Victory Motorcycles has unveiled its first new bike in two years – a cut-down, solo-seat bobber named after a character in a Hollywood war movie. The Gunner is a no-nonsense grab for the youth market which is enchanted with simplicity, rather than chrome embellishments and hi-tech.
R. Lee Ermey
The bike is named after Hollywood actor Ronald Lee Ermey who played Gunnery Sergeant Hartman in Full Metal Jacket, which earned him a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. He’s been featured in American TV advertising for the Victory for the past couple of years.
The Victory Gunner features “Suede Titanium” paint, white-letter high-profile tyres, blackened slash-cut exhausts, black beach bars, conventional forks, 24-spoke wheels, a low 635mm solo red seat and weighs in at a comparatively svelte 294kg. Like all Victory motorcycles, it’s powered by their Freedom 106 (1731cc) 50-degree V-twin engine a six-speed transmission and carbon fibre belt drive.
It looks a little like the Judge and has similar steering and frame geometry measurements, so it should handle as well. Even the tyre sizes (130/90-16; 140/90-16) are the same as the Judge.
The low-riding Gunner will be released in April in the US for $12,999 which is only $500 more than the cheapest model, the Vegas 8-Ball. There is no word of a release date in Australia yet, but the Vegas 8-Ball is $19,995, rideaway so pricing should be around $20,000.
2015 Victory Gunner
Price: About $20,000
Warranty: 5 years
Service: 800/8000km
Engine: 1731cc, 4-valve 50° V-twin
Bore x Stroke 101 x 108 mm
Compression: 9.4:1
Transmission: 6-speed, carbon fibre reinforced belt
Fuel: 17 litre tank, 91 RON
Suspension: telescopic fork, mono shock
Dry weight: 294kg
Clearance: 119mm
Length: 2372mm
Rake: 32°
Seat: 635mm
Wheelbase: 1645mm
Tyres: Dunlop 491 / 130/90 B16 67H
Wheels: 16 x 3.5