Strictly limited! The New Fat Boy Gray Ghost
Fifth model in the Icons Motorcycle Collection celebrates 35 years of fat custom style! The shimmering silver Fat Boy Gray Ghost is the fifth model in the Harley-Davidson Icons Motorcycle Collection. This new, strictly limited edition Icons model celebrates the first 35 years of the Fat Boy – a bike that made history and is one of the most recognisable names in the world of motorcycles. With a new glossy Reflection finish that makes the entire machine look like it has been dipped in chrome, the Fat Boy Gray Ghost pays tribute to a legend in motorcycle design.
As part of the Icons Motorcycle Collection, each year the Motor Company presents a strictly limited edition motorcycle model that reinterprets a classic H-D style icon. Each model in the Icons Motorcycle Collection is numbered and has special features that distinguish it from its production counterpart. Production of the Fat Boy Gray Ghost is limited to 1,990 units worldwide, with a recommended retail price of €30,700 in Germany, €36,500 in Austria and €36,500 in Switzerland.
36,500 in Austria and CHF 30,700 in Switzerland.
With the Fat Boy Gray Ghost, Harley-Davidson is celebrating the origins of the Fat Custom segment.
“In 1990, the original Fat Boy took the look, proportions and silhouette of a 1949 Hydra-Glide and combined it with the latest technology of the day to appeal to a new generation of riders,” said Brad Richards, Harley-Davidson Vice President of Design and Creative Director Motorcycles. “These riders appreciated our early post-war design DNA, but were also attracted to the clean and sleek contemporary industrial design.
At launch, the model was designed for a limited life. Contrary to expectations, however, the Fat Boy has survived three generations of engines and a complete overhaul of its Softail chassis, maintaining its original presence and inimitable style for 35 years.
Unique reflection finish
The Fat Boy is a bike for riders who want to make a statement. The Fat Boy Gray Ghost is part of the Icons Collection. It shimmers in the sun as if carved from a solid block of aluminium and polished to a mirror finish. The reflective finish is created using the Physical Vapour Deposition (PVD) process, also known as thin-film coating. In this process, a solid material is evaporated in a vacuum and applied to the surface of a component – in the case of this car, the fuel tank and the front and rear wings. A positive charge is applied to the solid material (an aluminium alloy) and a negative charge to the motorcycle part. After the deposition process, the component is coated with clear lacquer.
In the past, Harley-Davidson has used the PVD process on small parts such as tank medallions and exhaust trim. The fenders and fuel tank of the Fat Boy Gray Ghost are the first time it has been used on such large parts of a Harley. The precision of the coating results in a unique finish that looks like chrome, but has advantages over conventional chrome plating. Most importantly, it meets H-D standards for corrosion resistance that would be impossible to achieve with a conventional chrome finish on these parts.
The frame is powder coated in a light silver colour and chrome side covers complete the glossy look. Styling cues inspired by the original Fat Boy include a round air cleaner, yellow badging on the lower rocker boxes, engine covers and tank console insert, a seat with lacing and leather tassels and a black leather tank strap with lacing. The three-dimensional tank medallions are also based on the winged tank graphics of the original Fat Boy model. The serial number is engraved on the tank console and there is a medallion on the rear mudguard to identify the bike as part of the Icons Collection.
The Fat Boy’s distinctive Lakester alloy wheels add to its stunning appearance. They are shod with Michelin Scorcher 11 tyres in sizes 160/60 R18 (front) and 240/40 R18 (rear).
Fat Boy Gray Ghost Gallery
The history of an icon
In 1990, at a time when the motorcycle media and the majority of motorcyclists were obsessed with ever more powerful sport bikes, the Harley-Davidson Fat Boy struck like a thunderous heavy metal chord. The Fat Boy was inspired by a custom bike based on the H-D Softail platform created at Harley-Davidson Montréal in 1987. Managing director Duc Dufour and workshop worker Denis Lavoie developed this machine and christened it the Lowboy. It had hidden rear suspension, an alloy disc wheel, a fibreglass front fender and wide handlebars.
Harley-Davidson manager Jerry Wilke spotted it and sent one to Milwaukee. The bike inspired the H-D styling team led by Willie G. Davidson and Louie Netz to create the Fat Boy.
“The wheels are the most important feature of the 1990 Fat Boy,” says Davidson in his book ‘100 Years of Harley-Davidson’. “We wanted to create a distinctive look with the disc wheels. We took it to the next level with a solid silver paint job and a silver powder coated frame. Now that the whole bike was silver, we needed something even brighter to set it off.
So I added yellow trim to the rocker boxes, clutch cover, ignition cover and ignition switch. We built a prototype Fat Boy and took it to Daytona to get personal feedback from the riders.
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More InformationNo other manufacturer would have had the chutzpah to call a motorcycle Fat Boy.
