Bianchi motorcycles were made from 1897 to 1967 by F.I.V. Edoardo Bianchi S.p.A., a company which today is a major

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

bicycle A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike or cycle, is a human-powered or motor-powered assisted, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A is called a cyclist, or bicyclist. Bic ...

manufacturer, and who also produced automobiles from 1900 to 1939.

Edoardo Bianchi Edoardo Bianchi (17 July 1865 – 3 July 1946) was an Italian entrepreneur and inventor who founded the bicycle manufacturing company Bianchi in 1885 and the Italian automobile manufacturer Autobianchi Autobianchi () was an Italian automobile ...

started his bicycle manufacturing business in a small shop on

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

's Via Nirone in 1885. Bianchi was a prominent name in the motorcycle racing world from 1925 to 1930.

Early history

was an Italian motorcycling pioneer who began by building bicycles in 1885. He built a motorised bicycle in 1897, and a car in 1900. In 1903 he fitted engines in the centre of strengthened bicycle frames, and by 1905 also fitted Truffault leading link forks. In 1910 Bianchi built a 498 cc

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

that was very successful and established the Bianchi motorcycle name. In 1916 a 650 cc

V-twin A V-twin engine, also called a V2 engine, is a two-cylinder piston engine where the cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration. Although widely associated with motorcycles (installed either transversely or longit ...

was made, which was enlarged to 741 cc in 1920. In 1921 a smaller 598 cc V-twin, and a new 498 cc single with all

chain drive Chain drive is a way of transmitting mechanical power from one place to another. It is often used to convey power to the wheels of a vehicle, particularly bicycles and motorcycles. It is also used in a wide variety of machines besides vehicles. ...

was released. There was a 348 cc

side valve A flathead engine, also known as a sidevalve engine''American Rodder'', 6/94, pp.45 & 93. or valve-in-block engine is an internal combustion engine with its poppet valves contained within the engine block, instead of in the cylinder head, as ...

single for 1923, and V-twins of 498 cc and 598 cc. In 1924 a 173 cc

overhead valve An overhead valve (OHV) engine, sometimes called a ''pushrod engine'', is a piston engine whose valves are located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier flathead engines, where the valves were located be ...

single was added to the range.

Racing History

In 1925 a 348 cc

(OHV) single was introduced. There was also a 348 cc

dual overhead cam An overhead camshaft (OHC) engine is a piston engine where the camshaft is located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier overhead valve engines (OHV), where the camshaft is located below the combustion c ...

(DOHC) works racer, designed by Albino Baldi, Bianchi chief engineer, and these Bianchis were the most successful Italian racing bikes for the next five years. During this time the bike was ridden by such riders as

Tazio Nuvolari Tazio Giorgio Nuvolari (; 16 November 1892 – 11 August 1953) was an Italian racing driver. He first raced motorcycles and then concentrated on sports cars and single-seaters. A resident of Mantua, he was known as 'Il Mantovano Volante' (Th ...

, Amilcare Moretti, Mario Ghersi, Karl Kodric, Gino Zanchetta and Luigi Arcangeli. In the 1930s Baldi designed another racing bike, a 498cc ohc single. This bike was ridden by such riders as

Giordano Aldrighetti Giordano "Nando" Aldrighetti (14 November 1905 – 12 August 1939) was an Italian motorcycle racer and racing driver. Aldrighetti's greatest success in motorcycling came when he won the 1937 Italian Grand Prix riding for the works Gilera team, ...

, Aldo Pigarini, Terzo Bandini,

Dorino Serafini Teodoro "Dorino" Serafini (22 July 1909 – 5 July 2000) was a motorcycle road racer and racing driver from Italy. A native of Pesaro (Marche), he won the 1939 500cc European Championship on a Gilera. He participated in one Formula One World C ...

, Guido Cerato and

Alberto Ascari Alberto Ascari (; 13 July 1918 – 26 May 1955) was an Italian racing driver and a two time Formula One World Champion. He was a multitalented racer who competed in motorcycle racing before switching to cars. Ascari won consecutive world titles ...

. In 1938 a

supercharged In an internal combustion engine, a supercharger compresses the intake gas, forcing more air into the engine in order to produce more power for a given displacement. The current categorisation is that a supercharger is a form of forced induct ...

four cylinder 498 cc DOHC racer was built, but was never fully developed.

European championships

Post war

After World War II Bianchi produced 123 cc and 248 cc ohc single racers, and in the late 1950s released new 248 cc and 348 cc dohc twins, designed by Colombo and

Lino Tonti Lino Tonti (September 16, 1920 – June 8, 2002) was an Italian motorcycle engineer known for designing a number of sport and racing motorcycles in the 1950s and 1960s, and for creating his signature 'Tonti frame' for Moto Guzzi's 1971 V7 Spo ...

. There were a few over-bored 498 cc works versions for the 500 cc class races. In 1946 Edoardo died, and control of the firm passed to his son Giuseppe. Bianchi production motorcycles included 49cc models, the 75 Gardena, 122 and 173cc two strokes, the 4-stroke 125cc Bianchi Bernina LV, and the Bianchi Tonale, a 173 cc chain driven ohc single. Some 49 cc two stroke engines were built under licence from

Puch Puch () is a manufacturing company located in Graz, Austria. The company was founded in 1899 by the industrialist Johann Puch and produced automobiles, bicycles, mopeds, and motorcycles. It was a subsidiary of the large Steyr-Daimler-Puch conglo ...

, and fitted into the innovative Falco, one or two seat moped. This sprightly ride featured a one piece, pressed girder frame and three speed gearbox operated via the left hand

twist grip A twistgrip is a handle that can be twisted to operate a control. It is commonly found as a motorcycle's right handlebar grip to control the throttle, but is sometimes found elsewhere, such as on a bicycle as a gearshift A gear stick (rarely s ...

clutch lever A clutch is a mechanical device that engages and disengages power transmission, especially from a drive shaft to a driven shaft. In the simplest application, clutches connect and disconnect two rotating shafts (drive shafts or line shafts) ...

. In

1961 Events January * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba ( Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015). ** Aero Flight 311 ...

, Bob McIntyre rode a Bianchi 350 cc in the Motorcycle Grand Prix World Championships. Motorcycle production ceased in 1967, when all rights passed to Innocenti. Small mopeds made by Bianchi were imported by American retailer

Montgomery Ward Montgomery Ward is the name of two successive U.S. retail corporations. The original Montgomery Ward & Co. was a world-pioneering mail-order business and later also a leading department store chain that operated between 1872 and 2001. The curren ...

and sold via catalog under the

Riverside Riverside may refer to: Places Australia * Riverside, Tasmania, a suburb of Launceston, Tasmania Canada * Riverside (electoral district), in the Yukon * Riverside, Calgary, a neighbourhood in Alberta * Riverside, Manitoba, a former rural m ...

captive import brand.

List of Motorcycle Models (incomplete)

*175 *450 *500 *600 *350 Blue Arrow *Bernina *Tonale 175 *Tonale Sport

Notes

References

External links

Bianchi
Corporate site
Bianchi USA
US site {{DEFAULTSORT:Bianchi (Motorcycles) Italian companies established in 1897 Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1897 Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 1967 Bianchi (company)