The Harley Shortster

Yep, you read that right…the Shortster (with an “h” and not a “p”) was one of the Harley-Aermacchi attempts to succeed in the small bike market back in the 1970s.   These Italian-made 65cc two-stroke tiddlers were only offered in 1972 (Harley dropped them after that).   They are pretty, though, and Steve recently sold this one from his collection.   I grabbed a few photos before it shipped, and I thought I’d share them with you here on the blog…

Aermacchi, an Italian small motorcycle manufacturer, was Harley’s wistful attempt to make hay as they watched the small bike market in the US explode (while their big V-twins continued to lose market share).   Like they say…nice try, but no cigar.

In the long haul, it didn’t work out for Harley for a number of reasons.  Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, and Yamaha already owned the small motorcycle market in the 1960s US market, and that old saying (“You meet the nicest people on a Honda”) was pretty much true.  Harley really couldn’t reach US consumers wanting a small bike because they couldn’t get them into a Harley dealership.  Today’s Harley showrooms are immaculate, but back in those days…well, I don’t have to draw you a picture.   They didn’t attract the nicest people, and if you were one, you probably didn’t want to venture into a Harley shop.   It’s funny, because during that era Harley did everything they could to distance themselves from the bad boy image.   In the 1980s and beyond, though, they learned to capitalize on it…so much so that at one point Harley actually had a V-twin called the Bad Boy.   Wait long enough, I guess, and you’ll see it all.

There were other factors as well.   The Aermacchi bikes just couldn’t compete with the offerings from Honda and the other Japanese makers.   The two-stroke Japanese bikes, for the most part, mixed the oil and the fuel automatically.   Harley’s Aermacchi two-strokes required the rider to pre-mix oil and gasoline.   The other guys mostly had electric starters…the Shortster used a kick starter (although kicking that little 65cc engine into life could not have been very difficult).    These kinds of things, along with Honda’s stellar reliability reputation, pretty much guaranteed the Japanese small bike producers would remain in the No. 1 spot for a few more years.

Harley (really Aermacchi) offered the Shortster in three colors (yellow, red, and blue).   It’s a cute little thing, and the engine is (in my opinion) a work of art…

The Shortster had a three-speed gearbox (the Japanese bikes had four speeds), and I think the kickstarter is that higher lever on the bike’s left side.   I thought at first the bike had one of those dual-range gear boxes, but I think that bigger lever is actually the kickstarter.  I’ll ask Steve when I see him again.

The guy who bought this one from Steve is certainly getting a low mileage motorcycle…check this out…

Like I said, wait long enough and you’ll see it all.   Small motorcycles from the 1960s and 1970s are very collectible these days.   And the Shortster’s poor marketplace showing and availability for only 1 year (1972) means that there aren’t too many of them out there.   As is always the case, scarcity governs collectability, and folks, the Shortster you see here is one classic and collectible motorcycle.   Pristine and pricey are two applicable adjectives.

So, here I am talking about all of these foreign motorcycles on Memorial Day.   I’m enjoying the holiday, and I hope you are, too.   I’m going to be enjoying it even more in a little bit, when I fire up my American-made CSC motorcycle and go for a ride.  I get on the road every year on Memorial Day, and this year is no exception.

Keep an eye on the blog, my friends…later today I’ll post a photo or two of the Baja Blaster out on the road!