new, got a 60's cruiser and a snowblower engine.....help

TheBeak · #1 02-25-2009, 02:19 PM

Hi everyone!
I'm new to the site and this all together. But i have always wanted to put an engine on a bike.

So I have this little snowblower that i got for free a year ago and i have been wanting to put it on a bike. Well i just got the thing going a few weeks ago and was thinking i should find a bike. Well i was wandering through the woods, oh yeah i live in the middle of nowhere. A small boatbuilding town in maine, but i'm from massachusetts and damn proud of that. Anyway...so i found this cruiser single speed bike in the woods last week and thought this is perfect. I dragged it out and got the wheels turning again. She's a bit rusty. I searched the serial # and from what i got its a 1963 Columbian.
I want to mount this snowblower engine on it. The engine had a belt drive(friction?) on the blower so it has no clutch and a 2 inch pulley wheel on the shaft. I have been thinking about how to get this to work. I want it frame mounted for looks and have access to welders and tools thanks to the boatyard. But i was just hoping for ideas. oh yeah i use CAD at the yard so i was planning on drawing it up first.
THANKS

I will take some pics

5-7HEAVEN · #2 02-25-2009, 03:20 PM

How many hp?

How heavy is the engine?

Having no clutch makes it difficult to frame-mount. You probably need idler pulley fabricated.

First on agenda is to check for frame straightness/damage.

Remove/clean/lube/reinstall crankset.

Build new wheels w/12g spokes.

Install side-pull vee brakes front and rear. Keep the coaster brake.

TheBeak · #3 02-25-2009, 04:59 PM

The Engine is three horsepower and weighs around 5 or 6 pounds.
The frame is in really good shape there are no dings or anything and its straight.
I am gonna go to the bike shop this weekend. I am gonna get the bike itself ridable first, but just wondering:
Would the belt and pulley from the snowblower be of any use?
I don't know the words for it but i am referring to the small pulley that is pushed down on the belt by a spring and lever.

TheBeak · #4 02-25-2009, 05:00 PM

oh and thanks for such a quick response 5-7heaven

toytime · #5 02-25-2009, 05:36 PM

It would be a ton of work trying to use what you have and If I were you, I would look for a Centrifugal Clutch and chain along with a sprocket for the wheel. If you did get it to work the way you want, you would have to come up with a belt drive to your rear wheel but I guess with a welder and lots of time, you could do it.
I am building a push trailer for a Honda motor off a snowblower and just paid under $80 Can. for a ten foot chain and clutch. I'm sure you could get it for a lot less in the States

TheBeak · #6 02-25-2009, 05:48 PM

what about doing it like cubans putting a pulley on one side where the pedals are and then a chain from the other side to the wheel?

But then no pedaling
oh yeah and police are no big problem where i live. There is one from me to ellsworth which is 40 minutes and he's a friend so i really am not too concerned about that.

Oh and a push trailer one of the kinda side-cars with the motor in it?
I could probably get a clutch out of Uncle Henry's

toytime · #7 02-25-2009, 06:03 PM

I guess if you were to do the pulley on "where the peddles are" it would be easier to build the lever needed for the pulley tensioner. There are many push trailers, some are on the side and others are like trailers that follow you. There are even one wheeled trailers that follow and push you.
You will find a few ideas on youtube, including a guy who did what you are talking about
(no peddles), just look around.

YouTube - Motorised bicycle trailer

5-7HEAVEN · #8 02-25-2009, 08:02 PM

That lever and pulley is the idler pulley; it is a very important part of the conversion.

You might want to duplicate the Whizzer bike. Use a 16"-20" sheave bolted onto the wheel spokes. Find some way to incorporate that idler pulley to control engagement engagement.

Sounds like a great project; as a last resort you could use it as a powerful rack-mounted friction drive set up.

Nashville Geoff · #9 02-26-2009, 12:07 AM

I'm all about using a snowblower motor... I've got 3 of them, a 4.5 hp & a 3hp Tecumseh, and a 3hp Briggs. I've put together a dual freewheel hub and will rack mount the motor, with a centrifugal clutch & jackshaft to get the ratio correct. This is going on a Giant bike with front suspension & a suspension seatpost. When I get into building the brackets, I'll post photos. Peace, Geoff

TheBeak · #10 02-26-2009, 10:25 AM

my motor is a 3 hp tecumseh too
i just think its much better to have it done your own way
i know kits are easy but this seems like more fun and is an actuall project