4 or 2 stroke motor?

john_the_great said:
I don't mean to be a buzz kill but ain't Honda motors prolly manufacturers in china? (I realize that Honda is a japanese company and build the most reliable motorcycles of old, but even Harley parts are made in china now!)
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I have a GX50, says "Made in Japan" on it. Tried to look it up, Honda has many Assembly plants listed for cars, but not finding small engines. One bloger said they are made in the U.S. and Japan. I am not finding any confirmation though
 
A lot of places have parts made there. China, or as we say at work- "Offshore".
Where I work, we make parts for Harley, and we also make parts for Volvo, and several other truck companies, not to mention school bus body manufacturers.

We ALSO get some of our parts from China and Taiwan. I am not allowed to say what parts go where that came from here or there, but they all end up somewhere. If speced out right, and quality control is used, you can't tell the difference in where anything is made.
 
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jared8783 said:
most of the time you are right

but this looks like it belongs there
i was the first to purchase firebelly's universal in frame mount so i sent Evan my specs to make sure it would work
i have to remove the spark plug just to get the engine in
tell me that doesnt look like it belongs there
it couldnt have worked out better if we tried
i LOVE it
2009SpringSummerPictures090.jpg
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That is BEAUTIFUL Jared! I'm a little biased. I have a new gold Calypso in a non-motorized (virgin?) state, and I'd dig hearing how you made the 4 stroke conversion. Do you have a blog or any basic advice you could give? I'd really appreciate it.

Well done you!

WilliamPDX
 
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jared8783:

John has a good question, and I am also wondering if your Honda 4 stroke is Japanese made, or if they switched to China to make these small ones?

Huck
 
josh5968 said:
I want to put a motor on my bike I like the thought of a 4 stroke but is it worth it? Is there a good gearbox for it that is quiet and durable? I would also like to put a jack shaft kit onto it. Please let me know anything about the motors.
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The one thing you need to watch out for on the 4-strokes is the key on the freewheel. Am almost finished with my 4 stroke build from this past summer. (Moved & was too hot in Arizona to work on it during the summer.) Mine sheared in half on the first test ride. To quote some others about this issue...the stock keys seem to be made out of aluminum foil...Swiss cheese...plastic or the cheapest metal they could find.

The keys should be replaced as soon as you get the box from the shipper. The good thing...went to the local chainsaw/lawnmower dealer & got a 9 inch long steel key for $1.50 US. With a hacksaw & a couple of file's...my buddy got it to fit with about 1/2 hour of filing & cutting.

Another thing I dislike about the 4 stroke is the reverse use of the clutch. Unlike the 2 strokes & motorcycles...you have the clutch lever out to start & pull/keep it pulled/locked in place to keep the engine running.

If I had it to do over again...would not bother with the 4 stroke at all. Compared to my buddies 2 stroke...he's put it on 3 different bikes on 3 different afternoons to see which one would work best. We both agree my 4 stroke is nice & strong running...but it's twice the amount of work I wanted to put into it. If we can ever get it working & roadworthy...I will be very happy.

My next build will be a 2 stroke with a 1 gallon tank & the poo-poo/expansion chamber pipe. Am thinking about ordering an industrial bike from Huffy with a front drum hub & adding the rear drum hub to keep the sprocket from being mounted to the spokes.
 
there are gearboxes for the 4 strokes with no clutch lever whatever to mess with

where would the sticker on my honda be that says where it is made?
 
jared8783 said:
there are gearboxes for the 4 strokes with no clutch lever whatever to mess with
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Got websites or names???

where would the sticker on my honda be that says where it is made?
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I would think it would say it on the red plastic cover on the right side of the engine. Have never looked on mine since it's an HS...it's from China without question.
 
phoobarnvaz said:
Got websites or names???
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off the top of my head ez has the qmatic and firebelly is currently working on one

i went to bicycle-engines.com and looked at the 4g belt drive
here is part of the description
"With the built in clutch you maintain full function of the original bike. Pedal and ride your bike like normal. When you want to engage the engine simply give the engine gas and go. To power off simply press the included kill switch"
i think they are implying that it is simple centrifical-no clutch lever
and on the list of included parts clutch lever was not listed
 
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The ill-fated JL Hoots have no clutch levers, mine that lasted 50 or so miles surely didn't. The replacement for the box, on the still yet unbroken-in engine was to be an EZM Silent Power drive. If I did have a site for JL Hoot it would be mean and unkind of me to post it.

I bet you can find the website for EZM in my sig. My Silent Power is a manual clutch, BUT the new Q-matic is fully automatic.


Mike
 
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