Faster than I thought.

a_dam · #1 04-30-2009, 09:36 PM

Went for a ride yesterday...actually had a day without rain.
The bike was running good. Had a very slight tailwind working in my favor. I was curious what my speed was so I counted pedal strokes. 55 strokes in 30 secs, so 110 per minute. I was in 9th gear - 52 tooth in front, 17 tooth rear. With my 27 inch wheels, that works out to 27mph.

That's a little faster than I thought she was doing. I usually tell people (because they always ask "how fast does it go") that it tops out at 25. Maybe I'll say 30 from now on.

NEAT TIMES · #2 04-30-2009, 09:53 PM

A-dam, What Size Drive Wheel Is On The Engine Now? That Is A Very Nice Friction Diy Build. I Wish You Could Do A Picture Build Of It In Diy "friction Drive" It Would Help A Lot Of People To Do An Economical And Very Workable Build. I Think You Have Done One Of The Best Low Cost Builds I Have Seen. Ron

a_dam · #3 04-30-2009, 10:41 PM

Thanks for the good words, Ron.

I had a feeling my post might be a little confusing. I was running the engine. I only pedalled to calculate my speed. I was careful to pedal lightly and not increase speed. Maybe someday I'll pry the wallet open and buy a speedo.

Yeah, it was a cheap build. These old Schwinn Continentals used to be easy to come across, even in the garbage. The recent trend of converting contis/varsities into fixies might have reduced the supply a bit. I was taking a chance building with a $10 used leaf blower. I don't know how old or worn my engine was when I got it. The black fuel lines were crumbling in the tank. Luckily the carb wasn't clogged. But I got about 2000 miles on the motor last year, so I've already gotten my "money's worth" out of it. If you can buy a china-motor kit for around $100, that's a small price to pay for a lot of fun.

I wish I took pics during the build. I'm thinking about motorizing another old Continental with a Craftsman weed wacker my brother-in-law gave me. I'll take pics during that build, if I do it. My plan is for it to have a combination friction/chain-drive with 2-speeds. It's top-secret, so that's all I'm saying for now!

Drive wheel is 1 1/4 inch, BTW.