Rear belt drive?

GoldenMotor.com

mrbios

New Member
Sep 17, 2011
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San Diego
discussed the problem with Dennis at golden eagle several years ago, ...
I'm new to the forum and motorized bikes. My friend has a traditional motorized bike with the two stroke engine in the middle of the frame.

I want to buy a kit from golden eagle because I like the clean belt drive setup and want to avoid too much vibration in the handle bars. I couldn't seem to find a review of the Golden Eagle type setup on the forum.

Can you provide some links and reviews of the golden eagle stuff as well as your opinions? Thanks.

Paul
 

rohmell

Active Member
Jun 2, 2010
1,531
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New York
I'm new to the forum and motorized bikes. My friend has a traditional motorized bike with the two stroke engine in the middle of the frame.

I want to buy a kit from golden eagle because I like the clean belt drive setup and want to avoid too much vibration in the handle bars. I couldn't seem to find a review of the Golden Eagle type setup on the forum.

Can you provide some links and reviews of the golden eagle stuff as well as your opinions? Thanks.

Paul
I have a Golden Eagle kit, and you will break the stock spokes on your wheel. You either have to respoke your wheel with heavy duty spokes, or else buy Golden Eagle's wheel.

I didn't like either option so I am going to weld a 20" bicycle rim to my wheel and use that as the sheave.
 

mrbios

New Member
Sep 17, 2011
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San Diego
Thanks for the info. I think I will buy GE's wheel as I have never re-spoked a wheel. Do you think it is best to buy GE's wheel?

2nd question. Should I buy GE's 4 stroke motor or a 4 stroke from Honda or another company?

Thanks.
 

rohmell

Active Member
Jun 2, 2010
1,531
6
38
New York
Buy GE's wheel and you won't have any problems, it will be very reliable.

I think GE only offers the Robin/Subaru EH035, I have that one and it works great.

I have also used the Tanaka PF-4000, Honda GX-31 and the Harbor Freight Auger engine with the GEBE setup.
 

GEJoe

New Member
Mar 30, 2011
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Tennessee
I have had a golden eagle since 2005. Broke spokes twice before buying their wheel. Then it broke 3 spokes. So I respoked it with 12 gauge spokes last summer. No problems so far, but I do not ride with golden eagle much now that I have GT50R from Dax with a chain drive (friction drive always left black tire dust when I ran it).
 

silverbear

The Boy Who Never Grew Up
Jul 9, 2009
8,325
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northeastern Minnesota
Never saw this thread, so am signing on now that the party is over. Seems to me that the idea has merit, but needs to be done and tested, tweaked and tweaked again. I'm just now starting my first belt drive using a whizzer sheave and will happily go with that since I want the build to be reminiscent of a 1950's Whizzer. (Thread is called "Kindalikeawhizzer") However, I'd like to see something done with another driven pulley. A possible freebie large diameter pulley would be from a washing machine (or is it a dryer?... can't remember). The center hole where it bolts onto a shaft would have to be opened up some to make the hole bigger, then drilled for a clam shell adapter or a kit rag joint. Seems to me that a jack shaft along the way would give more control over easily changing the gearing. The jack shaft could even be an old 3 speed Sturmey Archer 3 speed hub. Yes, I know that would make it technically illegal, but so are most of the engines we're running. Just thinking. It would be nice to have no greasy chain, quiet running and gear choices so that a smaller engine could yield more power.
SB
 

Dogtown Burner

New Member
Sep 15, 2011
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Never saw this thread, so am signing on now that the party is over. Seems to me that the idea has merit, but needs to be done and tested, tweaked and tweaked again. I'm just now starting my first belt drive using a whizzer sheave and will happily go with that since I want the build to be reminiscent of a 1950's Whizzer. (Thread is called "Kindalikeawhizzer") However, I'd like to see something done with another driven pulley. A possible freebie large diameter pulley would be from a washing machine (or is it a dryer?... can't remember). The center hole where it bolts onto a shaft would have to be opened up some to make the hole bigger, then drilled for a clam shell adapter or a kit rag joint. Seems to me that a jack shaft along the way would give more control over easily changing the gearing. The jack shaft could even be an old 3 speed Sturmey Archer 3 speed hub. Yes, I know that would make it technically illegal, but so are most of the engines we're running. Just thinking. It would be nice to have no greasy chain, quiet running and gear choices so that a smaller engine could yield more power.
SB
Well, glad to see that you saw this one too. Yeah, I think a couple of the guys and now you, are ping the route of the 1920's with the large rear belt sprocket. I wonder what the need for that is. Torque? Too much for a
Belt to use chain sized cogs?
I was liking Dans idea with the hub clamp we sell. Jeff Wolf used a belt on DMB's amazingly awesome red mega thumper. Looks tight. As in b*tchin' . I am building a 200cc and thought I could get some info here rather than bug CCC.
 

