We all know that open belt systems look very cool, but moving parts being exposed can be quite dangerous for your left foot and leg… Moving belts love so much your pants. Yes, injuries happen. Some belt guards and covers minimize this risk, but what they provide in extra security goes against the beautiful appearance of the moving belt and pulleys. So, why not encase all the open belt system in an all inclusive clear cover, for example in polycarbonate? It is the new idea offered by Rivera Primo. Now you can watch, but not touch, even by accident…
Clear, UV and shatter resistant, the Makrolon TransparaGuard (Makrolon is a polycarbonate trademark) offers full protection and is immediately available for Rivera Brute IV Extreme (2014-0078) and also for any manufacturer belt drive as a universal fit (2014-0149).
Other applications will soon follow, as well as versions with built-in LED lighting (!) Rivera Primo Inc. 562-907-2600
Great look this will be a big seller.
Yeah Lenny, you’re right . . . perfect for all those TransparaBarrels, TransparaHeads and, of course, the hugely popular TransparaSoul . . . oh boy, I cant wait to fork out for mine !!! Big for a lot of the play it safe H.O.G fraternity I should imagine . . . .
sigh, I’m still saving my pennies for the “Visible V8 Engine” model I wanted so bad as a kid…
These will match my new line of invisible clothing! Just send your money to me and I’ll send you a big invisible box of my rather fetching invisible clothes, guarranteed to fit all sizes! In fact, I’ll also throw in a free air guitar with the first 100 orders!
Who is this for? If you’re so worried about riding stay at home and take the damn bus.
I knew a guy who had an open primary on his jockey shift Pan, an now he has only 3 fingers on his left hand….Why do people do this in the first place? I’m surprised the Federales haven’t required a warning label on these!
@ Fritz: you should send some of your cloths to the young lady in the picture above
I thought the whole idea about HD was no plastic unlike the Japanese bikes…
This is lame! I have an open primary, I’ve torn up two pairs of jeans. Just don’t get lazy when you drop that leg at a redlight and you’ll be okay.
For the H0G guy. Not the Custom guy. What about UV yellowing?
I wonder what happens when a rock gets caught up in there?
If I would be afraid of an open belt system I would prefer to install an enclosed primary. Plastic, polycarbonate, lexan, whatever, if it’s not steel or aluminum it’s not supposed to be on a motorcycle. Polycarbonate is for trophy cases..
Is it a bad “good idea”?
Awesome new innovative product!!
without ideas like this, the industry aftermarket would stagnate.
Evolve or die.
Great job Ben!
@ Fritz,
excellent mate, they’ll go splendidly with my FLHXSTVRRWJZ TransparaGlide, just dropped the deposit on the 2017 model . . . . . just have to flog off the current XL 1200 Low WGSTCCVV to make way for it, only ridden in the garage on fine days . . . $18,000.00 . . . . love your work Fritz !!!
Road a rigid frame Shovelhead many years ago with an open primary chain drive. Stomper clutch and short handled shifter mounted on the ratchet top. Never lost a finger but might have scuffed a pants leg or two. Went for a job interview down in Dallas and wore a decent pair of slacks and shirt. When I got there I noticed I had an oil spray line up my clothes in line withe the primary chain. The owner of the company looked at that and asked me what happened so I told him. He wanted to go out and look at the bike and told me about his dad riding an Indian in his day. Got hired on the spot. Thinking strongly about building another one just like it.
No Plastic Cantrell
@ Cantrell, a CHP was giving me a speeding ticket back in 1975 and I too was running an open chain primary. As you know this was before belt drives and it was kind of a fad at the time. We thought they were different, dangerous, and cool looking, lol. While he was chewing me out for this and that I looked down and noticed the spinning chain was spraying oil all over his lower pants cuffs. I quickly signed the ticket, told him to have a good day, and got the heck outta there. I probably paid about the same for the ticket as he did for a new pair of pants . . .
🙂
Great…another “safety” product so that wankers feel safe about something they probably shouldn’t have in the first place. You get the open belt for the performance, looks and implied danger — I love mine. Throwing a condom on it just looks ignorant of why you put it on in the first place.
Little Bear,
I like that! I guess that was before California outlawed having fun. Having a short length shifter I did drag a knuckle across the chain a time or two. OHSA would probably fine you for that too if they thought about it. Really do miss the old days and bare bones fun. To many damn rules and new must have bolt on shinny crap. Don’t ever stop having fun. Guess I’m Just A White Boy Lost In The Blues.
