What is this thing on my wheels?

[mattysids]

i went the lazy man's way
i just put the sprocket under the dust cover
works great!
the dust cover also works as an alignment tool when needed

 

[motorpsycho]

That's why i'm here! There's a first time for every thing, and I am learning alot about mechanics, and how engines work. Thanks for your concern.

I got the dust cap grinded enough so i can fit it on. Thanks for the pictures. They helped me a bit. I had to make the center hole of my sprocket larger from 3.5cm to 4 cm to fit it closer to the spokes. I also made the uncut rubber bushing thinner. I am going to get some front disk brakes, or get some high quality linear-pulls. I am adding a rear side pull caliper to add to the braking. Thanks a ton for all the help.

let me just say that I would like to appologise for sounding like suck a jerk.
It's just that I am so used to being around people who can build/fix/make ANYTHING, and sometimes it's hard for me to comprehend how someone doesn't understand something as simple as a bicycle.
But, I do realize that there is a learning curve, and some people may not have ever messed with a bicycle.....let alone a 2 stroke motor.
I guess that mechanics and fabrication are second nature to me, so when someone asks a simple question (simple to me) sometimes i think " what the.....?" and sometimes, i post my honest opinion, which could sometimes be a bad thing.

 

[GearNut]

let me just say that I would like to appologise for sounding like suck a jerk.
It's just that I am so used to being around people who can build/fix/make ANYTHING, and sometimes it's hard for me to comprehend how someone doesn't understand something as simple as a bicycle.
But, I do realize that there is a learning curve, and some people may not have ever messed with a bicycle.....let alone a 2 stroke motor.
I guess that mechanics and fabrication are second nature to me, so when someone asks a simple question (simple to me) sometimes i think " what the.....?" and sometimes, i post my honest opinion, which could sometimes be a bad thing.

It takes a a real man to step up to the plate and admit faults.
You've done well.
I have a similar problem, and I work a parts counter! Sometimes you gotta bite your toung and help teach the noobs rather than gasp and go OMG!
It is all about the learning curve. We all started somewhere, not knowing a darned thing about what we were doing.
This forum is awesome for teaching and learning!

 

[moun10biker]

Thanks. It no problem at all. I got the tire all ready to go, and I am almost ready to fire it up, except for attaching the chain. I got to make it shorter, but there are other posts about that.
I think linear pull brakes are just the same a v-brakes. No problem at all motorpsycho. lol
I'm staying on top of things in school, and about the type of bike, I got a brand new beach cruiser after hours of searching off of craigslist. I got myself an auto detailing venture thats bringing in bank. Lots of work to get these goods.

One more question, when talking about gauge in spokes whats that mean. I have an idea, but i'm not positive.

 

[AussieJester]

I got myself an auto detailing venture thats bringing in bank. Lots of work to get these goods.

Power too you lil man at 14 your attitude is better than alot of grown men i know, rather than sitting back vegging in front of the pc or exbox hours on end like alot of kids do your out there earning coin to buy your own gear rather than relying on mummy and daddy to fork out for it more teenages (and adults for that matter) could learn from you! kudos too you, your definitely in the right place, everyone has to start somewhere and your obviously dedicated and willing too learn to improve yourself and your abilities, your going to go along way in life mate, best of luck with the bike and your business venture.

KiM

p.s OH gauge of spoke refers to the spokes thickness ie. the diameter of the spoke heres whats confusing too the smaller the number the larger the diameter, 10 guage spoke for example would be larger than a 12 gauge spoke. Same goes for measuring wire and metal tube sizes.

 

[Porkchop]

Thanks. It no problem at all. I got the tire all ready to go, and I am almost ready to fire it up, except for attaching the chain. I got to make it shorter, but there are other posts about that.
I think linear pull brakes are just the same a v-brakes. No problem at all motorpsycho. lol
I'm staying on top of things in school, and about the type of bike, I got a brand new beach cruiser after hours of searching off of craigslist. I got myself an auto detailing venture thats bringing in bank. Lots of work to get these goods.

One more question, when talking about gauge in spokes whats that mean. I have an idea, but i'm not positive.

Gauge refers to the thickness or diameter of a given material. The smaller the gauge number, the thicker or larger diameter the material is. For instance, a 12 gage spoke will be larger in diameter than 20 gage spoke. You can find conversion charts on the internet that will convert gauge measurements to inches and milimeters if you need. Hpe this is simple enough for you and that it helps.

 

[moun10biker]

Makes perfect sense. I guess lower the gauge the better, for support. Is 12ga the standard size?

 

[motorbikemike45]

Bowing to you, young sir. I remember at your age I was building a scooter using a discarded Maytag washing machine engine. Back in the day, rural areas that didn't have electricity yet could use big appliances powered by gasoline. The Maytag engines didn't have much power, but those babies were built like a tank and I bet they will run forever. I learned the same as you are learning. I wish you luck with your build and many hours of riding pleasure. 14 and 12 gauge spokes seem to be the norm.

 

[motorpsycho]

to shorten the chain you have to grind off 2 of the rivits on a link and pry the link off. then you just attatch your master link to bring the chin back together.
you will want to grind the peice off so that you have a female link at each end of the chain so that the master link will go back on.

 

[Porkchop]

Another alternative to adjusting chain length is to go to Walmart and buy a chain breaker for about $5.00. The breaker also comes with 2 different sizes of master links as well. One for single speed bikes and one for multi speed bikes.