Fritz W. Egli, (born June 30, 1937, in

Zurich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...

) is a Swiss former

motorcycle racer The motorcycle sport of racing (also called moto racing and motorbike racing) includes motorcycle road racing and off-road racing, both either on circuits or open courses, and track racing. Other categories include hill climbs, drag racing and ...

. He is known as a

motorcycle frame A motorcycle frame is a motorcycle's core structure. It supports the engine, provides a location for the steering and motorcycle suspension, rear suspension, and supports the rider and any passenger or luggage. Also attached to the frame are the ...

specialist, and engine tuner.

History

Egli founded his motorcycle speed shop in 1965. One of his first vehicles included a

Vincent Vincent (Latin: ''Vincentius'') is a masculine given name originating from the Roman name ''Vincentius'', which itself comes from the Latin verb ''vincere'', meaning "to conquer." People with the given name Artists *Vincent Apap (1909–2003) ...

Black Shadow, with what was to become his signature large diameter central tube which won a 1968 motorcycle hill climb championship. He went on to become famous for his frame designs for the large Japanese motorcycle engines of the 1970s, especially the

Honda CB750 The Honda CB750 is an air-cooled, Transverse engine, transverse, Straight-four engine, in-line-four-cylinder-engine motorcycle made by Honda over several generations for year models 1969–2008 with an upright, or Types of motorcycles#Standard, ...

Four and the first big four-stroke motorcycles of Kawasaki. His large diameter tube frame design later incorporated a honeycomb internal section which was suggested by a visiting Australian in 1979. This suggestion greatly increased the rigidity of the frame. Today, he builds frames for the

Yamaha Yamaha may refer to: People * Torakusu Yamaha, a Japanese businessman and founder of the Yamaha Corporation Companies * Yamaha Corporation, a Japanese musical instrument and audio equipment manufacturer ** Yamaha Music Foundation, an organi ...

V-Max and others. Egli took the Japanese engines, enhanced them for increased power, then placed them into his own frame designs. The main backbone pipe of his designs are about 12 cm in diameter and they use straight pipes exclusively, avoiding the "bends and curlicues" L. J. K. Setright in "Bike" magazine issue #1 of frames such as the

Norton Featherbed The featherbed frame was a motorcycle frame invented by the McCandless brothers and offered to the British Norton motorcycle company to improve the performance of their racing motorcycles in 1950. It was considered revolutionary at the time,"'' ...

. Egli-framed motorcycles have an enthusiastic following which meets annually. Egli influenced other frame builders who went on to build their own 'straight-tube' frames, including the Healey brothers whose

Healey 1000/4 The Healey 1000/4 is a British motorcycle made by the Healey brothers between 1971 and 1977. Fitted with an improved Ariel Square Four 1000 cc engine, the Healey was cheaper than a Honda Gold Wing, but only 28 Healey motorcycles were ...

motorcycle comprised an uprated

Ariel Square Four The Square Four is a motorcycle produced by Ariel Motorcycles, Ariel between 1931 and 1959, designed by Edward Turner (motorcycle designer), Edward Turner, who devised the Square Four engine in 1928. At this time he was looking for work, showing ...

engine within an Egli-type frame.

Literature

* Jürgen Gassebner: ''Egli - The Official Book''. Element book publisher, Schlierbach 2007, . * Philippe Guyony: ''Vincent Motorcycles - The Untold Story since 1946''. Veloce Publishing 2016, .

References

External links

EGLI-Motorradtechik AG
{{DEFAULTSORT:Egli, Fritz Swiss motorcycle designers 1937 births Living people Swiss motorcycle racers