How come we're not seeing motorized bicycles with motors like these?

Re: How come we're not seeing MBs with motors like these?

biknut said:
Well yeah I agree a 30 hp $1,800 cart motor would be over kill, but how about a 5 hp $400 motor?
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Well here's a 5 hp Japanese motor that was free and is reliable.....does that count?

 
Re: How come we're not seeing MBs with motors like these?

Goat Herder said:
A motorcycle has to be registered and insured. These type of bikes are the last freedom left.
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scotto- said:
Well here's a 5 hp Japanese motor that was free and is reliable.....does that count?

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Nothing wrong with that motor as long as after you install it you bike is still considered a motor bicycle.

Goat Herder makes a good point. Care needs to be taked not to turn your bike into a motorcycle for good reason. I think that detail is going over the heads of some.

That's one of the reasons why right from the start I've taked pains to try to make my bike look as much like a bicycle, and as little like a motorcycle as possible.
 
Re: How come we're not seeing MBs with motors like these?

I like Scotto's idea and the next build I do will be a 4 stroke. I had an old Honda 5 hp I had to leave at a job and it was free.

Had a china girl and didn't like how crude it was, even with a shift kit no power.
Didn't want to spend hundreds $ to fix it. Sold it.

Been using cag motors for about $100. They are more powerful and less crude. Just finished a shift kit for my latest one, just to be able to cruise at a lower rpm, and just fun.

Don't care about speed and wheelies, I use my Hayabusa for that. Just like to putt around on a MB for fun and re-live my wishes as a 14 year old.
 
Re: How come we're not seeing MBs with motors like these?

biknut said:
Nothing wrong with that motor as long as after you install it you bike is still considered a motor bicycle.

Goat Herder makes a good point. Care needs to be taked not to turn your bike into a motorcycle for good reason. I think that detail is going over the heads of some.

That's one of the reasons why right from the start I've taked pains to try to make my bike look as much like a bicycle, and as little like a motorcycle as possible.
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What are you talking about officer......it's a 49cc Kawasaki lawnmower motor.....honestlafflafflaff
 
Re: How come we're not seeing MBs with motors like these?

scotto- said:
What are you talking about officer......it's a 49cc Kawasaki lawnmower motor.....honestlafflafflaff
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Then I better not catch you doing 70 mph on it again son or I'll have to write you a big fat ticket. Now run along now.
 
Re: How come we're not seeing MBs with motors like these?

biknut said:
Then I better not catch you doing 70 mph on it again son or I'll have to write you a big fat ticket. Now run along now.
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But I was only doing 65 mph mr. police occifer man....honest....rotfl
 
Re: How come we're not seeing MBs with motors like these?

I just read a thread, where a guy rode all the across. SoCal on a China girl, with no problems from his motor. I've got hundreds of miles on both of mine and I've never had the motors leave me. Part of the reason I'm into these is because they are so cheap and they present a build challenge. Machining things to precision tolerances stateside is not cheap buddy. I've got two sports cars and a diesel pickup if I want dead reliable.

You can get a lesser powered Morini as others have said, I don't understand why you haven't bought one yet?
 
Re: How come we're not seeing MBs with motors like these?

Those mb going like A bat out of **** are going to ruin it for the
Rest of us. For A little over 1000 bucks you can buy A lifan motorcycle.
My motorcycle goes A little over 65 mph.It has 19800 trouble free kilometers
On it.when I want to enjoy the ride I use my mb it will crurise at 25 mph
And do a little over 30 if I push. It`s not safe to be going much faster
Than that.
 
Re: How come we're not seeing MBs with motors like these?

cigron said:
Those mb going like A bat out of **** are going to ruin it for the
Rest of us. For A little over 1000 bucks you can buy A lifan motorcycle.
My motorcycle goes A little over 65 mph.It has 19800 trouble free kilometers
On it.when I want to enjoy the ride I use my mb it will crurise at 25 mph
And do a little over 30 if I push. It`s not safe to be going much faster
Than that.
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Good point yet it is only a 50cc category I think I am referring to. Its not all how fast you can go but there is fun in how fast you can go fast. My average speed is about 30 to 35 miles an hour. It's fun and it's zippie from zero mph too! That's what I like!
 
