I got to thinking today about why I love friction drive so much. One doesn't have to be real smart to build a friction drive bicycle. God knows I'm not real smart mechanically anyway. While building bicycles i have used chain drive kits and even chain drive pieces and found them woefully lacking. Not the system their adaptability to my area and fat butt.
I have burned up two e-bike motors by over volting them. Both were chain drive. I have used lots and lots of motors over volted motors with friction drive and they just skip over the wheel when put under too much strain. That's what killed all the motors they just over heated trying to pull the load (my fat butt again) up a hill. In the case of a friction drive, they just slide over the wheel. Yes they do some damage to the tire, but not as much as you think. Even I know when i hear the skid noise, that it is time to back off the throttle.
With friction drive the only clutch you really have to have is to lift the motor when it goes into idle. The old bike bug is the prime example of that. Just pick the whole thing up off the wheel. I expect that sometime this spring, if not sooner, I will buy one of those kits with the fancy friction drive in the channel housing. I most likely will eventually have to lock the clutch thing down and just create a lift for it as well. Hopefully not but, I ain't all that worried if I do. So give me a good ole friction drive any day.
I have burned up two e-bike motors by over volting them. Both were chain drive. I have used lots and lots of motors over volted motors with friction drive and they just skip over the wheel when put under too much strain. That's what killed all the motors they just over heated trying to pull the load (my fat butt again) up a hill. In the case of a friction drive, they just slide over the wheel. Yes they do some damage to the tire, but not as much as you think. Even I know when i hear the skid noise, that it is time to back off the throttle.
With friction drive the only clutch you really have to have is to lift the motor when it goes into idle. The old bike bug is the prime example of that. Just pick the whole thing up off the wheel. I expect that sometime this spring, if not sooner, I will buy one of those kits with the fancy friction drive in the channel housing. I most likely will eventually have to lock the clutch thing down and just create a lift for it as well. Hopefully not but, I ain't all that worried if I do. So give me a good ole friction drive any day.
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