1:Bigpansaddle,
withsomesizeable
springs,arethe
rearsuspension.
2:Extralight-
cuttingswitch,
forconvoywork,
wouldbefitted
underthe saddle.3:Left footoperates
theclutch.
4:Gottolovethis...
5:Periodpaperwork.
Notethe different
spellings of
‘Motorcycle/
Motocycle.’
6:Suppliedto
theAlliedforces,
batteryinstructions
arein French
andEnglish.
7:Morefascinating
paraphernalia.
NNootteetthheeAAmmeerriiccaann
ttermiinoll
andspe ngs.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
manycountries includingGreat Britain, theSovietUnion,
France, Chin a(at warwith Japansince 1937) andmany
Commonwealthnations with equipment, vehicles,tents
and so on.Aspartoft hat scheme,38,103Harley- Davidson
WLAand 26,914 IndianModel 741Bmotor cycles were
shipped acrossthe world –it’sreallyno wonderthat after
thewar so manyof theseAmericanmotor cycles were not
returned,butboughtand used by willing locals lookingfor
chea ptransport. In reality, the741Bwas createdonrequest
of the British,who wanted alighter and more fuel-efficient
militarymotorcycle than theconte mporar y45cubicinch
IndiansandH-Ds.Indian decidedbuild anew machine
with a30.50 cubic inchmotor, using theframe for the 640
already inproductionand therewas much in common
with the SportScout.Theframe wasmodified for rough
terrain use, and featuredlongerforks andrear frame legs
to raiseground clearance by six i nches,aswellasbeing
ligh ter.The741 also used thesame enginecases, primary
driv eand gearboxasthe la rger 750cc 640.Rarespecimen
Wayne says th e741- Bbelongingtohis familyisr eally
quiterare. “Tofind a741 nowadaysthat ha sremainedat
500c cisunusual.There’s alot ofmeatonthe 741cylinders
so it hasalwaysbeenverycommonfor previousowners
to boreout thecylinders to 2.75 inch bore, makinga600cc
motor.You canalsoadd largerpistons,differentflywheels
and so on,but thishasremainedstandard.Youcan also
tellit’sa500 becauseoft he lack of performance!
“TheLinkertM741carburettor,alongwith asmaller
inta ke than the640, wasdesignedspecifically andfitted so
that the741 couldberidden on open throttle indefinitely,
withoutover-stressingthe motor,”pointsoutWayne.
Like themotor,the rest of theIndian looks to
Wayne and meto be untouched–but thereare some
myssteries to o. It’s amotorcyclethat youwish could tell
itsowwnstory because much of itspast is just unknown.
“Prevvioous owner Charliehadowned it for 16years,and
bougghhtitf romsomeone nearReading,who again didn’t
passsoonmuch detail.Therear wheelhadbeenrebuilt
byInnddian expertTerry Dobneyatsomepoint. Charlie
passseddon some fantastic original manuals,labels and
partsbbooks with the bike.”
ThTheV5 gives theyearofr egistr ation as 1946, which
isofcoursethe year th at many ex-militarymachines
wereeppileduphighand sold offcheap, so this was
probbaably oneofthem.Inmyown research forwriting
thisarrticle(because Ialwaysget frustrated when there
sinfoormation tobe had, somewhere...)Ihadachat
withhCCharlie,and itwashewho said that theprevious
ownerrstated that the 741was used in ‘A Brid ge Too
Faar’.Researchingfurther,Ifound on the interneta
pphhottographtaken in 1977 fromabookpublishedby