Downsizing in Los Angeles

[SrtBrad]

I'm Brad from the Los Feliz area of SoCal. My son and I bikeride at least 3-6 times a month for at least 20 miles per ride. It's great exercise for us. I am looking to make our rides a little more fun by introducing the engine to the mix. This is also a good way for my son Spencer to start tinkering on an engine. I am 1 hour into the thought process of this idea.

I could use any help on what to do as a beginner to gain knowledge on the engine kits out there. I already know we would be inclined to go with the 2 stroke route with performance in mind over reliability. The gas mileage is not a factor. The better the quality of engine with the idea that we could rebuild the engines ourselves is the initial general gameplan.

What do you recommend? We have a 26" hard tail mountain blke and a full suspension 24" mountain bike. They are both Mongoose bikes.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Dave31]

Welcome to the forum Brad glad you joined us.

The hard tail 26" should be a good fit for a 2-stroke kit, the FS 24" may need a little more fab work to get it mounted correctly. The rear suspension may give you chain problems, it can be done but takes a little more work to get it to work properly.

This thread will give you frame dimenssions http://motorbicycling.com/f3/what-kind-bike-would-you-recommend-510.html

And here you can find a template to print out http://motorbicycling.com/f30/engine-template-motorized-bicycle-25074.html

As far as which motor kit to purchase... thats a little more tricky. Some swear by certain brands while I still believe its a roll of the dice on the quality of the motor you get no matter what brand or vendor.

About all I can tell you is do your homework and pick a vendor with good customer service. I don't reccomend vendors anymore because then I get attacked by other vendors that I am bashing them so I don't share what vendors/brands I do busniess with.

Please keep us posted on your builds and any questions you may have.

 

[Ernst]

Hello!

I too am new-ish and I have to agree it is a bit of the roll of the dice on the motor.

Having bought initially a motor kit from ebay that motor lasted me 725 mi of long rides.
My second engine was from Products > Engine Kits

I am happy with the new motor especially the high rpm action.

Now to get ready for a long ride once again!

 

[SrtBrad]

Welcome to the forum Brad glad you joined us.

The hard tail 26" should be a good fit for a 2-stroke kit, the FS 24" may need a little more fab work to get it mounted correctly. The rear suspension may give you chain problems, it can be done but takes a little more work to get it to work properly.

This thread will give you frame dimenssions http://motorbicycling.com/f3/what-kind-bike-would-you-recommend-510.html

And here you can find a template to print out http://motorbicycling.com/f30/engine-template-motorized-bicycle-25074.html

As far as which motor kit to purchase... thats a little more tricky. Some swear by certain brands while I still believe its a roll of the dice on the quality of the motor you get no matter what brand or vendor.

About all I can tell you is do your homework and pick a vendor with good customer service. I don't reccomend vendors anymore because then I get attacked by other vendors that I am bashing them so I don't share what vendors/brands I do busniess with.

Please keep us posted on your builds and any questions you may have.

Thank you for your welcome. I really do appreciate it. I joined this forum so that I could do my homework and also get some customer reviews of products that they have actually tried. There is so much misinformation out there about these engine kits. I understand that to single out one vendor over another causes some people to get uptight. If I'm a vendor I would want constructive criticism so I could grow as a company. If nobody says anything then the consumer looses in the end.

 

[SrtBrad]

Hello!

I too am new-ish and I have to agree it is a bit of the roll of the dice on the motor.

Having bought initially a motor kit from ebay that motor lasted me 725 mi of long rides.
My second engine was from Products > Engine Kits

I am happy with the new motor especially the high rpm action.

Now to get ready for a long ride once again!

Thanks for the welcome. How many miles are these engines typically good for? Are these "RAW" engines rebuild-able? Do you have any options for upgraded performance parts for these engines? What is the HP rating on these stock engines? Are the parts readily available and is there a local dealer in Los Angeles? Thanks in advance for any help with my questions.

 

[outlawbiker]

youve come to the right place,i think this is the best,well laid out forum on the net for motorized bikes,so many good references and pics to show and learn from.

perrty much all these 2 cycle engines (RAW,Grubee,ect) can be rebuilt,seems like all the parts are compatible in some sense. i personally have used PK-80s in my builds, my very first one has lasted and still goes on strong after thousands of miles a year i put on it. but for a few dollars more id invest in a grubee,way better of a kit and engine than the pk-80s i was getting.i cant say they will last longer from experience,but i built a bike with one for someone and it fired right up and gave me more power and acceleration than other engines ive used i was impressed and will buy grubee till i hit a problem with them.

LA seems to be the holy center for these engine kits,they are everywhere out here,but shop around,i had some fool on Craigslist trying to say hes got a shop and sells these kits for $225 or more,dont be fooled,the kits he was selling are nothing special,in fact they are the same ones that you can get off ebay for 120 to 140 bucks shipped! there are a few distributors on this page to the left and to the right from so cal here,piston bikes for example is out of simi valley and theres another one i cant think of,but good luck.

 

[Ernst]

Thanks for the welcome. How many miles are these engines typically good for? Are these "RAW" engines rebuild-able? Do you have any options for upgraded performance parts for these engines? What is the HP rating on these stock engines? Are the parts readily available and is there a local dealer in Los Angeles? Thanks in advance for any help with my questions.

Well I'm not an expert but so far I understand that yes we can rebuild them but we will find small differences from lot to lot.
For example the drive gear nut. On the first engine I pulled the fat sprocket off since the new RAW ones have a thin and not exactly meshing size sprocket. Oh it might have worn in but I liked the fat toothed one so I pulled it.
So when I was putting it back together the "nut" for that didn't fit the RAW.. Turns out that the threads are different on the first from the second.. Small differences.

So too will we find other parts differences.

As for supply I don't know.. Ebay loves me that I know cuz my bill tells me so.. But There is sick Bike Parts and HelioBikes.com who also got some action..

Um, so, take it step by step.. On HP I don't remember. On the RAW from Helio I believe the high rpms are much nicer than the original motor.

Myself I have a spare RAW on stand by because I will ride for transport and can afford one day down but not two.

On upgrade parts.. A welded Sick Bike Parts expansion exhaust seems to be a benefit. I don't have a wide range of experience to compare to but generally speaking I feel it is helpful as well as sounding cool but modifying the stock pipe is also an valid option.

The way to do modifications is one at a time.. Do one then evaluate what it is and see about the next is the wisdom I have gleaned.