World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseThe Zündapp company was found in 1917 by Fritz Neumeyer, Friedrich Krupp AG, and Thiel, but in 1919 Neumeyer became the sole owner. It produced its first motorcycle, Z22, in 1921. The first of the K-series motorcycles entered production in 1933. In 1938, the KS600 motorcycles were released to fulfill a 1937 German military requirement for a motorcycle that could carry a payload of 500 kilograms (ie. about three fully equipped soldiers), cruise between 3 and 80 kilometers per hour, had a clearance of 15 centimeters, among other criteria. KS600 motorcycles were each equipped with a 597 cubic centimeter horizontally opposed two-cylinder motor with overhead valves rated at 28 horsepower. In German military service, they were usually mated with Steib BW38 sidecars (in fact, the BW38 sidecars were manufactured exclusively for military use). War time production lasted until 1941. A second production run lasted between 1949 and 1951. In all, over 18,000 examples were built.

SPECIFICATIONS

KS600

Machinery	One 597cc air-cooled opposite 2-cyl 4-stroke overhead valve engine rated at 28hp
Crew	3
Length	2.17 m
Width	1.09 m
Height	0.91 m
Speed	100 km/h

Photographs