My first build of a motor bike was with the Solex motor. It is French designed friction drive motor used on the front wheel of a bike built also by Solex. It is perhaps a 60 year old design. I purchased the Solex on ebay from a vendor located in Canada. The motors he was selling were new and made in China. It came as a kit with brackets and controls for mounting to the front fork. The motor kit cost me about $230 delivered to my home. I purchased a new cruiser type "NEXT" bike from WM for about $100, mounted the motor in the front and began riding my first motor bike. It was love at first ride. There were a couple of things I did not like about the motor in front. Exhaust and black oil splatter from the from the muffler connection, hit the rider. The weight of the motor on the front wheel made the searing strange. I decided to try mounting the motor on the rear wheel. The mounting was quite easy and clean. It also got rid of the big ugly steel fork mounting clamps, it was more quiet and the stearing was much better. See the second photo. I love to ride this bike. It is very quiet, smooth and has enough power to go 20 mph on the level. I will tell more about my second build in a another post.
Rear mounted Solex friction drive
- Thread starter willy79
- Start date
Al.Fisherman
Active Member
Rear wheel drive..interesting, I like it. Nice build.
BigBlue
Active Member
I definitely like the look on the rear. That engine sits too tall to be on the front. Good job and enjoy the ride!
Chris
AKA: BigBlue
Chris
AKA: BigBlue
Yes I can move the motor up off the bike tire. The motor is still mounted the same as if it were in front. It will rotates about a pivot point which is at the rear of the motor. There are spring loaded slotted guides on each sided of the motor. I have a lever nut arrangement that I can tighten against the slotted guide while the motor is in the raised position. I use the black knob at the top of the motor to swivel the engine away from the tire and then tighten the lever. I seldom use this, and is needed only if the motor quits and I need to pedal home.
The Solex motor also has compression relief which is used to make it easier to pedal when starting and to kill the engine. I have found the release is not really needed when starting, however it is need to stop the engine. I have replaced this handlebar control with a small lever on the motor used only to kill the engine.
The Solex motor also has compression relief which is used to make it easier to pedal when starting and to kill the engine. I have found the release is not really needed when starting, however it is need to stop the engine. I have replaced this handlebar control with a small lever on the motor used only to kill the engine.
Second build using the Solex engine
I was so happy with my first Solex build, that I decided to purchase another Solex engine and build up another bike. As it turned out the ebay vendor in Canada would only sell three engines at a time for a lower price. I purchased the three engines and had to pay import duty on the three engines. This made the cost each about $230 which is about the same price as the first engine I purchased. Two of the four engines ran well right out of the box and are working perfect. The other two engines have intermittent problems . These Solex engines were made in China and the quality control seems to have been non existent. Much has been written, in other forems, about problems encountered with the China built Solex. For my next build with the Solex engine I decided to go with a mountain bike with front fork and seat suspension. I Purchased a used Trek Navigator hybrid bike and mounted the Solex in the rear like my first bike (see the attached picture). The hybrid bikes have elevated cruiser style handlebars so the rider is more upright and more comfortable. This is now my favorite motor bike. It is much smother and better riding with the suspension fork.
I was so happy with my first Solex build, that I decided to purchase another Solex engine and build up another bike. As it turned out the ebay vendor in Canada would only sell three engines at a time for a lower price. I purchased the three engines and had to pay import duty on the three engines. This made the cost each about $230 which is about the same price as the first engine I purchased. Two of the four engines ran well right out of the box and are working perfect. The other two engines have intermittent problems . These Solex engines were made in China and the quality control seems to have been non existent. Much has been written, in other forems, about problems encountered with the China built Solex. For my next build with the Solex engine I decided to go with a mountain bike with front fork and seat suspension. I Purchased a used Trek Navigator hybrid bike and mounted the Solex in the rear like my first bike (see the attached picture). The hybrid bikes have elevated cruiser style handlebars so the rider is more upright and more comfortable. This is now my favorite motor bike. It is much smother and better riding with the suspension fork.
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MakMak
New Member
Where can I buy this Solex style engine?
Hi, can you provide info to buy this motor? Nice job. Thanks!
Hi, can you provide info to buy this motor? Nice job. Thanks!
