Noob already becoming OCD from this forum!

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ABCity

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10:49 PM
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Sep 2, 2012
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Hi Everyone,
I'm Jane, live in NorCal and have spent my entire holiday weekend pouring through the threads here. There are some amazing folks posting, and amazingly creative/talented folks as well. I wanted to start by thanking everyone who lends their knowledge and experience to these forums, It can take a ton of time to decipher what some folks are even asking, let alone responding thoughtfully :)

I'm so full of impatient questions, because you KNOW I already want the perfect set up (for me) as of yesterday, but I'm going to try and spend another couple of days absorbing the older posts before I start asking. Looking forward to some great conversations.

Warmly,
Jane
 
Thanks everyone, appreciate the welcome! Curt, I've already been scrolling through that link, as well as a couple of others...
Mind swirling - its hard because i dont know enough about just regular bicycles let alone all of "this"...am terrified of asking the stupidest questions ever ;-)
It's tempting to just put up a poll asking who to hire!
Though my self confidence isnt totally in the toilet as last time i poked around anything even remotely like this, i not only turned into a wooden boat builder, i ended up hiring a marine architect because the perfect boat "for me" didnt exist...lol I can a bit overboard:devilish:
 
Sounds like you have a bit of a perfectionist streak in ya heh heh. I know the feeling! It's just as easy to keep one of these simple as it is to get overly complicated about it.

IMHO, a good start might be to get a simple rear-mount 4-stroke friction-drive kit, that way you have a simple bike to ride around. Like from here: http://www.80ccmotorboys.com/

The mount might need a lil bit of finesse and tinkering, but the 4-stroke kit has a cheap reliable entry-level engine. The 2-stroke kits cost roughly the same, but they can be hard to get here in California due to our emissions laws. Many people here have started out with the 2-stroke kits, and I've put enough miles on them myself to prefer the 4-stroke engine reliability.

If you have a bike to ride around, it kinda makes for less stress when you're building a perfect MaB! Just my thoughts :D
 
Mr. Aleman...
No argument on most of what you said, I've already decided that it will be a 4 stroke for many many reasons, though I'm not sold on a friction set up....for many reasons ;-)
As for the mount, I'm open to rear,as well as both other options. My first concern is the frame...sturdy, with enough suspension to accommodate my country setting.....large enough to accommodate the motor (if i choose a frame mount) but SMALL ENOUGH for my somewhat short frame (29" inseam) and want just a hare more than my tippy toes to touch pavement from the seat.... am open to 24 or 26....road, mountain or even as serious as a downhill.....very open

and of course like everybody else i want torque and speed (torque more important), a engine that has been as reasonably upgraded as possible.

The best wheels, with the best brake set up, cushy fat tires with a tube that wont puncture (slimed)....CVT...the ability to pedal at all times (3-7 gears).....a small electrical system...and I AM a style ***** at heart, of course. Hopefully I havent made too many embarrassing statements!
 
If you are not sold on a friction drive, please talk to FrictonNut.
He will spend many hours exhausting precious oxygen; taking it away from others that desperately need it to live.

In the end, you "will" get a friction drive just to keep the guy happy!
 
ROFL....sounds like a familiar streak - I spent half of last night convincing a young business associate why it is important to engage and VOTE, i think in the end that he agreed just to shut me up
 
Well, the friction kit will allow you to have full suspension, full freedom of pedaling, and it can work on just about any size bike fairly easy. High speed or torque, that depends on the roller size, it's difficult to get both at the same time with the smaller engines that typically go with such a kit. Might have to rely on pedaling for torque!

Rackmount chain- or belt-drive - also same benefits of friction drive, with the added benefit of working no matter the weather conditions. Friction drives can slip in wet and/or muddy conditions. The same power limitation applies, you'll likely end up having to pedal for torque.

Framemounts...those I myself prefer (I love my rack-mounted side-baskets!) but in 4-stroke guise they too have their drawbacks. They are rather wide (making wide cranks necessary which reduce pedal torque) and they don't readily accommodate rear suspension. A CVT would make it even wider and you'd typically lose your ability to pedal the bike effectively unless you freewheel the CVT output. Using a freewheel on a CVT significantly reduces it's function (you lose engine braking) and introduces drivetrain slop everytime you'd get back on the throttle. There are also no CVTs readily available for smaller 4-strokes, you'd practically be forced to run a larger engine, such as one from Harbor Freight.

So in the end, you'll have to compromise somewhere. You may have to compromise more than you think, depending on what you insist on your bike having!
 

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