Best bicycle for Friction drive

[Mountainman]

Out in the desert running the heck out of that Honda 50 friction drive.
Never a problem and running very strong.
MM

 

[floridaboy]

I would tell you to look at a Electra alum. coaster bike. I have had that bike with a FD for a long time with no problems. Check out my post Roybi FD.

 

[JunkyardDog]

I am using a Staton kit w/Honda GX35 4 stroke engine on a Felt 7 speed Bixby bicycle. It's a perfect fit. Watch out for some of the new mountain and beach cruiser bikes that have a wishbone type seat stay. The friction drive mounts will not fit on those.

 

[gafr60]

I bought an old Motiv steel framed bike at a yard sale for $10 and put a Staton unit with a GX-35 on it. Course, I don't plan on doing over 20 on it. Cantelever brakes front and back. I like to be able to stop. Guess I'll post some pictures of it just for fun. You don't have to spend a bunch of money. I am wary of new Wal-Mart type bikes. Old steel is cool.

 

[JunkyardDog]

Before I got the Felt, which is a very expensive cruiser, I used two friction drives on Trek 800 steel framed mountain bikes bought off Craigslist. The 800 is a super strong bike, with strong Araya rims and wide flange hubs. It did require a few modifications to suit my needs. First was a much larger cushier cruiser seat and a suspension seatpost. Then much higher bars that I could reach straight out to instead having to bend over. That required longer brake cables. I then removed both shifter cables (no reason to replace them as I didn't need them) all but the smallest front chainring, put the chain on the largest rear sprocket, and adjusted the derailleur to stay put. It became nothing but a chain tensioner. Many people say not to remove the gears, but in my case it made no difference, I can't pedal anyway, other than to help get started, and I need the lowest possible gear for that to keep stress off my knees. My new Felt has no front gears, and because of it's price, I chose to leave the rear gears alone. Because I might want to sell this bike at some point, I cut and glued heavy pieces of rubber to the front engine mount brackets to prevent damage to the frame. Not necessary with an older bike. The main thing is the rear tire. It needs to be a 2.125, and fairly smooth. Not an off road tire. I've never had problems with a rear tire. I am also using a GX35 engine. It should last a long time, and is quiet. I don't plan on going over 20 mph either, really 10-12 mph top speed would be fine. I don't plan on racing cars. I ride it the same way I used to ride a pedal bike.

As nice as the friction drive kits work (also rear chain and belt drive kits) I don't even know why anybody uses those crappy 2 stroke Chinese engines and deals with rag joint sprockets and killer chain tensioners. Price and speed seem to be the main reason, plus they want their bike to look like a motorcycle. All that does is attract cops. All I wanted was a reliable bike I could ride at bicycle speed without pedaling.

 

[gafr60]

I will try to post some pics manana if I can figure out how to do it. I still ride around a bit, the friction drive has been a lifesaver for me. I live on the top of a very large hill. Downhill is a hoot for a mile, and then I can ride around with little trouble. Can't get up the hill very easily. I got weary of walking the bike back uphill. The little motor has been a blessing, however, I get a little lazy and use the engine too much. Have a lot of gravel around here and have not had any trouble with the friction at all. Thought it might tear up the roller, but it seems to be holding up pretty well. Thought I might buy another unit for a spare from Staton. Took a few rides to get the engine broken in, but now it seems to have a lot more power than it did when new.
I don't need to go fast and this has allowed me to ride a bike for exercise and not kill myself going back home.
I bought tires off amazon, kevlar belted Bell tires, not a smooth tread, but they are holding up well. From what I have read, I think I am not enthusiastic about 2 strokes, rag joints and chain tensioners. I threw away all my two stroke weedeaters, but still have to deal with chainsaws. Give me a 4 stroke any day. Had a multitude of 2 stroke motorcycles and quickly tired of working on all the quirks when I got older and just wanted to ride, rather than accelerate.

 

[JunkyardDog]

I actually love 2 strokes, but QUALITY 2 strokes. I've had a number of 2 stoke Vespa scooters, Tomos and Puch mopeds, dirt bikes and dual sport bikes. Had one 1971 2 stroke triple 2 stroke street bike. Never had any problems. The 2 stroke design is sound. But pretty much everything made in China is junk, including their 4 stroke motors. The Japanese no longer build 2 stroke motors. I was thinking about getting a used non Chinese 50cc 2 stroke scooter to buzz along on, riding on the shoulders of rural country roads where bicyclists ride. The one advantage a 50cc scooter has over a MB out of town on long rides is comfort. In town they are suicide machines, you can't use the bike lanes or ride to the far right (legally)

 

[gafr60]

I rode a two stroke triple way back when. A Kawasaki 500. Got it above 80 and the frame couldn't take the power of the engine, which was a problem with Japanese bikes at that time. They had superb engines but the frame geometry sucked.
I rode Bultaco Sherpas (100cc) and graduated to a Pursang (250cc) which was probably more than I could handle in the dirt at that time. The power of the jap engines were superior but the Spanish bikes reigned at that time, at least in my world.
Harley came out with the Baja at that time. We called it the the "Barley HaHa".
When I was in high school, never weighed more than 120, but acted like I was a 220 pounder. Used to ride a 200 twin Yamaha with upswept pipes when I was in high school, and my mom would blast me everyday for riding a murdercycle. What is really funny, we used to race our Bultacos down the streets and the Phoenix (Az) police would chase us down the alleys and we would cut through a yard and leave them in the alley That was the old days, but my precious father told me even worse things when he was growing up, which I used wisely against him to get out of trouble.
The two strokes back then were pretty good. I b\ought a Yamaha 200 twin for $700 as I recall> Never had too much trouble with it until I started messing with it.
Two strokes were good when I was young. 'Course I worked on everything then. Don't have that excitement anymore. Had an old 1973 BMWR60. over 100,000 miles. No water, changed tires, replaced a oil seal (had it double plugged because of the ethenol nonsense). Back and forth from Az. to Ill. countless times.
Really don't think I need to do the tinkering I used to do when I was 16. I would just rather ride.

 

[JunkyardDog]

A bit off topic, but I have a 2013 Royal Enfield B5 Bullet. It came with EFI and a catcon pipe. I just finished converting it to an Amal carb and a mid '60s style Triumph "peashooter" pipe with no catcon. Part of the reason for this was to get rid of the electronics and emissions crap, and part of it was to make it so I could tinker with it. But it doesn't seem to matter how much you tinker with those Chinese bike engines they never work right, and most of the time you can't even get them to fit without rigging things that shouldn't be rigged on a motorbike. My very first dirt bike was a Bultaco Lobito 100. The 2 stroke triple was a Suzuki GT380. Hardly a hot rod but fast enough for a 16 year old. The one word that most junk seems to have in common is "China" On one motorcycle forum I belong to, a guy put "Chinese" and "junk" together in one word, and just called it "Chunk.