Question: Why was the biggest two-stroke bike 500cc?

[nudedaytona]

Anyone know the answer to this one:

Why were two-stroke motorcycles never bigger than 500cc?

Or did a manufacturer try making one bigger? It's something I've always wondered?

Would the power-to-weight advantage be diminished at larger sizes, or would they use too much oil?

[avgas]

er they had 750+

also 2 stroke diesels go 6L+

i suggest you do some research

[MSTRS:Me]

There were several 750 2 strokes. Suzuki GT750 'waterbus' springs to mind
The problem was getting rid of the heat the bigger capacities produced, until water cooling was introduced.

[Mr Merde]

Anyone know the answer to this one:

Why were two-stroke motorcycles never bigger than 500cc?

Or did a manufacturer try making one bigger? It's something I've always wondered?

Would the power-to-weight advantage be diminished at larger sizes, or would they use too much oil?

Seem to remember a kawasaki 750 triple that screamed. In fact at the time of its release one was expected to remove ones brain before attempting to ride this machine.

[Badjelly]

Why were two-stroke motorcycles never bigger than 500cc?

The ones I can think of > 500 cc:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suzuki_GT_750
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kawasaki_triple
http://www.superbikeplanet.com/evantz750.htm

Many of the 500 2-strokes were built to race in (or were replicas of bikes built to race in) MotoGP, which had (until 2003) a 500 cc limit.

[Badjelly]

Seem to remember a kawasaki 750 triple that screamed.

It was more of a braaaack-ring-ding-ding-clatter-roooar sort of noise. It's remarkable how much mechanical noise a big, air-cooled, two-stroke can make with so few moving parts.

[rogson]

Multis don't count - here's the granddaddy
http://www.superhunky.com/nov00rsMaico760.html

[Choco]

Kawasaki 750 triple 'widow maker'.
My old man got to ride one once, scared the shits out of him!
That bike was the fasting thing on the road at the time and had drum brakes front and rear crap handling too!

[MSTRS:Me]

It was more of a braaaack-ring-ding-ding-clatter-roooar sort of noise. It's remarkable how much mechanical noise a big, air-cooled, two-stroke can make with so few moving parts.

Or more likely to have been...
Ringa-dinga-braaarrrppp-crunch...as it put the unfortunate pilot into a tree.
Lethal powerband and worse frame

[puddytat]

A Kiwi by the name of Steadman has built a 750 3 cylinder racer based on RM250 bits...

[nudedaytona]

Did they make anything bigger than 750?

[paturoa]

Probably one of the scariest was the Yamaha OW69. Some web sites say it was 680 cc and some 600cc - either way it was a beast at Daytona.

[sidecar bob]

Check out this weapon!!!
Kenny Roberts' TZ750 dirt track racer.
http://www.motorcyclemuseum.org/classics/bike.asp?id=42

Kenny once said "They dont pay me enough to ride that thing"

[Badjelly]

Did they make anything bigger than 750?

I'm not aware of any production 2-stroke any larger than this. When the Suzuki & Kwaka 750s came out ~ 1970, 750 cc was about as big as motorbike engines got (ignoring oddballs like Harley, Vincent & Ariel). Then Kwaka moved to 4-strokes and built the Z1 900. Power outputs and engine capacities continued to climb, but the 2-strokes were left behind.

[svr]

Old Motorscrapers have 2 stroke V12 twin turbo, twin supercharged diesel engines (aboot 12l I think). They don't go that fast but with open pipes make a 500GP bike sound pretty gutless!