question on longevity and upgrades

[LittleTimmy52]

I recently installed a new china doll into a bike, yes I am fully aware of their severe lack of quality, but for the first time in the few from this one seller on amazon I bought (I build them for a hobby, sell em to get money to make the next, its jolly good fun) the piston ring appeared to have welded itself or something to the piston, shattered and had a chunk from that top ring carve a channel from a port to the top then stay on the top causing the piston to hit the chunk. Now its probably the very low quality parts, but I have my personal one from the same people that lasted forever now. I just want to know if there is anything I should do to A: prevent this from happening to mine, and B: to the future ones I build for hobby. Should I be taking the head off and inspecting for stuff before install? is there anything to look out for?

Now for the upgrade question, I want to get a better sprocket mount that the one that clamps on the spokes so it doesn't shred the rim on my bike, there's a few ways to mount a sprocket, but what is the most reliable/least destructive one? Also is there anything else I can do for my bikes engine to make it last that bit longer?

 

[Tony01]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

Did you mix oil with your gas?

 

[LittleTimmy52]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

Did you mix oil with your gas?

yes I do its a 2 stroke I do 1 thing of oil per one gallon idk the exact ratio but i use 89 non ethonol and some synthetic 2 stroke oil

 

[fasteddy]

Get a sprocket mount that clamps on the hub. That way you are driving the wheel on the strongest part. They are available from a number of sellers. I'd look on Amazon.

Steve.

 

[Johnny_]

yes I do its a 2 stroke I do 1 thing of oil per one gallon idk the exact ratio but i use 89 non ethonol and some synthetic 2 stroke oil

Manuals say 16:1 for break in, a lot of people run 20:1 so as to not foul the plugs. All the little bottles you're supposed to mix with 1 gallon of gas that I've seen, are for either a mixture of 40:1 or 50:1, so it's likely you're running a little lean.

 

[Venice Motor Bikes]

This falls into the 'sheet happens' category.

The best thing you can do to prevent something like this in the future is to mix the gas & oil as exact as you can; (especially for the first tank)! Simply saying "I do 1 thing of oil per one gallon idk the exact ratio" isn't good enough.

40:1 is what I've been doing for years... 32:1 will give you a little more oil in the mix.

 

[Johnny_]

As for upgrades;
Before starting the bike motors for the first time, take the cylinder off and rinse inside the case and cylinder, and the piston, with premix. There's a lot of shavings left over from the manufacturing process that will wreck it.
And the best upgrade I ever did was to balance the crank. It took a lot of work to get it apart, and a lot of work with the drill press, but now it scarcely vibrates at all. Which makes it more comfortable to ride, and last longer.
Also like @fasteddy said, get a sprocket mount that clamps on the hub. Wayyyyy better than the rag joint.
Hope that helps!

 

[fasteddy]

If you want to start out with the best sprocket holder available, this is the one. Three piece holder instead of a two piece to help you get the most secure hold on the hub possible. Sprockets listed are made to fit these hubs.

Steve.

SPORTSMAN HEAVY DUTY SPROCKET ADAPTER – SPORTSMAN FLYER MOTORBIKES

 

[Sidewinder Jerry]

A sprocket mounted to a disc brake hub is your strongest method. If you have hills to contend with a multi-speed bicycle gives you more pedal assist ratio options. A tachometer is helpful to keep you from over-revving or letting you know when you're providing enough pedal-assist to prevent overload.

Always have front and rear brakes. Stopping is far more important than going fast. Avoid using a department store coaster brake. Always use high quality brake pads; don't use department store pads. The small amount of savings isn't worth risking your life for.

As for riding in traffic: mirrors, bicycle computer, good cycling skills, and obeying traffic laws will be very beneficial to you.

 

[LittleTimmy52]

Thanks for the responses everyone, I have been considering the disk brake sprocket I just want to find a hub with that and potentially heavier duty to withstand the engine force longer. I did not know the oil mix needed to be more precise, I thought like lawn equipment a thing a oil per gallon was good enough, I will try to be more precise from this point forward. and yes from this point forward the head is defiantly coming off for inspection and cleaning before running it as johnny said. Thank you all who responded.

 

[LittleTimmy52]

I now have another question though, what, where, and when should I lubricate and with what lubricants? for instance, I use some general purpose grease for the chain it was like some chassis grease or something, but there is on the other side of the engine a panel covering the crankshaft gear and the clutch gear, there is no lube on it, what do I put there? do I put anything there at all? what else and when do I need to lubricate?

 

[Sidewinder Jerry]

Grease will cause debris to stick to it. Depending on where you live it's advisable to do a trough cleaning on your chains/sprockets at least every 3 months. You should do at minimum a monthly wipe down cleaning. I like using lighter fluid for cleaning. As for a weekly lubricant use bicycle oil on your chains. If you live in wet locations use bicycle oil with wax.

 

[LittleTimmy52]

Grease will cause debris to stick to it. Depending on where you live it's advisable to do a trough cleaning on your chains/sprockets at least every 3 months. You should do at minimum a monthly wipe down cleaning. I like using lighter fluid for cleaning. As for a weekly lubricant use bicycle oil on your chains. If you live in wet locations use bicycle oil with wax.

what about for the 2 gears behind the panel? what should I put there on the crank gear and clutch gear? also im in central florida in a smaller city paved roads not much debris so grease should be fine there right? if not ill just clean and oil like you advised.

 

[Sidewinder Jerry]

what about for the 2 gears behind the panel? what should I put there on the crank gear and clutch gear? also im in central florida in a smaller city paved roads not much debris so grease should be fine there right? if not ill just clean and oil like you advised.

Your reduction gears (82t\20T) should only have a dab of gear grease.

 

[LittleTimmy52]

Your reduction gears (82t\20T) should only have a dab of gear grease.

I pop the back plate off and its all rust powder, but the gears look fine, i sprayed some carb cleaner and compressed air got it all out and got some Valvoline high temp red grease around the big and small gear. Is this grease fine? it is certainly better than nothing at all. it also took some of the squeak away when i press the clutch and move the bike (engine off).

 

[LittleTimmy52]

Additionally I took the bottom cap of the stock exhaust to clean inside, but I left it off, apart from loosing some back pressure is there any negative effects? is it pointless apart from making it sound like a machine gun? are there benefits? Basically should I keep that bottom cap off or put it back on?

 

[Venice Motor Bikes]

Additionally I took the bottom cap of the stock exhaust to clean inside, but I left it off, apart from loosing some back pressure is there any negative effects? is it pointless apart from making it sound like a machine gun? are there benefits? Basically should I keep that bottom cap off or put it back on?

Removing the end cap won't hurt anything... Infact, it will give the bike a lot more power.
But it will affect the carb jetting

 

[LittleTimmy52]

Removing the end cap won't hurt anything... Infact, it will give the bike a lot more power.
But it will affect the carb jetting

How does it affect carb jetting, do I need to run more fuel or something? I was already running it rich so I maybe it balances out. Also the jetting is the air fuel ratio right? (I am not familiar with all the terms as I am quite the novice)