Ultra Cheap low budget motorized bicycle

[dodge dude94]

He just needs to take links out. Once it's finally stretched, it won't go much further.


What exhaust is that? Voodoo pipe with a stock muffler?

 

[BelayBoy]

it is human nature to want more so building something cheap will always cost you more in the end.

 

[dodge dude94]

Oh, it's a challenge!

 

[BelayBoy]

here is something from my build, when i planned to get into this adventure all i wanted was the engine, agk sprocket parts and throttle, and see my link to find out what i ended up with

http://motorbicycling.com/showthread.php?t=47494

 

[oldpot]

Well i did not build this bike , but sure got a great bargain from Craigslist the old man (70+) was selling this not rode it for 3 years (engine 5 years old had 295 miles on the speedo , $150 , the extra like mirror,bag, seat, new wheel (must be 150 just for wheel ) came with the bike , i spent more on add on's (headlight, now sorting tail and better brake lights) brakes etc ,than the bike itself , touch wood still runs great after not started for 3 years.

[URL=http://smg.photobucket.com/user/oldpot/media/bikes/IMG_20130328_131754_zps136032f8.jpg.html][/URL]

 

[comfortableshoes]

My current build has been done on the cheap.
1990 Trek 800 Antelope- Bought 3 years ago on craigslist for $50 (I think.)
2 new tires, came with a pair of bikes I bought for $65, sold one for $65, tires=$0
Sprocket 44t, came as an extra with nuts and bolts that a vendor sent me as a replacement for the nuts and bolts that were missing from the kit $0
New rag joint $12
New throttle and grip $15
New chain $10
Engine kit itself $130 3 years ago, pulled off my chopper
New clutch lever $12
New spark cord and boot $0 salvaged off another engine that doesn't run
paracord to cover wires and zipties $3
Rear Rack for gas tank free off scrap bike I bought for $15 for parts, sold antique components on craigslist for $20 so $0
Round plastic gas tank from lawn mower $15 ebay. Came with petcock and junk in tank.
2 military style bags from daily steal for $16
cup holder $6
lights $15
headlight $10
Tensioner $10
Assorted hardware $20
Spray paint $1
Alarm $10

If I count ONLY the stuff I bought new not the stuff I scrounged around in my garage for I have spent $156 The scrounged stuff amounts to about $195 for a total of $351.

Of course for that amount I could have bought a pre-built bike from one of the guys on craigslist but it wouldn't be on a Trek.

The best bet to do this on a budget is to look for a quality frame on craigslist at the end of the biking season, around October. Or when colleges let out in May. the market is flooded with nice bikes at low prices as people seek to rid themselves of stuff they don't want to store or pack. you can fund your build by starting out by buying a really NICE frame and bike and cleaning it up, tuning it, putting new tubes and or tires on it and making it shift nice. Then put it back up on craigslist covering your costs plus enough to make some nice money. I did this to buy my first chopper. I started out with a kids Haro for $25. New tubes and a tune up I sold it to a guy less than a week later for $75. I bought another $25 bike and did the same.

The key to this is buying bikes that are withing your tool and skill set. Don't buy a bike that needs a new bottom bracket if you can't do that job. Also, don't price the bikes unreasonable. There's a guy near me who does this and has his prices so unreasonable no one buys them so all he does is clog up craigslist. The other key is to never sell below the price of your materials. It's like flipping a house, you are adding value for the people who can't fix their bikes and will end up tossing their bike away in a few months. Other times you give a college kid a steal of a lifetime.

I had a lot of fun doing this and I made enough money to buy my first chopper and all the parts I needed to mount the engine. All in all I was only out my time.

 

[fatdaddy]

Way to go comfortableshoes. So with a little effort and salesmanship you can build a bike for free, basicly.
And talking about unreasonable prices, This guy on craigslist has had this bike listed for well over a year that I know of. I just don't see $900 worth of bike there. Obviously neither does anyone else.
fatdaddy.
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/bik/3961540546.html

 

[comfortableshoes]

I don't see $900 there either, though it's a neat bike. Without the engine being tested I'd hate to buy it and have it be a brick.

