See also: Excelsior-Henderson Motorcycle 
On April 29, 1930, the new Henderson “Special” KL solo was demonstrated on a new smooth concrete Illinois highway. Joe Petrali achieved 116.12 mph and 109.09 mph on two recorded runs, averaging 112.61. The higher compression two-ring pistons, and an enlarged 1.25 inch (32 mm) carburetor, meant the KL engine produced 45 hp at 4,500 rpm. The KL was remarkably flexible in top gear, pulling smoothly from 8 to 110 mph. They were even more popular with U.S. Police Departments.
The "Special" (KL) model was priced $30 more than the regular KJ model, and was available in 1930 and 1931.
An Unusual End
The summer of 1931 saw Schwinn call his department heads together for a meeting at Excelsior. He bluntly told them, with no prior indication, “Gentlemen, today we stop”. Schwinn felt that the Depression could easily continue for eight years, and even worsen. Despite of the full order book, he had chosen to pare back his business commitments to the core business, bicycle manufacture. By September 1931 it was all over.Brief Revival
In 1994, founded by Dan and Dave Hanlon secured the rights to the defunct Excelsior-Henderson trademark and founded the Excelsior-Henderson Motorcycle Company in Belle Plaine, Minnesota. The company declared bankruptcy in 1999 and folded soon after.References
External References
The primary source of the text for this article:- Henderson Motorcycle maintained by Michael de Whalley
The primary source of the photographs for this article:
- Henderson Streamline Models - KJ and KL maintained by Dave Hennessey
Additional Henderson motorcycle resources:
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Last updated on Wednesday May 14, 2008 at 07:21:09 PDT (GMT -0700)
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