Sears Dreadnought

Sears Dreadnought was a motorcycle sold by Sears in the 1910s.[1] The motorcycle featured a 70.62-cubic-inch (1,157.3 cm3) V-twin made by Spacke.[1] It was sourced from Spacke's cyclecar and had 9 horsepower (6.7 kW).[1] This engines was also used by Dayton, Eagle, Minneapolis and Crawford.[2] In addition to the internal combustion engine, it also had foot-pedals like a regular bicycle.[3] (This was for getting the engine started as the Kick start had not been invented yet

The motorcycle was a designed for Sears in conjunction with Excelsior Company of N. Sangamon Street, Chicago.[4] They put together popular components and features of the period including the Spacke V-twin engine, a Schebler carburetor, Musselman hub, chain drive, etc.[5] It was offered with various options such as a two-speed hub and a lightning package.[6]

Sears sold the motorcycle like its other products via mail order for 250 dollars in 1913.[1] People would shop out of large catalog of thousands of items rather than the local store, then the product would be delivered to them.[7] Sears sold motorcycles from 1912 to 1916.[1] The motorcycle is also called the Sears De Luxe Dreadnought Twin.[8] DeLuxe was the marque of the Spacke engine company and was on the engine intself.[9]

By the year 2001 it was thought about ten Sears Dreadnoughts remain, and one went for a Sotheby's auction for over 100,000 USD.[10] By the end of the 20th century the motorcycles of this era were lauded as works of art, being featured for example in the prestigious Guggenheim Museum.[11]

Features

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 913 Sears Dreadnaught V-Twin Share Mail-order motorcycling, from Indiana to your doorstep
  2. ↑ National Motorcycle Museum Featured Motorcycle 1913 Sears De Luxe Dreadnought Twin
  3. ↑ Old Motorcycles Take the Stage By JIM McCRAW Published: September 14, 2001
  4. ↑ 1912 SEARS De Luxe Dreadnaught Twin
  5. ↑ 1912 SEARS De Luxe Dreadnaught Twin
  6. ↑ 1912 SEARS De Luxe Dreadnaught Twin
  7. 1 2 3 4 Sears 1913 9HP Dreadnaught 1157cc 2 cyl ioe
  8. ↑ National Motorcycle Museum Featured Motorcycle 1913 Sears De Luxe Dreadnought Twin
  9. ↑ Spacke And the CycleCar Era
  10. ↑ American Motorcyclist Dec 2001
  11. ↑ Old Motorcycles Take the Stage By JIM McCRAW Published: September 14, 2001
  12. ↑

Further reading

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