Back And Aparently Crazier Than Ever!

Hey all, after the craziest 2 years of my life I find myself living in wonderfully flat coastal Ga.(Brunswick) which is very bicycle, motorized bicycle, scooter friendly. This has rekindled my bike building lust! I sold almost all my motorized bicycles before the move, keeping only 2 of 12. My last build the 1905ish bike really got me going on the slow and vintage type build(it now resides in a personal collection in Atlanta).
So my latest lunacy is a Maytag powered FD. This bike is not of the magnitude of Budfabs, or the Maytag Flyer, what builds, what talent in those 2 bikes! Instead, I wanted a bike with a basically intact Maytag, much as Im sure many were built back in the time just marrying the engine to the bike. I will be running the under engine fuel tank, stock fuel and ignition systems etc. This will make a non-throttled constant speed engine with a cruise speed not to top 15mph, an ease along bike. The challenge among others is I want the engine with the flywheel on the right side, fits better that way. problem is it rotating the wrong way. 2 possible plans, one move the magneto to the other side of TDC and run it backwards(thoughts on this?) Second is run a double roller FD with the second roller reversing the rotation of the first at the wheel, could gear it too I guess.
So here are the beginnings a 1948 model 72 Maytag and a 1955 Schwinn World Traveler(I think) topped with a NOS 30s? Shelby tank tool box which I paid dearly for!

Glad to be back!

Thanks for all the welcomes folks! Good to be back among such good company!

Curtis: the transverse mounting would be way cool and wouldn't be too hard using a gearbox, however in stock form the little 72 is only rated at 5/8hp @ 1650rpm and am afraid a good bit of it might be spent in the gear box. I have adjusted the governor for a no load of 1800+ which yields a solid 1650 under load(cloth dyno -rag on flywheel). There is reasonable torque there to drive the bike with a fairly efficient drive.

After much thought and investigation I came to a rather twisted solution, twist the belt. I actually have a long enough belt run to do so. running a 3L belt in 4L pulleys keeps the belt well with in the pulleys even if slack. I plan to raise and lower the roller as the clutch. It will only have to raise a small amount to disengage so belt slack/tension wont be much of an issue. With a twisted belt the motor will run the roller even when some what slack so the idler type clutch is not a good choice. Besides lifting the roller allows free pedaling of the bike which will be really necessary to get 5/8hp under way.
I really like this little motor, cranks super easily, and runs so smoothly it will sit on a board not mounted and run contentedly all day with out walking. Its an oil spitter with a 16/1 mix ratio so getting the exhaust away from me is paramount. Really doesn't smoke too bad, and the smell(pleasing) is something I remember from childhood 2 stroke encounters, way different than a more efficient modern 2stroke. Cool little engine!

pocdragon said:

i want a motor like thaat!

what was it originally used for?

ive only seen a handfull of flat twins like that, are they really rare?


super sweet build slow and low!

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They were used to power Maytag washing machines in non electrified areas of the US in the first half of the last century. The twin was built from 1937-1952. After the War the country was soon fully electrified and the demand of engine powered washers diminished. I have a 1937 built in probably the first or second run, a 1948, and a 1951. They are easily found on ebay but are collectable and can be pricey. I bought the 1951 for $103 as a non runner, but cranked right up with a bit of TLC. The others were pretty nice original units, good runners and were in the $250-300 range. Not an engine if $$ for a build are tight.

Interesting and endearing little things, low on power as stock, though produce a bit more with tinkering and mods. I envision myself easing around at 12-14mph trailing a bit of blue smoke accompanied by the sweet 2cy. drone. Classic motorbiking at it best!

Pics of the 1937 Maytag. Totally original as far as I can tell except for the removal of the finish by some form of wire brushing. I believe even the plug wires are original. Has the cast iron fuel tank, with mounting holes on the bottom. The 1948 has an aluminum tank with no holes, no doubt a move to reduce weight, and technology brought about by the War. Will probably use the 48 on the bike. Will drill through the tank floor for the mounting bolts to mount to the angle iron engine mount and seal with an appropriate sealer.

Also a pic of what they were intended for. That's a single cylinder version.

pocdragon said:

thanks for all the information cannon!

are you keeping the kickstart? or are you going to popstart from a rolling start?

id love to invest in a clean one one day and mate it to a 3 speed

keeping an eye on this!

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No the kickstart would not work well as it would be too high, in the way and heavy. I have modified the original drive pulley on the flywheel side for rope starting. Its a very easy starting engine cranking on the third pull. Removing the kickstart allows a drive pulley to be installed in the left side to drive the friction roller. Have been waiting on parts for the build to filter in and they are almost all in. Can finally get rolling!

Finally got enough stuff in to begin the mock up. It all fits very well and has required minimum fab work. Am gonna run oilite bushings on the roller for compactness and a bit of nostalgia, will hafta hit them with my vintage oiler before a ride. The biggest issue is the width of the engine, gonna have to make a really good belt guard! The flywheel is actually less scary even if more imposing, Pretty much impossible to get wound up in it due to the outer ring. Am kicking around machining off the fan which will reduce its diameter by 2.5" but worry about cooling, especially the rear cylinder. I know Budfabs is not fan cooled, but it can get pretty warm here and it aint exactly generating a bunch of breeze @ 12-14mph. Any thoughts on this?

Thanks for all the positive comments!

Maniac57, I totally agree. That's kinda the nature of this build, not unlike some of the originals. When you shove something like this into a common bike frame you do what you have to do then hope you can ride it ok. And yes I can see riding this thing with that flywheel whirring at my knee might add to the kahuna factor. Heck even if its not an issue might sew me a big leather patch on my jeans just to make it appear so-lol.

Thanks IntrepidWheelwoman, I am constantly amazed at your builds, your talents, and for sure the cool resources for builds you are constantly turning up!

Siouxindian(great name), thanks for the link to smokstak, great resource! Which Maytag are you going to use?

Little more progress, stuff trickles in slow. Finalized the roller assembly. Still have to cut the shaft to length. Am going to be able to ride the bike with the flywheel intact, but will have to trim the engines crank even with the drive pulley. No more washing clothes! Got my antique seat, fits well. Will try my hand at a leather recover job. Got a really nice antique acetylene lamp for it, have to see how it looks, may leave it off. Turns out the exhaust manifold is exactly the right size to tap to 3/4NPT, so I can move the engine as far forward as I want and cut and tap the exhaust for a 90 degree elbow, clearance was an issue stock. Waiting on a set of 27" crossbar handle bars and grips.

This was a lightweight frame, was surprised the 2.125s fit but the clearance is minimal. Anyone remember the post with the home built frame crimper? Some one here built one.

silverbear said:

msrfan is the one to ask about the frame crimper. His Whizzer inspired builds using Briggs engines utilizes a final belt drive. To give enough clearance for the belt to rear wheel sheave the frame has to be crimped.
SB

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Thanks SB!