Your build on a $1000 budget?
- Thread starter Rezso
- Start date
No kidding crassius?
If you had $1000 to build reliable transportation you would just throw a cheap kit on a used bike not just once but twice to make two POS's and save the extra money for the inevitable time consuming repair cost to continuously patch up crap that will always be crap?
I see having a second ride at home for if your primary has an issue and won't start but that won't help you out on the road and now you have a repair or down to one POS.
Is it just me or is that about the worst advice you could ever give anyone with a grand in hand that wants reliable?
Crassius, you should try a quality new engine and bicycle build investing some time into doing everything right the first time sometime because believe it or not quality from the start pays for itself and then some not to mention the relief from the constant fixing aggravation.
due to budget cuts, roads in my area are not swept very often - my bikes rarely fail to run except that I often get ready to go and find flat tires
two bikes ready to go & and a few tools to carry would work well
there is little to go wrong with a good standard kit if it is built well - my customers get good service out of even my cheap builds, with more repair needed on the bicycle than on the motor - my premium builds don't even require much maintenance
two bikes ready to go & and a few tools to carry would work well
there is little to go wrong with a good standard kit if it is built well - my customers get good service out of even my cheap builds, with more repair needed on the bicycle than on the motor - my premium builds don't even require much maintenance
Its nice to know that at least 60% of people on this forum have "POS" bicycles. How do they survive?
I think if we were building "quality" most of us wouldn't worry about buying a china girl engine. But here we are building them, they are fun, mostly reliable and inexpensive if you want them to be. Some would suggest that a Micargi isn't a good bike to build on but Im not a snob when it comes to building these cool little bikes, or helping someone pick out their first guitar or car upgrade. Sure there is plenty of great stuff out there but to each his own.
I would highly suggest reading through this forum and even calling and chatting to some of the vendors as they are really helpful and as far as I can tell great spokespeople for this hobby. Look around Craigslist and your local paper to find great deals and even giveaways of some fine bicycles.
Start with a good strong foundation and take your time. Im just a newbie to all this but whats been suggested here echoes through pretty much any hobby you'll ever have.
Best of luck!
Dan.
I think if we were building "quality" most of us wouldn't worry about buying a china girl engine. But here we are building them, they are fun, mostly reliable and inexpensive if you want them to be. Some would suggest that a Micargi isn't a good bike to build on but Im not a snob when it comes to building these cool little bikes, or helping someone pick out their first guitar or car upgrade. Sure there is plenty of great stuff out there but to each his own.
I would highly suggest reading through this forum and even calling and chatting to some of the vendors as they are really helpful and as far as I can tell great spokespeople for this hobby. Look around Craigslist and your local paper to find great deals and even giveaways of some fine bicycles.
Start with a good strong foundation and take your time. Im just a newbie to all this but whats been suggested here echoes through pretty much any hobby you'll ever have.
Best of luck!
Dan.
i built my bike with less than 500$ !!!!!!!!!
a grubee gt5 kit 170 $
a beach cruiser 180$
puch head 40 $
#41 chains 20$
about 410$ tottal
all other work and engine mods were free i did them myself IE: porting npolish, port matching, exe....
http://motorbicycling.com/showthread.php?t=50697
cheack my signiture
a grubee gt5 kit 170 $
a beach cruiser 180$
puch head 40 $
#41 chains 20$
about 410$ tottal
all other work and engine mods were free i did them myself IE: porting npolish, port matching, exe....
http://motorbicycling.com/showthread.php?t=50697
cheack my signiture
if i had 1,000$ to spend ....
i already have a bike ready to go .... a diamond back outlook , a nice version of it too so that would cut some of the expence. its a 21 speed mt bike no suspention
the motor would be a HF 212cc degoverned 120$
NR racing valve train kit for 8,000rpm's 100$
NR racing camshaft 100$
decked large vavle head 150$
roller rockers 100$
a good torque a verter 200$
chains #41 30$
custom exhaust made from stuff i already own...0$
dellorto carb 16mm 30$
tottal 800$
the other 170$ would be spent on metal stock to make the mounts and welding suplies to weld the mounts and other stuff.
