JunkyardDog
Active Member
Motorized bicycles have been around for a long time now. Yet I see no signs of improvement in the quality or design of the engine kits. The Chinese kits especially still use the same crappy rag joint rear sprockets and those horrible idler pulleys. You would think someone would have come up with something better by now. I remember a time when you could actually buy a bicycle designed to be motorized, with the proper engine mounts welded on the frame, and a sprocket properly attached to the rear wheel. They seem to have disappeared. There are probably legal reasons why you can't buy a factory made motorized bike, but I see nothing to prevent companies from selling all the necessary parts, including frames and wheels, designed to fit together properly without using universal clamps and brackets and shims that never seem to fit properly, and almost always have to be modified to even work. Unless someone is an accomplished welder and machinist, with access to all the necessary equipment, it is virtually impossible to build a quality motorized bicycle.
What got me thinking about this was a recent ride on a Motoped. Now those are really neat, but serious overkill for a motorized bicycle, and the engine size makes them illegal as motorized bicycles in my state. Price for one is around $3000. I think a basic motorized bicycle, designed so that everything fits together properly without having to be rigged, could be sold for less than half that. Maybe there just isn't enough interest in motorized bicycles to justify making quality parts. Just take a look at www.totalruckus.com to see what can be accomplished with a 50cc scooter when the demand for high dollar parts is there. These scooters sell for around $2500 new, some people have over $10K into theirs. Sure wish some of that type of thing would happen with the motorized bicycle scene.
What got me thinking about this was a recent ride on a Motoped. Now those are really neat, but serious overkill for a motorized bicycle, and the engine size makes them illegal as motorized bicycles in my state. Price for one is around $3000. I think a basic motorized bicycle, designed so that everything fits together properly without having to be rigged, could be sold for less than half that. Maybe there just isn't enough interest in motorized bicycles to justify making quality parts. Just take a look at www.totalruckus.com to see what can be accomplished with a 50cc scooter when the demand for high dollar parts is there. These scooters sell for around $2500 new, some people have over $10K into theirs. Sure wish some of that type of thing would happen with the motorized bicycle scene.