This one crazy hobby

GoldenMotor.com

Flyman

Member
Nov 28, 2014
259
3
18
Vian Oklahoma
Being I,m just getting started, I find this hobby to be so different
then any I have been in before, & that's many. Example is oil &
gas mix.Every one seems to have there own formula.Everything
form 16-1 to 50-1.I find that so funny.There is just no standard
from the makers of these engines.

It,s not just that, it,s types of ignitions to use & so on & so on.
Lucky for me I have a back ground in two stroke racing.But the poor guy
just coming in could really be led a stray.

Take care Fly:-||
 

xseler

Well-Known Member
Apr 14, 2013
2,886
151
63
OKC, OK
Just like fishing..........so many different ways to get the same result!!

Best of luck in your adventure, from a 50:1 guy!!
 

Joshsheesley90

New Member
Nov 18, 2014
10
0
0
Youngstown ohio
i have absolutely no mechanical background and just got my first motorbike in october. im kinda wingin it with the help of this forum and another with pretty good results. i just upgraded my carb today and it took me about 2 hours to figure out how to swap from factory. but i just finished up and i love the response of the new carb.dance1
 

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wheelbender6

Well-Known Member
Sep 4, 2008
4,059
221
63
TX
If you go to an automotive performance forum, you will see a huge variety of opinions on oil, oil change intervals, tuning and everything else. Bicycle racers will argue at length about bearing tension and custom wheel bearing grease blends.
You will have disagreement on any forum that involves tinkering and experimentation.
Get a handful of opinions and follow the one that makes the most sense to you.
 

maniac57

Old, Fat, and still faster than you
Oct 8, 2011
4,484
22
0
memphis Tn
Or just listen to me. I know everything.
(I just can't remember it all at the same time)
 

BobbyT

Member
Mar 16, 2014
162
15
18
Santa Maria ca.
You say this hobby is crazy? What is crazy about spending lots of money and countless hours woking on bicycles?

I can't sleep I'm waiting for my new frame to get delivered. Crazy!
 

Dan

Staff
May 25, 2008
12,765
115
48
59
Moosylvania
I really do understand your point, Fly. It can be confusing and even daunting with all the different approaches. When I first got into this, had never touched a 2 stroke. Back then, when ya ordered a kit, ya waited 2 weeks at the earliest for it to arrive. I was so excited I read everything I could find. LOL, I wanted to throw wrenches after finding all the thoughts on mixing oil. (which I had just learned was necessary)

There was only one kind of carb for the China Girls/HTs. And still about a hundred differing opinions.

Much later, the "great master link wars" of ott '08 lol.

But really is confusing for someone new to this.

The absolute best thing for someone considering or that are new to this is to go to a group ride. MB folks really are great and fun to hang out with. But just the real life, seeing em in action is night and day better than trying to figure out the nuances of a mechanical devise via text and pictures.

The best advise I have ever heard on the oil thing was from BA. "Follow the directions on the container" Of course, ya gotta pick your poison first. Which is yet another debate. But all the advice here is good and it will work. Any bad advise is quickly questioned but ya can rely on most, if not all the popularly endorsed approaches. (lol, and I will be disagreed with for that)


I can not recommend this enough. Find a park near ya and post a get-together in the events section. Great fun and learning experience. And ya get to see the varying concepts in action.
Most of the fuel filters will be upside down. Is kinda a thing with us folks.


Just my opinion. (hehe) r.ly.
 

silverbear

The Boy Who Never Grew Up
Jul 9, 2009
8,325
670
113
northeastern Minnesota
It is true that all of the different opinions and approaches can be confusing. But it is also liberating. There are so many ways to do a build... and when we look back into the early days of bicycles becoming motored and eventually morphing into motorcycles it is almost dizzying to see how many different ideas were floating around on how to go about things. And not just in the U.S.A., but all over the world. So many little companies were popping up like mushrooms in the night. Most disappeared pretty quickly, just as with early automobiles, but there were a lot of manufacturers finding customers. Gradually our choices became more limited in motored transport. In time the U.S. motorcycles came down to Indian and Harley Davidson dominating the market until Indian disappeared as well. In automobiles people forgot the names Hudson and Kaiser, Nash and Cord, Willys and Studebaker. Desoto once again became the name of a Spanish explorer and was forgotten as a vehicle. Now we have precious few choices and it seems that even with all of the imports so many brands look and essentially are the same.

And that is one of the reasons I personally find this "hobby" (funny, but I don't like that word in reference to my bike building passion as it sounds frivolous, silly... putting motors on bicycles)... why I find this activity so liberating. Like those early back yard mechanics who made their own machines and rode off into the sunset on them, I get to do the same thing. I get to decide if my ride is going to have friction drive or chain or belt. I can choose what motor I want: gas or electric, 2 stroke, four stroke, big displacement or small. I can make it to fit my needs, preferences, budget and skill set. And I can make it mine with the power of imagination.

It is confusing until you get your bearings and then it turns into a lot of fun and maybe even a way of life to one degree or another. For this old fellow it has become a pretty big deal and I am the richer for it.
SB
 
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