new guy from central california

72square

New Member
Local time
9:42 PM
Joined
Feb 7, 2012
Messages
16
Location
madera,ca
hey guys. My name is Jason, and I bought my first engine kit for motovelo.com. At first it was an adventure. i had a hard time keep in the tensioner bracket form moving so i welded the beast on. I've be riding it for about three weeks (40 miles a week) now and i think have all the kinks worked out. I've been reading the stickys for newbs and it looks like i have alot of mods to do :D. well its time to post my first question.



Jason
 
Good Kit?

hey guys. My name is Jason, and I bought my first engine kit for motovelo.com. At first it was an adventure. i had a hard time keep in the tensioner bracket form moving so i welded the beast on. I've be riding it for about three weeks (40 miles a week) now and i think have all the kinks worked out. I've been reading the stickys for newbs and it looks like i have alot of mods to do :D. well its time to post my first question.



Jason

You said you got your bike kit from Motovelo. Can you tell me what kind of engine you got? Is it 2 stroke or 4? Are you still happy you purchased it? Is it still running ok? I'm thinking of getting one of their engines and I want to know if they are better than the cheap China engines.
Thank you
 
Here are my guidelines for building:

1) Predominant riding terrain.
2) Primary riders physique.
3) Lookup and read local legal requirements.
4) Type of bike.
5) Budget.

Stay within these guidelines and you'll have a bike you can enjoy riding. Good luck with your build.
 
tyler, I purchased the 80 cc two stroke kit. The engine runs great if you get a new spark plug. the only problem i had with the kit was the twist throttle. Its super cheap and wears quite quickly. Unfortunately my frame broke while i was heading to school about three weeks ago. everything but the frame made it out ok.
 
Frame?

tyler, I purchased the 80 cc two stroke kit. The engine runs great if you get a new spark plug. the only problem i had with the kit was the twist throttle. Its super cheap and wears quite quickly. Unfortunately my frame broke while i was heading to school about three weeks ago. everything but the frame made it out ok.

Was the frame aluminum or steel? I quit building on aluminum frames a few years ago. EVERY ONE I built came back with a busted frame.
Big Red.
 
Motovelo

Jason:

Thanks for letting me know how the engine from Motovelo is working out for you. Reputation is everything in this biz! I was interested in Motovelo because it is one of the few places that will send a 2 stroke China girl to CA and it turns out that the guy is actually is based in my town. However, there are a few things that make me hesitate buying from him. (1) He claims his engine is better than anyone else's but I'm not sure I believe him. I spoke to him live on the phone and he told me that he only has kits in his warehouse but that he could have an engine sent to me directly for $160. This tells me that he doesn't actually do anything to the engines except unload them off a truck. He is offering to send me an engine he will never even see first. I asked him what the shipping cost or tax is and he said "$165 shipped to you." This seemed kinda flaky to me. His website had them listed for more! Also, (2) he was a sponsor at motorbicyling forum and actually got banned from the forum after he was questioned about why his engines are really the best, Read this thread, its actually kinda funny to read. His engines might actually be better than others, I don't know, I doubt they are any worse, but if he is BSing about that, I wonder if I can believe anything he says, if you know what I mean. If I was certain his China girls were really modified to run better and last longer I would have no problem paying extra but I just don't believe they really are. It's nice that he will send to CA but he isn't the only one who will and I found cheaper ones, even with shipping costs factored in that look just as good to me. Also, I have a friend in another state who is happy to reship one to me if I want to buy it from a place that won't ship to CA as long as I pay the extra shipping costs.

I originally purchased this kit (he will ship to CA) and I must say that if I had it to do over again I would get a different kit. It came with no kill switch (I purchased a new throttle with a kill switch attached from sickbikeparts.com), the clutch lever arrived broken (he did send another one for free), and the engine died after only 500 miles. I did get a good spark plug before I installed it but It had bushings instead of crank bearings and the bushings came apart and got sucked into the cylinder and out the exhaust causing major damage to the piston (see pictures at this tread--post #7). I still might be able to fix it but I have decided that it isn't really worth my time and expense to fix and it's smarter to just get another engine. I might consider getting another entire kit for spare parts but I really only need a replacement engine at this time.

Sorry to hear about your frame, that sucks!! Did you drill a hole in the frame to mount the engine? I don't recommend that you do that because it weakens the frame, I think it's better to get a clamp to mount the engine to the frame instead.

Anyhow, good luck and thanks for answering my question!!
 
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I used a beach cruiser style steel frame. I didn't drill any holes in it. The frame had broke the bottom tube right behind the head tube. Two weeks prior my sister in-law had wrecked the bike when the cheap twist throttle got stuck in the full throttle position (she was fine only a couple of scratches thank god) I didn't notice at the time but there was a dent in the frame from her accident i think that, my heavy build, and the rough roads i commute on all played a part in the frame breaking. I have since done some research and I found that the Workmanscycles frame is built with thicker tubing and will handle more weight. now i just have for it to be delivered.
 
Jason, Jerry:

workmanscycles look good. I hadn't heard of them before but I'm considering building a 4 stroke MB after I get my current MB going again and I might see if I can get one of those frames or something like it. I guess I'm hooked on MBs now!! They are fun to build and a blast to ride!
 
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