Harley-Davidson FXDR Pro Stock Goes from Sales Floor to Track
The project was first completed in digital form, and then tested in a simulated wind tunnel.
Sales Track
The new Harley-Davidson FXDR Pro Stock Motorcycle made its official NHRA debut in July 2019. The mid-season change replaced the Street Rod as the Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson team's ride of choice. The corporate agenda behind the change, according to Marketing Director Matt King, was that Harley-Davidson “wanted to align what we race at the track with what we sell.”
Photos courtesy of Dragbike.com.
Cool Performance
The FXDR is the fourth factory Harley-Davidson model that has been adapted for the NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle competition. King spoke about the production version, “The FXDR is performance inspired and in fact, drag race-inspired. It has the look, sound and feel that you get from a traditional Big Twin...and quite frankly, the Street Rod is not nearly as cool.”
Photos courtesy of Dragbike.com.
>>Join in the conversation about this FXDR Pro Stock right here in Harley-Davidson Forums.
Ergonomic Cousin
The production version of the FXDR was met with a lukewarm reception when it was rolled out in 2018. One of the major complaints was the combination of forward controls and low handlebars, which made for poor riding ergonomics. The exact opposite is true for its drag racing cousin, and team rider Angelle Sampey was especially keen to try the Pro Stock version.
Photos courtesy of Dragbike.com.
>>Join in the conversation about this FXDR Pro Stock right here in Harley-Davidson Forums.
Approved Run
Sampey stated, “This new FXDR suits me. I could tell the first time that I sat on it, I was going to be more comfortable.” At Harley-Davidson's request, the FXDR Pro Stock project began in April of 2018, Team rider Andrew Hines said, “After that, we put together a timetable to get the bodies designed, approved by NHRA, and then built to run.”
Photos courtesy of Dragbike.com.
>>Join in the conversation about this FXDR Pro Stock right here in Harley-Davidson Forums.
Racing Likeness
The FXDR project was first completed in digital form, designed to fit the existing Street Rod chassis. “This entire project was done in CAD,” said Hines. The riders were then scanned in the racing position, and their likenesses placed on the digital FXDR. The project was a collaboration between Harley-Davidson's Product Development Center, the Vance & Hines Race Shop, and the NHRA tech department.
Photos courtesy of Dragbike.com.
>>Join in the conversation about this FXDR Pro Stock right here in Harley-Davidson Forums.
Simulated Speeds
The digital FXDR and rider combination were analyzed using Computational Fluid Dynamics — a digital wind tunnel. Hines spoke of the process, “We made aerodynamic strides from the V-Rod to the Street Rod, and we didn’t want to go backward. We had problems with the V-Rod. In 2014, we changed the airbox and it caused issues.” At about 170 mph the V-Rod became hard to handle.
Photos courtesy of Dragbike.com.
>>Join in the conversation about this FXDR Pro Stock right here in Harley-Davidson Forums.
Fitted Parts
Once the digital design was finalized, full-sized molds were made of the thirty separate body parts using CNC machines and epoxy tooling board. Most of the molds and carbon fiber parts were produced at Vance & Hines in Brownsburg, Indiana, and at Gemini Technologies in East Troy, Wisconsin. The parts were then fitted by bike fabricator and race crew member Mike Mullaney.
Photos courtesy of Dragbike.com.
>>Join in the conversation about this FXDR Pro Stock right here in Harley-Davidson Forums.
Calculated Dust
Andrew Hines and Eddie Krawiec’s bikes were painted 'Performance Orange,' while Angelle Sampey’s bike got a spray of silver. The new machines were delivered prior to the Mile High Nationals at Bandimere Raceway, just outside of Morrison, Colorado. While it may seem like the FXDR drag bike came out of nowhere, it was the product of calculated testing, and a mountain of epoxy dust.
Photos courtesy of Dragbike.com.
>>Join in the conversation about this FXDR Pro Stock right here in Harley-Davidson Forums.
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