Following the Japanese Bike Boom, the industry was hit by overstocked warehouses, a tariff on <750cc imported motorcycles, and a general Bike Bust.
National Cycle was in no mood to get busted, however, and continued to design and develop innovative products for motorcyclists worldwide. The polycarbonate Heavy Duty™ Windshield was expanded into a range of styles and sizes, while the world's first polycarbonate replacement screen, introduced for the BMW R100RT a year earlier, continued to sell extremely well.
The Japanese manufacturers were beginning to expand and refine their development of metric cruisers. Barry was quick to realize the importance of this growing market segment, and developed accessories and windshield applications designed exclusively for these bikes. The metric cruisers helped sell the accessories and, conversely, the range of quality accessories helped sell the bikes.
What many considered to be a passing fad or a shrinking market became a tidal wave of success for National Cycle. More importantly, National Cycle's investment in this market was a significant factor in its continued growth and development.
The hardcoated polycarbonate Heavy Duty™ line was expanded into a range of six sizes, and numerous mount kits were designed for the Japanese cruisers. This is the N2270 Chopped Heavy Duty™ on a Suzuki Intruder. The windshield features National Cycle’s Billet Trim Kit.
This is the N2290 Ranger Heavy Duty™ on a Honda VT1100C Shadow Spirit.
The N2290 Ranger Heavy Duty™ on an XLH Sportster™ – a match made in heaven.
Smaller windshields like this N222 Beaded Windshield were popular with owners of the Honda 250 Rebel and similar bikes.
The VFairing™ looks at home on a BMW R65.
National Cycle had long made windshields for scooters, but they went full force in the 1980s. Here is one of the company’s screens for the Honda Aero scooter.
This is a bolt-on option for the Yamaha Riva scooter, with QuickSet™ Mounts.
While the motorcycle market suffered a downturn in the 1980s, America was in the middle of a bicycle boom. Here is National Cycle’s Aerocarrier™, a bar-mounted aerodynamic fairing with a headlight and a cavernous storage area. It offered a verified 10% reduction in wind drag.
The Aerosport™ offered the benefits of the Aerocarrier without the headlight and on-board storage. If you wanted to ride somewhere with 10% less effort, this is how you did it.
The automotive industry came knocking with an opportunity and National Cycle created the Driver Design brand. The extensive line of hood protectors, side window deflectors and sunroof deflectors incorporated patented mounting systems and innovative design features.
National Cycle sold the brand and it continues on today as a supplier to the automotive aftermarket.
