How Long has it taken?

GoldenMotor.com

How long has it taken

  • 2 weeks or less

    Votes: 22 73.3%
  • 2 weeks-1 month

    Votes: 3 10.0%
  • 1-4 months

    Votes: 1 3.3%
  • 4-8 months

    Votes: 3 10.0%
  • 8+ months

    Votes: 1 3.3%

  • Total voters
    30

Cabinfever1977

New Member
Mar 23, 2009
2,288
1
0
Upstate,NY
Wow 10 months, are you making the kit and bicycle by hand?...
I had time to rack up 1,400 miles, switch the engine over to another bike,then get a handful of tickets, then taking the kit back off again.

If you need help, theres lots of people here to help you.
 

BarelyAWake

New Member
Jul 21, 2009
7,194
21
0
Maine
lol - I've been tinkerin' away on my current build for about six months, and I've still got quite the "to do" list... although I was weak and as soon as the weather got nice I pushed a bit and got it on the road...

I couldn't resist :(

Still, come fall the poor thing is gettin' stripped back down to the raw frame and being completely rebuilt & painted, so while I've been "riding successfully" it's actually just a prolonged "test run" and I fully expect the project to take about a year or so *shrug* even then, "finished" is a myth heh

The devil is in the details ;)


Ofc on the other hand a friend's 14yo kid built one in three days... it all depends on whatcha want methinks, I enjoy the building as much as the riding :)
 
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Bikeguy Joe

Godfather of Motorized Bicycles
Jan 8, 2008
11,837
252
63
up north now
I have built one in less than 8 hours....then there is the one in my garage that was started August of '08.

So let's see....fancy math....carry the 2 and my answer is "about a year".
 

metalliatic

New Member
Mar 14, 2010
96
0
0
Louisville Ky
i bought my kit and got it with in a week then spent about 3 to 4 hours putting it on. about 2 hours for 2 nights after work. i built a bike with a shift kit and it took about an extra 2 to 3 hours. so my vote would be 1 week. and i work 50 hours a week and have a family, so its not like i have a ton a free time to spend on it.
 

demac

New Member
Mar 8, 2010
97
0
0
Canada, Ontario, Brampton
I woke up yesterday 7 am, did not go to school..(day off) Then rushed to garage and started working on "roll up the rim" give away bicycle, schwinn,and finished it at 3! my back killed. it is sexyy..
 

taddthewadd

New Member
Mar 1, 2009
337
1
0
42
Visalia, California
I built one for a friend in a couple of days but I took about six months to build mine. A little here and a little there plus I spent some time in the hospital and took a while to recover enough to make it into the garage again. I bought a lot of upgrade parts and built the mountain bike from the frame up. I wanted it to be perfect and as bullet proof as possible. I love to ride but to me half (or more) of the fun is building and fabricating.
 

bairdco

a guy who makes cool bikes
Aug 18, 2009
6,537
264
63
living the dream in southern california
first bike took me about 6 hours. 2 of that was the sprocket.

2nd bike was just switching over the motor after i broke the frame on the first one. took me about 2 hours.

3rd bike took 2-3 weeks, which was a rustoration, blueprinted and modified engine, all sorts of custom fab'd parts.

4th took me 2-3 weeks, and that was even more detailed. custom built copper tank, custom wheels, paint, etc.

the one i'm working on now is taking longer, 'cause i'm not really working on it. it's gonna get even more modifications than all the other ones so it'll take a little lnger, but once i dive in it should take 2-3 weeks, maybe less, because i have a real workshop.

on a side note, none of my bikes are ever really gonna be "done," unless i sell them.
 

Comrade Alfonzo

New Member
Jul 15, 2009
143
1
0
Whidbey Island, WA
I started on one frame, didn't work so I found another and was ready to fire it up when I found out things werent clearing, now onto this one which I have fired up for an eighth of a mile. All it does is heave the tensioner into the spokes. Is it cheaper to get a new wheel or get it respoked, it's a mountain bike wheel. Also anyone that sells or is willing to fabricate a Chain tensioner that mounts in 2 points PM me. The chain tensioner has to be mounted very close to the sprocket because of narrow chainstays, and I don't want to space the wheel out much more.
 

moronic_kaos

New Member
Apr 6, 2010
225
0
0
Connecticut
I started on one frame, didn't work so I found another and was ready to fire it up when I found out things werent clearing, now onto this one which I have fired up for an eighth of a mile. All it does is heave the tensioner into the spokes. Is it cheaper to get a new wheel or get it respoked, it's a mountain bike wheel. Also anyone that sells or is willing to fabricate a Chain tensioner that mounts in 2 points PM me. The chain tensioner has to be mounted very close to the sprocket because of narrow chainstays, and I don't want to space the wheel out much more.
Had this issue, then it just went away. Pulled the sprocket off even though it seemed perfect, re-mounted from scratch, and the problem went away. Also a BIG help is to wrap the inside with a layer or two of thin gasket paper. The stuff grips as good as it seals. You don't even have to torque the bolts down (but you probably should) and you can stand on the thing and it won't move. It also helps if you're throttle likes to move around when you twist it too hard.

BTW it's waay cheaper to re-spoke a wheel (my bike shop charges $1/spoke), and it's real easy to do. Measure it from the bend on the hub end to the end of the threads, then find one of those online conversion tools to calculate millimeters. For some reason, the size is in millimeters when you buy them. Don't worry if you're not 100% sure you're like dead on cuz even the guy at the bike shop said you could be +- a couple millimeters because of the length of the thread (5mm or so). Just as long as it threads in a decent amount and it doesn't poke the inner tube. Oh, and don't worry about a spoke wrench. A pair of vice grips work fine if you only have a couple to deal with. Even better if you take the tire off you can turn them with a flathead screwdriver.
 

Saddletramp1200

Custom MB Buiilder
May 7, 2008
1,451
83
48
Houston, Texas
let's see. 4 months to learn to read Chinese. Another week or so hanging out at schools waiting on the right bike, I like black :) 3 weeks to install it, no wait 5 weeks to install it. The muffler was pointing toward the back axle. Hmm, no wonder the chain was not long enough! Had to correct that. I tried to kick start it, but that didn't work. The boys hit the seat and it took two weeks to walk again. Pulled it to the curb and the next day it was gone! But the next day it was back with a note from the city that said "Even we have standards". So after that I got it started and rode almost a block before the chain came off. The pills the Doctor prescribed me help a lot. I ride it almost every day. But now I can't seem to get enough Fried rice. Good luck (c)laff
 

nidyanazo

New Member
May 25, 2010
316
1
0
SoCal
I built two china motor bikes in 2.5 hours each.
With a drill and hand tools, thats all you need.

The Franco Morini bike is taking a lot longer than I wanted due too unforseen shipping errors form the parts suppliers.

If I dont have some type of engine powered two wheel project going on I get pretty restless.
I've been known to jump on craigslist and drag home random bikes, much to the dismay of my GF. But she's been putting up with it for 5+ years now, so I think it's all good.

But dude, 10months? If something I order dosn't arrive in 10 days, there must be a problem and I call to complain.