Crosshair_84
Member
- Local time
- 1:11 AM
- Joined
- Sep 22, 2011
- Messages
- 38
I'm looking to build my first motorized bike setup. I already own two moped's; a 1982 Honda PA50II that will carry my 250 lb butt at 30 mph top. I also have a 1978 Honda NC50 Express which can only haul me around at 18 mph top. (Not bad for vehicles with a max rider weight of 180 pounds,.) While I like both of them I am now looking for something that is 3rd world simple, yet functional. Finding parts for both of my mopeds can be a real pain at times depending on what you need to replace, thus my desire do go into the direction of simple.
My original plan was to rebuild my busted up NC50 with a chain drive kit, but I just now bought another NC50 that runs very well so the busted up one will be used for parts instead. So the plan now is to get a bicycle and put a friction drive kit on it, since friction drive is as simple as you can get. Not to mention that if I trash the bike I can unbolt the kit and slap it on another bike easily.
So I am set on a friction drive kit. I'm going to go for a multi-speed bike after reading around here and finding that having some gears is best. Only thing is that I haven't bought a new bike since I was 5 year old, every bike since then has been bought at a police auction or garage sale.:uhoh2: So while I think I've found a good candidate, I'll want to ask your advice on that and a few other things.
First off on me and where I live: I am a heavily built guy and I weigh about 250 pounds. I live in Grand Forks, ND, the nearest hill worth mentioning, not counting golf courses, is 20 miles away. So I have no hills, but I do have weight. That will come in when we get to the drive rollers.
For engine, that is already decided. I picked up one of the Tanaka 32cc 2-stroke engines that are/were on Amazon for $99. I have experience with the 2 strokes with my mopeds and prefer them to 4 stroke engines in such applications, so no need to debate that point. I might add some performance parts later.
Now onto the bikes, the two that I have figured would be a good candidates are:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/26-Men-s-Schwinn-Point-Beach-Cruiser/13398157
26'' Men's Schwinn Point Beach Cruiser
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=15711185
Schwinn Clairmont 26" Men's Cruiser
Both have 7 speeds so I can help the engine out if/when needed. It already has brakes ready to go I don't need to try and add them to a coaster only bike and I will be able to easily upgrade them if I choose.
I am not sure of the difference between them that warrants the $20 price difference. I know I will have to ditch the cargo rack on both, I could give it to my mom or dad for their bike, and I may try to mod the rear fender so I can keep some of the tire covered. Or I may just have to ditch the whole rear fender. I like the color and looks of the Clairmont, while the handlebars of the Point Beach seem to allow a more upright seating position. Probably gonna want to go with function over form. Besides, the paint will probably flake off anyway so I can just give it a respray if I want black instead of blue. Both have smooth road tires, ready for a friction kit.
Now for the friction kit. I WAS going to go with a BMP kit, but they seem to be DOA so it is between the Staton and DAX. I am leaning toward the Staton for quality and they can give me a throttle cable ready made for my engine. The only real question is the roller size. I would LIKE to go for the 1 1/4" roller for the top speed, but realize that due to my weight I may need to go with the 1 1/8" roller. The fact that hills are effectively nonexistent where I live will obviously play a factor in this. Using some math I can estimate that the 1 1/4" roller would give me an extra 3-4 mph on the top end vs the 1 1/8", if the engine can manage it, with me helping out on the low end.
What roller would you guys recommend I get? Anything else you could think of? Am I being an idiot?
My original plan was to rebuild my busted up NC50 with a chain drive kit, but I just now bought another NC50 that runs very well so the busted up one will be used for parts instead. So the plan now is to get a bicycle and put a friction drive kit on it, since friction drive is as simple as you can get. Not to mention that if I trash the bike I can unbolt the kit and slap it on another bike easily.
So I am set on a friction drive kit. I'm going to go for a multi-speed bike after reading around here and finding that having some gears is best. Only thing is that I haven't bought a new bike since I was 5 year old, every bike since then has been bought at a police auction or garage sale.:uhoh2: So while I think I've found a good candidate, I'll want to ask your advice on that and a few other things.
First off on me and where I live: I am a heavily built guy and I weigh about 250 pounds. I live in Grand Forks, ND, the nearest hill worth mentioning, not counting golf courses, is 20 miles away. So I have no hills, but I do have weight. That will come in when we get to the drive rollers.
For engine, that is already decided. I picked up one of the Tanaka 32cc 2-stroke engines that are/were on Amazon for $99. I have experience with the 2 strokes with my mopeds and prefer them to 4 stroke engines in such applications, so no need to debate that point. I might add some performance parts later.
Now onto the bikes, the two that I have figured would be a good candidates are:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/26-Men-s-Schwinn-Point-Beach-Cruiser/13398157
26'' Men's Schwinn Point Beach Cruiser
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=15711185
Schwinn Clairmont 26" Men's Cruiser
Both have 7 speeds so I can help the engine out if/when needed. It already has brakes ready to go I don't need to try and add them to a coaster only bike and I will be able to easily upgrade them if I choose.
I am not sure of the difference between them that warrants the $20 price difference. I know I will have to ditch the cargo rack on both, I could give it to my mom or dad for their bike, and I may try to mod the rear fender so I can keep some of the tire covered. Or I may just have to ditch the whole rear fender. I like the color and looks of the Clairmont, while the handlebars of the Point Beach seem to allow a more upright seating position. Probably gonna want to go with function over form. Besides, the paint will probably flake off anyway so I can just give it a respray if I want black instead of blue. Both have smooth road tires, ready for a friction kit.
Now for the friction kit. I WAS going to go with a BMP kit, but they seem to be DOA so it is between the Staton and DAX. I am leaning toward the Staton for quality and they can give me a throttle cable ready made for my engine. The only real question is the roller size. I would LIKE to go for the 1 1/4" roller for the top speed, but realize that due to my weight I may need to go with the 1 1/8" roller. The fact that hills are effectively nonexistent where I live will obviously play a factor in this. Using some math I can estimate that the 1 1/4" roller would give me an extra 3-4 mph on the top end vs the 1 1/8", if the engine can manage it, with me helping out on the low end.
What roller would you guys recommend I get? Anything else you could think of? Am I being an idiot?