Knee Slider Followup
January 30, 2012 at 10:35 PM 
Cleveland CycleWerks Misfit
The Cleveland stop on the IMS tour was this past weekend and I had the chance to talk at some length to Scott Colisimo about his company, Cleveland CycleWerks. It was also the first time I had the opportunity to see the bikes up close, and my impression is they look pretty good. The Heist and Misfit are the models available in the USA right now, while the Ace, already available in many other countries around the world, will be coming to our shores later this year.
The Heist and Misfit are on opposite ends of the spectrum, though both run the same 250ccengine, the low riding cruiser style of the Heist is in complete contrast to the upright, semi cafe style of the Misfit. With prices in the low three thousand dollar range, you’re looking at a fun, entry level bike.
Cleveland CycleWerks Heist
We told you the story before about Scott’s attempt to build the bikes in the US and all of the troubles he encountered along the way and his eventual move to manufacturing and final assembly in China, a move we’ve seen far too often made by too many companies, but Scott told me something I was very happy to hear. Just days before the show, they closed on the purchase of a building in Ohio and final assembly of the motorcycles will be set up right here the USA. That’s great news for a lot of reasons, but seeing them moving more of the process back here to the US, employing more of the same people they hope will be able to buy the bikes, is a step we would like to see made more often by more companies that have taken their manufacturing elsewhere. A big thumbs up on the move!
While the Cleveland Cyclewerks offerings might not fit everyone’s needs, if you’re looking for for a fun, inexpensive, entry level machine, you should check them out.