{{Infobox Motorcycle |name = Indian Model O |image = Indian Model O picture from April 1917 issue of Popular Mechanics.PNG |caption = 1917 Indian Model O Light Twin |aka = Indian Light Twin,<ref name="AMAHoF" /><br />"Model Nothing"<ref name="AMAHoF" /><ref name="Girdler" /> |manufacturer = Indian |parent_company = Hendee Manufacturing Company |production = 1917–1919<ref name="AMAHoF" /><ref name="Girdler" /> |assembly = Springfield, Massachusetts, USA |predecessor = Indian Model K Featherweight<ref name="Girdler" /> |successor = |class = Lightweight standard |engine = {{convert|15.7|cuin|cc|abbr=on}}<ref name="Girdler" /> flathead flat-twin |bore_stroke = {{convert|2.0|x|2.5|in|mm|1|abbr=on}}<ref name="AMAHoF" /> |compression = |top_speed = {{convert|36|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}<ref name="Bonham1793_203" /> |power = {{convert|4|hp|kW|abbr=on}}<ref name="Bonham1793_203" /> |torque = |ignition = |transmission = 3-speed manual, hand shift<ref name="AMAHoF" /> |frame = |suspension = Front: pivoting fork,<ref name="Girdler" /><ref name="Bonham1793_203" /> replaced in 1917 by trailing-link fork<ref name="Bonham1793_203" /><br />Rear: none, rigid |brakes = Front: none<br />Rear: contracting band<ref name="AMAHoF" /> |tires = |rake_trail = |wheelbase = |length = |width = |height = |seat_height = |dry_weight = |wet_weight = |fuel_capacity = |oil_capacity = |fuel_consumption = |turning_radius = |related = |sp = }}
The '''Indian Model O''' was a lightweight motorcycle made by the Hendee Manufacturing Company from 1917 to 1919.<ref name="AMAHoF" /><ref name="Girdler" /> Indian expected to sell the Model O to young or thrifty riders. The United States' entry into World War I caused Indian to shift manufacture to military motorcycles, and the low cost of the Ford Model T caused the market for lightweight motorcycles to collapse.
==Concept and design== [[File:Advertisement for Indian bicycles and motorcycles in December 1916 issue of Boys Life magazine.PNG|thumb|left|Advertisement in the December 1916 issue of Boys' Life pitching Indian bicycles and Indian Model O motorcycles as Christmas presents for sons]] The Model O was designed as an entry-level motorcycle to attract young riders.<ref name="AMAHoF" /><ref name="Girdler" /> It replaced the two-stroke single-cylinder Model K Featherweight, which was made in 1916 only.<ref name="Girdler" /> In a layout similar to contemporary Douglas motorcycles from Great Britain, the Model O's flathead flat-twin engine was mounted with its cylinders along the line of the frame.<ref name="AMAHoF" /><ref name="Girdler" /> This added smooth operation to the Model K's existing light weight and practicality.<ref name="AMAHoF" /><ref name="Girdler" />
The Model O had a cradle frame supporting the engine at the bottom of the crankcase, while the gearbox was mounted under the frame, below the rear cylinder.<ref name="Girdler" /><ref name="Bonham1793_203" /> The rear wheel was rigidly mounted to a subframe bolted to the frame.<ref name="AMAHoF" /><ref name="Girdler" /> The front suspension was initially a pivoting fork used on the Indian Single from 1906 to 1910 and on the Model K Featherweight.<ref name="Girdler" /><ref name="Bonham1793_203" /> This was replaced during 1917 by a leaf-sprung trailing link fork.<ref name="Bonham1793_203" />
==Reception== The Model O was released in 1917, the year in which the United States entered World War I.<ref name="Girdler" /> Indian diverted its efforts to selling motorcycles to the US military.<ref name="Girdler53" /> The appeal of lightweight motorcycles as transport was also eroded by the availability of mass-produced cars,<ref name="Girdler" /> especially the Ford Model T, for which mass production began in 1913.<ref name="FordCorporateHistory" /> The Model O was not designed to appeal to enthusiasts, to which enthusiasts replied by calling the motorcycle the "Model Nothing". The Model O continued to sell poorly until 1919, when it was discontinued.<ref name="AMAHoF" /><ref name="Girdler" />
