Hi all,
I have been lurking on this site for about a year and have been very impressed with the builds I see on this site.
I really like the look of the old cruisers and so, for my first attempt at trying to make a bike with nice lines, I created this as an entry level project.
Original bike is a BigW Mambo for $168. So started with quality!
Then added some bits to make it look better.
Forks, bars, stem, Sturmey Archer front hub.
The engine is a 49cc from RockSolidEngines.
I paid a little more than the eBay prices I see for some motors, but RockSolidEngines claim to do their own machining of the castings and they assemble them in their Aussie factory. I think the little extra money is worth it to know that it was built by someone who cares about their products. (btw, I am not affiliated with them, just a happy customer)
The front brake lever is a standard clutch lever which works really well with a Sturmey Archer drum brake.
I polished the clutch cover, which does not show up well in the photo but looks great.
Btw, to polish only takes about 1 hour, start with 360 grit wet and dry in your orbital sander, then 800 grit then 1200 grit, then a bit of hand polish with Autosol and instant mirror finish!
Still need to do the mag and clutch cover, paint the tank black and apply some red pin striping.
Just worried that once it is finished I will need to start the next one!
Also, added a muffler end which is a perforated tube, wrapped in fine stainless steel mesh and then inserted in an outer tube.
Clutch cover has sound deadening material inside and air cleaner box has a baffle added and there are rubber blocks in the cooling fins.
The Victorian law here says motorized bicycles must not exceed 200 watts which is about ½ of bugger all! So I may as well make it as quiet as possible seeing I can't have any power. It now only does about 18 mph ( which is probably still over 200 watts, but I don't think the local police care that much )
The good thing is, I have not broken any spokes, even on super cheap wheels and the brakes work great at those speeds!
I am an amateur racer and could easily beat the Mambo on my regular human powered bike but this thing gets more looks when parked out the front of the bakery on a Saturday morning and I can wear jeans without breaking a sweat.
Thank you to all those builders who inspired me to get the dremel and hacksaw out.
I have been lurking on this site for about a year and have been very impressed with the builds I see on this site.
I really like the look of the old cruisers and so, for my first attempt at trying to make a bike with nice lines, I created this as an entry level project.
Original bike is a BigW Mambo for $168. So started with quality!
Then added some bits to make it look better.
Forks, bars, stem, Sturmey Archer front hub.
The engine is a 49cc from RockSolidEngines.
I paid a little more than the eBay prices I see for some motors, but RockSolidEngines claim to do their own machining of the castings and they assemble them in their Aussie factory. I think the little extra money is worth it to know that it was built by someone who cares about their products. (btw, I am not affiliated with them, just a happy customer)
The front brake lever is a standard clutch lever which works really well with a Sturmey Archer drum brake.
I polished the clutch cover, which does not show up well in the photo but looks great.
Btw, to polish only takes about 1 hour, start with 360 grit wet and dry in your orbital sander, then 800 grit then 1200 grit, then a bit of hand polish with Autosol and instant mirror finish!
Still need to do the mag and clutch cover, paint the tank black and apply some red pin striping.
Just worried that once it is finished I will need to start the next one!
Also, added a muffler end which is a perforated tube, wrapped in fine stainless steel mesh and then inserted in an outer tube.
Clutch cover has sound deadening material inside and air cleaner box has a baffle added and there are rubber blocks in the cooling fins.
The Victorian law here says motorized bicycles must not exceed 200 watts which is about ½ of bugger all! So I may as well make it as quiet as possible seeing I can't have any power. It now only does about 18 mph ( which is probably still over 200 watts, but I don't think the local police care that much )
The good thing is, I have not broken any spokes, even on super cheap wheels and the brakes work great at those speeds!
I am an amateur racer and could easily beat the Mambo on my regular human powered bike but this thing gets more looks when parked out the front of the bakery on a Saturday morning and I can wear jeans without breaking a sweat.
Thank you to all those builders who inspired me to get the dremel and hacksaw out.
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