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Hi Craig,
I welcome your thoughts about streamliner bodykits, and although I’m sure there’s a small market, I think there are some obstacles to overcome.
Firstly, the nature of the market. People like me, who have the skills, tooling, and time will want to develop their own designs and not be stuck with someone else’s vision. The vast majority of bikers do not connect with our aims, and see our efforts as misguided and a source of ridicule (you recently featured in a hurtful article in MCN the only weekly bikers paper here in the UK). So the market for a fairing kit will be limited to a diverse group of enthusiasts who want a “turn-key” solution.
Secondly, the type of kit. Your own machine, based on the Helix, is IMO a technically better solution, with a low seat height and feet forward style than the traditional motorcycle layout. I think the proportions of your machine suit the common nose-piece better than Alan’s ninja, but no-one is going to start a project by finding an obsolete base vehicle. The kit would need to fit many bikes to make economic sense and the difference between upright traditional bikes and feet forward machines makes a “one size fits all” solution unlikely.
I think if you did a kit for an existing, large selling bike it could work. You would need to base it on a Burgman or similar machine, just as Jan Vos is doing. Then you only have the transmission problems to overcome.
Personally, I don’t think the right base vehicle exists at the moment. Big manufacturers see only motorcycles OR scooters, and nothing in between (except Honda maybe) and we need a feet forward style machine with full size wheels and a manual transmission with chain drive – until it arrives my friend, you will just have to accept that you are “ahead of the curve”
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