You Guys Were Right !! (Quality, or lack thereof)

[Mud Pie]

FedEx just dropped off my engine kit. With much anticipation, I cut all the boxes open, saving the engine for last.

It is like everyone said, typical Chinese quality, but the old idom holds true; you get what you pay for.

When I got to the engine, I actually let out a loud guffaw ! As I held my engine in my hands, I must've said, "Sheesh" a half dozen times. First thing I noticed was that they must've painted the entire engine silver after it was assembled ! All the screws/nuts, that was strongly suggested here, to be replaced before install, certainly warrant replacement. I have a pocketful of screws/nuts and will be making a parts run very shortly. Casting flash was still in the motor mounts. Not a biggie, but that'll eat into your frame, promoting rust quicker than norm. My Dremel took care of that. I looked at the acorn nuts, under each is two washers and a lock washer. Except one; that one has FOUR washers and a lock washer. Methinks the stud didn't go all the way in and it was a Friday afternoon. Ah, quality is NOT job one !

I've been lurking/reading this site well before I decided to build my own, and I'll be honest; I've read all the "do this before install" posts and thought most were the type of guys that take a toothbrush to their car engines and replace fittings under the hood once they no longer shine up. Boy was I ever wrong !!

Luckily for me, my bike doesn't come in until 16JAN, so I have time to tinker and tweak this kit before I install it. Which is a good thing, because I know myself. If the bike was already here, I'd be too impatient and just HAVE to start the build.

In my other life as a sidecarist, everyone names their rig. It's not a name you decide on; you let the rig name itself. This MB may be called "Sheesh" because of how many times I've said that today alone. I fear I will be saying it many more times as the build continues.

So, in short, to those reading and contemplating building your first MB, take heed to the advice given on this site, it is most certainly worthy ! I know I'm glad I found it before I began building !

 

[Purple Haze]

Glad to hear you found this site and researched your build. I didn't find this site untill after my first kit, and it was an eye-opener! Did you get a BGF kit? If so, check it out for missing parts. I had one with a missing wristpin bushing (bearing?) and another with a missing idle screw. Yes, the lack of quality is evident, but these kits can still be made to last a long time with proper prep and common sense mods that don't cost much. Hope you have lots of fun with yours.

 

[Sgt. Howard]

Welcome aboard, Mudpie-
I did my first build in 2010. These rascals here got me through the rough edges rather nicely. I've now got seven builds under my belt and I am looking to do even more, as well as develope better systems for these tinkertoys to work with. If you don't mind wrenching on something, motored bikes are a gas!
the Old Sgt.

 

[Mud Pie]

I look forward to the build !

Had my first chuckle. I was sitting at the picnic table in our backyard, replacing all the "top shelf" screws with the new allen key ones I bought at Home Depot. My wife comes out, sits next to me and asks, "Whatcha doing ? Isn't that thing brand new ?". I explain to her about the low quality Chinese screws and how it was better to replace them with quality. She picks up one of the plastic bags, looks at it and says, "So, these are made in a better neighborhood in China ?" I look at the bag, written on the bottom is Made in China.

 

[Mud Pie]

As far as brand name of the engine, I bought a Flying Horse Angle Fire 66cc/80cc kit from Bikeberry. I upgraded the clutch shifter to the combo clutch/brake shifter. I liked the idea of the combo, I'm not to sure how it'll perform. Naturally, I'll be posting my trials and tribulations for all to see.

 

[Sgt. Howard]

Does that work brake and clutch both at once? Not familiar with it... btw, the hardware sold to American retail outlets ARE a better quality than the rubbish they use on these engines- tell that to your pretty missy
the Old Sgt.

 

[Mud Pie]

Does that work brake and clutch both at once? Not familiar with it... btw, the hardware sold to American retail outlets ARE a better quality than the rubbish they use on these engines- tell that to your pretty missy
the Old Sgt.

It looks like this. Does it work ? Stay tuned boys and girls, I'll let you know next week when my cruiser arrives...

 

[Mud Pie]

The fun continues.

For gee-whiz purposes, I decided to check my clutch while I was replacing the cover screws with new. I could turn the flower nut by hand, it was above the set screw. I know absolutely nada about these engines (quickly changing, though), but I know what the purpose of a set screw is.

Knowing I'm not the first, I used the handy "search" feature. Yep, found out how to adjust the flower nut properly. Now the set screw actually has a job.

This site is a literal gold mine with all the tips and tricks shared.

I'll apologize in advance for all my excited postings of things that are run-of-the-mill to most of you, while a WOW moment to me.....if I get too annoying, feel free to tell me to stop, I'll bore my wife instead of all of you.

 

[Cavi Mike]

HAHAHA I just bought a black engine also and all I could do was *sigh* at the painted bits. Paint in the intake port, the spark-plug seat, everything had that **** all over it. No wonder they stopped making them, I could have just bombed a silver engine with grille paint and it would have looked nicer. Lesson learned.

And yeah, they don't screw the studs in. I think they put them in as far as they'll go with two fingers. Stack up the washers and call it a day. I've seen pictures from the factory where the assembly table looks like someone just dumped a box of engine blocks on it and that's what they're working with.

But in reality, that's how it was here in America maybe 50 years ago. They're still learning. "They don't need to be perfect, we just need a lot of them" but hey, it worked for us long enough to become the worlds greatest super-power.

 

[motorpsycho]

again, you get what you pay for.
BUT, with patients, a little extra $$ and time, you can have yourself a good running, long pasting engine.
one of the keys to these is to not get in a rush to put the engine on the bike.
Install it right, get everything adjusted right and maintain it.
Also be prepared to modify / make your own parts in some instances.