Cruiser Trike with 4-stroke dirt bike motor

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KCvale

Well-Known Member
Feb 28, 2010
3,966
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Phoenix,AZ
KC- Kool bike, it looks like the one I got with that classic hunch back curve. You didn't waste any time getting the engine and bike. Will you need to mod the frame any?
I would have like a better equipped bike but it's steel and I won't need to mod the frame.

Man it's big for 86cc but it's the 4-speed tranny and kick-start that make up most of the size and weight.

Here it is compared to a 49cc HS 142F without the 4G on it.





My 3 48V triangle batteries and changers shipped from Hong Kong today and I have some general builds to do so I may hold of starting until I put a fork shock, brakes, and better wheels on it.
My build topic is here http://kcsbikes.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=721

Both the freewheels in my new differential gave up today. They still spin nice, but now they spin both ways. LOL. Anyway, I ordered 2 new heavy duty, serviceable freewheels from SBP.
Ohhh bummer man, but it certainly says something about what this engine will do.
 

Pelican Pete

Member
Jan 4, 2012
35
1
8
Ocean Beach, California
It is similar to a Lifan. There is a link to the supplier in the first post of this thread. I would call it a no name Honda clone. I have been using it for a few months now with no problems. After the break in, it starts on the first pull.

I just bought a real Honda 70 for my next build.
 

Pelican Pete

Member
Jan 4, 2012
35
1
8
Ocean Beach, California
I've been riding the trike almost every day for a few months, and now I'm ready to tear it down and repaint it. This seems like a good time to post some updated pics. I think I will get it powder coated in a dark cherry color.

Happy building.
 

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silverbear

The Boy Who Never Grew Up
Jul 9, 2009
8,325
670
113
northeastern Minnesota
Pete,
Your trike is looking real good. I just re-read the whole thread, this time with the added perspective of having started my own delta trike build...

http://motorbicycling.com/showthread.php?t=47993

...so I have even more appreciation now of what you have accomplished. How is your differential holding up? I don't have the mechanical wherewithal you have, so have chosen to use a riding mower differential axle which should give me the same results. I will also have a heavy rear end with the vintage gas engine I've chosen... probably heavier than yours due to the cast iron jug and former mower housing which is being incorporated into the build. My front wheel is also very heavy since it is electric... now I can see that is an asset which should help to keep the front end on the ground. Not that mine will have the kind of wheelie power yours has. Single speed, low revving 2 stroke gas engine is 98cc and I believe the electric wheel at 36V. is supposed to have a top speed of around 20mph which would be on the low end for a bike, but about right I think for a trike.

Seeing what others have done is helpful to me in thinking through what I want and how I want to go about it. Yours is especially well done, I think, and I want to thank you for your narrative and excellent photos. Well done, sir. The new paint will be just right.
SB
 

Pelican Pete

Member
Jan 4, 2012
35
1
8
Ocean Beach, California
Hi SB, Thanks for your message. I saw your trike thread, and I can see that it will be a unique machine, built from scratch. I look forward to seeing it progress. Also liked your thread on making a head light.

My differential is holding up well.

In a previous post I mentioned that the freewheels gave up. As wirth the shifting hubs that I destroyed on my chopper, the failure was my fault. The Right Hand Reverse freewheel adapter allowed me to use 2 RH freewheels in the diff. The caveat' of this innovative reverse adapter fitting is that the freewheel wrench will not fit so I could not get the freewheel flange completely tight on the adapter. I figured that a little gentile driving would tighten it up. At some point during that gentile driving, it did tighten, and also it sheared the shoulder stop off of the adapter, which caused the diff to fail.

The take-home message here is that there are some big stresses in the drive train, and be sure that everything is snug before applying power. This collaberates what I learned before: If anything is loose, it will either break, or you will lose it. I have left various bike parts all over town. Loctite is your friend.

To fix the diff, I used my homemade brazed freewheel/adapter assembly (shown in a previous post) and a new heavy duty serviceable freewheel from SBP. I have been driving this arrangement hard for a few months and it is still hanging in there. My conclusion is that the cheap freewheels will probably hold up, if properly installed, snug, aligned, and then say a little prayer.

The differential alleviates the binding stress on the back wheels during a turn, but the most significant stress may be the lateral stress during a turn. A bystander mentioned that my rim was bending in on the inside wheel during a turn. I could not see it, but I believe it, because a skinny bicycle wheel just will not take much lateral load. On a 2 wheel bike, we lean into a turn so the stress is in line with the plane of the wheel. On a 3 or 4 wheel beast, a turn is going to put big lateral stresses on the wheels. I think this may be why most 3 and 4 wheel vehicles have small wheels and solid rims. Cars with wire wheels have relatively short, heavy spokes, and heavy hubs and rims. For this reason, I put wider wheels with 11 gage spokes on the back of the trike. For my next trike, I plan to design it around 21" x 4" back wheels, as used in the OCC choppers. This trike now has 24" x 4" wheels, and they are holding up, but 21" wheels will have much less lateral stress during the turns.

The tool box and bags over the front wheel does help hold it down, so now it is a safe daily driver, but keep it slow on the turns, even with a diff, other wise a wheel could suddenly collapse. With this happy thought, I think I will go for a ride.

Keep up the good work, SB.
 

KCvale

Well-Known Member
Feb 28, 2010
3,966
57
48
Phoenix,AZ
The take-home message here is that there are some big stresses in the drive train, and be sure that everything is snug before applying power.

This collaberates what I learned before:
If anything is loose, it will either break, or you will lose it.
I have left various bike parts all over town.
Loctite is your friend.
Hehehe
Especially if it involves many little piece like a jackshaft kit.
I have had a couple of jackshaft sprockets come off making a sickening 'tinkle tinkle tinkle' as the parts hit the pavement and scattered.
 

silverbear

The Boy Who Never Grew Up
Jul 9, 2009
8,325
670
113
northeastern Minnesota
Pelican Pete,
Your comments on lateral stress and wheel size gave me some food for thought. I used a 26" wheel up front and a pair of 24" in back. Now I'm thinking that maybe 24" in front with 20 in back would have been stronger. I'll keep an eye on mine and will ask for someone to look at my wheels as I turn to see if there is a problem. A wheel giving out would be a very bad thing, I think. If there seems to be a problem then it is time to rebuild the wheels, this time one size smaller.
SB
 

Pelican Pete

Member
Jan 4, 2012
35
1
8
Ocean Beach, California
KC, I never hear anything fall off thanks to my DOT helmet. I noticed that small round parts, like jackshaft parts, roll under the parked cars, so I can never find them.

SB, good idea to get someone to watch your back wheels; maybe even follow you in a car. I would ask my wife, but it scares me when she gets in the driver seat. While ripping around a corner, I can't be looking at my wheels, because here we have zombies walking out in the streets, and other zombies that throw their cars doors open, right into the flow of traffic.

I'm not sure how much bending is acceptable in bicycle rims. My old wheels on the back of the trike were husky steel. The new ones are double wall aluminum; touted to be super strong. Steel and Al can crumple without warning, so hopefully a spoke will break as a warning before the rim folds in half.

Happy building guys.
 

KCvale

Well-Known Member
Feb 28, 2010
3,966
57
48
Phoenix,AZ
KC, I never hear anything fall off thanks to my DOT helmet. I noticed that small round parts, like jackshaft parts, roll under the parked cars, so I can never find them.
Don't ya just hate that?

We do a lot of testing with 2 bikes, it gives us a chance to ride together and look things over.