GEBE I'm Ready to do this.....help?

Let me be more specific with regard to how I will use the engine....which may be more helpful in selecting the right engine. I doubt I'll run the thing full -throttle for long. Mostly along back roads and trails at a modest pace. Torque is important as it is hilly here in PA. But which engine might withstand a 1/4 or 1/2 throttle the majority of the time? I seem to recall something doesn't perform as well at low throttle levels.......was it the 2 stroke engines or does that pertain to different style clutches? I'm getting there.......almost there with a decision.:D
 
GEBE Selection

Hi BTB,
I ride a GEBE 35cc and have posted some experiences in my Intro http://www.motoredbikes.com/showthread.php?t=5772 about bike upgrades and hill riding. I have found that if you ride your bike hard, you probably want to switch to a cromoly solid axle (not hollow QR, and not solid standard steel which I bent). Also, with your weight (you + bike), you will need to pedal a little on continuous hills of about 5 degrees and reasonably hard on hills that are 10 degrees. On 18 degrees hills, you might be walking up! :D The quoted slopes here are dependent on bike/rider weight, clutch condition/adjustment, bike condition, and other factors so take them with a grain of salt.

My engine has a centrifugal clutch with standard GEBE gearing so I need to ride around 15mph to keep the engine fully engaged. Going up steep hills, I pedal pretty hard to get to that 15mph nexus :eek: . If your speed is slower up a hill, you ride the clutch and it wears out sooner. I have never replaced clutch pads but have heard it is easy.

All my riding is on city streets. It will be interesting to see what your experiences are on dirt roads. You should probably carry an extra belt since dirt riding may kick up debris that will make the belt wear more quickly :)
 
Well, I bit the bullet and purchased the 33cc Tanaka 2 stroke kit and a new wheel today. Fortunately, I've received some great info on this site, do's and dont's and will look forward to post-install. :)
Once I get tweeked and running, I will join those of you conducting the mad experiments to quiet the engine down. Then again, I'd be happy to purchase that Solex muffler I read about.:D
 
I know you are going to be extra enthused today, so let me tell you what I'm going to do to the 2 T-33's just arrived.

Don't put on the blackplastic GEBE cover until this weekend, nor the kill switch, use the choke to kill the engine, during your break-in tankfulls you will get more ideas where you want the killswitch to go.

Look to the left of the exhaust, there is ONE mounting bolt for the bottom part of the plastic Tanaka engine cover. I'm going to put a little JWeld and black duct tape on that spot (the fuel tank will hide most of it).

The 2 piece plastic engine cover is clever, but apparantly the roads in Japan are a lot smoother than ours in Alabama, that spot is where a crack might form, and I'm just trying to nip it in the bud.

Another place to add support to the black plastic is to the right of the exhaust, you can see a slight space where the top/bottom covers connect. I'll feed a black zip tie in that crack, pull it thru with needlenose, tighten, and this will reduce future vibration.

When you get done breaking in the engine, double check the black plastic mounting bolts, especially the two to the right of the string pull and the one holding the spark plug cover. I'm going to put a little fingernail polish on all those mount bolts from now on, so a customer won't have to buy the .79 cent bolts within a month due to speeding on rough roads.
 
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Thanks Bama, I've calmed down enough and will take my time with the install. I agree, the engine covers are simple and access to bolts are well placed. My thought was to locate mini rubber washers and place them between engine and cover. Looks like the bolts MAY be long enough. The tie idea is a great one.......I was thinking of at least 2 ties.
What about the possibility of wedging a block of rubber or something between the gas tank and shroud?
The fact that this new Schwinn is a hard tail ( suspension seat) raises vibration concerns for sure. I'm second guessing installing this on my GT, but the fork drop-outs are not flush. There are raised weld seams and tubing in the way etc. Don't want to attempt frame mounting on my first bike either.:oops: So good vibrations here we come.:D
 
Oh...

Oh, and what do you think about an insulator ( rubber, soft plastic) between the engine and the mounting strap and main bracket?
 
Oh, and what do you think about an insulator ( rubber, soft plastic) between the engine and the mounting strap and main bracket?

Can't hurt, inner tube would do. Framemounting rather than axlemounting has fixed so many little things, everything is icing nowadays.

I'll try it too on another green bike I've got, we'll compare notes later in the week.
 
OK, I have rubber washers, nylon washers, an old inner tube and a cheap old flimsy garden hose. I'll try something to mount between the bracket and engine. Just got back from Lowes and found tiny rubber washers to try on the muffler cage. They also carry those hex bolts in nylon but my fear is breaking one off.
I decided to get 2 new tires and tubes. Kevlar all-terrain ( not for speed) and SLIME " smart tubes". 5X thicker and stronger than std. tube.....we'll see.
The stock tires on the SCHWINN look like ****. High glossy 1/2 plastic fake rubber something or other with little to no tread. Won't last a day here in W PA. OK.....I'll begin the install..........:)
 
BTBWILD.....#1...before you take off don't forget that safety tie from the engine to the frame to prevent throttle going full blast if metal strap comes loose. If I hadn't installed that i woulda been a goner when my metal strap came loose when the bolt came off from vibration.
 
Here She Is...almost.....

The hard part is done. I had to purchase a new gear cassette for my new wheel. The stock cassette was a "freewheel" style and not compatible with the GEBE wheel I purchased. Most of the afternoon was spent getting this wheel right.
I have some small issues ( maybe mistakes to correct) and could use help. While installing the engine to the main bracket, I used rubber washers and locktite and really cranked er down. ( likewise with the strap) After mounting the assembly I noticed the belt wants to ride against the outside gear rim. I tried spacers behind the motor gear, re-seating the bracket to the axle, spacers on the axle etc. It's close but no matter what I do I can't get the belt to ride the gear center. Seems the engine could be swiveled on the main bracket BUT I locktited it down........? Ideas? Also can someone direct me to a pic of how to add the safety ties? ( tie to what?)
Here's some pics so far. I used temporary ties for the throttle cable and tied the kill switch to the seat post. The kill switch ring is too small to fit around the seat post and perhaps the handlebars. Not sure if it will work using the plastic ties........it's somewhat snug for now. can't gas er up till tomorrow as I ran out of play time.:cry:
 

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