Cantrell
Ha . . . . . another soft cock, high street fashion, cash cow gets a resounding thumbs down from the true believers. . . . sadly, it probably won’t be enough to deter the mindless masses from running headlong like sheep [or lemmings] to their local dealer to have one of these idiot birdbaths attached to their brand new, shiny shiny, bling bling recreational pleasure machine. Get clue, you silly buggers . . . . can hear that noise in the distance . . . ???? That’s the sound of laughter in the streets . . . and it’s all for you . . . and, dare I say, Primo, for considering and then tooling up to produce and release such a ‘transparent’ trinket as this ridiculous bit of fluff !!
Open and dangerous makes it cool, not covered in plastic.
I know it’s naive of me to think that bikes with this on will actually be ridden other than out of the trailer and then to main street and back three times a year, but it seems like the clutch dist and the rubber dust from the belt will make the interior look pretty grubby pretty quickly. Not to mention the ‘parade’ down main street in Sturgis when it’s 100º out and the clutch wants to melt down.
First, I want to thank all of you that took the time to respond to our new product that Cyril was nice enough to post on his site. Our Transparaguard is a new product just being released to the public, but so far we have received some pretty encouraging signs that it will be a success for us. Of course, that means alot to any company in this market these days, as a succesful product means that we can keep the light s on and pay our people so they will continue to show up! Its possible that more then a few people who have responded on this blog may not be aware of what it take to create a new product and to get it to the market. Maybe some of you folks don’t appreciiate the time, effort and money that goes into creating something that just maybe will become a hit. I have been doing this for the better part of 25 years and I have been riding since I was 15. That makes a solid 46 years riding, with the last 40 years on V Twins. So I guess that maybe I could call myself a biker..maybe. And I would also guess that there are alot of other ‘bikers’ out there that might like different stuff for there rides even if it is a ‘transparent’ trinket? My aim is not to denigrate anyone who responded on this blog, but rather to point out that this product like any other product may not appeal to any specific person on this blog, but may indeed (hopefully) appeal to a thousand other ‘bikers’. So if it doesn’t appeal to you personally, hey..don’t buy it! In answer to the serious questions, the material we used is called Markolon and it is UV resistant. In regards to clutch dust and rubber dust, we tested this product on several bikes for about 6 months (on my ’04 Softail) and there is naturally some dust that gets thrown obout, but this seems to get blown out via the air rushing through the Tranparaguard. As long as the dust does not mix with oil it will not stick to the polycarbonate, if there is oil inside the primary of an open belt drive, then you will need to replace some seals. Thanks again for the positive comments and keep the rubber side down!
Thanks for address a couple of the points, It’s always tempting to sit back and ponder upon the usefulness of some part if it’s unlikely we’d ever use it, but yeah, we’ve all got a ‘stake’ in American companies doing well, so I hope that it’s a success for you.
Addressing*
I’m not afraid to admit that I’m not the most graceful, and most careful person. I make mistakes on a regular basis… all it would take is being lazy at one light and riiiiiip… there goes my left pant leg…then the whole world would have to pay by being blinded by my pasty white leg….. I’m not one who wants to injure others through my own stupidity so if i had a belt drive… i would definately run something like this. just my two cents… with gas going up , the cost of transporting my two cents has gone up quite a bit , so add that plus inflation of the market due to other factors… that brings my two cents to $3.48…… sheesh….
I prefer the old school enclosed primary (shovel) but I guess there is a market for this cover.
I’ve been riding an open primary for years,Hell riding a bike is dangerous,if you think it’s so dangerous don’t put one on your bike.
It’s too bad that it’s not enough to just say, “not for me” or “not on my bike”. It is so easy to sit behind a computer and hate on everything that you don’t like. It is a monumental task to bring new products to market. This is a great idea imo, very creative. Can’t say whether I would use one or not, but you can bet your bottom dollar my decision won’t be influenced by some jackass on a blog.
Ben. Explain to me why “I like it” is more important or respectable that “I don’t like it” Everyday, about everything, you think or say “I like it” or “I don’t like it” So, others don’t have the same right?. Why are they Jackass if they disagree with you? If you don’t like freedom of expression, go to live in Syria. I think that Rivera Primo wants to read bikers’ reaction to their new product. If people could not express their opinion in writing in this website, they would still think what they think and vote with their dollars. In addition, nobody buys a product because it costs a fortune to the manufacturer to make it !?! You don’t sound very bright.
Hey, Ben. 1st rule of business: listen to what your potential customers think.