i already have a bike ready to go .... a diamond back outlook , a nice version of it too so that would cut some of the expence. its a 21 speed mt bike no suspention
the motor would be a HF 212cc degoverned 120$
NR racing valve train kit for 8,000rpm's 100$
NR racing camshaft 100$
decked large vavle head 150$
roller rockers 100$
a good torque a verter 200$
chains #41 30$
custom exhaust made from stuff i already own...0$
dellorto carb 16mm 30$
tottal 800$
the other 170$ would be spent on metal stock to make the mounts and welding suplies to weld the mounts and other stuff.
I’d like to thank you for posting this, as it prompted me to think about how much I’ve spent on my first 2 builds...
I just made a detailed list of what I spent to create build #2 and came up with $912.00 (I’ll share the list if you wish).
It’s a pretty custom build and I did have a couple of nice gifts that helped keep it under $1000- Namely a Tomas moped hub & urethane clear coat for the gas tank & fender.
But I think the real cost savings came from scrounging for inexpensive parts (example, the frame was a $10 flea market find), and then by doing the fabrication myself.
My first build is actually more detailed, but I did much more scrounging, and used less expensive componts over all (example no CVT).
I estimate the cost to be about the same, perhaps less.
-Kirk
I just made a detailed list of what I spent to create build #2 and came up with $912.00 (I’ll share the list if you wish).
It’s a pretty custom build and I did have a couple of nice gifts that helped keep it under $1000- Namely a Tomas moped hub & urethane clear coat for the gas tank & fender.
But I think the real cost savings came from scrounging for inexpensive parts (example, the frame was a $10 flea market find), and then by doing the fabrication myself.
My first build is actually more detailed, but I did much more scrounging, and used less expensive componts over all (example no CVT).
I estimate the cost to be about the same, perhaps less.
-Kirk
I've been in this boat very recently, so I think I have 2¢ to offer here.
Firstly, plan on your build costing $850-ish, so you've got some "wiggle-room" in your budget. $150 may seem to be a bit much for "wiggle" but you WILL run into something unexpected, so it's best to plan on it from the beginning.
There is validation to both points that you need to buy quality or you need to buy two. A lot of the aforementioned "unexpected-something(s)" can be resolved with a warranty, for example: My Schwinn DelMar was a great deal on CL for about 1/2 the price of a new one, however the rear hub died on me, and cost me every bit of what I saved and then some having my LBS re-lace my spare hub into the rear wheel. Same goes for the engine; you get what you pay for. You can buy a 2-stoke kit from the 'Bay for $140 shipped, but keep in mind that there are reputable engine builders that charge more, but offer reliability-related enhancements and great customer service. A 4-stroke is renowned as highly reliable, but naturally costs a bit more. I've heard legend (and seen YouTube video) that a shift-kit makes a 4-stroke a very street-friendly cruiser, so it's made both my "fantasy-list" as well as in actuality.
Personally, for $1K, I think my shopping list might look like this:
~$200 7-speed Schwinn Sanctuary or Point Beach (a personal preference despite my recent hub-dud)
~$400 4-stroke HS kit
~$200 SBP shift-kit
...with enough price-shopping and a miraculous lack of the "unexpected", there might even be some left for a GhettoBike tank.
Nonetheless, that should hold little bearing as I am still very much a sooper-noob, however, I would like to finish with a nugget of knowledge that blind-sided me once I started building: Beware of killer fenders!
http://motorbicycling.com/showthread.php?t=48419
Firstly, plan on your build costing $850-ish, so you've got some "wiggle-room" in your budget. $150 may seem to be a bit much for "wiggle" but you WILL run into something unexpected, so it's best to plan on it from the beginning.
