Victory's most recent bikes have to be seen as a legitimate alternative in the American-made cruiser market, and the outrageous Hammer has upped the ante.
Harley-Davidson may have their clamps on the American Iron market, but one manufacturer is doing its best to release the Black and Orange stranglehold:
Victory. Truth be told, Victory has been making a decent sized splash in the last few years by designing custom-looking bikes that combine plenty of performance and attitude in a factory-fresh package.
One look at the Hammer and it's clear Victory doesn't take the same approach to bike building as most manufacturers, as Duke found out late last year during its
Hammer press introduction. The first thing that stands out is not the engine, nor is it the striking Indy Red paint scheme coupled with strategically placed chrome bits. No, the rear tire on the Hammer is the first thing that catches the eye, a massive 250-series chunk of rubber that is the largest tire ever on a mass-production motorcycle.
"Even if you're not cool," says Duke, "it's nearly impossible not to feel cool when riding this fat-assed attention-getter."
The newest Victory had the potential to throw a knockout blow in this test, but aesthetics will only get you so far. Performance is the first word in this genre, so the question remained: Could the Hammer pound out a win?
Providing power is Victory's air-cooled, 100-cubic-inch Freedom V-Twin that has a nearly square bore/stroke ratio of 101mm x 102mm. A single overhead cam actuates four valves per cylinder, while electronic fuel injection feeds the air/fuel mixture through 44mm throttle bodies.
Fire up the Hammer and you'll find a pretty hefty pull on the clutch is required, and this becomes more objectionable the more you ride in traffic. Response from the rider-friendly engine is relatively smooth and is accompanied by plenty of V-Twin vibes to get your loins heated up. Twist the Vic's throttle and a belt drive puts the ponies to that huge rear shoe.
The Hammer doesn't disappoint on the dyno, pumping out a respectable 74.0 hp at 4500 rpm and 89.0 lb-ft at just 2800 rpm. Acceleration testing revealed decent performance, though it lagged behind all but the Kawasaki. Its 0-to-60 run took 4.26 seconds, and it logged a 12.68-second quarter-mile time at 106.6 mph, numbers not far off the likeable Warrior.
Here's Becklin testing the structural integrity of the Hammer's exhaust system while searching for the big bike's max lean angle.
Victory's Freedom V-Twin is a good performer, but Duke noted the engine gets thrashy and vibrates mightily up near its 5500-rpm redline. The gearbox in our well-used press-fleet Hammer seemed to be, well, hammered, as it proved to be obnoxiously loud and notchy. However, its use of an overdrive sixth gear is a class-exclusive and it proved to be a blessing during highway travel. It's all part of the quirky nature of this hunk of oil-burning love.
The Hammer positions its rider down and in the bike, and it has the lowest seat height of the bunch, just 26.4 inches from saddle to blacktop. A rider's arms sweep up to meet the raked-back V-shaped bars, and not everybody found the handlebar position to be comfortable. But on twisty roads the bars do provide good leverage for a bike that is difficult to get leaned over because of that wide rear tire.
"Its flat handlebar doesn't appeal to my frame," says the 5'8" Duke. "But it provides strong leverage that lets it steer quicker than what one might expect. Despite its fat tire, it can actually be hustled down a canyon road quite briskly, boasting nearly as much clearance as the nimbler Warrior."
Good leverage is an absolute must if you hope to get the Hammer tilted enough to actually make your way quickly through corners.
"You quickly discover why they named it the Hammer instead of the Scalpel," D.B. notes. "Getting the thing to turn can be a real challenge. It is big and long and doesn't respond to steering inputs with any kind of zeal."
Duke had a blast pushing the Hammer to its lean limitations through Malibu Canyon, though he noted that the positioning of its forward-set pegs made a rider's boot heels tend to drag on the ground before any hard parts. Once back in Oregon, Becklin thought that he could one-up Danger. Luckily he's the man writing the checks at MCUSA, which gives him the chance to see what drags on a $16,499 cruiser after the pegs touch down. Turns out the frame rails and exhaust are next, and Don left his own personal signature across the chrome pipes. Nice work, D.B.
Further evidence to why the Harley doesn't fit this category demonstrates itself on the dyno. Also of note is how the Hammer trails the VTX and Warrior in torque production, especially with its dip in power around 3200 rpm. The Meek Streak isn't even close.
Soaking up bumps in the road up front is a 43mm fork with 5.1 inches of travel, while a single mono-tube gas shock takes care of suspension duties out back. Rear suspension action turns out to be harsh due to the considerable weight of that fat back wheel and 250mm tire. Up front, the fork was soft enough that it dived excessively under the strenuous braking duties offered by the Brembo brakes.
While the Hammer proves to be a special treat, determining whether it was a legitimate performance cruiser polarized our group. It offers up enough engine performance to be in the hunt for the crown, but it didn't corner well enough to satisfy the collective.
Ultimately, it represented the 'other' American motorcycle company very well, but didn't offer the twisty-road performance we've come to expect after riding the other bikes in the class.
"Riding around town and through less demanding backroads is where the Hammer shines," says Becklin. "It's really comfortable, and when you aren't trying to ride it like a sportbike it's quite fun."
From our tester's notepads:
- This bike may look cool, but it's dynamically inelegant.
- Its puny little shift lever needs a hit of Viagra.
- Steering is impressively unaffected by trailbraking.
- This bike is freaking huge - long and wide and a little intimidating for those under a buck sixty.