“You might be wondering how we came up with the name Fat Boy. I’ve heard a lot of stories about it, almost all of them untrue,” says Davidson. “Here’s the real story: it’s not easy to come up with a name that’s as memorable as it is popular. We were looking for something unusual, maybe even irreverent, and there’s something cool about poking fun at your own products from time to time. To me and many other insiders who had seen the bike, it just looked really cool. That’s how the marketing people came up with the name Fat Boy.
Fat Boy models in the mirror of time
1990: Fat Boy debuts in a single colour: Fine Silver Metallic. It is powered by the rigidly mounted Evolution V-Twin engine.
1991: The Fat Boy becomes even more famous thanks to its appearance in the film “Terminator 2: Judgment Day”. Arnold Schwarzenegger rides it through Los Angeles in a dramatic chase scene. The film became a worldwide blockbuster and helped establish the Fat Boy as the Harley-Davidson brand in many markets, particularly in Europe. One of the bikes used in the film is now part of the collection at the Harley-Davidson Museum.
2000: The Twin Cam 88B engine with balancer shafts is used for the first time on Softail models, including the Fat Boy.
2005: The limited edition CVO Fat Boy, powered by the 103 Twin Cam, is produced for two years. Styling highlights include modified rear suspension, steel pan style seat, chrome cover behind rider seat and new Metal Grind finish with three paint options.
2010: The Fat Boy Lo’s seat height is lowered to 24.25″ thanks to modified front and rear suspension and a lower profile seat.
2016: Powered by the mighty Screamin’ Eagle Twin Cam 110, the Fat Boy S is available in Dark Custom styling.
2018: The Fat Boy is one of eight revolutionary Softail models based on an all-new chassis with rear monoshock and Milwaukee-Eight V-twin engines with twin balancer shafts. Although the styling is new – a massive front end with a new headlamp shape and a wide 240 rear – the bike is obviously still a Fat Boy.
2020: Harley-Davidson celebrates its iconic motorcycle with the introduction of the Fat Boy 114 30th Anniversary Limited Edition. Limited to 2,500 units, the anniversary Fat Boy features a dark finish with bronze accents and is powered by a Milwaukee-Eight 114 engine.
Mythic Fat Boy– the cult-bike of the Harley-Boom years
1990 FLSTF Fat Boy
Checking out the myths of the Fat Boy: What is the thruth behind legends and fairy tales of Willie G.’s design masterpiece?
It is one of the definite Harley icons of modern times – and there is no doubt that the Harley-Davidson “Fat Boy” of 1990 model year fame will be a highly demanded “classic” with extreme collector’s value coming up in the future. Especially when a bike has been preserved as well as the FLSTF from the Andreas Bergerforth collection. His “Thunderbike Classics” can be seen in the Thunderbike showroom in Hamminkeln or – if still under restoration – parked in the storage rooms. The bikes are put in the spotlight for special occasions – and what better occasion than the 35th anniversary of the “Fat Boy” premiere for the 1990 model year?
One outstanding model in Harley-History: 1990 FLSTF „Fat Boy“ in (almost) stock configuration, owned by Andreas Bergerforth.
Just in time for the introduction of the 2025 Fat Boy „Gray Ghost“ THUNDERBIKE rolled the first „Fat Boy“ into the spotlight.
FL fork, floorboards and disc wheels are trademarks of the bold „Fat Boy“ of 1990.
Harley-Davidson Press photo of 1989. In Germany focus was on other events, as the GDR broke down – and with it the „Iron Curtain“!
The Fat Boy is Harley’s „macho bike“ par excellence
The “Fat Boy” is associated with the brand’s ground-breaking success in the 1990s like no other machine, even the „Softail“. As so many successful HD models of that time, the “Fat Boy” was created on the sketchpad of Head of Design Willie G. Davidson, who was able to dig into Harley-Davidson’s design history for this model. Also involved in the development, the often forgotten assistant Louie Netz, who worked as Willie G’s right-hand man from 1974 and retired in 2008 as Executive Vice President of Styling and Design.
For the period of the most important Harley-Davidson models in the transition from the Shovelhead to the Evolution, Willie G. and Louie Netz were the brand’s only permanently employed “designers” – and were kept busy with countless projects, especially in the 1980s. The “Fat Boy” was one of the “long-term” developments – a motorcycle on which even the smallest details were fine-tuned for over a period of more than two years. This was also reflected in the success of the finished product.
Harley’s God of Design: Willie G. Davidson
To understand Willie G. Davidson’s designs, you don’t have to ask for long: both in many personal conversations and in his memoirs “Ride Free”, well worth reading, he freely admits which motorcycle his ideas are based on: The 1936 EL. There are several “Knuckleheads” in Willie G.’s garage and the Harley-Davidson Museum contains “classic” Harleys from all model years. The museum collection also acts as “reference collection” for Harley stylists of today, as the “Gray Ghost” special model of the “Fat Boy” presented in spring 2025 clearly underlines.
