Post Sale Update: This Husky sold for the BIN of $5,695.
Here’s a good way to confuse your riding buddies – tell them you’re about to buy a two-stroke Husky and then show up with this! Here’s a Model 301, also known as the Ornen (which translates to “Eagle”). It was Husky’s first two-stroke motorcycle.
Husqvarna actually goes back to 1689, when it was created to produced muskets – did you know that the Husky logo is a gun sight viewed from the barrel end?
Photo from Wikipedia.
A subsidiary was established in 1903 to build bikes but it would be another 15 years before they would create everything in-house. By 1939 (the year this Model 301 was released), they were Sweden’s largest motorcycle manufacturer thanks to racing success and contracts with the Swedish army. Most of you associate the brand with their off-roaders in the 60s, but they’ve also enjoyed a recent resurgence under the ownership of KTM, who acquired Husky’s bike division in 1987 (it was sold off to BMW in 2007 and then came back to KTM in 2013).
Back to the 30s – Sweden’s economy was suffering and most citizens were only able to get around via bicycle. The natural evolution was to add cheap motors to get people around quicker. In the seller’s words (and with my emphasis and a link I just found), “the young men of Sweden took this new lightweight motorcycle to their heart because enabled them to travel much farther out and meet new girls in new towns, but still make it home in the evening so they could ride to work in the morning. It is even said that these lightweight motorcycles abolished the inbreeding in the small towns of Sweden.” The Model 301 uses a 98cc two-stroke single paired with a two-speed transmission.
This example (Serial #: 12345 – no, that’s not a filler number) was originally sold to a Mr. Emanuel Sundquist on November 9, 1939. It is said to be in excellent condition except for some dents in the fuel tank. It was restored years ago and has “placed well on several recent vintage motorcycle shows.”
Find this old Husky for sale in Carmel, Indiana with a BIN of $5,695 or best offer