B
Blaze
Guest
Here are the build details and things to watch out for when building a bike like this one. I will try to keep the comments in the same order as the thumbnails posted below.
1st photo - side view. Don't use the stock seat. It looks great mounted directly to the frame, but does not belong up in the air. Get a seat post that bends back over the fender and install a nice springer saddle. Also, ape-hanger handle bars are the way to go here. Very comfortable way to get your grips up where you want them.
2nd photo - automatic centrifugal clutch. Standard on every bike I build. Auto clutches are just the way to go, and the great thing is that the motor mount sets the whole motor off to the left, so you don't have to modify anything to get the clutch to fit in, unlike every other bike I've built. It just fits perfectly.
3rd photo - frame spacers. I added a few washers in between the hub and the frame on the left side to get more clearance for the sprocket. More on that later (8th photo).
4th photo - clutch lever. For auto clutches, I always mount them out of the way. You don't need to use it for anything but starting the bike, so I always mount it where it won't interfere with the grips. Looks a little wierd, but it's practical.
5th photo - exhaust mount. Hose clamp. That's as simple as it gets. I used some of the rubber sprocket shim to cushion it against the frame. Don's tighten the hose clamp too much if you use a setup like this. If you keep tightening it, the muffler will get pulled up too high.
6th photo - plug wire. I cut the plug wire so short all you can see is the rubber plug cover. Looks very clean, and is a good fit for the bike.
7th photo - speedometer. Donated and installed by Johnny. No real reason to put that up here because it's easy to put on. I really just posted it because it looks so cool.
8th photo - sprocket spacers. Here's where we did a little work. The 36t sprocket from spookytooth did not line up with the hub adapter from Livefastmotors, and the center hole in the sprocket was too small to fit over the center of the adapter. I had to file the sprocket's bolt holes to fit the hub adapter. Then, rather than enlarge the center hole of the sprocket to make it fit flush against the adapter, I decided to use a nut as a spacer between the hub and the adapter. It gives you more chain clearance for the tire. This is why I added the frame spacers in photo 3. To make up for the sprocket being moved out from the wheel. In the end, it gives you great chain/tire clearance, and everything lines up well. If you do this, you will need new sprocket bolts. Later, I will edit this to include the Ace Hardware part numbers for the bolts, washers, lock washers, and nuts that I used.
That's it for the photos. Here are the things you need to know to avoid the problems I ran into, and it can really save you a lot of time if you know before you start to build...
1. Livefastmotors has a great kit for converting these choppers. We got the $185 complete conversion kit (this is separate from the motor kit), which included the motor mount, the long exhaust, and the hub adapter to mount the sprocket to. I was seriously impressed by the high quality of this kit. It made this bike the easiest one I have ever built.
2. You need a longer chain than what comes with the kit. When you order your kit, make sure to get an extra chain. If you order from Livefastmotors, they will include a longer chain for free if you request it for the chopper build. The one thing that wasted more time than anything on this build was trying to find more chain. These chains are not easy to find (at least I had a hard time), and can be expensive when you finally do find them. For this build, I finally had to get a heavy BMX chain, which should have been the same size, but was just barely off. After feeding 6 BMX chain links into the motor sprocket, it would bind. I had a few original chain links from another build, but still had to use 4 links form the BMX chain, so I broke the chain 4 times and installed one single BMX link at each break just to keep them away from each other. It worked great, but it was a huge waste of time.
3. Your sprocket will probably not fit the hub unless you get it from Livefastmotors. Be prepared to do some filing. I have been buying the 50cc motor kits (sold as 80cc if you believe it) with automatic clutches included for just over $200, so I'm probably not going to switch vendors any time soon. Plus, we wanted a 36t sprocket to compensate for the small rear tire, so we went ahead and ordered it from Spookytooth. Not too much work, but totally avoidable if you get the 40t from Livefastmotors.
4. You will have to bend the exhaust just a little to get it to fit right. I recommend having access to a vice. I did not. Johnny and I laid the exhaust on carpet and both stood on it as I would pull it to bend it a little. I don't recommend that method if you can avoid it. It sucks. And if you bend it while it's on the motor you have a pretty good chance of breaking an exhaust stud. I didn't break any, but I really did push my luck a little there.
If I think of anything else, I will edit this post to include it. The other stuff is basic to any motor install for any bike. Lube the cables, loctite the bolts, use better gasket material, blah blah blah.
