Pot metal? In my happytime?

[Drunkskunk]

I'm using search for "80"s and "happy time"s, trying to learn all I can, when I ran across a post saying the nuts and bolts are all pot metal. OMGWTFBBQ????

Are they serious, or did I miss something?

I tried to search for more info on that, but came up with nothing. More info or a clarification would be greatly appriciated. I'm not sure I want to stick a controled explosion device between my legs if it's held together by pot metal nuts.

 

[HoughMade]

They are not pot metal, neither is the engine. The engine is aluminum and the bolts and hardware are steel. However, the steel is generally not high quality and should be replaced with nuts and bolts from the local hardware store.

 

[Drunkskunk]

Thank you. Thats a relief!

Odd question, but are these standard, or metric? I've seen a lot of the Chinese made bicycle parts built to American standard threading since it was ment for export. And i'd have to hit 2 diffrent shops for good quality bolts, depending on Metric or SAE threading.

 

[HoughMade]

In my experience, they are metric.

 

[s_beaudry]

They are cheap nuts and bolts....

I stripped two heads of the bolts while tightening the sprocket..... cheap junk!

Been replacing them with better quality ones from Lowe's

 

[Huntington]

The term pot metal refers to the method of casting.

China likes to melt there metal, aluminum, with other mystery metals, Then they poor that into a sand mold. It cures and you have your part. That is what pot metal is and yes the HT kits are pot metal. They are not cnc metal.

It's a quick and cheep way to mass produce parts. If they used better metals it would not be so much an issue. Your cylinder and other internals are forged or cnc.

 

[Simon_A]

OMGWTFBBQ

Geez, spot the TF2 player.

 

[Herrmanator8]

whoa, whoa, whoa. lets not give the chines too much credit now.. these engines are all pot metal. i wish i could get a head in aluminum. wont happen. all hardware is cheap junk steel. make sure u cure the engine of all casting flash, that seems to be a huge performance robbing issue in the cheap chinese powerplants. if you want the best running engine...when you recieve one, disassemble it and observe all the parts..you may find chunks of metal in your crankcase(happened to me) and deformed parts. any gasket leaks will completely mess up the performance of the engine, so watch out for those. clutches always need tlc. make sure you check plug to ensure running mix quality and shine a light in the piston to observe any burning.

just some advice..

jon

 

[Happy Valley]

Pot metal? In my nuts?

No, but they put lead in the pencil.

 

[arceeguy]

The term pot metal refers to the method of casting.

China likes to melt there metal, aluminum, with other mystery metals, Then they poor that into a sand mold. It cures and you have your part. That is what pot metal is and yes the HT kits are pot metal. They are not cnc metal.

It's a quick and cheep way to mass produce parts. If they used better metals it would not be so much an issue. Your cylinder and other internals are forged or cnc.

whoa, whoa, whoa. lets not give the chines too much credit now.. these engines are all pot metal. i wish i could get a head in aluminum. wont happen........

The ignorance is amazing, simply amazing.

The term "pot metal" is not method of casting.
"other mystery metals" - care to back up the statement with some facts?
These bicycle engines are not all pot metal, so stop spreading the bullshyte. I need to remember to put on my hip boots before I visit this forum.

While the HT engines are poorly finished on the outside, the main parts like the piston, bore finish, bearings, seals and gears seem to be of decent quality. I have a BoyGoFast engine disassembled on my workbench and while the cylinder has bent fins and a rough cast finish, the bore is nicely chrome plated, the port edges are chamfered and there is a nice crosshatch pattern from finish honing. The drive gears are steel, and the teeth are nicely machined. Any engine needs a certain amount of precision machining just to even run. The difference between new and worn out parts are mere thousands of an inch. The way some people talk about them, you would think they are put together with rocks and stone chisels.

Chances are, everyone here has some "high tech" piece of equipment that was built in China. (My IBM ThinkPad was made there) Companies there are capable of producing very high quality products, so don't paint all the products and people with the same broad brush. I own a Lifan motorcycle (made in China) and it is good quality with a very affordable price tag. I plan on buying one of their other models!