Update On Oilite Bushing/Bearings Conversions of 4 Stroke Belt Drive

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Here's where I'm at for those interested. I completed the installation of
the Oilite bushing on a Chinese 4 stroke ebay kit and did some initial
testing. So far it looks like a very promising improvement over the
greased bronze bushing - no drive problems at all. I don't know
how long it will last until the bushing goes dry. Some users swear
by these Oilite bushings. All I can do is continue testing and then
inspect the parts after about 100 hours, and report the results. I
intend to make a video of the drive running to show how
stable the clutchbell is when running.

On the bearing solution, I am at a crossroads: The small Avid sealed
bearings I purchased did not fit the motor shaft, although they were
intended for a 15mm shaft. Some small amount
of material would have to be taken off the shaft to get the
bearings on, and I'm reluctant to mod the shaft. On the needle roller
bearing, it is a slip fit over the motor shaft, but I am very concerned
that the keyway groove will interefere with its operation. I could also
envision how the groove would collect grease from the bearing,
and ultimately all the grease would end up in the keyway groove.
It could be that the sealed bearings are the best solution, and on
the plus side, I now know how to easily install them on the drive.
So overall, right now, the best solution seems to be the Oilite
bushing. It's an easy fast mod, and maybe, it could last for a long
time before it has to be re-impregnated with oil.
 
My favorite of your solutions, too. The old Comet Centrifugal Clutches had oillite, I believe, and they took huge amounts of abuse before they squawked.
 
Next week I'm going to upgrade the hardware I used on
the Oilite bushing conversion by buying oil embedded
washers and spacers from McMaster-Carr. The spacers
will be a better fit. I want top hardware on this.
 
I assume Mike, you're doing this upgrade on a 8G belt drive trany from BGF or BikeBerry. I see they sell only a couple of internal replacement parts for any of their tranys. Is your clutch bell welded to the shaft or is it a bolt on?? I take it you can not purchase the shaft by itself. Otherwise you would have done that and made the sealed bearing fit. Am I following you? I ask because I'm about to purchase one like yours. Maybe???
 
Last edited:
I'm doing the conversion to the $180 4 stroke Chinese ebay kit
with a belt drive. The shaft where the clutch mounts is 15mm.
The clutch bell has a small 20 tooth pulley which is welded on.
If you buy one, use blue locktite on all the bolts, especially
the bolt through the large pulley which has a tendency to
come loose, and, most of all, adjust the belt tension. MIne
came way over-tightened. Sometimes, you just never know
what you're going to get from ebay. Good luck. And
throw away the 415 chain and buy a 41.
 
I already got the new parts and mounted them. Three
parts are required to convert the belt drive to an Oilite
bushing after honing out the clutch bell housing to fit
the bushing:
The spacer, (1): https://www.mcmaster.com/7421K56/
and the washer: https://www.mcmaster.com/7421K51/
I'll make a video of the drive running to demonstrate
the stability of the drive. That's it. I'm done. Now just
riding and riding, and testing. Note: I had to ream the
spacer just a might to get it to fit over the bushing.
 
Mine is slightly bent, but if yours seriously wobbles, there's a problem
somewhere.
 
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