Life Expectancy for a Good Engine

[chrisme]

3000+ miles on my HT. Most of the issues I had were caused by me not knowing the best way to do things when I first had it.
So, $150 for the engine, $25 for the bike. Probably $50 in misc parts, screws, chain, etc, etc.
So that is $225 for the setup, 3000 miles at 100mpg = 30 gallons = about $90.
So it all, for 3000 miles of transportation I spent $315. And as long as the bike keeps working, that price will go down and down just paying for gas.
With my car (old subaru (about 33mpg)), just gas to go 3000miles will cost me $273. And that isn't including insurance, registration, the new $52 clutch cable I had to buy last week because the old one snapped ...

 

[longhair]

3000+ miles on my HT. Most of the issues I had were caused by me not knowing the best way to do things when I first had it.
So, $150 for the engine, $25 for the bike. Probably $50 in misc parts, screws, chain, etc, etc.
So that is $225 for the setup, 3000 miles at 100mpg = 30 gallons = about $90.
So it all, for 3000 miles of transportation I spent $315. And as long as the bike keeps working, that price will go down and down just paying for gas.
With my car (old subaru (about 33mpg)), just gas to go 3000miles will cost me $273. And that isn't including insurance, registration, the new $52 clutch cable I had to buy last week because the old one snapped ...

Awesome! good for you man. The math is pretty simple, bicycle + motor = fun. If people are concerned about MBs not being worth the investment or pollutting the air, they're not riding them at all or not enough! Have fun and be safe!

 

[captainrichhill]

If your concerned about the environment better you direct your bleeding heart against all the vehicles powered by diesel fuel, put an electric motor on your MB and don't use anything made of wood. As for me, I'm gonna keep ridin/buildin MBs {as little investment as they cost}, and continue to put that" Christmas time smile" on people as I cruise by em in the city.

Longhair,

You have me mistaken for"a bleeding heart". Make no mistake about it I love these bikes and have been the biggest spokesperson for the hobby/sport. If you've seen any of my 100+ post you would have realized this. So save your preloaded catch phrases for somewhere that it might be valid.
Yes, I am offended. (In case you don't notice)

 

[chrisme]

Awesome! good for you man. The math is pretty simple, bicycle + motor = fun. If people are concerned about MBs not being worth the investment or pollutting the air, they're not riding them at all or not enough! Have fun and be safe!

I'm not going to go and say a 2-stroke is environmentally friendly ... They pollute, they leak, and drip... But fun? **** YEA!!
I manage in having a lot of fun in my car too though ... Give me a back road, some dirt, gravel, or snow + 4wd

 

[Dan]

Have been keeping careful track of a Honda GX miles. Will report but think it may be a while.

Bought an old Go-cart with a Honda (not the GX) on it. The carb is toast and cobbled together but tries to start. Is between 20 and 30 yrs old. Dunno how many miles

 

[xlite]

Contrary to popular myth 2 stroke bikes get far more mileage than 4 strokes. 4 stroke engines may be more reliable (arguable) but there is no doubt a problem with the gearboxes. It's not unsual to hear about 5-10k miles on a HT but it's unheard of with a 4 stroke kit. The 4 stroke bikes have advantages but economy and reliability are not among them.

 

[Buddy]

That's a complete joke. 4-stroke engines are FAR more reliable than 2-strokes. They pollute FAR less and get better gas mileage. Don't buy a cheap gearbox and you won't have problems. I've yet to see anyone anywhere on the net that's had problems with a Staton gearbox.

 

[azbill]

like I have stated,,,I have 3000+ miles on mine (EZM) since april (when they hit the market)
to compare apples to oranges is fruitless
I expect it do 20k+
I am also getting approx 180-190mpg with my 4cycle !!!
none of the 2smokes I have owned EVER came close to that

 

[Dan]

I have to agree. Far better mileage with the 4 smoker then any 2 stroke kit I have owned.

 

[chrisme]

What about speed with a 4-stroke?
I'm strongly considering switching when my 2-stroke blows up

 

[azbill]

mine will do 30 easily, the speed limit here in AZ is only 20 though

 

[momentummotorgroup]

Longhair,

You have me mistaken for"a bleeding heart". Make no mistake about it I love these bikes and have been the biggest spokesperson for the hobby/sport. If you've seen any of my 100+ post you would have realized this. So save your preloaded catch phrases for somewhere that it might be valid.
Yes, I am offended. (In case you don't notice)

dude. lighten up and hug it out. we're here for fun and to help each other out. Remember, fighting on the internet is like being in the special olympics. You might win, but you're still retarded.

No combustion engine is environmentally friendly. It's about the lesser of evils and a healthy dose of fun and pride in the accomplishment of building out a personal ride. I know I'm spending a heII of a lot less money riding mine than I would rolling around in my buick cage.

 

[TheE]

I don't know about air pollution, but at least my engine kit didn't come in 7 layers of non-biodegradable packaging like most things these days

My 2-stroke (49cc) gets up to about 40km/h (I'm afraid to push it harder)...I read that the 4-strokes can go even faster. Could just be optimistic marketing. Either way, bicycles aren't meant to be driven at warp speed.

 

[Cabinfever1977]

My 2-stroke with 800miles on it does 30mpg and gets 180mpg, my kit cost $186 and it is only $99 for a replacement engine. i don't have a car right now, but all the cars i had leaked oil or some kind of fluids and got under 20mpg and needed a part replaced every month.
my 2-stroke does not leak any noticable oil and no visable smoke comes out of my muffler. unlike the many cars i had which dripped oil or gas and blew black smoke out the tailpipe.

 

[BarelyAWake]

2 strokes = easy maintenance
4 strokes = easy to use

There's simply no comparing the two, they're so vastly different in so many ways it's kinda silly to even try. It's purely personal preference and whatever rationalizations are needed to excuse havin' one of these wonderful toys.

Even the "environmental impact" aspect is kinda ludicrous, even if you've a strung out 2smoker with NOS and stuck at WOT - it wont come anywhere near the resources used to just make a fancy plastic hybrid automobile with it's seriously toxic battery bank, which is of course "disposable" - a piddling detail that most eco-fanatics seem to overlook.

Regardless - as I've said to so many admirers of my bike, it's NOT about being "eco-friendly" or anything to do with the environment, it's about fun plain and simple. If it wasn't I'd just pedal the dang thing lol

I see there's been some ruffled feathers goin' on in this thread, I also see that it was based on a misunderstanding - let's just chill and babble on about the excuses we use to warrant havin' one of these awesome bikes

 

[xlite]

That's a complete joke. 4-stroke engines are FAR more reliable than 2-strokes. They pollute FAR less and get better gas mileage. Don't buy a cheap gearbox and you won't have problems. I've yet to see anyone anywhere on the net that's had problems with a Staton gearbox.

It's true about pollution and mileage. As I said 4 strokes kits do have advantages. Reliability ain't one of them. Show me a single link for a 4 stroke that went 14k miles or even half that.

 

[Dan]

2 strokes = easy maintenance
4 strokes = easy to use

There's simply no comparing the two, they're so vastly different in so many ways it's kinda silly to even try. It's purely personal preference and whatever rationalizations are needed to excuse havin' one of these wonderful toys.

Even the "environmental impact" aspect is kinda ludicrous, even if you've a strung out 2smoker with NOS and stuck at WOT - it wont come anywhere near the resources used to just make a fancy plastic hybrid automobile with it's seriously toxic battery bank, which is of course "disposable" - a piddling detail that most eco-fanatics seem to overlook.

Regardless - as I've said to so many admirers of my bike, it's NOT about being "eco-friendly" or anything to do with the environment, it's about fun plain and simple. If it wasn't I'd just pedal the dang thing lol

I see there's been some ruffled feathers goin' on in this thread, I also see that it was based on a misunderstanding - let's just chill and babble on about the excuses we use to warrant havin' one of these awesome bikes

Amen Brodder

 

[nsideus]

It's true about pollution and mileage. As I said 4 strokes kits do have advantages. Reliability ain't one of them. Show me a single link for a 4 stroke that went 14k miles or even half that.

Reliability is one of them.
I have over 6,000 mi on a HS with a grubee II. Let me list the problems
1) engine - replaced pull starter
2) gear box replaced bearing at around 5,800 mi
This 4-stroke engine would have over 7,000 mi if I didn't build a new one.
I also have a HS with over 5,000 mi and the new bike has about a thousand miles.
A quality 2-stroke will last for many years I still have a Stihl backpack blower than was run 3 to 4 hrs a day for 12 years and still runs. Happy time aren't the same quality.

 

[chrisme]

Happy time aren't the same quality.

You've hit it on the head right there. There are no other 2-stoke kits besides the HT kits. So the MB community has stared to think that 2-stoke engines are horrible.
That's why I'm still debating 2 or 4-stroke for my next build. Because I'm going to do it from scratch, complete welded up DIY. So I can use a quality 2 or 4 stroke.

 

[george_n_texas]

I know the HT kits are not made from indistructable material but I have noticed a lot of misinformation on how to maintain them...replacing all the bolts so you can overtorq them and not strip the threads...have ya ever thought the threads were made to have a fail point so you didn't damage things? Retorq the bolts every so often makes stress failure eventually even if torqed correctly. I have even seen someone recommend locktite on the SPARK PLUG! Ya got to be kidding. There is a ton of really great advise on this board but a lot of what we do is trial and error. I bet my second cheaper kit lasts a lot longer than my first. One other factor you have to know is most of these kits are being used by very young men who want to push them past what they were designed to do (nothing wrong with that everybody generally did that when they was young). I can also remember asking if overpowering the motor kicking in peddlin for an extra boost of speed hurt the motor with several people saying it didn't hurt...it does over revving any engine is not a good thing. We've all been made aware of the ban that most likely wil be here in the near future so my advise is to take extra good care of your China Girl you might not be able to get another cheap replacement so easy.