Likearock's first Project - 70cc Dax + Skyliner

So I finally got some time to work on the bike tonight. I spun around the front fork (lol), attached the rear sprocket, and installed the chain. the HT "manual" that came with my kit was pretty sketchy, so I kind of did what made sense to me, but I'd love a bit of clarification.

1) When I was trying to thread the chain around the drive gear, I ran into the problem that it wouldn't fit without rotating the drive gear. I used this tube-like wrench that came with the kit to spin the gear and thread the chain - is this OK to do without any lubrication on the piston? It seemed awfully hard to turn.

2) I was under the impression that the position of the clutch arm would engage/disengage the drive gear from the piston's action, but it seemed that no matter what position the clutch arm was in, it was very very hard (basically impossible) to pedal the bike once the chain was attached to the drive gear. Is this the way it should be?

3) How tight is too tight for the rear sprocket bolts/nuts? I ended up tightening them until the lock washers that came with the kit became flat (like normal washers). I know that this has a lot to do with the probability of breaking spokes - should I go for the side of over- or under-tightening?

4) The included chain tensioner doesn't really rotate as I thought it should. I have the standard cheap-o version that basically has a teflon (I think) wheel bolted to a metal plate. I found that, because the bolt that fixes the height of the teflon wheel has to be tight in order to lock in the wheel height, the teflon wheel is prevented from spinning. Is this normal, or should I be worried? I know, I know... I should prolly just get a better tensioner. :)


Thanks for all your help so far. Now I've got the tank, carb, and cables left... getting excited to ride this thing!

Peace,
Likearock
 
1) When I was trying to thread the chain around the drive gear, I ran into the problem that it wouldn't fit without rotating the drive gear. I used this tube-like wrench that came with the kit to spin the gear and thread the chain - is this OK to do without any lubrication on the piston? It seemed awfully hard to turn.

2) I was under the impression that the position of the clutch arm would engage/disengage the drive gear from the piston's action, but it seemed that no matter what position the clutch arm was in, it was very very hard (basically impossible) to pedal the bike once the chain was attached to the drive gear. Is this the way it should be?

3) How tight is too tight for the rear sprocket bolts/nuts? I ended up tightening them until the lock washers that came with the kit became flat (like normal washers). I know that this has a lot to do with the probability of breaking spokes - should I go for the side of over- or under-tightening?

4) The included chain tensioner doesn't really rotate as I thought it should. I have the standard cheap-o version that basically has a teflon (I think) wheel bolted to a metal plate. I found that, because the bolt that fixes the height of the teflon wheel has to be tight in order to lock in the wheel height, the teflon wheel is prevented from spinning. Is this normal, or should I be worried? I know, I know... I should prolly just get a better tensioner. :)


Thanks for all your help so far. Now I've got the tank, carb, and cables left... getting excited to ride this thing!

Peace,
Likearock

#1 you did good. You could have removed the spark plug to turn it easier since that would eliminate compression. At least you know you have a good engine.
2 Sounds like the clutch isnt disengaging at all. You have to pull in pretty tight on the arm for the clutch to let go (search for some posts on this topic.) You should be lubing up some clutch arm pieces, a metal pin and ball bearing. Make sure the cover over the left side drive gear is on tight, if its loose the lever will never push the pin in enough to disengage the clutch.
3 I did them the same way on mine and I had some spoke breakage. Only when I got a rim with thick spokes (12ga i think) did i cease to have spoke breakage problems. I think its best to keep the bolts as loose as possible in order to just keep the sprocket straight and stationary. I think the less tension on the spokes from the hardware pulling them outwards the better. But I may be wrong so read up :) Keep in mind too that I rode my motorized mountain bike HARD. I did a lot of dirt roads and uneven country roads aswell as lots of hard acceleration so the breakage may have just been my riding style.
4 I would remove the roller from its axle and grease it. mine have always had a fair amount of in and out wiggle to them. sounds like somethings bound up so take it apart and check it out. It should roll freely without binding up on the bracket.