As early as 1988 and 1989, Willie G. Had ridden pre-production prototype to Daytona Bikeweek – as he had done many times before to find out how the public reacted to his ideas. Even back then, Daytona was the Mecca of crazy bike creations and a showcase for trends and ideas. Not just for the Harley scene. Until the 2000s, Willie and his team always rolled into Daytona on two wheels – and selected prototypes or designer custom bikes were displayed in the HD Indoor Shows. The Harley-Davidson “Ride-In” shows attracted the most unusual custom creations to the Ocean Center on Wednesday to be „inspected“ by Harley experts and Willie G.. During these years, one of the inspirations for the disc wheels of the “Fat Boy” was shown in the “Rolling Harley Museum”, a truck converted into a museum: Joe Petrali’s Rekord Knucklehead.
Daytona Bike Week 2012: Willie G. Davidson as „object of art“, painted „live“ on stage at the Ride-In Show, then held on Beach Street.
Daytona 2009, Harley-Davidson press-reception. Willie G. Always had time for the media. And a Sharpie pen to sign!
Daytona 2005, HD Indoor Show. With Nancy Davidson and Jeff Decker. This is where the idea for Decker’s HD-Museum sculpture originated.
Daytona 2008, HD Press room: Willie G. and the author at the promotion of the 105th HD anniversary.
Harley-legend on disc wheel: Joe Petrali Record-EL
To underline the performance of the new OHV twin, Harley-Davidson planned to enter the tough battle for the world „motorcycle land speed record“. In the Thirties, these record rides still took place on the beaches of Daytona Beach. The starting line was at Ormond Beach, where hotels and garages were available. What made the Daytona record runs “interesting” was the fact that all riders, motorcycle and car, had to pass through a narrow opening in the Daytona Pier – at full throttle. The lanes can still be seen today, but car and motorcycle traffic on the beach is now prohibited.
On March 13th 1937, Petrali achieved an average speed of 136.183 mph (approx. 219 km/h) from two measured record runs. Just as interesting as the motorcycle itself is a one-page “specification sheet” for the machine, which was obviously written before the machine was built. Even at the time of writing, it was assumed that it might be necessary to remove the fairing or rear section. There was also an alternative with spokes for the disk-shaped front wheel – actually the installed narrow spoke wheel was covered with „wheel disks“ that already existed as period accessories. The purpose of the “wheel disks” was the (assumed) reduction of air resistance through the spokes when the wheel was turning fast. However, the sensitivity to crosswinds – always an issue on the Atlantic beach at Daytona – was massively increased! The record was driven without wheel disks.
The (unfortunately) restored Petrali record bike in the Harley-Museum in Milwaukee – only visible from the right side.
One of the promotion-shots of 1936/37: Note the extensive streamlining of primary and tailend. No wheel discs covering the rear wheel (Harley-Archives).
The right view: Two wheel discs are clamped with eight screws. The small fairing was welded from two tank halves! (Harley-Archives)
Ted Smith of the Rat‘s Hole Show commissioned the creation of a replica. The original race did not feature gearbox and only ONE gear!
Disc Wheel, first try: 1984 FXRDG Disc Glide
The “Fat Boy” was not the first attempt at Harley to realize the idea of a disc wheel. This honor goes to the FXRDG “Disc Glide”, which was only built for the 1984 model year and was an offshoot of the FXRS “Low Glide”. From Willie G. Davidson’s memoirs (Ride Free, p. 132) we learn that Willie rode to Sturgis for the first time in 1980 (!) with a customized “Wide Glide”: featuring belt drive and rear disk wheel. The bike was further modified and upgraded in 1981 and 1982 and rolled to South Dakota a second and third tour on a disk wheel. These were turbulent years of change for Harley-Davidson – and the idea of the disc wheel is older than one may think!
Whether “early” FXRDGs were still fitted with a Shovelhead engine – as was the case with the FXRS, FXRT and FXST “Softail” models – is debatable. It is possible. The “Disc Glide” was of course overshadowed by the newly introduced “Softail” models and was already canceled for the 1985 model year. Engine specialist Bernd Kramer owns an almost original “Disc Glide”, today a very rare collector’s item!
Only 853 „Disc Glides“ were assembled. Bernd Kramer owns the rare FXR offspring in stock condition!
The disc wheel of the FXRDG certainly resembles an aircraft wheel.
Even on the left side of the wheel: All disc! Even the sprocket. Note the downward pointing chain protection welded to the swingarm!
Low riding position – and for Harley-Davidson very close to a „Soft-Chopper“. The Disc Glide lasted only one model year!
Disc Wheels all over: The 1990 FLSTF Fat Boy
In 1988, Harley-Davidson celebrated a rousing 85th birthday in Milwaukee and announced the return of the Springer fork with the FXSTS. Also in an 85th Anniversary paint job. The design of the “Fat Boy” was part of the FLST development plan, i.e. those Softail models that continued the tradition of the FL tourers with “fatter” tire sizes at the front. The massive fork with the metal-made fork covers is reminiscent of the original “Hydra-Glide” of 1949, when the telescopic fork was finally introduced at Harley-Davidson. A huge headlight sits on the sheet metal fairing and is just as much a hallmark of the “Fat Boy” as the massive 16-inch disk wheels. The “Fat Boy” was derived from the “Softail Custom” and “Heritage Softail Classic” models. In the 1990s, when sophisticated aerodynamic designs and lightweight sports bikes were the selling points, a disk wheel was an anachronism – and especially in Europe highly controversial.
