Another EZM

[smitty]

I thought I'd join the club. So here is my EZ Motorbike. This is built on a '60's (made in Germany) J.C.Higgins middle weight. It still needs some work, (like a front wheel and brake,) but it rides well, and runs great.

The first start was a little difficult, but now that it has run a few times, it starts easily.

The motor mounts supplied with the prototype kit were terribly inadequate. They neither matched the frame tube angles nor appealed to the eye.

Attached are photos of my prototype mounts. These are adjustable for the frame tube angles, and keep the engine from tipping sideways. The problem with these mounts is that they only fit one size of tube. I plan to make some tooling for a mount to fit a variety of tubes.( 'V' shaped, with flanges to bolt through.) They should fit different diameters as well as ovals, by changing the length of the bolts. The round stock under the plate is 1/2 inch hot rolled steel drilled and tapped, with grade 8 bolts.

Also a picture of the modified left crank, and the kick stand extension. (Because of the added weight the bike had to stand straighter.)

Stop by my place if you want to ride it.

 

[nsideus]

Nice idea for the motor mounts. Did you need to modify the crank arm to clear the pipe?

 

[mabman]

Looking good Smitty. Necessity is the mother of invention.

All the stock plate mounts available for the H/S's are pretty crappy. The one that I saw today that comes with a hoot gearbox here are even worse. But it is not as bad as the rear sprocket. I just can't seem to get myself to bolt that on a bike. Have a solution all worked out though and just awaiting a few more parts for it to get another EZM ready for the road. Well, after addressing the motor mount issue but that is a done deal for the most part and am working on it today.

Looks like you didn't have to bend the cranks too much for clearance. Nice. We bent a three piece crank the other day to fit on my Whizzer and had good results with that also using heat and gentle pressure.

 

[Quenton Guenther]

Hi Smitty,

Looking Good!

The vintage bikes just look like they were waiting for a motor, they just look good together.

Thanks for your suggestions for attaching the mounting plate to the frame. I like the additional support idea. So far several Dealers have offered some really great ideas on the mount, and we are thrilled to have so many helping us. We are trying [with the dealers help] to end up with a mount that will fit a wider range of bicycles and still look great. So far most are making the frame mounts pivot instead of sliding inside the motor mount plate. Some of the problems encountered so far, include the mounting plate being slightly too long on tight "V" bottom, the angles on the test mounts have only fit a couple of frames, the frames we thought the mounts would fit, didn't, and the frames we didn't think would fit, did. However most have needed extra length in the forward part of the mount.

Sounds easy to design a new mount, or does it? It must be able to collaspe more than it does now, extend more than it does now, must adjust to different frame tube angles, fit different size tube, fit Oval tube frames, etc, etc.

We have seen the motor mounted high in the frame, low in the frame, forward, and so far back the air breather touched the frame.

We designed the drive system plate to affix to the seat down tube for additional support, and can be easily attached if needed.

Like I said earlier, Thanks for everyone's help.

Have fun,

 

[smitty]

nsideus-
The crank was bent out (on both sides) to clear the engine. The pipe is well positioned and out of the way.

I did install a slightly modified muffler insert (extra holes and a tube around the bottom half of the baffle) left over from a two stroke kit. It is ,as you might expect, a little louder (sounds GOOD) and the engine is a bit peppier.

I plan on using a flex pipe when they become available.

 

[smitty]

EZ motor mounts

Last week I made some tooling to produce an adjustable motor mount designed to fit the EZ motor platform to a variety of bikes. It will fit any frame tube angles and a variety of tube sizes.

The 'V' clamp will fit frame tubes ranging from one inch to one-and-one-quarter inch, and by changing to longer bolts it will fit oval tubes up to one-and-one-quarter inch wide.

The sliding shank, in it's shortest version, provides three-eighths inch adjustment, with the slot on the platform adding another half inch (or so), and it can easily be manufactured longer. This sliding mount on both ends of the platform provides about one and three-quarters inch adjustment in length.

Refinements I'm considering include a vinyl coating inside the 'V' clamp.

If you're interested in seeing photos of the tooling let me know.

I tried to start a new thread for this but wasn't allowed.

 

[MotorbikeMike]

Motor Mount options

Hi all, Good Job Smitty! The little mount ends you designed would let an owner with no special skills mount his engine is a bike, and, it is easy to see, that the tab with slot, whether front or rear could easily be made to length for certain readily available bikes.

Rubber or vinyl inside the calm (maybe even that "dip" for tools would work?) seems a good idea. If the mount were to be longer, would it be wise to have the solid rear part longer, rather than the slotted part wich would obviously be the least strong of the two?

I look forward to see more of what you are doing,

Mike

 

[smitty]

Hi Mike
I'm not sure what you mean by "the solid rear part".

The slotted part is 3/16"X1" hot rolled steel, (pretty tough stuff) but could be made using 1/4"X 1" if it were made extra long. The sliding section is a channel and as such has more strength than flat stock.

 

[MotorbikeMike]

Clear as chocolate milk!

Hi Smitty, I could not see that you had used that channel, I thought it was plate. That channel is strong I use it for drop-stands, motor mounts and other stuff. It will be plenty strong even slotted!

For the money, you can't beat that channel iron! Tho I was surprised that mine is made in Canada?

Mike

 

[smitty]

Hi Mike-
(yum, chocolate milk)

I tried to find available channel and flat bar that would fit together, but the stuff at my steel supplier did not fit together. I made my own channel that would fit one inch flat bar.