You're lucky you found this place. When I was doing my first build a few years ago I only had skimpy directions to go by. If I had this resource I could have avoided a ton of problems. I think the people here have seen just about everything these happytimes can dish out. The more you read on this forum the more things you can catch before they become a problem. Good luck and enjoy the ride! Remember to baby her and she'll do so in return.
 
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Thanks for the advice! I'll definitely try to fiddle with the clutch position more, and read up on what I should be greasing.
 
Beware of undertightening the sprocket bolts. I was paranoid about mine on the first build and broke all 9 trailing spokes on the same ride. If you overtighten, you will put a small bend in the spoke. I dont think thats any big deal for a stainless spoke. That little bend is noting compared to the violence they underwent when the end was bend 90 degrees at the factory. If you are so loose that the sprocket bolts can work on your spokes, you'll chew them up. Definitely tighten them up at least until the split washers are flat, as you did.

The chain tensioner usually (always in my little experience) has a shoulder bolt. Make sure that it is correctly aligned with the slot in the bracket. Usually misalignment makes the roller too loose but that it the only thing there is to adjust on the tensioner that I can think of.

Unless your bracket is bent, or the roller is touching, or trapped under, the top mounting bolt. :D It happens.

YMMV
 
Hey Mickey

I just realized that you are the person I got the front engine mount idea from - thanks a ton! Also, I think I will start looking into getting 12ga spokes and be sure to check the ones I have for breakage regularly like the posts on this forum suggest.

So, I have officially demonstrated my newbieness AGAIN. I had been thinking that the clutch arm was engaging/disengaging over the rotation that I showed in my previous photos. Now I understand what Ghost0 was talking about in his earlier post... the clutch engages/disengages as you push it even farther towards the center of the bike! I just didn't realize that there was such a strong opposing spring force on the clutch arm. Wow - probably wouldn't have ever figured that out if it weren't for this forum. Thanks, guys.
 
Is there any danger in pushing your bike backwards when the clutch arm is in (engine disengaged)? I can't really think of a reason why it would be bad for the engine (but then I'm an engine noob), but there seems to be a "click, click, click" noise coming from the engine when I do, so I stopped.

Put on chain tensioner, carb, throttle assembly, and clutch brake arm tonight... maybe it'll be done by this weekend!

Oh, and the friction problems I had been having with the chain tensioner were because the teflon wheel can "pop" between two different positions along the length of the attachment bolt. One of these positions rubs against the metal plate, but the other doesn't. Thanks again for the help!
 
Oh, and the friction problems I had been having with the chain tensioner were because the teflon wheel can "pop" between two different positions along the length of the attachment bolt. One of these positions rubs against the metal plate, but the other doesn't.

Are you sure the cut sides of the roller bolt are fitting in the slot on the bracket. You shouldn't have much space on the bolt for the roller to move in/out.
 
WAAAAHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! It WORKS! It is so sweet... just gotta remember to baby it :(. Even at 10:30pm in a parking lot, it was turning heads, lol. I had no idea it would be this cool.

After about a half hour of riding, the chain tensioner bolt came loose and the chain came off, but it was an easy fix. Taught me to be sure about my nut/bolt tightness. I think I'm going to look into some LocTite

THANK YOU ALL for all of the help and advice you have given me! Special thanks to Mickey for the design ideas and continuing help. Like I've said before, if it weren't for this forum, I wouldn't have even tried. Now I've gotta get one of those slick MotoredBikes.com stickers to slap proudly on the side (and maybe even a shirt)!
 
Glad to hear its running for you! Remember to give it a go-over before you ride every time. At this stage you should check just about everything on the bike and motor until every things settled in. Make a tool kit too, nothing worse than breaking down and knowing all you needed was X tool to save you from a long walk home. Have fun be safe!
 
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