In fact the distinctive look of the “Fat Boy” was so at odds with established styles that there were only two options for this machine: top or flop. For the 1990 model year, the “Fat Boy” was presented to an astonished public and press: The „massive“ appearance of the “Fat Boy” is further emphasized by the construction, because everything on this bike is “heavy metal”. Fender, tank and oil tank are pressed from massive sheet metal – and the accessories are also machined from solid metal. At the beginning of the 90s, Harley-Davidson already had a good feeling what customers wanted. A big bike could sometimes weigh 300 kg.
The first FLSTF. The air filter shows a „Fat Boy“ lettering. The now iconic logo was modified in 35 years model history but remains young and up-to-date.
Floorboards are another trademark detail of the „Fat Boy“. As the Evo engine was known for „Good Vibrations“, rubber plates are additional suspended by springs. The „Buckhorn“ handlebar offered a perfect control of the heavy machine. Arnie wasn’t a passionate „Biker“. When riding the Fat Boy at filming T-2 he was often asked to speed up.
Willie G. emphasizes the effort involved in the development
Again and again, the signal color yellow comes up: The ring around the main ignition switch is painted yellow. Clutch cover in „custom“ version featuring machined grooves and yellow ring.
Fitting custom „Pointer Cover“. Stock installed was a „V2“ logo cover as on other Evo-models. Up. To the introduction of the Milwaukee Eight THE iconic Fat Boy front end. Metal cover over triple-trees and fork and HUGE headlight in Hydra Glide style.
In “Ride Free”, Willie G. emphasizes the effort involved in the development: “The front fender was made a little narrower than the ordinary „touring“ fender and was especially for this model” – which required a new tool to press the shape of the part in mass production. The newly developed cast aluminum disc wheels are the Fat Boy essential “look”, but are only part of the design package. Probably for the first time in Harley mass production, the frame color is not black but silver – matching the paint finish of the 1990 premiere model sheet metal. Distinctive yellow accents on the cylinder head, central switch and covers will be discussed later, as they have become one of the reasons for some „myths“ of the name.
For his “Fat Boy”, Willy G. designed a new and timeless logo in „Americana style with a star in the center and „U.S.A.“ lettering at the base, framed by two wings. Patriotic and nostalgic at the same time“, quote Willie G.. And still state-of-the-art, 35 years after its premiere. “The Fat Boy prototype had some leather details and also panniers,” says Willie G., “of which only the seat with the side straps and loops on the right and left and the leather part on the tank, based on a classic kidney belt, remained in the series production.” The exhaust system was new, and the unpainted silver-on-silver Evo engine was given a new clutch and a one-piece right-hand crankshaft half. The Evolution engine had now been introduced and in production for five years – and was reliable, the gearbox had 5 gears.
As all Harley-models of that period, the “Fat Boy” made use of the smart „modular system“ that had long proven itself at Harley-production. „Top“ was the way to go – and sales were excellent. The “Fat Boy” was the right bike at the right time – and the „macho machine“ soon made its big appearance on movie screens: In “Terminator 2”. The scene in which Arnold Schwarzenegger “borrows” his outfit in a biker bar remains mega cool – and the jump into L.A.’s water canal is a movie icon of its own…
The leather seat, designed by Willie G. Is comfortable and features numerous details. Many FLSTF riders consequently kept their stock seat.
Probably the first production Harley with a silver painted frame! The yellow paint on the cylinder head covers had to be heat resistant.
One disc in front was always enough to stop the Fat Boy. The front fender is tight to the tire and features four rivets on each side.
The 16-inch front wheel and the fender form a harmonic unit.
Not exactly stock: Other countries have the benefit of smaller license plates. Fortunately, Thunderbike offers license plate brackets for all sizes!
Customized Stock: The stock taillight plastic was modified by adding a „Blue Dot“. A relict of the „Hot Rod“ era, these little blue lenses are meant to act as contrast to the red tail-/brakelight.
In some US-States, „Blue Dots“ remain illegal. On installation, you should have a spare lense in red or a stock taillight cover available.
Upgraded: not stock but certainly a choice for better performance: stainless steel caliper to the stock front brake caliper.
About Atom bombs and Terminators
The myths of the „Fat Boy“ – #1: The name and the Bombe
There is a persistent myth that the model name “Fat Boy” is made up of the names of the two atomic bombs dropped on Japan – supplemented by the often-spread myth that the bike’s design is based on the Boeing B-29. In fact, this myth only really took off years after the introduction of the “Fat Boy”, coinciding with the worldwide spread of the Internet and various websites that continue to fuel such rumors. This myth has even left the wildest misconceptions in the literature. Make up your own mind from what are todays „facts“.
