Gunbus 410 Cubic Inch V-Twin Motorcycle Completed
July 9th, 2008 at 9:48 am by Paul Crowe - "The Kneeslider"
The Gunbus 410 cubic inch V-Twin motorcycle is complete. The monster engine placed in a motorcycle frame of comparable size looked impossible and many who saw the photos were skeptical of the bike ever being finished but I guess, Clemens F. Leonhardt is one of those persistent guys who ignores the naysayers and keeps at his work.
The fuel injected, 45 degree 6728 cc / 410 cubic inch V-Twin runs through a 3 speed transmission with reverse and actually looks pretty good in its finished state compared to the initial photos, in fact, everything looks good. It puts out 523 foot pounds of torque. Seat height is 31.5 inches and overall length is 136 inches. It is a little heavy at 1433 pounds so high speed corner carving might be an issue and there aren’t any photos of the big bike on the road so I guess we’ll have to wait for the road test, that is if someone can actually road test this monster.
This is actually going to go into limited series production and a sidecar will be available as well which might help with balance when waiting at a light. I don’t even want to think about a driveway tipover. I think this is great! Now, where’s the video?
Thanks for the tip, Petr!
Lots of photos below:
Link: Leonhardt Manufacturing
Posted in Motorcycle Builders, Motorcycle Design
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65 Responses to “Gunbus 410 Cubic Inch V-Twin Motorcycle Completed”
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July 9th, 2008 at 10:04 am
WOW. They REALLY need to add some covers for the primary drive and front sprocket or someone’s gonna get mangled
July 9th, 2008 at 10:35 am
I’m sorry but that looks hideous. I love eccentric builds but why?
July 9th, 2008 at 10:48 am
“I love eccentric builds but why?”
Because he wanted to, because he wondered if it would work, because he thought it was a neat idea, because he wanted to do something different, because he wanted to showcase his engineering skills, because he saw an engine and wondered “what if …,” because he would rather build something himself than watch someone else build something, …, the reasons are endless and every one is valid.
July 9th, 2008 at 11:00 am
That is an attractive engine and the fit and finish appear to be of high quality.
He could recoup money if this bike is marketed towards events like the monster truck series, among others. I don’t even know why I know about monster truck series….
July 9th, 2008 at 11:04 am
(hit submit too soon)…I’d pay just to hear it
July 9th, 2008 at 11:15 am
nice work Clemens.
I like to do something different.
July 9th, 2008 at 12:14 pm
The girl in the pix is probably a pro model, those women are every bit of 5′10″ on average… she looks like a midget on that bike!
side car definatel would help, but I cant stop thinking of a trike it!
Are those AIRPLANE tires???
July 9th, 2008 at 12:16 pm
@ Zak:
HAHAHA, maybe they should just change the name to the “Mangler 410″
July 9th, 2008 at 12:21 pm
pretty dang awesome. Look what he has to show for all the extra time on his hands. It’s better than a beer gut and couch potato butt.
I couldn’t imagine trying to keep the thing balanced even while under way.
Maybe Batman can buy it to scale down from his existing bike.
-todd
July 9th, 2008 at 12:53 pm
Put some hummer tires on it, and I bet the eco-friendly gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger would buy 5 of them.
July 9th, 2008 at 1:09 pm
Nice result of a concept. Scaling up the size of a motorcycle is unique. The taller riders will appreciate this. It got a little to heavy to be practical though. I’d still like to ride it.
July 9th, 2008 at 1:48 pm
Wonder how it balances…. and how you get it off the center stand.
July 9th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
Seat height is 31.5 inches? thats the same as my Buell…
July 9th, 2008 at 3:02 pm
That guy won at motorcycles.
July 9th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
any “gallons per mile” guesstimates?
July 9th, 2008 at 5:04 pm
I’LL BET HIS FIRST CUSTOMER WILL BE SHAQ.
July 9th, 2008 at 5:05 pm
OR JAY LENO.
July 9th, 2008 at 6:13 pm
haha, this is so over the top, I love it! he deserves heaps of cred for pulling it off. Can’t wait for the video .
July 9th, 2008 at 7:09 pm
WHAT BALLS, I LOVE IT. P.S. DOES IT COME AS A TRIKE.
July 9th, 2008 at 7:42 pm
lostinoz: I believe Clemens’s original idea was indeed to use tires originally spec’d for a Boeing 767, although I think I also read somewhere that he ended up giving up on that idea because of issues getting wheels to fit, or because he couldn’t get the tread shoulders shaved down to a proper height, or something. I have no idea if the tires on there now are aircraft tires or not, but I’m pretty sure that was the original idea.
cl
July 9th, 2008 at 8:39 pm
so how would you turn the thing? if our model is indeed 5′10, she is leaned forward with her arms locked. with the bars mounted as they are, I’d assume the bars to be prone to “tiller” type steering (swinging left and right rather than pivoting one forward, one back)… ok, now try this out - lean forward, stick your arms straight out and try turning them about an imaginary pivot 4 feet away. it seems like I only have a few degrees lock-to-lock - anyone out there think otherwise, or feel you could conrtol a bike with this layout?