==Legacy== {{See also|Harley-Davidson Model W}} In 1919, the year in which the Model O was discontinued, Harley-Davidson introduced its Model W Sport Twin.<ref name="Girdler" /><ref name="AMAHoF1922SportTwin" /> The Model W had a Douglas-like layout similar to that of the Model O, using a flat-twin engine with a transverse crankshaft and cylinders parallel to the frame.<ref name="Girdler" /><ref name="AMAHoF1922SportTwin" /> Larger and more powerful than the Model O, the Model W had several innovations, including unit construction of engine and transmission, an enclosed drivetrain, and a coil-sprung trailing link fork.<ref name="Girdler" /> The Model W sold well in its first year, but sales fell after that,<ref name="Girdler" /> and it was discontinued in 1923.<ref name="Girdler" /><ref name="AMAHoF1922SportTwin" />
==References== ;Citations {{Reflist|30em|refs= <ref name="AMAHoF">''Indian Model O'' — Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum</ref> <ref name="AMAHoF1922SportTwin">''1922 Harley-Davidson Sport Twin'' — Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum</ref>
<ref name="Bonham1793_203">One of the rarest pre-WWII Indians – 1917 Indian Light Twin Model O Project – Engine no. 32J281</ref>
<ref name="Girdler">Girdler, Allan, ''The Harley-Davidson and Indian Wars'', pp. 56–59</ref> <ref name="Girdler53">Girdler, Allan, ''The Harley-Davidson and Indian Wars'', p. 53</ref>
<ref name="FordCorporateHistory">Ford Heritage: The Model T Put the World on Wheels</ref>
}}
;Sources *{{cite book |last1=Girdler |first1=Allan |title= The Harley-Davidson and Indian Wars|year= 2002|orig-year= 1997|publisher= Motorbooks International Publishing|location= St. Paul, MN US|isbn= 0-7603-1353-9|pages= 56–59|chapter= Chapter Six – The Model O and The Model WJ Sport Twin: The Little Engines That Couldn't|ref= Girdler}} *{{cite web | url = http://www.motorcyclemuseum.org/asp/classics/bike.asp?id=10 | title = 1917 Indian Model O | year = 2010 | work = Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum | publisher = American Motorcyclist Association | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120922172738/http://www.motorcyclemuseum.org/asp/classics/bike.asp?id=10 | archive-date = 2012-09-22 | url-status = live | access-date = 2013-05-06 |ref=AMAweb}} *{{cite web |url = http://motorcyclemuseum.org/asp/classics/bike.asp?id=13 |title = 1922 Harley-Davidson Sport Twin |year = 2010 |publisher = American Motorcyclist Association |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121114092937/http://www.motorcyclemuseum.org/asp/classics/bike.asp?id=13 |archive-date = 2012-11-14 |url-status = dead |access-date = 2012-07-15 |quote = But in the U.S., it was a different story. The machine languished in the Harley line through 1923, then was dropped. |ref = AMASportTwin }} *{{cite web |url=http://www.bonhams.com/auctions/19679/lot/203/ |title=One of the rarest pre-WWII Indians – 1917 Indian Light Twin Model O Project – Engine no. 32J281 |date=2012-01-12 |website=Bonhams |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514235435/http://www.bonhams.com/auctions/19679/lot/203/ |archive-date=2013-05-14 |url-status=live |access-date=2013-05-06 |ref=Bonham1793_203 }} *{{cite web |url =http://corporate.ford.com/our-company/heritage/heritage-news-detail/672-model-t |title =The Model T Put the World on Wheels |website =Manufacturer's corporate history website |publisher =Ford Motor Company |location =Dearborn, MI USA |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20121116084318/http://corporate.ford.com/our-company/heritage/heritage-news-detail/672-model-t |archive-date =2012-11-16 |url-status =live |access-date =2013-05-17 |quote =In October 1913, mass production of the Model T began at Ford's Highland Park, Michigan, Assembly Plant. Henry Ford had previously organized men and components to enhance Model T production, but the moving assembly line quickly improved chassis assembly speed from 12 hours and eight minutes to one hour and 33 minutes. |ref =FordHeritage }}
==External links== *[https://web.archive.org/web/20130503104247/http://cmrc.org.au/photos/big_photos/1917_model_o_indian.jpg Photograph of disassembled components of an Indian Model O]
O Category:Motorcycles powered by flat engines Category:Motorcycles introduced in the 1910s