Warning to All! - Everyone look at this!

they laffed when i put turn buckles on my engines...ha...good thing you didnt get hurt...i had this happen and the turn buckles held the engine in place until i got home...these engines take alot of thought be fore you jump...hard knocks and dirty socks...dont give up...when you finish a good one , it will be worth it...check out manic mechanic web site and he also has a ad on the side of this forum...Dennis
 

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When I changed mine I put two nuts on the stud and tightened them against each other and then I just backed them right out..............
 
Every bike I build has stainless steel bolts aircraft locking nuts and locktite. My bikes take longer to build, cost more but I can say I have never had one come back due to metal fatigue.
 
brucemg51 said:
I rode about 10 miles to the nearest barber shop this morning. About half way back, I'm doing around 30mph, and suddenly loud noises, lots of shaking, and I come to a very wobbly, but fortunately safe, stop.
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Lots of shaking? I would think that at the first loud noise, you'd use the kill switch. This isnt a motorcycle, its a POS engine on a bicycle.

LOL... hey didnt you see the label that said "made in China" ?? With that said, the rest of this thread is rather redundant.
 
.bf..bf..duh..duh.I built my first gas bike when I was 12 I'm 56 now I have been riding 2 wheels most of my life.Yes it can be dangerous,but what's life if you don't scare yourself silly every once in a while.The answser is very boring!!! I agree the instructions and the hardware
in these chinese kits suck. You should at least make a solid front mount . As for my current bike (walmart schwinn del mar with 66cc 2 stroke )I love it!! When it breaks
it just gives me a chance to excercise the gray matter and make it so it doesn't do that any more.I have only logged about 20 miles and it has broken down about as many times.
And hey if you crash the pain lets you know your still alive.
 
you live in a nice area to ride...i'm 62 and have built 3 bikes...cruiser,gart fisher aluminum and 1996 GT arrette crommoly...the GT is perfect for these bikes...the engine fit right in and i have no vibration...changed the mount bolts, but other than that...perfect fit...cruises at 30mph...so far top is 37mph...but WHY?...great traspertation...tighten everything up after every day...Dennis...
 

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altarr said:
how does one go about swapping out the bolts?
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Pull out the old ones, put new ones in. Not bolts though, just rods, no head on either end. They might be a little hard to find because they're metric, but an easy way to do it is grab some metric bolts (easier to find) of the strongest metal available, that are the right length, and cut the head off with a hacksaw or something. I used a dremel, but got metal slivers EVERYWHERE. (like embedded into my hands) After you cut the heads off, make sure you slide some nuts OFF the cut side, to clean up the threads. Most hardware stores are likely to have the bolts (i typically use Ace Hardware for these) and most employees can size one for you and tell you which metal is strongest.

Ilikeabikea said:
When I changed mine I put two nuts on the stud and tightened them against each other and then I just backed them right out..............
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Oh man. Thats brilliant. I just started and was having issues. Taking them out was easy enough, just used vice-grips.. but that sounds like a great way to put the new ones in...
ALTARR - take notes! =)

Saddletramp1200 said:
Every bike I build has stainless steel bolts aircraft locking nuts and locktite. My bikes take longer to build, cost more but I can say I have never had one come back due to metal fatigue.
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My kinda man. I have the same feelings on the issue.
 
i go to the local fastener store and ask for the hardest all thread...usually the man says its about grade 6....remember grade 8 steel bolts and pot metal doesnt work...guess what breaks...not the bolt....saddletramp is correct about stainless steel bolts...there are sites on the internet that carry these...most of the bolts at hardware stores...and thats including the bigs ones have bolts that are heat treated in water...oil is great and honey is the best...Dennis
 
drhofferber said:
i go to the local fastener store and ask for the hardest all thread...usually the man says its about grade 6....remember grade 8 steel bolts and pot metal doesnt work...guess what breaks...not the bolt....saddletramp is correct about stainless steel bolts...there are sites on the internet that carry these...most of the bolts at hardware stores...and thats including the bigs ones have bolts that are heat treated in water...oil is great and honey is the best...Dennis
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IMO the stock chinese bolts are fine. Biggest reason for breakage is overtightening. Once I started using a stubby wrench and threadlock not a single sheared stud out of hundreds over the last few years. No lost nuts either.

FYI stainless and grade 8 bolts are not allowed in aircraft prop bolts or engine mounts due to being more brittle than regular moly-steel.
 
