New here, looking for a good cruiser starting bike

Androosky

New Member
Local time
11:15 PM
Joined
Oct 12, 2015
Messages
15
Hey everyone, just getting into motorized biking, very interested to take on my first project. Going to be ordering a 2 stroke kit from ebay to start out simple.. move my way up to some custom parts or a 4 stroke later down the road. My average commute to work is about 3-4 miles and very steep roads.. normal bikes are a no go because of how steep these hills are, think san fran but worse. I read up a lot that 2 stroke would be great for this terrain so thats what I'll stick with for now. Any suggestions on a sub 200$ cruiser bike? Looking for something that can hold up for a year, maybe 2 and looks nice. Suggestions would be awesome! :)
 
Discount store cruiser bikes will work. Avoid the ones with welded-on cargo racks. Older cruiser bikes from 1960-2000 have stronger frames.
 
Hi Androosky! Your first build nice. I made my first build out of a Wally World cruiser, LaJolla 26". There is a steep learning curve when making your first build. My MB has over 700 miles on it and has never let me down since I made the needed modifications. Since your going to put your bike through a really tough time I recommend making the mods before taking it up and down those steep hills, it's no fun having to push a bike after a failure especially under your circumstances. When I started out I read many posts that building a MB out of a Wally World bike is a mistake as they will never hold up. Well that is true if you don't do the things necessary to overcome it's weaknesses. The 2 stroke engines need some upgrades as well to keep them going. My mods to the engine were simple but needed to keep it together. I removed all of the external screws and replaced them all with stainless steel hex socket screws, adding a dab of blue lock tight to each one. The muffler bracket that comes with the engine kit that holds the muffler to the bike is needed but the one you get in the kits is garbage. Get some scrap steel like an old computer case cover and fabricate your own. The chain and sprocket that comes in the kit is an accident waiting to happen. Toss them. Get a 415 chain from Agri Supply, they are extremely cheap and wont fail as the 410's do. The chain tensioner that comes in the kits is very dangerous, when it fails you could be seriously hurt or killed by it. Get a 42 or 44 tooth rear sprocket hub assembly, the clam shell type. They cost about 55 to 75 dollars but a needed expense, better that then having to replace your rear wheel. Depending on the bike you get, look at the rear wheel bearing configuration carefully. Most bikes have an inner and outer bearing race on one side and only an inner on the other. This wont hold up to the stresses your engine will put on the rear hub. What I did to correct this weakness was to take a large steel washer and modify it to act as an outer bearing race. I placed it under the rear brake arm which holds it in place, a very simple mod which prevents the rear left hub bearing from destroying itself. You need a front and rear brake on your bike, add after market brakes to your bike, do not depend on a cruisers hub brake to stop you. Ill provide some pictures of my build so you can see the mods I've made. Oh when you get your bike take all of the crank, wheel bearings out, inspect them, repack them all as the factory does not do this properly. If you are unable to do it yourself pay a bike shop to do it for you, trust me it's an absolute must do. Unfortunately my bike is still not finished, it's two years old and I'm still designing and fabricating upgrades for it. You can see some of my mods on my You Tube channel. It's called AssembleThis. There are many many things I haven't discussed so if you have any questions let me know. Be safe but above all have fun!
http://imgur.com/db3a0IQ
http://imgur.com/AiLa24s
 
Back
Top