There is validation to both points that you need to buy quality or you need to buy two. A lot of the aforementioned "unexpected-something(s)" can be resolved with a warranty, for example: My Schwinn DelMar was a great deal on CL for about 1/2 the price of a new one, however the rear hub died on me, and cost me every bit of what I saved and then some having my LBS re-lace my spare hub into the rear wheel. Same goes for the engine; you get what you pay for. You can buy a 2-stoke kit from the 'Bay for $140 shipped, but keep in mind that there are reputable engine builders that charge more, but offer reliability-related enhancements and great customer service. A 4-stroke is renowned as highly reliable, but naturally costs a bit more. I've heard legend (and seen YouTube video) that a shift-kit makes a 4-stroke a very street-friendly cruiser, so it's made both my "fantasy-list" as well as in actuality.
Personally, for $1K, I think my shopping list might look like this:
~$200 7-speed Schwinn Sanctuary or Point Beach (a personal preference despite my recent hub-dud)
~$400 4-stroke HS kit
~$200 SBP shift-kit
...with enough price-shopping and a miraculous lack of the "unexpected", there might even be some left for a GhettoBike tank.
Nonetheless, that should hold little bearing as I am still very much a sooper-noob, however, I would like to finish with a nugget of knowledge that blind-sided me once I started building: Beware of killer fenders!
http://motorbicycling.com/showthread.php?t=48419
Simple, they ask for help for whats wrong with them here, hence why there are so many HELP! topics for bikes built with poor kits on bikes that have no chance of taking motor power for long ;-}
I gave my suggestions for what I consider solid options with a grand for a bike budget, and sure I can build 2 really nice 2-stroke direct drives to have a spare on that budget, my point is simple, you can build a really nice trouble free comfortable performance machine with that budget so why build 2 things not near as enjoyable to ride?
To me that philosophy is like saying why buy that nice BMW when you can buy 2 Yugo's for the same price?
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oohhhhh snap i forgot !!! my leg would have got tore up with cast iron shrapnel heading twords me at 7,000 rpms !!!!
If you want to start with a new bike that already has all the heavy duty components you need and want, consider a Worksman bicycle. You can get coaster brakes, drum brakes, or free wheel. They are not cheep nor inexpensive. You can get one shipped to your door for around $500. Just install your engine kit. Bonus they are made in the USA. Check them out. Worksman Cycles http://worksman.com/
Felt's are another high quality big bike base that will leave you ~$500 for good drive train, just factor some comfort in to the base bike cost like front shock, maybe a seat post shock and foam grips, everything helps reduce the riding fatigue.
One last note to always keep in mind is get good brakes to avoid bad breaks ;-}
One last note to always keep in mind is get good brakes to avoid bad breaks ;-}
If it was my money, I'd spend 700 on a dual suspended mountain bike. There are some manufacturers who make them so that you can mount
racks and other stuff on them. You need the right bike so the friction drive unit can be mounted, preferably without too much modification. Friction drive is 250.
That's a grand right there, with taxes.
I prefer my bike to max out at 20 MPH, that way you don't need to worry about heavy gauge spokes and frame failure. Of course a decent mountain bike can handle more then a beach cruiser, out of the box. Whatever you decide, invest in some decent brakes. A coaster brake is not decent. Sturmey Archer makes a great drum brake.
The great thing about this hobby, lifestyle, pursuit or whatever it is to you is there are so many ways to scratch the itch. I like to pedal so I lowered the gearing and always pedal from a stop before engaging the throttle. Some prefer to not pedal at all. Whatever you decide, it's all good.
racks and other stuff on them. You need the right bike so the friction drive unit can be mounted, preferably without too much modification. Friction drive is 250.
That's a grand right there, with taxes.
I prefer my bike to max out at 20 MPH, that way you don't need to worry about heavy gauge spokes and frame failure. Of course a decent mountain bike can handle more then a beach cruiser, out of the box. Whatever you decide, invest in some decent brakes. A coaster brake is not decent. Sturmey Archer makes a great drum brake.
The great thing about this hobby, lifestyle, pursuit or whatever it is to you is there are so many ways to scratch the itch. I like to pedal so I lowered the gearing and always pedal from a stop before engaging the throttle. Some prefer to not pedal at all. Whatever you decide, it's all good.