Stainless is NOT stronger than alloy steel bolts. Not sure where this one got started, but people call us all the time and ask if our hardware kits are "stainless", because they want the strongest. When I say, "no" they basically hang up. Some will listen when I explain a bit about metalurgy. If you want all the hardware for an engine in stainless, all in one kit for under $10, knock yourself out looking. But don't kid yourself about it being "stronger".
 
man that stinks, a good way to get the studs out is to use a dremel tool and cut a slot for a flat head screw driver, the deeper the better.
 
You know what. This year I fought fire with a very strong and healthy older gentelman. I looked up to him and and admired his attitude towards life. Three days ago I saw the man. He is in a motorized scooter, all of his teeth broken out and paralyzed from the nipple down. You know what from? He was riding a bicycle (Not motorized) and his front tire blew out causing him to endo onto his face. If you ask that man if he will ride a bike ever again, he'll say "well if the stem cells do what their supposed to do **** yes I will". Walk across the road you might be hit by a car, get on a bicycle you might die. I saw a 17 yo kid was riding and hit a bump in the asphalt near the train tracks, he fell forward and snapped his neck. Bam dead, I watched a good friendbe thrown from a rope swing almost 150 in the air he fell straight on his neck then bounced 15 ft off the solid dirt. We hung out the rest of the night and the next day he was life flighted to the hospital his neck was smashed to bits. He didn't die though. O'well you live you learn, I would rather do every dangerous thing I do and risk it. Otherwise I'd rather be dead anyway.
 
To everyone who wrote how "dumb,unsafe,duck tape-n-Chinese newspaper" these fun educating and rewarding HOBBY kits are. GO find a padded room put on your mittens on and cork your fork.

To everyone else ill race ya to the next light :)


P.S. Just know you can only learn so much and have some much fun when you live in a padded bubble.

Cheers and happy times
Steve .bf.

This part is for brucemg51. First if all this is designed as an bicycle assist motor not a motorcycle motor. Wheres your peddles? That would help the motor from torquing off. And also i suspect you tightened the bolts to tight. :) Maybe you would fell a little safer with one of these in a big empty well lit parking lot. Amazon.com: New Star Muscle Motorbike with Training Wheels in Black: Toys & Games PLUS it comes pre assembled so you dont have to worry about learning life's lessons the hard way .**** you dont have to learn at all they do it for you.


sorry everyone this post just hit a nerve.
 
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Pablo said:
Stainless is NOT stronger than alloy steel bolts. Not sure where this one got started, but people call us all the time and ask if our hardware kits are "stainless", because they want the strongest. When I say, "no" they basically hang up. Some will listen when I explain a bit about metalurgy. If you want all the hardware for an engine in stainless, all in one kit for under $10, knock yourself out looking. But don't kid yourself about it being "stronger".
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FO'SHO'!
If you want nice shiny hardware that isn't overly hard, and is expensive, use stainless.

Otherwise just use the right stuff.
 
Yep, stainless is not stronger, but I used in in some places as it is stronger enough and since I often cut the bolts to the proper length, I did not want to worry about unsightly rust at the cuts where there would be no zinc plate on a regular bolt. Not a strength issue...but I can be a tad compulsive that way.

That being said, I know some have had sucess with the original hardware, but even if it is good enough, it is obviously softer than grade 3, let alone the grade 5 (or metric equivalent) that I use most of the time.

I replaced the mounting tray bolts with decent hardware (Grubee 4 stroke), but the real problem I had was with the mounting bolts for the sprocket...which appeared to be the approximate hardness of slightly chilled cream cheese.

In the end though, if you want a gas and go experience, this ain't the hobby for ya. If you want to take the rough components, make something to your vision, and improve everything along the way- welcome to the club.
 
From my research it seems that spooky tooth makes a better quality engine called the skyhawk. It was designed right here in the US and the warranty would imply that its not made of unpredictable chinese pot metal. Plus they have managed to stay in business selling these from a storefront. If they were so dangerous and so many people died, dont you think spooky tooth would be sued out of business?
 
instead of getting all pissed off and telling us to throw are chinese engines out just replace the studs with american hardware store ones simple as that
i am surprised that you didn't realize that these are a little dangerous!
 
jdmphotography said:
From my research it seems that spooky tooth makes a better quality engine called the skyhawk. It was designed right here in the US and the warranty would imply that its not made of unpredictable chinese pot metal. Plus they have managed to stay in business selling these from a storefront. If they were so dangerous and so many people died, dont you think spooky tooth would be sued out of business?
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I am calling B.S. on this one.

The Grubee Skyhawks are the same old deal, different lable. Not designed in the U.S. either.

Spooky Tooth stays in business due to good service and the right legal papers when selling.
 
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