Indian Motorcycles Big Chief 1923
The first Indian Chief, introduced in 1922, was developed from the Scout the company had introduced in 1920 but with a larger capacity engine of 61ci (998cc) rather than the Scout’s 37ci (600cc) unit.
The engine was a development of that used in the Powerplus model with valve actuation revised from a centrally-located, single camshaft operating all four valves to two camshafts each operating the valves of one cylinder. The cylinder heads and barrels were one-piece as on earlier engines and the compression ratio of 5:1 using the available fuel of the period resulted in peak power of around 20hp and a top speed of around 65mph (105kph). The three-speed gearbox was integrated with the engine through the use of a cast aluminium timing case in which the helical cut primary drive gears shared lubrication oil with the gearbox.
The frame underwent a much needed upgrade from the single downtube models, on which the larger engines could actually distort the frame under power, to a double-tube cradle with two mounting points at the front of the engine and one at the rear of the gearbox. Front suspension was of the leaf spring design the company had been using for many years while the rear remained rigid.
In 1923, the Big Chief was launched with the engine capacity increased to 73.62ci (1,206cc) through increases in both bore and stroke. The frame received strengthening and the rear brake was enclosed. Top speed increased accordingly to around 70mph (113kph) and the Big Chief became the company’s best-selling model while production of the Powerplus it essentially replaced ceased in 1924.
This first-year Big Chief underwent a restoration in 1987 and was acquired for the NZ Classic Motorcycles collection from a private vendor in Freedonia, Kansas, via a US auction house in May, 2008.