Re: How come we're not seeing MBs with motors like these?

biknut said:
Nothing wrong with that motor as long as after you install it you bike is still considered a motor bicycle.

Goat Herder makes a good point. Care needs to be taked not to turn your bike into a motorcycle for good reason. I think that detail is going over the heads of some.

That's one of the reasons why right from the start I've taked pains to try to make my bike look as much like a bicycle, and as little like a motorcycle as possible.
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As I understand Fla law below 50cc is a moped under 100cc is ore than a moped but less than a motorcycle, over 100CC and you need the motorcycle endorsement on your license
 
Re: How come we're not seeing MBs with motors like these?

the trick is to make the china doll not "junk."

in my experience, the engine is pretty good quality, and not just "for the price." it's the minor crappy parts that are the problem, like plug, wire, throttle, tank, cables, chain, levers, etc... (basically the whole kit.)

once you throw all that stuff away and replace it with higher quality stuff, you can have lots of trouble free miles.

it's not too expensive, either. the minor stuff like a new plug and wire is 5 bucks, and different throttles, levers, and everything else is available online, you just gotta search out the deals.

as far as the whole "it's a bicycle, it wasn't designed to go fast" argument, that's just BS.

i mean, if you buy a low end bike with low end parts, then yeah, you shouldn't be going fast, but i can build a bike out of available parts that would be safe, and comfortable doing 50-60mph, or more.

i have a buddy who built a custom motorcycle with a worksman front wheel, and he cruises it at 80 all day long.

my builds are getting to the point where all i need is the motor, basically. on my latest bike, the only kit parts are the motor, CDI and exhaust. and the exhaust is gonna get changed, and i don't have any problems with the CDI, but if i found a better one, i'd use it.

and as for reliability, going to the store, school, work, whatever, if you do it right, you can do all that. my main bike has gone to the store about a thousand times. i never take any tools with me, and haven't had any major breakdowns except for snapping those crappy chains. and i ride it full throttle all day long.

i figure if your motor lasts through the first week of it's life without exploding, it's gonna last a long time if you take care of it. other parts may fail, but as an example, look at Dave31's motor he just blew up. 4-5 years and 14000 miles (i think.)

and to answer your question of "how come...," i think it's because most people want to go the cheapest route possible and build a disposable toy out of a disposable bike. when people spend less money on a bike than i do on a pair of tires, there's not really a market for a nice fancy motor.
 
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Re: How come we're not seeing MBs with motors like these?

biknut said:
Same here. I just wonder if that day will ever come. I think it might if MBs keep gaining in popularity.

I'm just thinking out loud that if people are willing to spend close to 2 large for a stupid kart motor, then a few hundred for a high quality MB motor should be a no brainer.
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I know the thread has gone away from the original question, but I still wanted to comment on this.

You're talking about two completely different groups of people when you compare the karting folks and MB folks. The Karting community spends thousands of dollars because they can afford the hobby, love going fast, winning races and making custom modifications that make more power. They even go and get sponsors.

Frankly, most MB people want a cheap and easy kit. I don't mean to sound disrespectful, but just look at where the majority of the money is spent on the 49cc 4strokes. The HS is far more popular than the Honda because it costs ~$200 less. Everyone knows the Honda is the original and is better built, but the difference in cost still pushes most people (including me) to the clones. If you could make a high performance engine for $400, you'd still see most people on this forum complaining that someone should make a clone of that engine for cheaper.

Erich
 
Re: How come we're not seeing MBs with motors like these?

You get what you pay for..It has always been that way and always will....There just are no work arounds.. One even still has to figure what there time is worth to them too ''labor''..
 
Re: How come we're not seeing MBs with motors like these?

just because i mentioned it above, here's the motorcycle with Worksman front wheel, in progress:
 

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