The motorcycle design geniuses at Amen have constructed what is quite possibly the coolest looking ride I have ever seen. Called the Hubless Monster, it is essentially that – a monster chopper with incredible hubless rims that a child could literally crawl through.

The hubless wheels seem to function beautifully (video below) and work by fixing a rotating tire, internal brake ring and bearings to the outer side of a fixed hubless rim, which in turn is secured to the forks (front) and swingarm (rear).

The wheels are otherwise known as Orbital Wheels, originally designed by Dominique Mottas as an improvement on the earlier invention by Franco Sbarro. Advantages to the orbital wheel design include less weight, more accurate steering and better braking, due to the brake being considerably closer to the rim.

The Hubless Monster project began back in 2004 and upon completion achieved a number of firsts. The team claim that this mean ride is the first fully double hubless motorcycle, the first custom bike to have the world’s largest motorcycle tire, as well as the first custom bike to be built without the tires being in existence – the team had to develop the monster 360mm x 18mm (14.17″ x 0.70″) rear tire especially for the bike.

The wheels on this ride make me think of the Honeycomb Tire, with its hollow hexagons that allow bullets to pass through. The monster rear tire on the other hand…Gunbus anyone?

Sources:

Amen Motorcycles via Jalopnik