1990: Yellow accents and patriotic design on the first Fat Boy fueled the rumors…
The 2016 tank comtinued the tradition. Matt black now is THE color of the season – and the 110 Screamin‘ Eagle Twin Cam is really fun to ride!
2021 M8 Fat Boy: The 3D logo makes a „bold“ statement in design of the latest Fat Boy model year!
10 years after introducing the „Fat Boy“, the search for fitting names is much more sophisticated and complicated: A gigantic „brainstorming“ list of proposed names for the V-Rod was made public at the X-Collection exhibition! Who may have introduced „Broiler“ to the list…
The naming of many individual Harley models from the 70s and 80s was rather spontaneous and unregulated. It should be remembered that Knuckle-, Pan- and Shovelhead came from the riders themself and the name „Blockhead”, introduced by Harley-Davidson for the Evo engine did not prevail (for given reasons…): Who wanted to ride a „blockhead” (= stupid/dumbhead/idiot)? Harley-Davidson lifted the cover on the naming process for the “V-Rod” at the “Collection X” exhibition in 2011 and presented a huge list of possible names, including “Broiler” (!). Before that, there always was a “camouflage name” for individual models for development (as with the NOVA models) and later the actual “product name”, supplemented by the model series abbreviation. Example “Super Glide” FX as a combination of FL engines/frame with XL Sportster fork. Harley had established the name “Fat Bob” FXEF of 1979 as an offspring of the “Super Glide” – so the name component “Fat” was already established.
The Kokura/Nagasaki bomber: „Bock‘s Car“ at the US Air Force Museum in Dayton/Ohio. Next to it replicas of the A-bombs dropped. Almost precise replica of the „Fat Man“ housing next to the open bomb bay of Frederik Bock’s „Bock‘s Car“. (Photos: Robert Bryden)
The small but interesting Wendover Field Museum also has a „Little Boy“ replica. In authentic color? Outside the museum buildings a rusty hull of a training bomb is fading away. Scale model diorama in Wendover: „Little Boy“ was lifted into the forward bomb bay of the „Silverplate“ B-29 with a mobile lift. urde über eine Hebebühne in den vorderen Bombenschaft der „Silverplate“ B-29 eingehängt. Special pits were dug in Wendover and Tinian.
That the product name “Fat Boy” was composed of the bomb names “Fat Man” (Nagasaki) and “Little Boy” (Hiroshima) has been denied by all Harley sources and this is probably also the true story. In several books/memoirs are statements on this (Vaughn Beals, Willie G, etc.). Apart from these Harley sources and (even if there were no “PC” (Political Correctnes) concerns back then like they are today) Harley would not be THAT insensitive to name a motorcycle after the only atomic bombs ever dropped. Additionally, and then not widespread publicized: Harley had just pulled in another $9.8 million follow-on defence contract for practice bombs for the US Air Force in 1988, delivery starting in April 1989 – so they’d be a little more cautious about naming their motorcycles after bombs.
B-29 special Silverplate version
Sources for the naming of the different atomic bomb versions are now also available on the Internet, where numerous released materials can now be seen and read – also about the B-29 bomber and the special „Silverplate” version, which differed considerably from the other B-29’s. The short version: The original idea of an atomic bomb consisted of two subcritical plutonium masses that were to be shot into each other in a long tube to become “critical”. The codename of this bomb was “Thin Man”, after a well-known detective series. Due to the necessary length of the tube and the danger of premature detonation, the “Thin Man” principle was replaced in favor of an explosive charge acting on a round plutonium core by focusing the explosive power and compressing the core to „critical“. Result: The “Fat Man” bomb, named after a novel/movie character from “The Maltese Falcon” in 1941, as it was tested at Los Alamos and was to be dropped on Kokura on August 9th. Nagasaki was “only” a secondary target. “Thin Man” and “Fat Man” were also the codenames for Roosevelt and Churchill, for whom, according to another “cover story”, specially armored railroad cars were to be built under the codename “Silverplate”. It was actually the codename for the specially equipped B-29s of the 509th Composite Group, which had been stripped of all armament except for the tailgun, special bomb bay doors had been fitted and the outer skin had been polished to a high gloss finish for speed.
With the discontinuation of the “Thin Man”, research concentrated on the “Fat Man” design and the “Little Boy” bomb developed in parallel, whose uranium-238 masses were shot at each other at a shorter distance – and of which it was certain that it would work. So sure, in fact, that this design was not even “tested” until it was dropped on Hiroshima.
Almost correct, if the background painting would be Tinian: Paul Tibbets had the name of his mother painted to the plane the evening of the mission. Tibbets „patched over“ plane and crew of Robert A. Lewis who, now Co-Pilot, felt betrayed (for some reason) for the fame and glory to be the first pilot to drop an A-bomb. Worse felt his co-pilot Dick McNamara, who was left at Tinian!
