I can also agree to this with many fast , hard miles on my 99cc Pred which has for most of it's life had a Sturmey/Archer 90mm front drum brake handling the stopping chores and very well. I did add a jack shaft rear disc brake for "just in case", but I don't rely on it as the engine is a key part of my braking needs.I disagree about the drums. First, quality shoes won't wear out for a very long time. Second, I am running a front drum only, and I have no problems stopping with a 98cc cruiser. The key to getting good stopping power out of a drum is proper cable adjustment and a lever with good pull. I had a coaster brake in the rear, but the shoes grabbed so hard I would skid and fishtail, so I converted it to freewheel.
In my opinion there is no such thing as too may brakes on an MB, C-brakes, V-brakes, Drums, Discs and Coasters will all work but nothing leaves my shop with just one brake, and some end up with 3.I did not mean to imply drum brakes do not work, just that they do not work as well as Vbrakes. They can be perfectly adequate.
But they are far harder and/or more expensive to install compared to Vbrakes.
They hold a big advantage if you ride in wet conditions,(at first anyway, until they finally get wet)
As always, just my 2cents
So true. Being able to pedal if you break down is a big benefit.I rarely pedal my motorized bikes, but...... I would not build a bike with the intention of never having to pedal it.
For one, if it can't be pedaled, it's not a bicycle. And two, when you run out of gas on the bike (which eventually you prolly will), you'll say to yourself......."what was I thinking"?
I fully agree! If possible, I prefer brakes that will lock either wheel with me sitting down.In my opinion there is no such thing as too may brakes on an MB, C-brakes, V-brakes, Drums, Discs and Coasters will all work but nothing leaves my shop with just one brake, and some end up with 3.
Dual C's on dual pull lever AND a coaster brake.
Again there is no such thing as too much braking power, take it from a guy that got really hurt because the bike would not stop fast enough to avoid an idiot driver.
I also highly recommend a strobing front light for daytime operation even if you have really great brakes, it helps to avoid those heart attack moments.
My concern is the additional weight of all that extra gearing and cogs, when running a sub 35 cc engine to pass under Oregon's less-than-25-mph and less-than-35-cc rules for powered bikes/scooters. We also cant have gears with this class of MaB.I'll never motorize a single-speed bike again. My current ride was my 3rd (and 4th) build and it was a single-speed chinagirl at first. Motor or not, there comes a time when the Chevrolegs need to be put to work on a bicycle. These little engines really get you moving when you have pedal torque behind em, too! My first two builds were high-geared Megarange-equipped multispeed bikes with single-speed 34T chinagirls and they were quite versatile from 15-40MPH, thanks to pedal power.
I now have a 5-speed shifter setup that is geared so that it features identical powerbands between engine and pedals, which results in amazing acceleration and fuel efficiency while pedaling. Cruise at engine torque peak with easy pedaling or storm at engine horsepower peak with big leg power. It will cruise at any speed from 5 to 35 with ease
If anything, Oregon's MaB law makes a good case for running a geared bicycle, IMHO. Most of the <35CC setups are rear-mounted Friction Drive or LHS belt setups - so operate independent of bicycle gears anyway - exempting you from any legal restrictions on gears. Bicycle gearing adds very little weight considering the mechanical advantage it can give you up a hill, against the wind, or cruising at 20+MPH. Whether you have an assist engine on your bicycle or not, multiple pedal gears add versatility.My concern is the additional weight of all that extra gearing and cogs, when running a sub 35 cc engine to pass under Oregon's less-than-25-mph and less-than-35-cc rules for powered bikes/scooters. We also cant have gears with this class of MaB.
The beauty of having independent multi-speed pedal gears with a single-speed engine assist is that you can more or less dictate what pedal cadence your chevrolegs are running at while your engine does it's work. Pedaling can double (even triple or more) the amount of total torque output. With Oregon's rather restrictive engine output law, multi-speed pedal gears make far more sense to me than single-speed pedal setups.If the bike isn't going to be cruising over 20 mph and your pedal rpm is starting to get a bit twerkish at that speed I can see having maybe 3~5 gears. I'd be perfectly happy with a lower ratio on a single speed that averages out at 14~16 mph. Getting an anaerobic workout on really steep hills @ 7 mph while assisting the engine, won't kill you.