Trey

$50 Cruiser
Jan 17, 2013
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Where cattle outnumber people 3 to 1.
Well if there are some people who may know... I have a question.

In theory, could you run a belt directly from the engine output shaft, to a large sheave on the rear wheel, using a hand operated tensioner to engage?
 

Bohemian_Lady

New Member
Feb 7, 2013
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Hawaii
In theory, could you run a belt directly from the engine output shaft, to a large sheave on the rear wheel, using a hand operated tensioner to engage?
Why on gods green earth would you do that? What are you trying to accomplish? Having to reach back to engage the tensioner would be distracting and dangerous, unless you made some complicated pulley system so that you could engage the tensioner with a re-purposed break handle. But again what do you think you would be accomplishing by doing that? Except making the system more convoluted.
 

silverbear

The Boy Who Never Grew Up
Jul 9, 2009
8,325
670
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northeastern Minnesota
Actually it is pretty simple and the lever for engaging the belt to the pulley can be right next to you, not behind. If you know where it is, you don't need to look away from the road at all. Lots of early motored bikes used this simple arrangement. It acts as a manual clutch.
SB
 

Trey

$50 Cruiser
Jan 17, 2013
1,432
5
0
Where cattle outnumber people 3 to 1.
Wow, talk about showing up late... please excuse me, I haven't had access to a computer.

Bohemian Lady- I guess my answer is, because it's mechanical and kewl. I like to build as much of my stuff as I can, and aside from the challenge of engineering it, I like that I probably won't see another one.(^)

Silverbear-Thanks for that man, it must be something I've seen somewhere, think I'll do some web surfin. I'm really interested to know about belt/pulley types, lever angles, bracketry etc. I'll let ya know when I get a plan together.
 

silverbear

The Boy Who Never Grew Up
Jul 9, 2009
8,325
670
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northeastern Minnesota
So where are we with this thread idea? It has so much potential that I hate to see it fade away into nothing. Even failed ventures inform and help to point the way to success. I have a feeling that there are any number of ways to make this work. Mostly, it just needs doing. No doubt one way is more elegant than another, or less expensive, or more foolproof, but there must be a way.

A year from now will be the winter of 2015-16 and once again I will have two bike projects sitting at either end of my old trailer house in the woods, a 1957 Spartan Royal Manor. I think that one of the bikes is going to be an upgrade project to my American Flyer (1950 Schwinn Panther), which has been my faithful daily rider. It started out with a 50cc huasheng 4 stroke with a Q-matic transmission which is belt initial drive and from the output clutch chain drive to a manic mechanic hub adapter.

Along the way I added a sidecar for Aaniimoosh The Wonder Dog made from part of a Gruman canoe and with the additional weight and drag seriously needed more power. I swapped engines to a 99cc Predator which was a great improvement, but still not the greatest for steep inclines. I don't do pedal assist, thanks anyway. Much as I like this ride, it still wants more power. So, it needs a different engine.

I have a 147CC 2 stroke Jacobsen from a power burst snow blower, vintage 1970's which is a robust little engine and I think it will give power in the range that I want and need for this build. My plan is as much as possible to use what I have on hand and keep the cost down. So, although tempted to go to a CVT transmission I will use the Q matic again, which has been a reliable transmission and is what I already have.