Replica of the „Little Boy“ Uranium bomb at the US Air Force Museum in Dayton Ohio. (Photo: Robert Bryden)
One of the most impressive buildings surviving the former airbase: Todays „Enola Gay“ hangar is under restauration for decades.
SAC Museum Nebraska: Yellow Rings mark a former hot Mark 36 Hydrogen-Bomb. 10 Megatons are a true blast!
Visible like a field full of rape blossoms
„Paul was here“. Paul Tibbets signed the „Little Boy“ replica in the Wendover Museum along with other mission members. Museum and Tower Replica in Wendover. Today an airport for the Casino-resorts in neighboring Nevada, as Wendover Airfield is situated on the Utah Seite. As are the Bonneville Salt Flats.
Another survivor in the SAC Museum. Now re-painted as „Lady Luck“ this B-29 was delivered on August 4th 1945! Model of the B-29 production at the SAC Museum in Omaha/Nebraska.
While “Bock’s Car”, flown on August 9th by the crew of “The Great Artiste”, the science instrumet droping aircraft crew of the Hiroshima mission, has long been parked in the US Air Force Museum in Dayton/Ohio, the “Enola Gay” of first atomic bomb dropping fame has long since been a subject of dispute. The historic aircraft had already been transferred to the Smithsonian Museum in August 1946, but it took until 1995 (!) – the 50th anniversary of Hiroshima – for the front fuselage segment to be exhibited in Washington. Since 2003, the entire plane is now on display near Washington Dulles Airport.
In nature, the color yellow is always a color that signals “Attention, caution, danger”: Bees, wasps, sulphur, barrier tape, signs, markings – and even the later introduced “Radioactive” logo are just a few examples. The yellow accents on the “Fat Boy” are discreet, but definitely style-defining. And as visible as a field full of rapeseed flowers!
WWW rising, the increasing release of earlier “top secret” photos and films fueled the discussion about the “Fat Boy” christening: On film recordings of the preparation of the Kokura/Nagasaki bomb – Youtube only went “online” in 2005, which is often forgotten today – it can be clearly seen that the round bomb casing of the “Fat Man” plutomium bomb is in the basic color yellow. Probably – also for better visibility – the casings of the numerous “practice bombs” that were dropped over the USA and the “live” “test bombs”, i.e. those filled with conventional explosives, as they were dropped by the 509th Composite Group during test missions in the Pacific. Why the bomb bodies were additionally spraypainted red and black after assembly of the front and rear covers – possibly to detect leaks – is not known. Today’s museum replicas are based on these photographs.
Conclusion: If you want, you can also find links to fuel the myth – but you should also listen to the „genuine witnesses” – like Willie G.. He should know! That does’t change the facts that landing gears of the B-29 had disc wheels – and rubber tires. Last but not least: Yellow markings, i.e. circular lines around a bomb body (also on nuclear weapons) signal a “live” weapon loaded with explosives in the US armed forces. As a Harley chief designer, you don’t need to know this, but many “veteran” Harley riders will probably still have it in the back of their minds…
The Terminator II Stunt
The myths of the Fat Boy – #2: The Terminator II Stunt
The “Fat Boy” with the extra weight of the T800 crashes onto the concrete, sparks fly, but the Terminator stays cool and follows the “wrecker” truck of the T1000, which is chasing John Connor. It is a cinematic moment that made film history: with the throttle open, the “Terminator” T800 aka Arnold Schwarzenegger, or rather his stunt double Peter Kent, ride the machine over a concrete embankment and jumps more than three meters deep into a water canal.
Arnie starts the chase at the channel. Position change from motorcycle- to static camera. Approx. 20 jumps were performed for testing and different takes. The light must have been a real challenge to finish the work and to match the different sequences!
Contact ahead! The confluence of the canals was modified to have a wider and thus saver jump-off point.
On to the rescue, certainly no easy stunt: Brand chance from der Honda to Harley. The Wrecker is ready for the scrapyard…
…and follows the Honda XR 100 seconds later as total write-off at another channel bridge. Think about living next to the stuntsite…
…and still have something to Bragg about! This Screenshot shows one of the most dramatic scenes of T-2 „Judgement Day“.
The John Connor chase sequence is breathtakingly cut and edited – and was filmed at numerous different locations, often far apart. For example, the locations for the truck jump at the Plummer Street/Hayvenhurst Avenue intersection and the legendary Fat Boy jump into the canal are 8.7 miles apart and not even in the same canal. Although the Fat Boy Jump location is kept somewhat „secret“ on the internet, it only takes a little satellite time to find the spot. The exact location: View from the Nettleton St. Bridge over the confluence of Hansen Heights Channel and La Tuna Canyon Lateral, Los Angeles, CA 91352, USA at 8604 Glencrest Drive and 8600 Glenoaks Boulevard.
The precise location: View from the Nettleton Street bridge to the confluence of Hansen Heights Channel and La Tuna Canyon Lateral, Los Angeles, CA 91352, USA at the location of 8604 Glencrest Drive and 8600 Glenoaks Boulevard. Without the T-2 additions, the confluence is somewhat more streamlined.
