BGF Hongdu/Solex

GoldenMotor.com

Otero

Member
Feb 1, 2010
782
17
18
wa
My Chinese friction drive had a rough roller of cast iron;
perhaps your is the same.
 

Otero

Member
Feb 1, 2010
782
17
18
wa
Whew, I don't know how it all snuck in there, but when I hit the
free download for that Gadwin Print Screen, garbage rushed in like
a million fleas on a mangy dog. I've spent the last couple days
getting rid of most of it.
In the meantime I've found another way 'round to slip in those pics.
(I think) The first couple of pics are of the $15 bike with the friction
setup it had when I toured the Cranberry Coast last August. The round
gray object is my engine cover. The other pic is that bike now as a
pure pedal tourer.
Seems the only thing wrong with my engine was water settled out into
to bottom of the tank. Does this mean I have to put it back on the bike
now? That ring in the rear wheel is for a belt drive. I can swap out the
friction in 1/2 hr. With the belt the bike's much faster, but doesn't climb
well.
The panniers are so high to avoid heel strike from my size 14 feet.
 

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silverbear

The Boy Who Never Grew Up
Jul 9, 2009
8,325
670
113
northeastern Minnesota
Silverbear,
Thanks for nothing. I took your Gadwin printscreen suggestion,
which when loaded flooded my PC with market tracking cookies
& stole my home page
I'm sorry to hear about your experience with Gadwin It has always been a quick and trouble-free download for me. I've used it for years and installed it on this laptop last summer. I would not knowingly give you a bumb lead.
SB
 

Otero

Member
Feb 1, 2010
782
17
18
wa
no worry Bear,
It's obvious the spammers have since found a vulnerable program to
hang their parasitic cookies on. It's not the first time; it won't be the
last.
Yup, Wheela, crazy old man that I am, I'm considering a crack at the
'Ride the Divide' route, a 2400 mile race course from Banff to the Mexican
border at Antelope Wells, New Mexico. Not as a competitor, just to ride
thru some of my old stompin' grounds in Colorado & Wyoming.
I found an old Brooks B-72 for $15,(under a cloth cover). The in-frame
pannier was $5, fashioned from a thrift store Samsonite carry-on, the
stem tool kit, $2, same place. Rear panniers, $25 shipped, E-bay. The
rest is largely an assortment of scrounged parts from derelicts. It's not
that I'm excessively frugal, just under funded.
 
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Otero

Member
Feb 1, 2010
782
17
18
wa
I'll try to do that. On thing though, 90% of the competitors never
finish. I'll count myself lucky if I make it to Wyoming. Much of the
course is wilderness trails,(no motors allowed). Being an old geezer
not confined to the exact route, there's a lot I can bypass, but I
know many of those trails well from my prospecting days and I'd
like to revisit a few. By way of a P.S. here's the trailer I also took
on the coast ride. The blue bike pictured cracked frame so I had
to put down. One shot, it was the merciful thing to do. Both the
other bikes also adapt to this trailer.
 

Attachments

silverbear

The Boy Who Never Grew Up
Jul 9, 2009
8,325
670
113
northeastern Minnesota
Otero,
I've been thinking about your Gadwin experience and did some looking to see if there are red flags for Gadwin

I noticed that the first down load sites and very few on the page are actually from Gadwin's homepage. Someone else is providing you with this "service" using the Gadwin software. And the first ones are paying for their ads in order to be on the top of the page. Why would they be willing to pay for an ad attracting you to their download site? I think it is for what they add on is intrusive spam and even providing you with a new homepage.

I had that happen to me once on this machine I'm using, installing everything after a new hard drive. Something was wacko when I got a home page in Russian. And no matter what I cannot get rid of that homepage. There are some sinister people out there.

I think that's what happened to you...not the fault of Gadwin, but of a third party acting as a go-between. Still, I'm sorry it all turned sour.
SB
 

Otero

Member
Feb 1, 2010
782
17
18
wa
Bear,
I need to apologize, I am not a pleasant person when frustrated
and annoyed. I know it wasn't your fault. The site was probably
sound when you loaded it. Anyway, I've found a simple way to place
old pics. Go to My pictures, right click the pic, and rename it.
seems to work.
As for remounting the engine, I dunno, I kinda like it this way.
I think I'll put the Tanaka PF4000 on the other bike & use it.
I haven't used that engine much cuz it's LOUD, but I've been
losing my hearing for the last 10 years & the flu left me in
Beethoven mode. I hear low frequency sound though, so if
you shout at me in a basso profundo voice we can have a nice
chat. Or... I'm getting good at lip reading.
 

Otero

Member
Feb 1, 2010
782
17
18
wa
Finally got off the stationary & rode all 3 bikes
today outside, first time since flu. The motored bike
performed well despite patches of moss & frost.
Bloody cold, but for reasons unknown my hearing's
improved somewhat.
 

Otero

Member
Feb 1, 2010
782
17
18
wa
So far all I've found was factory direct, if you can order
50 at a time. You can get a new Dutch solex for around
550 euros, but since BGF stopped, I haven't found anyone
retailing the Chinese ones.
 

Mike B

New Member
Mar 23, 2011
2,256
7
0
Central CA
Mine is gonna hit the trash can soon. Thing wouldn't start again, no gas. New tank, new pump, ran fine last week, I'm done.

You got a hundred bucks? I figure that's about worth what packing and shipping is gonna cost.
 

Otero

Member
Feb 1, 2010
782
17
18
wa
I'll take a pass, Mike. I'm sure the Dutch engines are high quality,
but I doubt I could afford the shipping, much less 550 Euros. I
have two very dependable engines,(Honda GX35, Tanaka PF4000).
Still, friction drive is annoyingly only viable in dry weather. So, I'm
back redesigning a belt drive. A large sheave & a very small primary
worked well for me, but it over stresses the clutch. The Tanaka has
so much torque that it twisted the bell right off the shaft. I have
to find a way 'round that, but I have A plan.
 

Mike B

New Member
Mar 23, 2011
2,256
7
0
Central CA
Not really. I am into riding these things, not fixing them. The thing worked fine a week ago, now it don't run. I know what it is, it did it before, the fuel pump is not pumping. I put a new pump in it, I put a new tank in it. I put a hundred bucks in it. Not one more cent and one more hour.

I like the bike. It's a cool old unisex Worksman. I even moved the Solex to the rear because on the forks it almost went down twice. I loved riding that thing. And I still will. I ordered up a Stanton FD kit w/o engine and I'll use one of the Tanaka PF3300's I got for cheap when the "blowout" sales were on.

So the bike will still be rear wheel 2 stroke friction drive, just not with that unreliable cantankerous Chinese Solex clone pig motor that requires more fixing time that it gives riding time.
 

Otero

Member
Feb 1, 2010
782
17
18
wa
Well Mike,
As long as you live some place sunny and dry, and not a
hulking 6'4' lineman like me, I think you'll be very happy
with the Staton kit. Nice thing about the pf3300 is it's
not nearly as loud as the pf4000 and it has better acceleration
than the Honda gx35 though not as quiet. I've got a
Staton kit which is great in dry weather. Pity I don't get a
lot of that.