The Flying Merkel was a

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike; uni (if one-wheeled); trike (if three-wheeled); quad (if four-wheeled)) is a lightweight private 1-to-2 passenger personal motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar from a saddle-style ...

of the American company Merkel in

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

, which relocated later to

Middletown, Ohio Middletown is a city in Butler County, Ohio, Butler and Warren County, Ohio, Warren counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. The population was 50,987 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is part of the Cincinnati metropolitan area in sou ...

.Jerry Hatfield: Standard Catalog of American Motorcycles. 1898–1981. Krause Publications, 2006, ., pp. 378–384 The motorcycle was produced from 1911 to 1915.

Early days

The founder of the company, Joe Merkel, began designing engines for motorcycles in 1902, and built his own motorcycles beginning in 1903, including a one- cylinder engine with a capacity of 316 cc, which was also used in the contemporary Indian. In 1908, he set up a company under the name of Light Manufacturing and Foundry Company in

Pottstown, Pennsylvania Pottstown is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. Pottstown was laid out in 1752–53 and named Pottsgrove in honor of its founder, John Potts (Pennsylvanian), John Potts. The old name was abando ...

. His motorcycles displayed the trademark "Merkel Light" on the tank. In 1910, he offered the first two-cylinder engine. In 1911, the company was taken over by Miami Cycle and Manufacturing Company of Middletown, Ohio. Subsequently, the trademark was changed to "Flying Merkel", and a bright and shiny orange paint was used, which was later described as "Merkel orange".The Art Of The Motorcycle. Guggenheim Museum, Las Vegas, 2001, ., p. 114.

Technology

The Flying Merkel had a conservative engine-control system featuring an automatic inlet valve and a preset outlet valve. The V engine initially displaced and delivered , through a two-speed gearbox and a belt drive, for a maximum speed of . A motorsports version without brake was available with a engine, including roller bearings, Bosch magneto ignition, Schebler

carburetor A carburetor (also spelled carburettor or carburetter) is a device used by a gasoline internal combustion engine to control and mix air and fuel entering the engine. The primary method of adding fuel to the intake air is through the Ventu ...

, and chain drive. The roadworthy version had a band brake on the rear wheel and was sold for

US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

325. An innovation was the motorcycle fork, patented by Joe Merkel as a "truss fork", which could be seen as a predecessor of the telescopic fork. The Flying Merkel had an automatically dripping oil feeder, which was subsequently copied by Indian and

Harley-Davidson Harley-Davidson, Inc. (H-D, or simply Harley) is an American motorcycle manufacturer headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded in 1903, it is one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depression along with i ...

. In 1913, a new model appeared; the engine had now an automatically controlled inlet valve and a spring-loaded

kickstarter Kickstarter, PBC is an American Benefit corporation, public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York City, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative project ...

. Production ceased in 1915. The Flying Merkel achieved its iconic status through the shape of its tank and the colorful body paint.

At auction

A replica of the racing version was auctioned in January 2012 at

Bonhams Bonhams is a privately owned international auction house and one of the world's oldest and largest auctioneers of fine art and antiques. It was formed by the merger in November 2001 of Bonhams & Brooks and Phillips Son & Neale. This brought t ...

for nearly €30,000. A 1911 Flying Merkel Board Track Racer went for US$423,500 in 2015 and a 1911 Flying Merkel for US$201,250 in 2011.Gizmag - World's most expensive motorcycles
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Revival

Currently, Greg Merkel, the great-great-grandnephew of Joe Merkel, has taken ownership of the trademark "Flying Merkel" and has started a revival of the brand called "Flying Merkel Inc".

Riders

* Cleo Francis Pineau * Maldwyn Joneshttps://archivemoto.com/thearchive/2018/5/23/maldwyn-jones-savannah-300-december-27-1913

References

External links

*{{official website, http://www.theflyingmerkel.com/ Companies based in Milwaukee Companies based in Ohio Middletown, Ohio Motor vehicles manufactured in the United States Motor vehicle manufacturers based in Ohio Motor vehicle manufacturers based in Wisconsin Motorcycles introduced in the 1900s