The T-800 on the Rampe. Invisible from this angle: The motorcycle is already „flying“ on the cable and remains stable and straight in the air while being lowered onto the ground.
What is perhaps surprising is the realization that the Terminator II “Fat Boy” is NOT a 1990 Fat Boy. The 1990 model year only saw the FLSTF with the silver paint finish and silver frame – it was only for the 1991 model year that the “Fat Boy” was also delivered with other paint options. Including “Vivid Black”, like the movie bikes. Filming for T2 lasted from October 9th 1990 to March 28th 1991 – by which time the 1991 FLSTF’s had long been available. It was equally surprising that James Cameron did not resort to the “product placement” so widespread today for the Harley’s and asked Harley for motorcycles: The team aquired four 1991 „Fat Boy“ at local dealerships and had two of them converted with modified carburetors and exhaust systems. It is impossible to state which of these bikes was used for the jump. Quite a few things were broken during the test “jumps”. As we know today, the stunt machine was suspended on sliding cables and balanced in such a way that it only weighed 80 kg (instead of 300+ series kg of 1990) on the wheels during the moment of “impact”. Until the take was “in the can”, the (still breathtaking!) jump was repeated twenty (20 !!) times. The cables were later digitally removed. The only recognizable license plate from the chase in the channel has the Californian registration “9A7218”.
With the dominance of the Fat Boy stunt, it is often forgotten that both the John Connor character (on a 1990 Honda XR 100) and the T1000 (Robert Patrick & Stunt Double) performed impressive stunts: like the jump out of the window into a flying helicopter, performed with a Honda XR 500 converted to look like a Kawasaki Z 1000 P. If you don’t believe it, you can try to ride up a stairwell with a Z 1000. You shouldn’t try the legendary T2 stunt either – it won’t work. Life is not a movie – and physics cannot be cheated…
Poster/Cover Terminator 1 to 6
The full story on two wheels: Terminator 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6
TERMINATOR 1 (1984)
Even if it seems different from todays viewpoint: Terminator I in 1984 was a low budget movie, filmed for 6.4 million US-$ and with a Schwarzenegger who yet was only known for the “Conan” character at the time and a James Cameron who had shot “Piranha II – Flying Killers” in 1981. The then “evil” T-800 rode a 1972 Honda CB 750 K2 customized Café Racer/sportsbike, not really a then „hipp“ sportsbike in 1984, but cheap. The ride ends up as scrap metal in the chase scene coming out of the 2nd Street Tunnel between Hill Street and Figueroa St., presumably on LA’s 1st Street Bridge, which is always a popular movie location. For mentioning all two wheelers: Sarah Conner rides a 1984 Honda CH125 Elite scooter…
TERMINATOR 3 - Rise of the Machines (2003)
A touchy subject for all Harley-Davidson AND Indian officials: The third Terminator movie became already difficult during the development of the movie. Numerous actors from the second part dropped out of the cast for various reasons – and Arnold Schwarzenegger was aiming to become Governor of California. With a production budget of 187 million US dollars, the film was almost twice as expensive as T-2, which resulted in product placement deals with Pepsi and Toyota. Harley-Davidson – then at the pinnacle of the Harley boom with the introduction of the V-Rod and on the direct way to the company’s 100th anniversary – probably did not see it as necessary to repeat the success of the “Fat Boy” in T2. A new “old” traditional brand took its place, whether through “inner-Californian” connections or money: Indian. Not today’s “Indian” as part of Polaris-Industrie, but an “Indian Motorcycle Company of America” that had emerged from the “California Motorcycle Company” in Gilroy/California and had come into possession of the brand name through a connection with IMCOA Licensing America Inc. and a 1998 court ruling in Colorado.
Around the turn of the millennium, there were numerous “clone brands” that used aftermarket V-2 engines to fill-in the buyer demand, especially in the USA, that Harley-Davidson could not (yet) satisfy with its production numbers. The now called “Gilroy Indians” were (in principle) clone Harleys, assembled from S&S engines, Custom Chrome and Corbin parts. What a look at the map reveals: Gilroy, the „Garlic Capital“ of the USA, is situated exactly between Morgan Hill (then Custom Chrome HQ) and Hollister, the home of Corbin seats and „birthplace of the Outlaw Biker“. The T3 movie bikes already have the 100 CuIn “Bottlecap” S&S engine from 2002, which was to give the Gilroy Indians their own character. When filming for T3 began in April 2002, “IMCA” had just received an infusion of millions in investor money (the check was presented at the 100th Indian anniversary in Springfield in August 2001 with the author present). Despite the still booming demand for V-Twin powered clone-hogs, the bet was – given the rate at which money was being “burned” in Gilroy for various purposes – that it would last two years. It lasted exactly two years and one month: on September 19, 2003, IMCA filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. T3 „Rise of the Machines“ had only been in theaters for two months…
The Corbin fairing of the Terminator 3 bikes is signed by the Corbin development team and hangs in the showroom in Hollister/California.