July 9th, 2008 at 8:43 pm
I can’t help but feel that he shouldn’t have scaled the bike up, and instead given it a Hot Wheels, cartoony caricature feel. However, it’s one heck of an amazing build. I’d love to hear this thing at the drag strip.
July 9th, 2008 at 11:11 pm
Maybe it needs one of those pulse-jet thingies bolted on the side of it to make it go properly?
July 9th, 2008 at 11:27 pm
He got a real German full time plate, so it is already street legal.
July 9th, 2008 at 11:43 pm
there’s a nice slideshow here of it..
http://www.leonhardtweb.de/de/images/start/gunbus_banner_titel_4.swf
July 10th, 2008 at 12:50 am
There has to be a linkage there that makes steering feasible, something like a universal joint to turn that thing.
July 10th, 2008 at 1:05 am
stunning, kudos to him
whoever said trike, thats a great idea as sidecars are boring and 2 wheels isnt practical
3 wheels would still look nuts and its something salable for shows etc, actually even for folks that just want one to ride, tour on etc
anyways just stunning
July 10th, 2008 at 8:12 am
That is nice work , impractical and silly but I’ve never let that stop me before so I like it. The wheels look over size even for the size of that frame though. It is fun to play with the scale of things so even if it doesn’t really work as a bike it works as a way to throw your small/far away filter and most of us enjoy a little harmless trickery. What would be cool would be to turn the engine through 90deg. like a Guzzi. Now if we worry about where to put the petrol later could we mount that in a “normal bike frame” like a GS1000 or something with each cylinder coming up to allow you to burn your elbows on them during riding. The petrol can now go under the seat. I’m just stuck for a gearbox position.
July 10th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
It weighs twice as much as the average v twin cruiser, but has four times the displacement and almost six times the torque of a Harley twin cam 96 (92 ft/lb according to Motorcyclist). By that measure the Gunbus is a relative featherweight. I always thought cruisers were overweight. Now I know.
July 10th, 2008 at 3:19 pm
The chick is hot the bike is stupid IMHO
July 10th, 2008 at 10:28 pm
I must say I do like the accessory package: presumably thats an add in cost plus extra
July 11th, 2008 at 9:40 am
My opinion: Possibly the dumbest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. Just because it can be done doesnt mean it should be….
July 11th, 2008 at 3:00 pm
That would be a really sweet bike if it was normal sized.
Maybe the girl is really 3 feet tall but perfectly proportioned. Then I’d want the girl too. Just think how big you’d seem! But then you go and get on that big bike and now you seem small.
July 12th, 2008 at 9:36 pm
Anyone else thinking this is Andre the Giant’s Vincent Black Shadow on cocaine?
July 14th, 2008 at 8:27 pm
Would this bike need power-steering?
July 14th, 2008 at 9:19 pm
Whit that much torque i would like to see how holds up the chain.
36 years ago I got one of the firsts HONDA 750 CB FOUR and man, didi I think It was huge .!Looks like a dwarf next to this . Impressive.
July 15th, 2008 at 4:40 am
Nothing exceeds like excess.
July 15th, 2008 at 10:35 am
I think its a regular sized bike and he just figured out a way to shrink his girlfriend to make it look huge. An odd name, Gunbus, but a motorcycle but a pretty neat engineering exercise. And no, I don’t think I’ll be adding my name to the pre-order list.
July 15th, 2008 at 11:41 pm
Better yet….how do you get it ON the center stand???
July 16th, 2008 at 11:23 am
I would rather ride the rider than the bike
July 16th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
I must say I always wondered what it would be like to supersize a bike and what it would feel like to drive it. Now I might even be able to do so.
July 19th, 2008 at 8:47 pm
Worth of praise this piece of craftwork, skills, imagination, hard work are easy to see …but honestly my first thought when I saw the article was..
..look what happens when your first girlfriend says ” size does matter” .
July 19th, 2008 at 11:07 pm
There was a day when an odd fellow named Henry Ford, made a very odd thing called an automobile.
It’s certain it recieved a great deal of doubters then.
Today, autos are a part of daily life;
good to see someone take the path less taken.
July 23rd, 2008 at 10:14 pm
Ah , Ok , it’s radical ,it’s cool . but is bigger always better ?
I now the girls think so ,like the dream girl in the pix . but you can’t do it with that monster can you .
But A for effort . now downsize to something driveable like boss hoss and you could probably find people who would like to own one .
you’ll be richer for your efforts .
Anyways enjoyed your build . I’d like to hear it running also …. and watch the smoke show !
July 29th, 2008 at 11:36 am
Damn! he beat me to it! Let’s see it with a turbo and nitrous oxide injection….