The real questions you have to ask yourself with funding your build by working on old bikes are "How patient am I?" and "How much do I want to invest?" If I had known how much fun and pure joy this hobby would give me over the years I'd have started out with more than $50. I started out with $25 because I just didn't know if I would like it. The $25 I started with has multiplied itself many times in just pure fun.

I know I am fortunate in that I started out with this knowing a lot more than the average person about bikes, so I was able to make a lot of repairs most people would not. I knew about engines but not a huge amount. I have learned more as I've worked on my bike and asking questions of the people on this forum.

This fall I'll probably invest another $25 to $50 on a bike and use it to save enough $ to buy another engine and the stuff to convert the chopper to gears.

I watched my Dad do this when I was a kid, but he did it with junk VW to buy the toys he wants- ATV, mini bikes etc. I wish I had skills and the space for working on cars because I would have enough with one car for a few of these builds.

 

[Master-shake]

man this thread makes motorized bikes look bad. Even if you get everything for free it still costs time to refurbish and put everything together. I wouldn't do it personally with regards to the rims, I've seen far to many rims with rusted out nipples to even think about putting together a build like any of these. The frames may be good, but I'm sure most of those rims aren't.

 

[16v4nrbrgr]

Not all builds are driven with thirst for profit.

 

[comfortableshoes]

@Master-shake How does this thread motorized bicycle riding look bad? In any of the pictures of the bikes I don't see any rusted out heaps. I've seen some brags about good deals and I gave hints on how to fund your build on the cheap.

the Trek frame I'm currently riding was minty when I got it and stuck in my garage for 3 years before I put an engine on it. I JUST put new tires on it, the nipples look new. The rims look new. The spokes look new. The frame has no rust.

Obviously people need to be smart about what they are putting a motor on and check it for safety.

 

[maniac57]

Here's one for the price of the kit alone. Bike was a trade-in and pipe was free. (formerly a table leg)
$139.99 total cost.

 

[Master-shake]

well, your build might be ok comfort-shoes, but the thing is there i gonna be some teenager one of these days that drops on this site and decides that it would be ok to motorize some vintage bike because he's seen all the bias confirmation he needed to do it. it's not gonna be a week before that bikes spokes bust and the kid is left in a hospital.

You guys need to be perfectly clear that the bike that your using that is so cheap has been inspected to some degree for safety. and that includes taking off the little protective cover thing in the rim because of stuff like this.

or this

I just don't wanna see anybody getting hurt cause they think any old bike will do.

 

[comfortableshoes]

@mastershake check this out: add to it what you thinks needs to be added:http://motorbicycling.com/showthread.php?p=502400#post502400

 

[Master-shake]

Your a good poster there. I'll be sure to drop in and add a few things because I really love refurbishing old stuff myself.

 

[dodge dude94]

Here's one for the price of the kit alone. Bike was a trade-in and pipe was free. (formerly a table leg)
$139.99 total cost.

DUDE. How did that pipe sound? Looks cool.

 

[maniac57]

Much better than stock, more motorcycle- like and much less lawn implement. It's a little tinny due to thin tubing but I'm not complaining for free. I can always gut the stock muffler for more flow too. It's still stock inside for now until it breaks in or sells, whichever.

 

[dodge dude94]

That's great. Any difference in where the powerband is located?

 

[maniac57]

Nah, engine is brand new on first 1/4 tank. It will be awhile before it can be tuned. It just looks good right now, I this same pipe extension on The Pig for awhile and it improved power once I gutted the stock muffler can. Didn't get much louder, just ran out better on top, and allowed richer jetting for slightly better power.
This is a good compromise for builders with limited welding and fab skills 'cause it's easy to add a curved section to the stock pipe. Building expansion chambers that fit good is quite a bit harder.

 

[fatdaddy]

master-shake is right about being carefull about what goes into yer build. And rims are at the top of my list, I prefer steel, NO RUSTand at least 12 guage spokes.