KilroyCD's and RdKryton's EZM project

[KilroyCD]

I received our kit around the same time AZBill got his, but I haven't had a lot of time to work on it so far. First, let me say that the kit is a "Beta Kit", with some pieces that are not production standard. This does not apply in the case of engine and drivetrain, as the engine is a proven, well-known design and the drivetrain is very close to production-spec if not actually production-spec.
The motor mount is one of the things that is far from being close to production-spec. This is one of the things that each builder is modifying on their own, and the input is all being used to help the company come up with the production standard mount that wil fit a wide variety of frame types.
The motor mount was a real bugaboo on this project. Jim (RdKryton) developed a modified front and rear mount, but the front mount needed further modification to fit this bike.
The bike chosen for the project is a 26" Sun Retro Classic Cruiser single speed bike. I've added a Sun springer fork, front caliper brakes and a Whizzer saddle (big butt bucket), as well as a trick Swiss-made side stand / butterfly stand.
Below are photos of the progress so far. The photos titled Figure 1, 2 and 3 show the first modification to the motor mount. The modified front mount turned out to be too long, and has been subsequently shortened.
I'll be posting more shots as the bike nears completion.

 

[alberndt]

Kilroy,
Spent all day working on my "beta" kit, I approached the motor mount a little differently, I took a piece of strap steel and basically made a "Z" shape out of it and u-bolted it to the downtubes, then I attached the mounting plate to the "Z" cross piece. I am building on a 50's schwinn heavy duty. One question, the rubber pieces around your downtubes? What are they or where did you get them, trying to improvise and am not happy with the results.

alberndt
nebraska

 

[fetor56]

Refreshingly honest Kilroy cos i get sick of ppl saying exceedingly nice things about ANY(not necessarily this) beta product,only to find later after u purchase the item there are many bugs yet to be sorted.
Unless someone is an absolute genius(or fluked it) 1st generation anythings always have bugs,something we have to accept & adjust to.
The build is looking good man,can't wait it's completion.

 

[KilroyCD]

Kilroy,
Spent all day working on my "beta" kit, I approached the motor mount a little differently, I took a piece of strap steel and basically made a "Z" shape out of it and u-bolted it to the downtubes, then I attached the mounting plate to the "Z" cross piece. I am building on a 50's schwinn heavy duty. One question, the rubber pieces around your downtubes? What are they or where did you get them, trying to improvise and am not happy with the results.

alberndt
nebraska

Alberndt (may I call you Al?), the rubber pieces around the down tube and seat tube are cut from an old innertube, and held in place with some masking tape (while fitting the clamps). Jim and I were discussing yet another possible design to the mount, and it would essentially take heavy strap steel and bend it into a "M" shape, with the center of the "M" cradling the tube. This would be held in place by a "U" bolt. If you should try this approach, please let us know how it turns out.

 

[azbill]

lookin good dudes !!!
your design is much cleaner than my approach (yuck)
I tried to make it plain that mine was a beta, and I had to improvise on my install as well
(also, my chain was too short, something I am still waiting for in the mail...thank god Vinnie got me a piece)
I WILL say though, I asked Quenton about a clutch spring that was easier to pull, and he mailed it right away and it is a lot easier to dis-engage
(thank you, Quenton)

 

[KilroyCD]

Refreshingly honest Kilroy cos i get sick of ppl saying exceedingly nice things about ANY(not necessarily this) beta product,only to find later after u purchase the item there are many bugs yet to be sorted.
Unless someone is an absolute genius(or fluked it) 1st generation anythings always have bugs,something we have to accept & adjust to.
The build is looking good man,can't wait it's completion.

Fetor, this is why the kits aren't out for general sale yet, as EZM wants to make sure everything is as good as it can get. To that end, the kits are being supplied with mounts from other commercially available kits (no, these mounts in the Beta kits aren't EZM-designed) with the idea of having those who are building these Beta bikes (call them prototypes if you will) send their feedback and ideas to EZM, and these will be incorporated into the production mount. I'm excited to be in on this, and my experiences in building this with the modified mount just might have an effect on the design of the production mount.
By the way, thanks for the kind words on the bike.

 

[KilroyCD]

I WILL say though, I asked Quenton about a clutch spring that was easier to pull, and he mailed it right away and it is a lot easier to dis-engage
(thank you, Quenton)

Bill, we've already incorporated the lighter spring on ours. The one on Quenton's prototype is "finger-light", and ours should be that way too.

 

[KilroyCD]

your design is much cleaner than my approach (yuck)
I tried to make it plain that mine was a beta, and I had to improvise on my install as well

Bill, your approach doesn't look bad at all, and I think your bike looks great! You did make it clear that you were improvising on this Beta kit, and until the production mount comes out I'm sure just about everyone with Beta kits will be tweaking and modifying to get the right fit. That is the method behind the madnes; to collect information so the company gets everything right before the kit's general release.

 

[fetor56]

Kilroy....Understood,the correct way.

 

[azbill]

just an update...my chain came in the mail today

thanks EZM !