On a Schwinn Road Bike???

GoldenMotor.com

Steve1990

New Member
Jun 12, 2012
22
0
0
I can see Detroit from here!
In my garage, amung my many bikes, I have a 10 speed '75 Schwinn Continental. This bike is a odd frame size and I can't ride it because of that, and I can't get anyone to buy it from me. I got to looking at it, and my motor kit would fit nicely in the frame.

Obviously the drop bars would need to go away, but I've got several handlebars lying around to choose from, so thats NBD, might even try and keep the MB flat bars I've got now. What else would I need to do? It has the original 27" steel wheels, which many years of riding Schwinns has told me are VERY tough. How would the narrow wheels accomodate being engine driven?

I'm tired of fighting w/ the mountain bike my kit is on. If the motor is working, the bike is broke, or the other way around. If I put it on something alittle more solid where I won't have to worry about the frame and bike components as much, I think it'll make the thing alittle more reliable.

Anyone got and tips, or do or don'ts for this swap? My engine is currently off the bike so this is a good time to swap.
 

Steve1990

New Member
Jun 12, 2012
22
0
0
I can see Detroit from here!
Ran into a hitch almost right away. Since the bike uses tall flange hubs, I can't bolt the sprocket onto it. Its not a huge deal, I've got other hubs I can use, but I just wasn't planning on rebuilding wheels to get this done.

The motor fits so nicely in the frame and it looks so much cooler in the old Schwinn road bike frame that I think it'd be worth it to get it done.

A generic mountain bar from the ubiquitous '80s/'90s steel frame Huffy Mountain bike fits the old Schwinn perfectly, looks kinda neat too.
 

fatdaddy

New Member
May 4, 2011
1,516
4
0
San Jose, Ca.
Can ya put a sprocket up against the hub, take a pic, so we can see how much it misses? I'm sure one of us will have a simple solution.
fatdaddy.
 

Steve1990

New Member
Jun 12, 2012
22
0
0
I can see Detroit from here!
Made some progress. Drilled a second set of holes in the sprocket that do clear the hub flange. Seemed easier than rebuilding a perfectly good wheel. Just gotta figure out how I'm going to bolt it on. Have an idea that should work fine. I've been taking pics as I go, ill upload them when its (hopefully) on the bike. Got some more cutting to do. I'll update in a bit with what I find.
 

fatdaddy

New Member
May 4, 2011
1,516
4
0
San Jose, Ca.
Thats the hard way to go Steve. Now ya gotta figure out how to build your own hard rubber backings and backing plates. I've used car tire sidewall in the past for the rubber. And you can use some large, thick fender washers for the backing plates. You can punch the bolt holes through the rubber with a small socket ground down so the end is almost sharp. then put an extension in it, (one you don't care about couse it's gonna get beat up,) and punch it out with a hammer. I suppose you could just buy a punch, but I'm the cheap guy. If I can make my own tool, Why buy it?
ANYWAY, thats how I've done it before. It worked just fine. If you didn't drill the holes PERFECT, then your gonna need a trueing station to get the sprocket trued.
Good Luck,
fatdaddy.
 

Steve1990

New Member
Jun 12, 2012
22
0
0
I can see Detroit from here!
Yep, going to have to get some fender washers. The rubber is the least of my worries, that's no problem at all. The holes are exactly where they need to be, but there is still some tweaking needed to get it perfect. I'm done for today, its 95* with 300% humidity and my shade is gone.

Yesterday when I test fit the motor. Yes, the drop bars are still hanging by the brake cables, there are mountain bike flat bars on it now:

The offending flange:

What you see looking thru the existing holes in the sprocket:

Sprocket after drilling:


When looking at the sprocket, I realized that the edge of the flange was almost perfectly even with the outside edge of the existing holes. Basic geometry told me that if I took a straight edge lined up with 2 bolt holes next to eachother and drew a straight line, the repeated all the way around, 2 lines would cross 1/2 way between and a fair bit out from the original holes. I drilled where the lines crossed, and viola, 9 new holes exactly where they needed to be.
 

Steve1990

New Member
Jun 12, 2012
22
0
0
I can see Detroit from here!
I may be getting a new sprocket too, that one is getting pretty beat up as you can see. Its been on and off 2 different bikes and 4 (soon to be 5) different wheels. Might as well get a smaller one while I'm at it. For right now I just kinda want to get the bike back in 1 piece with a motor on it.
 

tigmaster

Member
Jul 17, 2011
139
2
18
ann arbor
Hello Steve,if Your getting a new sprocket,and if the center hole fits tight to the hub like the old one shown in post six,You can drill holes to match the little holes in the flange and bolt it there...That way Your driving the hub and not just the spokes on the left side...Just an idea...Tigmaster....
 

Attachments

Last edited:

fatdaddy

New Member
May 4, 2011
1,516
4
0
San Jose, Ca.
I think tigmaster (post#9) is right. Anytime you can bolt the sprocket directly to the hub, do it. Even if it's a little more work it'll pay off in the long run.
fatdaddy.
 

fatdaddy

New Member
May 4, 2011
1,516
4
0
San Jose, Ca.
If welded then he wouldn't be able to change a worn sprocket or change tooth size. He would have to throw away the entire hub/sprocket assembly, find a new hub and buy a sprocket to change anything. Not even Honda or Yamaha welds on a sprocket. And ya know they would if it were feasible. and I'm not positive, but the hub looks aluminum. the sprockets are steel. Can ya weld aluminum to steel?
fatdaddy.
 
Last edited:

Nashville Kat

Well-Known Member
Apr 20, 2009
1,501
55
48
Jacksonville, Florida
Hey Steve- I've always LOVED that Schwinn metallic blue- I started to build up a World Traveller, but later changed it to a cruiser-

You may want to get an UNDER bar gas tank- they are at several vendors-
http://motorbicycling.com/showthread.php?t=39725

the top tube on roadbikes is kinda short for the tear tank, and gets in the way peddaling- You could still work around it but the idea for me was to have a real natural pedal w/o the motor. The under the bar tanks are not very wide- if I'd known about them at the time I might've kept building the Traveller- the rear stay clearances are a bit tight too, but not impossible- I don't like to use tensioners tho.

Here's a thread I posted a couple years back about bolting sprocket to a flip/flop hub:
http://motorbicycling.com/showthread.php?t=24770
The bike that I eventually buiolt is picture there- a Huffy Cruiser frame with 700c wheels.

You can also grind a ridge on your schwinn hub to clear the center hole, with a flat file, by simply putting the wheel in the frame and turning it upside down- and pedaling by hand- the wheel becomes it's own grainding wheel -the hub will tolerate enought alloy off that side- same as the other side of it- hold the file about 1/4 inchj from the hub edge until you have a nice ridge- (See attached thumbnail)

I don't know why your sprocket holes didn't clear the high flange hub- my ragjoints have never been a oproblem even with high flange hubs.

Here's a great alloy sprocket fairly cheap if you want to go lighter and faster- and if you got a flip/flop and drilled undrilled flanges- you can eliminate the rag joint completely and the weight is down to nothing.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/34-T-Sprock...=383602380226949743&pid=100011&prg=1005&rk=1&
The center hole is just a bit bigger than most stock kits- not much but a bit- and the holes accomodate any rag joint or disk brake or direct boilt on.

Get a 415 TRIKE chain, and take off half the weight there too- and they roll easier and QUIETER.

The 27" work well if you are comfortable with them- just watch out for gravel. I have 27 on one cruiser build and 700c on the other- I raced USCF a number of years and they feel more than enough after sew-up tires.
 

Attachments

Last edited: