Villiers beach cruiser

harry76 · Apr 16, 2011

Hi all.... My mate gave me a beach cruiser which i stripped and let rust up a little. I plan to use 1 of 2 98cc Villiers engines (different years) i have. I think i will use a 20 inch rim held to the rear rim via brackets, and mount a pulley on the front and use a vintage style hand clutch that puts tension on the belt. I think if i put about a 70mm diam pulley on the front it will get me in the 35mph range, but how do i know if it will be ridable at that gearing? If it will have enough torque? I dont know that much about these engines so any help would be appreciated. Cheers

harry76 · Apr 17, 2011

Dunno yet whether i will leave it looking ratty or possibly paint it (either white or the color of the rims). I have to make the tank from the cardboard cutout i have. I thought about stretching it but i am happy with the stance ATM. Just need to find a lower stem.... i made a disc brake bracket for the rear so now have disc brakes, and i was going to see if i could make a cover for the disc to make it look like a drum brake. If that doesnt work ill just cover with a racing number, also may make some truss rods for the fork. Im a slow worker but will try and post pics as i go....

silverbear · Apr 17, 2011

Welcome to the forum. That's going to be a great bike. I think the Villiers you have mounted up looks perfect. Some of those had a kick start didn't they? About when would that engine have been made, do you know? Very interesting head on it. 98cc should put out a fair amount of power, I would think. The seat is a good choice, too. Building slow with frequent staring is good. Take your time, I'd say as the results will be well worth it.
SB

Mike B · Apr 17, 2011

That motor looks cool.

fasteddy · Apr 17, 2011

Your bike is looking great. The motor is a plus.

Don't know much about gas engines since we are held to 500W electric motors here in Canada to be legal.

Really looking forward to your build up of your bike as everyone else is so lots of photos please.

Steve.

harry76 · Apr 17, 2011

Haha Silverbear im glad im not the only one that "builds slow with frequent staring". In fact i do more staring then bulding but like you said thats half the fun. I will try and find the years out of the engines, supposedly the year is stamped on them. I agree about using the engine that is fitted in the pic. looks much better but the other does already have a 45 degree manifold to get the carby out of the way which if i run a 20" rim and belt i may need. Alternatively i will have to make a 45 degree manifold piece. Some are kickstart i believe. The engine thats fitted has a sprocket on the flywheel side (maybe this was for a kickstart). Ive had this motor running and it does sound awesome. The other engine is drom a cylinder mower i purchased, motor has no spark (as yet i have not tried to fix) but is fitted with a kickstart. However the kickstart doesnt engage the motor but on another shaft, but im sure i could make it work (looks extremely heavy though)....... I agree that this motor looks cool, only downside is its heavy, damn heavy.... And yeah more photos to come

harry76 · Apr 17, 2011

Thanks for the compliments Mike and Eddy..... Fasteddy we have the same law in Queensland where i am from. But i do get away with riding my 66c Kroon and the police dont seem to mind (i do obey the roadrules and look responsible), so if i get pulled over im just gonna say its a vintage 50cc motor and hope for the best. Fingers crossed.... wish me luck LOL

Mike B · Apr 17, 2011

Yeah, cast iron is heavy. Also the reason those engines are still running after 80 years.

harry76 · Apr 17, 2011

True, not only still running but running far better then my NEW 66cc chinagirl. There is no substitute for quality i guess...

fasteddy · Apr 17, 2011

Harry, my arguement is that nothing is illegal until they catch you at it.
Lots of the lads are riding here with a gas engine but when they get stopped by a savy copper things unravel fast.

Had a few Francis Barnett motorcycles over the years and one Dart scrambler that was a great hill climber. They all had Villiers engines on them and other than the electrics for the spark going bad they were pretty much industructable. Not that I ever tried to kill them.
Trying to remember but I think there were a couple of James motor cycles as well.

When Silverbear and I were working on his sidecar last summer he refered to it as Creative Staring. He said holding a can of you favorite brew helped the process and he was indeed right.

Looking forward to seeing more of the build.

Steve.

harry76 · Apr 17, 2011

Yeah hopefully i only encounter dumb police officers LOL.....
Heres the mower i got the motor (the one not fitted to bike) with and it has a kick start but as you see it engages another shaft. I may be able to use things off the mower. I will be using its fuel tank in a future build.