August 2nd, 2008 at 9:54 pm
I vote to call it “The Mangler” as stated above. This THING looks like a man-eater. The front sprocket is just begging to catch a pantleg or a boot strap, having the foot peg right next to it. Primary drive no better, like having a buzz-saw at your knees. How about balance? Yea, just try to stop it from crushing your leg when it catches a gust of wind at a stop light and falls over on you. You surely won’t be able to foot-check a 1400+ lb bike when you skid on that patch of gravel. I view this thing as an oddity no different to the giant drivable shopping cart, or the giant drivable Red Wagon… cool at first glimps, tiring after first minute. Why do people do this? Oh, because you can, that makes it relevant… NOT!
August 5th, 2008 at 10:26 pm
Devildog: you asked, “Why do people do this?” I refer you and all others wondering the same, to kneeslider’s response: “Because he wanted to, because he wondered if it would work, because he thought it was a neat idea, because he wanted to do something different, because he wanted to showcase his engineering skills, because he saw an engine and wondered “what if …” because he would rather build something himself than watch someone else build something, …, the reasons are endless and every one is valid.”
LOL!!!
August 12th, 2008 at 4:32 am
To ” James W ” post #43 : I think you’re mistaken H.F with Herr.Benz, in some place (England?) his creation was deemed so dangerous that the law required a walking guy with a horn to announce the incoming “carriage”.
My post (#42) means: This is rather for the Proof of Concept, Concept model, Kirsch Art section, like most of the beautiful chopper crafts, or my never patented high heel roller blades.
About “Does size matter? visit this link of a guy who also successfully makes bikes:
http://www.tamiya.com/english/products/14111zzr1400/index.htm
..but they doesn’t even work!!
August 14th, 2008 at 6:26 am
Mate AWESOME i want one,twice the weight of my Harley not a problem ill work it out,if you have what it take’s to build it[not many have]then i have the balls to ride it,give me a price im in,Mook
August 18th, 2008 at 2:50 pm
nice bike, have been riding for 45 years + and always worried about cars and trucks and so on, with this Mangler, it evens the match all right.
Who’s scared of Freightliners now!!
Ride on
August 22nd, 2008 at 1:00 am
> Put some hummer tires on it, and I bet the eco-friendly
> gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger would buy 5 of them.
Arnold is the only man on earth strong enough to keep that monstrosity from crashing sideways onto the pavement two seconds after flipping up the stands.
Jesse of “Monster Garage” has already built (in six days with helpers) a bigger hog with a Peterbilt semi engine:
http://www.trombinoscar.com/monstergarage/peterbilt1972.html
(The NOS kit is a nice touch.)
Jesse at first wouldn’t take the advice of making it a three-wheeler….until he saw the gargantuan motor.
August 28th, 2008 at 4:33 am
One word… Stupid.
September 13th, 2008 at 4:37 pm
Optical Illusion
If you look very carefully you will see a motorcycle in the picture.
JJ
September 19th, 2008 at 2:17 am
This is one massive machine, but at 650kg, how the hell do you drive this monster???
September 19th, 2008 at 7:46 am
I actually prefer the australian approach:
http://www.webwombat.com.au/motoring/news_reports/monster-motorbike.htm
13,5 tons, but at least you can drive it…
Best regards,
Andy
September 26th, 2008 at 10:31 am
I failed to locate a starter motor or - dare I say it - kick starter?
September 29th, 2008 at 11:25 pm
Testosterone wars. Boss Hoss and this thing. You shouldn’t need a crane to pick up your bike. Now you got something to jump monster trucks with. What will they come up with next? Too much time and loose change. I guess if you got it…….
October 2nd, 2008 at 2:04 pm
After long and thoughtful consideration, I believe I want one - no, make that two ; one solo, one with sidecar. Just beautiful, absolutely beautiful. Kudos to the creator!
October 11th, 2008 at 2:37 pm
Dammmit. …. It was enivitable for some retards to come up with things like “stupid” “dumbest thing” etc.
Im convinced that everyone who had a negative thing to say. . .
a)Still lives with his/her parents
b)Has no sustainable job
c)Is “the dumbest thing”
d)Is stupid
e)Is married to “the dumbest thing” or “stupid” who probably weighs the same as the Gunbus
f)Has never even ridden a bike
g)All of the above
October 16th, 2008 at 4:45 am
Awesome! I’ll volunteer to drive it in a heart beat. I believe handling will not be a problem. Think about how a huge 200kg bike all of a suden becomes very stable once you get going above 10kph. Conversly a tiny 60kg scooter type thing always feels wobbly and unpredictable. My guess is that once it gets going it will be very stable. Stopping will be another issue. Cruising however will be awesome.
October 17th, 2008 at 11:43 pm
I love it! (why be normal) totally admire the creativity and the know how to make it all work! What’s next!! Jack W
November 6th, 2008 at 11:19 am
Put a cover over the chain drive and were good, other wise it’s gonna hurt
November 14th, 2008 at 10:39 pm
A remarkable answer to a question nobody was asking..
November 18th, 2008 at 12:53 am
I would kill to see that thing at the bike drags!
November 24th, 2008 at 12:53 am
VERY Cool!!..I’d love to ride this scooter!