The Motive – Not The Product
I have to applaud Ben Kudon for having the gumption and integrity to even become involved in this, even by my own estimations, heavily subjective forum, good on you mate, sincerely. Furthermore, your riding credentials are certainly lengthy and beyond question.
As I clearly and cynically stated previously, it ain’t my bag by a country mile, I still hold true to my belief that it’s modern ‘trend’ focused marketing in the extreme but good luck to you and those who go for it. I don’t doubt for a moment the amount of R+D dollars and time that went into it’s ultimate manufacture and release. Given your brand’s history, the qualty of the long chain polymer used in its construction is undoubtedly at the pointy end of state of the art and will be up to withstanding its intended role in life.
Ultimately however, the downside still remains the same for me, even though I have no intention ever of running a massive, 3″ open primary on my ’74 FXE, let alone on an earthmover. It resonates with pandering to the ‘RUB’ set who want the ‘look’ without the substance, thus continuing the diluting and watering down of a lifestyle that was once the domain of those who sought to live outside the strictures and constraints of the very people who now contribute so much monetary support to the industry they once wouldn’t have been caught dead being part of. Yes, I do resent having a part of my life, as with yours, being usurped by trendy lawyers, bankers, cops and others of that ilk who want the ‘style’ without the substance, I do not resent their cash. This is by no means confined to Rivera Primo, so please don’t feel singled out, the “Motor Company” leads from the front in following this line of customer aquisitioning . . . . I guess I should just try to get my head around it and embrace change.
Lastly, speaking of its potential popularity and revenue making realities, just because Brittany Spears and Nickleback sell trillions of albums and McDonald’s shift container ship loads of burgers across the globe on a daily basis, or a sizeable chunk of the nation sits down to watch the Kardashian’s, I’m sorry Ben, it doesn’t make it ‘right’, nor does it embue it with any legitimate and enduring sense of real worth . . . it’s too big to be a ‘trinket’, the TransparaGuard is a well considered ‘gimmick’, a clever marketing exercise as transparent as the ‘Markolon’ it is made of.
To Ben Kudon,
Thanks for a neat new product. I’m not in your target market, but I think it’s neat for the same reason I think automatic watches with glass rear panels are neat. RSD also understands this mindset, as they’re making transparent covers for other components, too. Some of us LIKE to admire the fine workings of the parts under the covers, while also enjoying the “throw-a-leg-over-and-go” convenience of modern technology. Your product (and RSD’s) lets us do this. Kudos to a good design.
Dog Williams was bitching about “trendy lawyers, bankers, cops and others of that ilk,” but I think you and I both know that we trendy lawyers, bankers, cops, and others of my ilk are the ones with the money to spend these days. The petty-criminal “bikers” of the past, who thought nothing of casual bar fights, drunk riding, and spending a night in jail, are now unemployed, have emphysema and liver cancer from their life choices, and are broke. Don’t worry about them. All they can do is talk shit on the internet, and they won’t make or break your business one way or the other. They can’t pack on the tens of thousands of miles every year that we lawyers, bankers, cops, and others of my ilk do. They can’t afford to admire the inner workings of their equipment: since they can’t afford any more than a Timex, they will never have to worry about having a watch whose innards they’d WANT to see. They can’t afford to buy any pants that they WOULDN’T want to get caught in a primary. They can’t afford to ride their bikes more than a few miles to the local bar, so they don’t worry about getting road debris caught in their primaries hundreds of miles from the nearest shop with replacement parts.
Keep doing a good job. Keep innovating. Don’t worry about the old, broke shit-talkers who resent your success. Keep up the good work.
@ .357,
you’re drawing an even longer bow than I did in my, admittedly, highly subjective final comment. I trust you enjoy staring at your diamonte encrusted TransparaGuard as much as you do removing your watch and gazing at it’s clearly superior movement, although, I would’ve thought my genuine 1981 Submariner may have passed your personal test of chronographic excellence even though its backing plate is only good old fashioned stainless steel.
You are demonstrably a shallow, fashion obsessed, snot nosed twat and I would suggest you keep your .357 loaded and handy at all times when clocking up those tens of thousands of miles you’re doing, lest you find yourself a battered victim of any of the petty criminal, bar fighting, drink riding, jailbirding, lung hacking, broke arsed biker types you might encounter when your sitting on the roadside with a broken bike, staring at its stationary belt drive and wondering why it and the mysterious innards shrouded in non-transparent ‘covers’ are not prettily revolving as they should . . . .
