Just picked up a "roller" with 6" Lil Indian style mags (no lip). The frame has the straight pipe foot pegs and handlebar bends 1" above the triple tree. It also has a strange sprocket with 2 "grooves" in the face of it, looks like it is machined or stamped that way. Also has the Tecumseh hole in the motor plate and black fenders. Might be a mixture of parts, but just wondering if 6" mags came standard on any models? Trying to determine what model to build it as??
Which Lil Indian models had the 6" mags?
- Thread starter cimchazz
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Did some research on that Skyhawk and seems that model ran for a long time, and maybe later became a 2-piece frame. Pretty straight forward to restore, except for the darn disc brake caliper. Still havent seen a sproket quite like this, don't know if it's original with the 2 grooves/rings? They seem o be stamped in, they are raised on the other side.
1969 and into 1970 they were called 700's as well (most '69 were briggs ones though, the blue catalog found here in the media section shows the tecumseh models). That rear sprocket is a replacement, The stock ones normally had a center hole that matched the bearing/hub size and in fact the in the first parts listings for the cobra and skyhawk (factory dated 10-1-1970) the skyhawk is shown as using the 3rd bearing setup on it where a bearing is also installed on the sprocket as well as the wheels.......thats actually a good way to setup any of the LI bikes as it will help center and true the sprocket so the disc brake works better.
Thanks, I will replace that sprocket and put a bearing in it. I noticed the 700 had a 172cc motor instead of the 127cc that the Skyhawk had. Also, I think 700 had a chrome chain guard, different seat, and different colors than the Skyhawk, from what I have found online, so far. I am calling this a Skyhawk for now. Think I have a 3hp engine for it somewhere. Maybe I will go see Ray up a Allied later.
I almost forgot about the 700, If the forks you have are original to the frame, it's probably a 700. As Markus pointed out to me previously, the 70-71's forks bend right at the top of the triple tree ( like the 71 Skyhawk in the advertisement ) whereas the 69's bend about an inch above ( like yours ).
There's no way for me to tell what's original, all I can be sure of is that the 6" wheels fit the frame and the motor plate has a hole, so Tecumseh. Also has the larger neck. Haven't checked "VIN" yet. Haven't looked to see if there's chrome under the black fender paint, and the red frame has white under it. Dont think these came in white or were prime red white, but somebody probably painted it since the strange grooved stamped sprocket matches. I put a Tecumseh 3.5 on it today to look at it and it seemed like a tight fit. Probably need a center fill gas tank too.
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I guess around that same time there was a change from a number name to a word name, so if it had a motor plate hole and no number it could be a late '70 or early '71 Tecumseh 3.5hp Skyhawk? The 700 had 5hp and a different motor plate I think, but it's hard to say for sure because some of the bikes in the brochure pictures didn't represent what was actually produced for sale I'm told.
there is a good example of the identification decaling they used in the early 70's on bikes currently on ebay. Its on the air cleaner of the later 1970 tecumseh 3hp from a cobra a guy is parting out just searh lil indian. you can see them on other bikes as well of that era including stuff like the Ski bob they sold and even into the later 2 piece frame skyhawks of the mid 70's