Pionier in electric powered vehicles. Motorcycle seats and fairings. Mike Corbin in 2004.
The Corbin „Merlin“, powered by a Twin Cam motor was a child of the Harley-boom, yet years too early.
TERMINATOR 4 - Salvation (2009)
Probably the most implausible motorcycle application of all times – in a “Terminator” movie without Arnold Schwarzenegger: In an apocalyptic future of destroyed cities and traffic routes, it takes a pretty stupid „AI“ to create such a useless vehicle as the „Moto-Terminator“. Or scriptwriters who a) want to tie in with the motorcycle scenes from T1 to T3 and b) want to boost the toy manufacturers. Because Arnie could not return as „the Terminator“ while acting as governor of California (only briefly his image is used digitally), the plot is set almost entirely in the future. How an „AI“ like Skynet, which in addition to flying “hunter-killers” also has tracked vehicles and increasingly advanced humanoid killing machines like the T800, T1000 and T-X, suddenly puts an armed motorcycle on two wheels is something only the screenwriters can explain! Designed by Victor Martinez, a mock-up was built, even functional and rideable. A Harley connection, albeit a far fetched one: just under a year before the start of filming in March 2008, rumors of a collaboration between Ducati and Harley-Davidson fueled the scene, but Volkswagen retained the brand at the time. With production costs of 200 million, T4 Salvation remains the most expensive Terminator film to date.
TERMINATOR 5 - Genisys (2015)
“I’ll be back” – the slogan of the T800 also applied to Arnold Schwarzenegger after the end of his second term as Governor of California – and the Harley-Davidson “Fat Boy”. This time ridden by the “new” movie villain John Connor, transformed in the future into a T-3000, who walks burning (!) across Conzelman Road on the north side of the Golden Gate Bridge, past a group of Harley riders enjoying the view of San Francisco, and (probably) grabs a „Fat Boy“ with bags for the following – CGI-generated – motorcycle chase scene. Why CGI for sure? Because it’s impossible to jump from the height of today’s “Robin Williams Tunnel” (then “Waldo Grade”) onto a bus driving along the “101” AND because of the following accident sequence, in which one of the CGI developers overshoots the mark and the Fat Boy suddenly loses its front wheel, while the fork isn’t even bent. All sequenced in split-second cuts – 7 seconds from the jump to the crash – so that you don’t notice it in the movie. The entire “Golden Gate” school bus sequence is CGI, the „Bus flip“ filmed near New Orleans on a 500 foot bridge set-up, because closing this bridge for filming is more than ambitious.
TERMINATOR 6 - Dark Fate (2019)
35 years after T1 and 27 years after T2, “Dark Fate” finally brings the “Terminator” saga to a crashing halt and „box office bomb“: The T-800 aka Arnie (born in 1947!) now at age 72 and Linda Hamilton (1956) at 61 reprise their 1991 characters! And in keeping with todays pc movie politics, three women play the (rather implausible) leading roles, the “evil” Rev-9 is of course male. Even more „believable”: the T-800 “Terminator” pats dogs and has a family – after murdering John Connor. There are no motorcycles to be seen either in Mexico (the scenes were shot in Spain…) or in the USA, as Harley-Davidson is now trying to get its bikes into films for a younger audience: Indiana Jones 4 (Softail Springer), Captain America (Softail Springer) and the Avengers (750 Street and Live Wire) are examples. The only planned motorcycle scene – the Rev-9 kills a policeman and steals his motorcycle (remember that plot…?) for pursuit – was cancelled by director Tim Miller and realized in a modified form in “Deadpool 2” (with a scooter!).
Terminator 7?? - Wheelchairminators (20??)
Following the box office flop of “Dark Fate” – originally planned as a trilogy – the “Terminator” franchise was clinically and financially „dead“. Almost. But after 9+ Star Wars, 5 Indiana Jones, 6 Jurassic Park/World, 13 Star Trek, 8 Mission Impossible, 11 Fast & Furious and soon 9 Transformer films, it’s only a matter of time before the Hollywood „time machine“ is back in motion. What used to be called „Skynet“, „Genisys“ or „Legion“ is not so far from todays “Internet” – and the toy manufacturers still have the molds and develomment teams ready. Think about it: Nothing reboots a movie series faster than a time machine. The only questions are: when will a production company find the courage and the money for the next apocalypse? How long until Arnold (78 years old on July 30, 2025) has to be completely animated? Who will fight over the script and characters this time?
Not in question: the PERFECT Harley-Davidson for the shoot! Harley itself has already presented the Super-Terminator bike, fit for the cast itself: As part of the „Icons Motorcycle Collection“, the 2025 “Fat Boy Grey Ghost” has the shimmering metal finish of the T 1000 Robert Patrick and is as sexy as the TX “Terminatrix” Kristanna Loken from “Rise of the Machines”! For the first time, the Harley-Davidson could play the lead role! Find out the full informationen of Harley-Davidson’s new iconic Fat Boy:
