back to article World's only twin jet-engine bike drives onto eBay

A motorbike powered by a pair of pulsejets popped up for auction on eBay this week. Custom created by jet engine fan Bob maddox as an exclusive model for a wealthy customer, the intention was to build a two-wheeler that could exceed 200mph, biking blog Kneeslider notes. Twin-jet engine Harley Davidson That well-heeled …

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  1. Eletruk

    Never fired up

    Due to the fact that pulse jets run extremely hot (see the video link sent above) and the fact that there is no blue on that metal, I think it's safe to assume this puppy has never been fired up.

    Which begs the second question: Do you need to wear one of those shiny silver thermo suits to ride it?

  2. Grease Monkey Silver badge

    I see no evidence in the ebay sale (which has, incidentally been withdrawn) that this thing has ever even run, let alone at 200mph. Looks like it's purely a show bike.

    Anyhoo 200mph has been exceeded with internal combustion power. So that seems pretty lame for a jet bike, let alone a twin jet bike.

    As for the claim that it's the only twin jet engined bike in the world, that's a pretty big claim. I know I've seen twin jet engined bikes before. I'm pretty sure the Ballistic Eagle has two jet engines and that is a real competition bike that gets used in anger rather than just being polished.

    200mph, skinny tyres, crap brakes an no chute. Presumably that's a one time deal - you do 200mph you die. Those tyres don't look like they're rated to anything even close to 200mph. Actually it's fully rigid so 200mph would probably be a pretty terminal experience on anything with more bumps than the average billiard table.

    And like so many custom bikes it wears a Harley badge even though it wasn't manufactured by them and contains very few of their parts. Why do they do that? I knew a man who built a bike with a Harris frame and an engine that was Kawasaki based, but contained hardly a single Kawasaki appart from the cases yet the only badge he put on it was a Kawasaki badge on the tank.

    As you can probably tell I absolutely detest show vehicles. It's a vehicle so go should always take precedence over show.

    1. Kenno

      It's been run.

      Its on the olde tube

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wb2Cl03E3t4

      He got it up to about 70mph, you can see that he throttles back after a very short run presumably because his balls ran out. Tbh its something different, the noise alone is ....different

      1. Grease Monkey Silver badge

        It's been run to 70mph? Oh well that proves it is capable of 200mph and would be safe at that speed.

        One more time: With rigid suspension and skinny tyres it would slap itself into oblivion long before it got to 200mph. And that's if the rider could actually stay on it with no aerodynamics and no bum stop. Unless it's been tested to 200mph you can't go round saying it will do 200mph, just on the basis that it has enough thrust (theoretically) to do 200mph. There's a hell of a lot more to attaining a top speed than having the power to do so.

        1. Grease Monkey Silver badge

          Just watched the video with sound for the first time. That thing really is lame isn't it? The builder expects 100 to 120mph terminal for a quarter mile? Well the Ballistic Eagle mentioned has exceeded 200mph terminal for a quarter mile. 120mph terminal for a quarter mile was achievable on a production sports bike about thirty years ago. Gievn that jet bikes tend to be pretty slow off the line and make up the time by being extremely fast towards the end of the quarter they need a really high terminal speed to post a good time. As such I doubt the ET for this thing would be as fast as a modern 600cc road bike.

          Sooo, it's not particularly fast and it's not pretty. Why would anybody spend that sort of money on it?

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            You nailed it there alright.

            You said....120mph terminal

            TERMINAL velocity is about right, that things a trap of death if ever I saw one.

            Stick to the ST1100 thanks. Slow and old but you get there.

  3. Pet Peeve
    Flame

    How do you ride this thing without setting your legs on fire? Pulse jets get HOT.

    1. Marcelo Rodrigues
      Stop

      Fast

      That's how you die it!

      Hit the gas as there will be no tomorrow, and:

      1) Let the wind cool your legs, or

      2) Die (with no breaks, no suspension and a design like this... I'd give you 45 seconds of life) before the legs get burned.

      1. Grease Monkey Silver badge

        I agree about the suspension, but it clearly has brakes on both wheels.

        1. Marcelo Rodrigues
          Happy

          Should have been clearer

          No breaks worth of mentioning.

          I really doubt these ones would do some good...

  4. LarsG

    BRINGS A MEW MEANING TO THE TERM...

    GOING FOR A BURN

  5. All names Taken
    Paris Hilton

    eh?

    Look at rear wheel proximity to seat. Now imagine swift acceleration and forces from wind pressure.

    A little slip and one's a*se will rapidly form into a loose stream of spam no?

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    SUCKKKK !!

    Just think of the rectal suction you'd need to generate in order to stay astride the beast !!

  7. GitMeMyShootinIrons
    Flame

    For something more practical....

    Let's say you have the better half and two kids, and you need to trade in your pulse-jet Harley, you could always go for a slightly more mundane mode of travel, like a VW Beetle.....

    A Jet powered VW beetle. http://www.ronpatrickstuff.com/

    (Flame - as in out of the back of such jet powered monsters....)

  8. Imsimil Berati-Lahn

    Perfect for that Monday morning commute to the city.

    Every city banker should be issued with one of these for the commute from their Devon mansion to the hastily erected bullseye on the side of their city office. BRA-A-A-A-P* >SPLAT< PFS!

    *Official spelling of pulse jet sound effect. Akin to a challenger tank firing its main weapon 300 times per second, if you can imagine such a thing.

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    "Pulsejet engines are characterised by simplicity, low cost of construction and high noise levels."

    And by periodically setting your little model plane on fire. You learn not to invest much in a pulsejet powered model plane. It's clear whoever built this intended it to never be used.

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