On The Pegs January 2020 - Volume 5 - Issue 1 | Page 78

78
On The Pegs
1946-1960: MODERN TIMES
GOOD OLD TIMES BLOG
B y K enneth O lausson
P hotos : H usqvarna
Scrapping their 98cc light-weight machine during the war, Husqvarna took up
production again in 1946. A year after WWII came to an end there was a giant
need for inexpensive transportation. Therefore, it was decided to start manu-
facturing a 120 cc machine where footpegs replaced pedals. This economic bike
soon developed into being every man’s vehicle in Sweden.
In the legendary “Black-Mill” Husqvarna produced a 118 cc engine with model
identification 24. The single-cylinder, 2-stroke power unit had a three-speed gear-
box. The song from the exhaust pipe was well recognized from the loud knocking
sound that arose from the piston bolt. It had been launched in 1939, but the war
soon stopped production, so it took a few years until the cogs started turning
again.