah?..I think I?m gonna, sniff ? Its ok to open, it?s a post card from the boys.
This is Not a good appointment and hopefully people will contact their legislators and ask them to Not Approve the Appointment– President Obama?s pick to head the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration raises a few red flags. If confirmed by the Senate, Chuck Hurley, CEO of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, will drive motorists over the cliff with regulation.
The nation?s traffic-safety czar has broad powers to control the roads and road-going habits of Americans. Mr. Hurley has a history of pushing laws that harass millions of law-abiding citizens to ensnare a few lawbreakers. He supports returning the 55 mph speed limit to our highways as well as roadblocks and random pullovers to make sure drivers aren?t doing anything wrong. This methodology is based on a presumption of guilt – not innocence – of the average driver who is doing nothing wrong.
Mr. Hurley has promoted a mania of over regulation at MADD. Absent from his advocacies is the principle that a punishment should fit the crime, or that a crime even needs to be committed to incur a penalty. Under this influence, MADD has been lobbying to lower the allowable blood-alcohol content (BAC) for drivers to .04 – which means one glass of Pinot can land anyone behind bars. We do not condone drinking and driving, but the constant lowering of BAC limits has separated what is punishable from what is actually dangerous.
As a result of MADD-fueled binges for tougher laws, extreme drunken driving punishments – such as loss of driving privileges, jail time, fines and legal fees beyond $10,000 – often apply to individuals who were not drunk and in some cases were not even driving. Last month, the Connecticut Supreme Court unanimously upheld a driving-under-the-influence conviction against a man who was sleeping off his bender in his car even though the keys were not in the ignition. In 2005, the North Carolina Court of Appeals upheld a DUI sentence for a tipsy man riding a motorized skateboard. The Georgia State Police charged a woman with drunken driving for riding a horse.Such absurd cases will continue to proliferate as long as the breathalyzer machine is the sole determinant of guilt rather than evidence of unsafe conduct.
–from Rogue
NEW VINTAGE FILM RELEASED–As always press copies are available for any films in our store, so please don’t hesitate to ask if you are interested in reviewing any of them!This week we’re happy to announce Vintage Torque Vol. 3 is ready to ship! 240 minutes…two-disc set, can’t beat it. Congrats to John Wells for putting together another great flick for the collection.
The new Hot Rod Havoc III is out too and next month we got Pinstriping Vol. 2 from the Hot Rod Surf boys, Wes White’s new Triumph Maintenance DVD, and even Choppahead Vol. 3! …and come June, get ready for the Harbortown Bobber. We’re really happy with how it’s coming out and we’ll be sharing the teaser with you guys in a week or two.Oh yeah, we posted a ton of pics from Kutty’s Hippy Killer Hoedown in the blog. What a great night.
Stay independent,
–Zack
Battistinis 2009 Open Weekend!–Battistinis U.K Custom Cycles proudly invite you to the Annual Open House Weekend on June 27th & 28th 2009 at the Battistinis Bournemouth U.K showroom on the sunny south coast!
Free Entry – Everyone Welcome! This is going to be the best one yet!It would be great if you could make it as we will be showcasing our latest builds and rapidly expanding product range alongside a whole lot more!!!
If you would like to stay for a night or two then we have made a deal with this new hotel in Bournemouth. Please quote the reference BAT626 to get the special rates listed below
The Hotel is
The West Cliff INN
15 West Cliff Road
Bournemouth
BH2 5EX
Tel: 01202 314 140
Email info@westcliffinn.co.uk
Web: www.westcliffinn.co.uk
Price per person
?30 Standard Room
?35 Delxue Room
?40 Premier Room
Over 2.2 million people will read motorcycle awareness message– On Sunday, April 26, 2009, over 2.2 million people will read a full page Watch For Motorcycles message. This public service announcement is being paid for by Hupy and Abraham, S.C., lawyers for bikers, with offices in Wisconsin and Illinois. This public service announcement is a repeat of the message the firm ran in numerous newspapers last year just prior to the May is Motorcycle Awareness Month campaign and proclamation.
The Watch For Motorcycles message will reach readers in Wisconsin and Illinois through numerous newspapers including the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Wisconsin State Journal, Milwaukee Courier, Shepherd Express, Green Bay Press Gazette, Milwaukee Times, and Milwaukee Community Journal in Wisconsin. The message will also run in the Lake County News Sun, Pioneer Press and Rock River Times in Illinois.
In addition to the printed public service announcements, Hupy and Abraham, S.C. is replacing some of its TV advertisements for the firm with a public service Watch For Motorcycles message. Hupy and Abraham, S.C. also paid for the production of this video and the firm’s lead investigator, Tony “Pan” Sanfelipo, is the commentator in the video. In conjunction with the public service announcements, Hupy and Abraham, S.C. will continue to run an alcohol awareness video on cable TV through the summer months, addressing the dangers of drinking and riding, as it has for the past three years.
It is our hope that everyone enjoys a safe riding season in 2009 and that motorists share the road with motorcyclists.
Tony “Pan” Sanfelipo
Investigator
Hupy and Abraham, S.C.