Anyway, if you build one of these bikes, these tips should make it easier than when I did it, and that was still pretty easy compared to most builds I've done.
1st photo - side view. Don't use the stock seat. It looks great mounted directly to the frame, but does not belong up in the air. Get a seat post that bends back over the fender and install a nice springer saddle. Also, ape-hanger handle bars are the way to go here. Very comfortable way to get your grips up where you want them.
2nd photo - automatic centrifugal clutch. Standard on every bike I build. Auto clutches are just the way to go, and the great thing is that the motor mount sets the whole motor off to the left, so you don't have to modify anything to get the clutch to fit in, unlike every other bike I've built. It just fits perfectly.
3rd photo - frame spacers. I added a few washers in between the hub and the frame on the left side to get more clearance for the sprocket. More on that later (8th photo).
4th photo - clutch lever. For auto clutches, I always mount them out of the way. You don't need to use it for anything but starting the bike, so I always mount it where it won't interfere with the grips. Looks a little wierd, but it's practical.
5th photo - exhaust mount. Hose clamp. That's as simple as it gets. I used some of the rubber sprocket shim to cushion it against the frame. Don's tighten the hose clamp too much if you use a setup like this. If you keep tightening it, the muffler will get pulled up too high.
6th photo - plug wire. I cut the plug wire so short all you can see is the rubber plug cover. Looks very clean, and is a good fit for the bike.
7th photo - speedometer. Donated and installed by Johnny. No real reason to put that up here because it's easy to put on. I really just posted it because it looks so cool.
8th photo - sprocket spacers. Here's where we did a little work. The 36t sprocket from spookytooth did not line up with the hub adapter from Livefastmotors, and the center hole in the sprocket was too small to fit over the center of the adapter. I had to file the sprocket's bolt holes to fit the hub adapter. Then, rather than enlarge the center hole of the sprocket to make it fit flush against the adapter, I decided to use a nut as a spacer between the hub and the adapter. It gives you more chain clearance for the tire. This is why I added the frame spacers in photo 3. To make up for the sprocket being moved out from the wheel. In the end, it gives you great chain/tire clearance, and everything lines up well. If you do this, you will need new sprocket bolts. Later, I will edit this to include the Ace Hardware part numbers for the bolts, washers, lock washers, and nuts that I used.
That's it for the photos. Here are the things you need to know to avoid the problems I ran into, and it can really save you a lot of time if you know before you start to build...
1. Livefastmotors has a great kit for converting these choppers. We got the $185 complete conversion kit (this is separate from the motor kit), which included the motor mount, the long exhaust, and the hub adapter to mount the sprocket to. I was seriously impressed by the high quality of this kit. It made this bike the easiest one I have ever built.
2. You need a longer chain than what comes with the kit. When you order your kit, make sure to get an extra chain. If you order from Livefastmotors, they will include a longer chain for free if you request it for the chopper build. The one thing that wasted more time than anything on this build was trying to find more chain. These chains are not easy to find (at least I had a hard time), and can be expensive when you finally do find them. For this build, I finally had to get a heavy BMX chain, which should have been the same size, but was just barely off. After feeding 6 BMX chain links into the motor sprocket, it would bind. I had a few original chain links from another build, but still had to use 4 links form the BMX chain, so I broke the chain 4 times and installed one single BMX link at each break just to keep them away from each other. It worked great, but it was a huge waste of time.
3. Your sprocket will probably not fit the hub unless you get it from Livefastmotors. Be prepared to do some filing. I have been buying the 50cc motor kits (sold as 80cc if you believe it) with automatic clutches included for just over $200, so I'm probably not going to switch vendors any time soon. Plus, we wanted a 36t sprocket to compensate for the small rear tire, so we went ahead and ordered it from Spookytooth. Not too much work, but totally avoidable if you get the 40t from Livefastmotors.
4. You will have to bend the exhaust just a little to get it to fit right. I recommend having access to a vice. I did not. Johnny and I laid the exhaust on carpet and both stood on it as I would pull it to bend it a little. I don't recommend that method if you can avoid it. It sucks. And if you bend it while it's on the motor you have a pretty good chance of breaking an exhaust stud. I didn't break any, but I really did push my luck a little there.
If I think of anything else, I will edit this post to include it. The other stuff is basic to any motor install for any bike. Lube the cables, loctite the bolts, use better gasket material, blah blah blah.
Anyway, if you build one of these bikes, these tips should make it easier than when I did it, and that was still pretty easy compared to most builds I've done.
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