Mike B · Apr 17, 2011

That's a serious mower.

harry76 · Apr 17, 2011

Yeah it seems a waste to destroy. There are probably villers mower enthusiasts turning in their graves. But i got it very cheap. It is covered in crap but in reasonable nick and would clean up well, and it camewith original manuals and everything that came with it. All that was wrong is it doesnt have spark.

fasteddy · Apr 17, 2011

My English Grand Dad pushed one like that by hand when he mowed his lawn. Wasn't that large but darned heavy until you got it going and then it rolled along quite well.

You need either the points cleaned/replaced or the coils replaced. That would be my guess having had the bikes with the Villiers motors. The coils have very fine wires and they could break very easily.
I'd check ebay and see if there is a need for the mower body if you keep the motor.

Steve.

harry76 · Apr 17, 2011

Yeah i bought a Briggs and Stratton 3hp with no spark. Cleaned the points and it fired straight up. Hopefully this will be the same deal...........And if i dont use the mower body it i could put it on EBay but considering i bought this off EBay for $20 complete with motor i doubt it would fetch much. There are a few sprockets, chain, pillow bearings, a clutch (probably wouldnt be strong enough for mb use???) and even metal i could use so i may just keep it

harry76 · Apr 17, 2011

Your grandad would have loved this one then, i dont think you have to push it. Its self driving but still damn heavy.

harry76 · Apr 21, 2011

I plan to make some progress after Easter. Some more shots. I would have liked to taper the tank down near the rider but its not that big, but hopefully big enough LOL, so i think ill need all the fuel i can get. I went to 2 metal recyclers today to try and get some metal for the tank but no luck. Gonna have to find some somewhere after Easter. Also a pic of the disc brake i mounted. And a pic of the motor mounts (zip tyes in the way but you get the picture) i cut out and yet to drill and weld. And as i dont own a welder i need to bother my brother and go to his place everytime i need to weld something

And while the current stem may make for a comfy ride a lower stem would look better, my back may not agree

harry76 · Apr 21, 2011

As this only my 2nd build (66cc Kroon was my first), and my 1st real DIY build any input would be greatly appreciated. I plan to mount a 20inch rim via brackets to the bikes rim. First question, in pics ive seen of people doing this there are say 9 brackets. But the seem to only put 2 bolts in per bracket (1 bolt on bike rim and 1 bolt on rim/pulley). My question is wouldnt they just twist, wouldnt u need 4 bolts per bracket ( 2 on rim, 2 on pulley)? . My next question is it looks like my drive pulley will be roughly 60mm from centre. I was planning a direct drive with hand pulley clutch. Is this too far away from the rim, and needing a jackshaft?

silverbear · Apr 21, 2011

Hopefully msrfan will see this thread and give some suggestions. Whizzers used a similar setup and he has made several bikes with this arrangement using 5 hsp Briggs and Stratton engines. Your Villiars looks to be a nice fit and not terrible wide, but I'm guessing a jackshaft would allow you to keep the engine centered in the frame. I believe the Whizzer rear wheel pulley and hardware for attaching it is available yet. Studying it might yield the answer to you questions about attaching the rim.
I'm keenly watching this thread, Harry, as I intend to do a similar build using the same belt arrangement and if I can find it, a Villiers to power the belt. So everything you learn and share here is going to benefit me greatly, for which I thank you ahead of time. I know that others down the line will study it also. Your bike is already shaping up nicely. The engine mounting is going to be sweet, making the engine look as if it was original to the bike.
I recently made a gas tank very much like yours with the help of a master tinsmith. http://motorbicycling.com/f26/tinsmiths-frame-gas-tank-cantilever-schwinn-26805.html
If you choose to make yours of tin or copper the thread might give you some ideas.
Cheering you on,
SB

harry76 · Apr 21, 2011

Thanks for the kind words Silverbear and im certainly up for sharing ideas. I seen some of msrfans bikes. They are awesome and he definitley seems to know his stuff. I have another 2 3hp Briggs and Stratton motors so may definitely need his help in the near future on multiple builds. Im definitley keen to have the motor centered. Im wondering if there are slightly offset pulleys to help me move it slightly inwards. But maybe its not too far spaced from the wheel as is. And i plan to make brackets to the wheel ( i think this would be easier?????) rather then spoke brackets( whizzer type) and not really keen on importing a whizzer thingy. I dont think i will use copper as i dont think itd suit the project. Havent decided yet but im liking the current rusty bare metal look, which means ill just have a bare metal tank with maybe faded graphics or make her all nice and shiny and do the bike either white or the tan color on the rims or a bit of both colors. Decisions decisions

Villiers beach cruiser

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