The 1950s seem to have been a magical period in motorcycling, when manufacturers all around the world were happily throwing everything at the wall. The Cushman Super Eagle managed to stick for a while, though not as long as its makers would have hoped.
Yes, Cushman, makers of the vehicle that mall cops used to chase you with when you and your friends were skateboarding in the parking garage. They didn’t always make golf carts. Started by cousins Everett and Clinton Cushman in 1901 (also a good year for moto stuff; Indian Motocycle and Royal Enfield were founded in that same year), Cushman Motor Works of Omaha, Nebraska, put engines in all kinds of things. Early on, that included scooters.
The scooters sold reasonably well, but Cushman dreamed big. So, in the late 1950s it overhauled the look of one of its most popular models to incorporate the sort of styling seen in American big twin motorcycles from Harley-Davidson and Indian. Thus the Super Eagle was born.
Powered by a 354cc air-cooled single-cylinder engine, the Super Eagle promised a thundering 9 horsepower. This example seems to be in good condition, and video on the ad shows it being cold-started. That is to say, the seller places his hand on the engine headers for a few seconds before hitting the starter (Side note: more sellers should do this). After the sort of delayed crank one would expect from a 65-year-old engine, it fires up and delivers exactly the sort of sputter-thudding soundtrack you want from an old scooter.
Let’s see those mall cops keep up with you when you’ve got this thing!
You can find this Super Eagle for sale in Brookville, Ohio for $4,000 here on Facebook Marketplace.