I retract and rephrase my initial assertion, it’s only those of your “specific ilk”, regardless of professional background or assumed or implied ‘status’, who I detest becoming involved in the ownership of bikes and American vee twins in particular . . . your comments prove in totally conclusive terms my point . . . see you on the road, “Brother” !!!
No, you certainly won’t see me on the road, Dog Williams. My motorcycle actually CAN make it to the far-flung scenic rides throughout the world, so I actually DO take it farther than my local run-down bar district. (That also makes it deeply unlikely I’ll ever have to worry about drawing my .357 in defense of your petty criminal, bar fighting, drunk riding, jailbirding lung hacking, broke asrsed biker “brothers.”)
Enjoy your bottle of Boone’s! Try to remember to put your feet down when you get to a stop sign!
Well, pistol boy, at least I have the pleasure of knowing we won’t be crossing paths, rubber side up, sister.
Dog,
You’re a tool, plain and simple. The idea is “cool” and I doubt you’d light into Roland on here the same way, because I see you’re the “center of attention” in your own eyes. You commandeered this page instead of letting people give their .02 about the product. People like you, and opinions like yours are what ruin this blog. Come up with something innovative that “might sell” and then come talk shit. The extent of your creativity seems to lie in your shallow wit.
Go take your overblown opinion to your local bar with your “brothers” where you actually matter in their/your sad world. You’re like that guy who hears somebody across the room talking about the broad they nailed last night, and walk over and try to one up them by telling all about the broad you nailed just ten minutes ago and how she was better because she had three tits.
Get bent Dog…and get over yourself.
Internet Tough Guy . . . . cheers mate, I’ll go and sort myself out immediately, thanks heaps.
Good call Dog…as if you matter
I.T.G –
at no point did I suggest I did matter, it was only personal and highly subjective opinion, expressed as clearly as I could. I had no intention of commandeering the page, anyone can contribute, rather, being the only one of the previous ‘nay-sayers’ responing to a courageous Ben Kudon and his input, in the face of quite some degree of adverse commentary. I also commended Ben, as well as Primo Rivera, for their prior aftermarket offerings, going back more than a couple of decades.
Moreover, I was self depracating in my comment as well, I only attempted to be more cogent regarding my criticisms and beliefs in the lengthy last submission, as opposed to my trite, off the cuff, ‘smartarse’ comments previous to that. It was the snooty tone of Magnum Boy that worked me up.
Frankly, your response is that of a bloke whose opinion I can at least empathise with and respect, from the heart and to the point . . . anyway, to each his own. That’s it for me mate, I’m ok with myself, no arrogance intended.
P.S – I ride on my own, don’t bar-hop, detest stupid, idiot violence and certainly never brag about my private liasons with ladies, as few and far between as they may be, not to mention interrupting others conversations to do so, extremely uncool and very, very middle school.
Interesting dialogue between some equally interesting (and intelligent) folks here… Me, I’m a 54 year old biker who’s been doin’ it for over 40 years – Been through my share of bikes; including plenty of rice-burners over the years… (Had to have those early Kawasaki 900’s and Yamaha 1100’s specifically because they were the World’s fastest production bikes) – Love the implied danger of riding a bike, and love the fact that Michigan recently repealed our helmet law (haven’t been able to ‘legally’ do that in my own state since I could ride), and haven’t put my helmet back on once, since… But I just might sometimes, as I definitely appreciate the choice and the freedom to do what I want.
So what leads a guy like me here? Well – After ‘growing up’ enough to not want to still be ‘doing wheelies away from’ my friends on the expressway on an 1100 full-dresser, I find myself actively choosing to try to reduce myself from being ‘just plain stupid’, to merely ‘dangerous’ these days…
A few years back I picked up an ’06 Sporty (After a little encouragement from several of my HD friends), and began to finally ‘get it’ regarding the whole experience. Most recently, I picked up an ’08 Rocker (that already had the Rivera Brute IV Extreme on it), and I started wondering about the possibilities of potentially getting myself tangled up in that thing (Interestingly, I’ve found that the brain changes a bit from 24 to 54). This and other forums seem to be a good place to do my research… I find it interesting that the same kind of polarizing responses (that I used to hear about Harleys and everything else) is what I seem to be hearing about having an open primary, too…
I still don’t know which way I’ll go… But I do know that we all have much more in common than you’d ever realize by reading the way we often carry on about such things. I hope I eventually see everyone here on the road too, and when I do – I’ll extend my hand for a firm handshake (hopefully still with all my fingers ~wink)
I’d give ya $50 for one of those just ‘cuz I always liked form AND function but I wouldn’t give more than $100.