In line with the subject of this thread, I would like to change the final drive over to belt. I'd need to switch the sprocket on the clutch to a pulley of the same diameter and use a pulley at the rear wheel of the same diameter or in the same general range (probably smaller by a bit to increase the top end and lower rpm on the engine). Not sure how yet without staring at salvaged parts, but I should be able to drill and bolt the pulley to the sprocket on the manic mechanic hub adapter. Yes, I would reuse the sprocket and in fact have an old one with worn teeth that would serve the purpose and attach the pulley to the sprocket. The hub adapter will have plenty of bite against the hub, leave the spokes (11 gauge) alone and have some lateral adjustment on the hub. The hub is an older Bendix coaster brake type and is excellent.

I don't wee why this won't work at little additional expense (pulleys and belt). Anyone see a problem? I may need to open up more room at the frame for belt clearance, but will better know that when the time comes. I can mount the engine a bit off center if need be and will be removing the recoil pull start, tinwork,and shaving down the flywheel to shrink up the engine. Engine starting will be by hand crank as I'm doing with two other builds (Elgin Velocipede and "Kindalikeawhizzer" which is also final belt drive to a traditional whizzer sheave).

I thought about doing away with the Q matic and going directly from a pulley at the engine to a sheave on the rear wheel, but this is actually simpler since I have the Q-matic and the hub adapter. When this project gets underway I will do a thread with photos and narrative. It is still a long way off, but I am committed to the engine upgrade and am tired of chain final drive.

Suggestions are welcome.
SB
 
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Intrepid Wheelwoman

New Member
Oct 29, 2011
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Hauraki District, New Zealand
With twist link belting finally being available by on-line ordering here in New Zealand I'm finding myself wondering about setting up a belt drive on a bike.

http://nz.rs-online.com/web/p/twist-link-belting/7005497/

I wouldn't mind testing out Lowrider's wheel rim method as its one big advantage is that I wouldn't have to buy in anything in order to do it because something I'm not short of is bike wheel rims :)
 

silverbear

The Boy Who Never Grew Up
Jul 9, 2009
8,325
670
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northeastern Minnesota
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ACCU-Link-S...=BI_Heavy_Equipment_Parts&hash=item35e3c3f3cc

I've added a link to an ebay listing in the USA to give an idea of expense in US dollars. Not bad considering. I admit that this kind of belt is new to me. I assume that it holds up well or it wouldn't get used as a permanent belt. A couple of things to like about this is that you can add length or shorten a belt to maintain fit. Another is that with spare lengths tucked away in the tool pouch a repair would be a simple thing. I'd like to look into this more thoroughly. Initial expense might be greater, but it might be that you end up buying just one belt with the peace of mind of knowing you can replace links at any time. Do you have experience with this belt, Anne? Anyone?
A nagging little thought is that it seems to me that with an actual whizzer sheave the belt is not a true V, but is flatter on one side so that if reversed belts get eaten quickly. Making sure of compatibility between the link belt and pulley type being used would be paramount.
I'll have to go back through the thread to refresh myself on lowrider's wheel rim method as I don't recall what it is. Having your attention on this matter is a good thing, Anne, as I know that you have a keen mind with things mechanical. We need your mechanical know-how. Where is fasteddy? His, too. Cannonball2 is another.
SB
 

silverbear

The Boy Who Never Grew Up
Jul 9, 2009
8,325
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northeastern Minnesota
http://www.harborfreight.com/vibration-free-link-belt-43771.html

Earlier on this thread Rohmel provided the above link to the link belt sold at Harbor Freight... all reviews are top rating and the five feet of 1/2" belting is 25 bucks. I can use leftovers on one of my power tools... grinder, table saw, compressor, etc. The price on this accu link brand is about half that of others, so this is what I'm going to buy. Looks like I'll be buying a belt for my Panther upgrade one time only. Reading some of the reviews at Harbor Freight is a great encouragement!
SB
 

Intrepid Wheelwoman

New Member
Oct 29, 2011
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No I haven't made use of this type of belt before Silverbear, but my feeling is that it is much more flexible than a traditional 'V' belt. The major plus is that trying to find a belt that's the right size becomes a thing of the past and as you say the capacity for quick and easy roadside repairs and adjustments makes this type of belt very attractive indeed.
As to how they might perform on a Whizzer sheave I couldn't really say, but I don't really see a reason why they wouldn't work out Ok.