Sine Cycles Instead of a loud V-twin engine, the Sine Cycles Chopper is fitted with a quiet electric motor, combining classic aesthetics with a modern powertrain.

sine-cycles-1

Choppers are bikes generally reserved for serious enthusiasts, making them a little more faithful to tradition than other motorcycles. As such, they’re generally produced with the same gas-guzzling V-twin they’ve been equipped with over the years. Sine Cycles is hoping to change that, fitting their customized two-wheeler with an electric motor.

We know, a chopper running on a whisper-quiet electric powerplant sounds like absolute sacrilege. I mean, people loved Captain America and Billy Bike on Easy Rider because they were big, loud, and plain old mean. Take away the roaring noise out of the equation and it just wouldn’t quite feel the same. Still, here we are with a genuine electric chopper.

sine-cycles-2

Ran by electrical engineer Bruno Forcella, Sine Cycles built an old-school style chopper, with clean lines and an open frame that exposes the 2.8 kWh 3-phase permanent magnet motor from Zero Motorcycles powering the ride. Putting out 27 horsepower and 42 pound-feet of torque, it can hit top speeds of 75 mph, which should be plenty enough speed on the open road for anyone but extreme speed freaks with a death wish. The current configuration has a range of 34 miles on a single charge.

sine-cycles-3

It sports a hardtail frame, fork, wheels, and brakes borrowed from Cleveland Cyclewerks’ Heist motorcycle, with custom modifications to accommodate the electric powertrain. The custom heatsink is made from five parts of extruded aluminum, with the cooling fins hand-ground twice. Other features include a Motogadget instrument panel, LSL Dragbar handlebars, Cole Foster fuel tank, Rich Phillips seat, and a whole load of custom parts.

sine-cycles-4

The Sine Cycles chopper is current doing the rounds at bike shows around Switzerland.

Source