Why not mount engines in rear instead of squeezing them into the frame?

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theres one thing about rack mounts i find personally frustrating that noones has mentioned.

parking them. pushing them round. the general awkwardness of a bicycle is increased tenfold as the weight tries to topple it over.

holding the handlebars doesnt help...

try opening a gate on a cold morning while holding the bike upright between your legs... a bicycle will do its utmost to annoy you at such times :giggle:

anyway, nah...last rack mount i made for someone, a wee little puff of a girl... she did exactly that...dropped it opening a gate. the thing just keeps going over, and invariably the front wheel lifts off the ground as one vainly struggles with the handlebars to keep it up...

all of a sudden the whole lot pivots through the headset, and the engine gets slammed to the ground, and in this case, broke off one of the starter studs...all good, except it took a great chunk of crankcase with it!

that was the final straw for me and racks...


a trike is completely different and you can stick anything on there within reason...

but motorbikes have engines in the frame for a reason... though honda once found that getting the cog too LOW can be as bad as too high :giggle:


i helped a friend put one on the front of a bike years ago... it was a great drive system, but heavy on the steering...
 
Have you experienced a Chinese engine rack mounted on a 20" bike?

2 up on a scooter raises the cg quite a bit, yet going away from a traffic light seemed OK to me when I rode back seat.

How unstable is 2 up compared to rack mount?
 
if putting it on a rack was the best way to do it I think Harley would have started doing it 100 years ago
 
A bicycle, is not a harley. Also, bikes are for riding, I rarely judge a bike by how easy I can park/carry/stow it, just thinking of the comment about the girl with the rackmount, that sound like it would happen to her with a basket on the bike.For the "frame mount" people, have any of you tried, or seen a GEBE?Just curious.As I said before, for stunting/jumping it pretty much has to be frame mount, otherwise, GEBE is the tops (IMO) sorry.
 
One point to make; rack mount is ok IF you never carry anything on the bike. I prefer the in-frame mount because I do carry things like groceries, 12 packs of beverages, etc. Plus, it just looks right. I hate the look of a bike with a lawncare engine on it.
 
Here is an very low 2 stroke mount:

Low mount 2 stroke.jpg
 
If rack mount works for the rider/owner I say go for it. Be creative and do things others don't even think up. We all have our preferences. I saw a small pick up last week with a v* mounted on the bed and nothing under the hood. Would I ever do that? Hell no for safety reasons but that configuration works for the owner of the truck I suppose.
 
Rack mount allows for storage ( I carry an extra 50lbs in grocries on mine, before trailer), you can carry plenty extra, you just have to be creative with your panniers.What rack mount allows me that evens out the weight, is a full gallon of fuel in the bottom of the diamond, 90 miles of rough riding without even thinking about gas.It is all opinion, they both have theier places, but I could get nitpicky, weigh difference/simplicity/lack of wear and tear compared to most frame mounts.I approached my bike with the aircraft build idea, the vehicle has to meet a certain weight to fly (ride like a bike).With enough HP you can make a brick fly, but it still flys like a brick.On a side note does anyone remember the RC flying pig in the 70's?
 
A bicycle, is not a harley. Also, bikes are for riding, I rarely judge a bike by how easy I can park/carry/stow it, just thinking of the comment about the girl with the rackmount, that sound like it would happen to her with a basket on the bike.For the "frame mount" people, have any of you tried, or seen a GEBE?Just curious.As I said before, for stunting/jumping it pretty much has to be frame mount, otherwise, GEBE is the tops (IMO) sorry.

the first harleys were bicycles with engines in the frame
 
gebe.JPG
the first harleys were bicycles with engines in the frame
Yes, and how much did the engine weigh?Was there even an option because of size/weight?? As far as I can tell your agument is " all birds are birds, a swallow is the same as an albatros".Using antiquated utilities is not a well thought out comparison.
Anything that makes you splay your legs is going to take from the natural way you move, as in you can't pedal efficiently, a motorcycle is not a bike.Is it that harley put the engine in the best place, or is it like all motorcycles, the engines are heavy enough that they MUST be placed under the mass of the rider so body english will still have the same effect?If you had a pocket sized engine that could be placed anywhere, would you still place it in the frame?I'd start considering other options (aero) as weight shift would be negligible
Here's a good example of "a bike is not a harley".You can still mount extra, gas/panniers.It's a different/better setup, unless you've tried it, there's no explaining it
 
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