When it comes to supercharged production motorcycles, Kawasaki gets most of headlines nowadays due to their “H2” lineup, but in the late 2000s a man named Walter Roehrich stunned everyone when he created an all American sportbike pairing a frame of his own design with a supercharged Harley-Davidson 1,250cc V-Twin engine.
Roehr claimed 180 horsepower and 115 foot-pounds of torque, making it the most powerful American production bike of the time. The literal boost in power came from a belt-driven centrifugal supercharger from Rotrex in Demark – the unit weighed just 6.4 pounds and max boost was capped at 8 psi to prevent the need for an intercooler. Said supercharger is located directly above the engine, so the 3.2 gallon fuel tank is under the seat and filled through the top of the tail.
Per a Cycle World review, the frame (which was built by Framecrafters) consists of chromoly steel tubes that are stacked and welded, forming the twin spars that connect to billet aluminum swingarm-pivot plates. “Fingers insert into the main spars and are bonded with epoxy and then bolted. “It’s the epoxy that’s really doing all the work,” says [Randy] Illg of the bi-metal design, the inspiration for which came from certain Bimota models.” Dry weight was 432 pounds, almost 200 pounds lighter than the V-Rod that the Roehr borrowed the engine from.
Helping riders keep that power in check were excellent components such as forged aluminum Marchesini wheels, 4 piston radial Brembo calipers, and Ohlins suspension. There’s also several pieces from other production bikes of the day – projector-beam headlights from a Buell XB, twin silencers from a Yamaha R1, rearsets from a Suzuki GSX-R, and the side radiators from a Honda RC51.
Roehr planned on selling 50 units with a MSRP of $50,000 (at the time, a Ducati Desmosedici would set you back $72,000), but the 2008 financial crisis led to the withdrawal of most deposits and Walter ended up selling the prototype on eBay in 2009 (we believe the prototype is currently at the Barber Museum). The seller of this bike believes that only 9 were ever built and almost all of them were exported to other countries.
Manufactured in November of 2008, this example is VIN: 1R9SF280X9G648002. The seller acquired it eight years ago from Walter Roehrich.
The odometer shows 3,396 miles.
Maintenance:
“Guaranteed to run strong with nothing needed except the rear shock mount on the swingarm needs repair.”
Modifications:
Screaming Eagle performance ECU, dyno tuned by Irish Mike in Las Vegas and I installed Trask high flow injectors.
Carbon fiber hood scoop bring cool air in directly to intake.
Carbon fiber vacuum scoop louvers for dual side radiators.
Several gauges added including vacuum boost.
Billet levers and cleat pegs.
Luimoto custom seat, aftermarket tank protector.
Inside of the tank:
It is riding on Pirelli tires from 2014.
Cosmetic Blemishes: please see the album in the “Photos” tab for all known cosmetic blemishes. Here is a selection:
Currently located in Brookside, Utah, this Roehr is offered on the original MSO. Have any 1250SC stories or questions about this listing? Let us know in the “Comments” tab!
