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Indian Motorcycle 1953 Commercial

Published by Cyril Huze December 21st, 2009 in Builders, Editorial and Videos.

1953. The same year Indian Motorcycle went out of business. Tearing up….

10 Comments

10 Responses to “Indian Motorcycle 1953 Commercial”

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  1. 1 Dale Dec 21st, 2009 at 5:18 pm

    Very cool. I live in Connecticut, about 50 miles away from Springfield, MA, the original home of Indian Motorcycle. It is cool to see the old factory building, now apartments. If you are in Springfield, I suggest stopping at the newly opened Springfield museum because they have a very nice collection of early era Indian production, race bikes and memorabilia.

  2. 2 Woody Dec 21st, 2009 at 6:32 pm

    Pretty cool. Funny, watching the two guys lift the motor in. Folks now complain if a 2 lb. screwdriver isn’t tethered to an overhead tensioner 😉

  3. 3 Lyle Dec 21st, 2009 at 9:52 pm

    Man, do you know what those compensating sprockets are worth now? That film must have been made just a few months before they quit production.

  4. 4 J Dec 22nd, 2009 at 3:17 am

    Heck, how bout the one little guy who lifts the engine onto the table without blinking?

    Different world back then……

  5. 5 Dr Robert Harms Dec 22nd, 2009 at 7:22 am

    Great stuff but I don’t think its a commercial. Its an “industrial short” with the generic music they all used. I have a similar one of the era for that other great departed bit of Americana, the South Bend lathe. I liked the scene of the guy with the cigarette—-really seems odd, today . Thanks for posting.

  6. 6 Mike Kiwi Tomas, Kiwi Indian M/C Co Dec 22nd, 2009 at 8:46 am

    The historical documentation of America’s industrial past is always interesting.
    I found this same clip about 15 years ago and have mulled over it from time to time.
    In 1953 Indian ran 2 series of 53 Chiefs and judging by some of the little tell tale parts, this was the last batch. I believe this documentation was done to get the factory on permanent record for historical purposes as this was the end.

  7. 7 Woody Dec 22nd, 2009 at 3:06 pm

    Maybe even a little docu-drama to help sniff out potential capital?

  8. 8 bythesword Dec 28th, 2009 at 10:10 am

    Loved the scene with the guy smoking the ciggy while he was working, it really is a different world……better?…..doubt it.

  9. 9 Jim Gianatsis Dec 28th, 2009 at 12:42 pm

    I’m glad to see that Harley-Davidson and its fans hasn’t tried to improve on this classic design in the following 60 years (smile).

  10. 10 mike corbin Dec 28th, 2009 at 12:51 pm

    Extremely cool;;Happy NewYear !!

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Cyril Huze