EXILE CYCLES FORWARD CONTROLS–Exile Cycles designed these super-clean forward controls so that their lines complement the curve of the primary and the angles of the frame tubes. They fit stock ?99 and earlier evolution Softails, as well as any custom frame.
Exile now offers their trick Forward Control Adapter Plates that allow these controls to be fitted to a Twin Cam Softail.
Options are:
1.) A brake side with or without a smooth master-cylinder mounted neatly on the control
2.) A shift side with or without the mounting holes for a stock style kick-stand assembly.
**Foot-clutch forward control is also available upon request.
These controls are machined from billet aluminum and feature stainless steel hardware through-out. They come show-polished or satin, but are also available in a super-sexy black anodized finish.
The controls sell for $799 with master cylinder, $699 without.Call (818) 255-3330 for more information,Or visit www.exilecycles.com.
California Motorcycle Smog Test Bill Passes Out Of Committee– We Need Your Help! Write Fax or Call your State Senator NOW!!–HELP GUYS! ? As Goes California, So Goes the rest of America – ACT NOW or NO MORE AFTER MARKET CARBURETORS, EXHAUST SYSTEMS, RECALIBRATE D FUEL INJECTION, CUSTOM BIKES AND ENGINE PARTS, CHARCOAL CANISTER REMOVAL, Harley Screamin’ Eagle Parts, Ducati Performance Parts , etc……
Sacramento, CA, Wed, April 22nd – SB 435 has passed out of the California Senate Transportation & Housing Committee and is expected to be on the California Senate Floor before the end of April. This measure calls for smog checks, beginning in 2012 for motorcycles 2000 model year and later for owners to be able to re-register them. The California Motorcycle Dealers Assn. has concluded that there is not enough benefit and that there is the potential for discouraging potential owners. The author of the bill claims (?) that including motorcycle in the smog check program will eliminate 5.2 tons of smog daily. That is a tiny amount compared with the 1,406 tons of smog produced every day from all mobile sources. This is not something any motorcyclist can ignore. Your sport will be seriously affected by this bill.
? Motorcycles do not contribute enough pollution to warrant being included in a smog check program
? Motorcycle, because of their low mileage usage and a much higher gas mileage than cars or trucks, represent less than 3%* of the total for all mobile source emissions.
? The cost to implement and conduct a motorcycle smog check program will cost California more than the value of the emissions it’s estimated to save.
(*Note: We don’t know where in the hell they got this big number of 3% – possibly based on the number of car versus motorcycle registrations in California? But as you know almost no one rides their motorcycle to work during the week – everyone drives a car.
This week I drove my car down the I-405 in greater Los Angeles from my home in the San Fernando Valley to Long Beach and back, a 2.5 hour drive, some 90 miles and back in heavy traffic. During the trip I encountered probably 250,000 automobiles or more in both directions on the freeway, and only 6 motorcyclists! In rural areas it’s probably even less:.
That percentage equates to just 0.00002% of bikes driven in greater Los Angeles during the weekday compared to cars!!!
Not the 3% as the legislators claim. As a motorcycle enthusiast I own 6 registered motorcycles, but like most of us I generally only ride one of them for recreation, usually on Sundays – that’s just 4 times a month, and usually under 50 miles per ride. – Editor)
? A smog check program for motorcycles will discourage a new motorcycle purchase and encourage infrequent usage owners to stop using them.
? Motorcycle smog checks were eliminated in one Arizona county when the program did not reduce emissions enough. *If motorcycles have to be returned to stock condition, finding original parts for older bikes will be impossible because historically, not enough spare parts were made.
We need to do two things IMMEDIATELY: 1). Contact the CA State Department of Transportation Senators who wrote this Bill:Sen. Allen Lowenthal (Chair) , Fax 916 327 9113 / Ph (916) 651-4027Sen Robert Huff (Vice Chair) , fax 916 324 0922 / Ph (916) 651-4027Sen. Fran Pauley, Fax (916) 324-4823 / Ph (916) 651-4023
2). Find out who your state Senator is. Then fax, call or write them asking for a “NO” vote on SB 435. 2. Also contact the below nine Senators: Ron Calderon 916-327-8755 fax 916-651-4030 ph senator.calderon@sen.ca.gov Lou Correa 916-323-2323 fax 916-651-4034 ph senator.correa@sen.ca.gov Dean Florez 916-327-5989 fax 916-651-4016 ph senator.florez@sen.ca.gov Gloria Negrete McLeod 916-445-0128 fax 916-651-4032 ph senator.negrete@sen.ca.gov Alex Padilla 916-324-6645 fax 916-651-4020 ph senator.padilla@sen.ca.gov Tim Darrell Steinberg 916-323-2263 fax 916-651-4006 ph senator.steinberg@sen.ca.gov Pat Wiggins 916-323-6958 fax 916-651-4002 ph senator.wiggins@sen.ca.gov Rod Wright 916-445-3712 fax 916-651-4025 ph senator.wright@sen.ca.gov Leyland Yee 916-327-2186 fax 916-651-4008 ph senator.yee@sen.ca.gov
You can find your own CA State Senator by: 1. Accessing the state senate website at : www.senate.ca.gov
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