My first - Kent Bayside
- Thread starter kmarcetjr
- Start date
Thanks, I had a few issues/challenges during the build, muffler hitting bottom bracket, trouble fitting chain, no spark (corrected by new parts from bicycle motor works) and fuel leaks. But all issues resolved now. Now it's time to ride.Looking good
Took it around the block a few times late yesterday afternoon. Don't know how fast it goes, but faster than I could pedal it for sure.
She's a beauty. With a few upgrades, adjustments and grease on the bearings the bayside cruiser is a pretty decent budget bike for motorizing. Good call on removing the flimsy fenders. 
The cheap sidepull brake calipers also have to go. I personally recommend Tektro 79-99mm brake caliper (dual pivot) with kool stop eagle 2 brake pads. The difference in stopping power is massive.
That is a good looking bike! Nice job! Can you see how this can get addictive?! Like, REALLY addictive?
Not meaning to take the jelly out of your donut, but I've been working as a bike assembler for walmarts (don't laugh, they pay is great, I make my own hours, and don't officially work for walmart...)
Anyway, out of all the lousy bikes I put together, Kents are the worst.
They come with mismatched parts, like stems that don't fit into the forks, brake cables that are too long or too short (not that it matters, the brakes don't work anyway,) bent spokes in un-trued wheels, flat tires (not just low on air, but blown out innertubes,) and 8 outta 10 of them end up in my defective pile, to be sent back for credit, or robbed for parts to put other ones together.
They also have the highest return rate (the huffy Cranbrook comes in second with it's clicking coasterbrake.)
It's too late for you, and I sincerely hope you don't have major problems with your bike, but I strongly recommend NOT buying a Kent bike for motorizing, or for riding in general.
Anyway, out of all the lousy bikes I put together, Kents are the worst.
They come with mismatched parts, like stems that don't fit into the forks, brake cables that are too long or too short (not that it matters, the brakes don't work anyway,) bent spokes in un-trued wheels, flat tires (not just low on air, but blown out innertubes,) and 8 outta 10 of them end up in my defective pile, to be sent back for credit, or robbed for parts to put other ones together.
They also have the highest return rate (the huffy Cranbrook comes in second with it's clicking coasterbrake.)
It's too late for you, and I sincerely hope you don't have major problems with your bike, but I strongly recommend NOT buying a Kent bike for motorizing, or for riding in general.
Thanks for the info, but I owned a Kent 700c roadtech, and I had two, maybe three problems with it. 1: Derailleur alignment, 2: Cracked bearings in the bottom bracket, and 3: The shifter position sucks and is unsafe.
The large brake hood levers didn't work. The smaller middle levers worked very well. The brakes work well for what they are, but need to be replaced with disc brakes. Of course as a bicycle mechanic, i can make a whole bike out of salvaged parts.just give me a good clean frame and ill go to town on it. Come August 12, i will have a truing stand. I will be soon able to build my own wheels.
Well your not taking any jelly out of my doughnut, I knew way before I bought the Bayside that Kents are not very high quality bikes. And I'm not really blaming the person that put it together, however how much effort does it take to make sure the brake pads actually touch the rim, my back brakes didn't even do that.
So far it's ok, I've been playing around with bikes since I was a kid, I can handle most anything, except for a frame failure, in which case I've just find another bike and transfer the motor to the new one.
It's too early for that. I generally don't like it when people do that whole "early birthday" thing. It takes away from the day itself, ya know?
I actually asked my mom not to, saying that it was a pride of the trade thing to buy your own tools, but she is persistent. I love her to death, but sometimes my mom is insufferable....
Personally, the brakes I prefer second to disc brakes are V brakes. They are easy to maintain, easy to replace, and they can easily lock the wheel, so the front wheel in particular you want to watch while adjusting. I've stopped pretty damn fast with V brakes. The only thing you have to watch for is the cable guide catch on the left arm. It will slowly bend out of shape and not catch the guide with normal use. I ran into this working on one of my customer's bikes. It's easy to fix though. A pair of needle nose pliers will do the job perfectly.
Always get slime tubes or put slime in your tubes because you WILL get punctures, and you WILL eventually have to replace your tubes. ALWAYS carry a CO2 inflator and six cartridges in case you get a flat anyway. Always bring a hand pump if all else fails.
Tips to improve tire and brake life:
1) you must use your front brake more than your rear. This will increase the life of your rear tire, because this tire is already under immense drive and cornering forces. Your front tire will be a viable replacement for your rear tire, and vice versa, because as your rear tire goes a bit bald, your front tire will have much more tread, and your worn rear tire will allow for better grip on road surfaces for cornering while it's on the front.
2) Use your brakes gently, and lengthen your stopping distances. Not only is this safer, but it also makes your brakes last almost three times as long. You can also move your less worn rear brake pads to the front, but replace them with new ones. Unlike tires, you CANNOT swap brake pads.
3) ALWAYS keep your tires at the upper end of recommended pressure, especially if you have slime in your tubes. This will not only increase your tire life, but also improve gas mileage. Your brakes will wear down a bit faster, but that's cheaper to replace than tires or a bike.
4) Stay lean and healthy, and you wont have to worry too much about these things, but an extra mile or two out of your gas tank, tires and brakes is nice to get, especially if its because your bike is in tip top shape.
5) Keep your hubs GREASED and TIGHT, but not so tight you're fighting it so much you can't get to the corner from your corner house without breaking a sweat. Your hubs should be loose enough to allow the wheel to spin freely, but tight enough to prohibit any lateral movement. This will ease the strain on your spokes and rims by reducing the amount of force required to turn the wheel, and marginally increase tire life by reducing rolling resistance. This will very marginally decrease brake life. This will also increase gas mileage.
Follow these tips and wheels and brakes will live long, happy lives.
I actually asked my mom not to, saying that it was a pride of the trade thing to buy your own tools, but she is persistent. I love her to death, but sometimes my mom is insufferable....
Personally, the brakes I prefer second to disc brakes are V brakes. They are easy to maintain, easy to replace, and they can easily lock the wheel, so the front wheel in particular you want to watch while adjusting. I've stopped pretty damn fast with V brakes. The only thing you have to watch for is the cable guide catch on the left arm. It will slowly bend out of shape and not catch the guide with normal use. I ran into this working on one of my customer's bikes. It's easy to fix though. A pair of needle nose pliers will do the job perfectly.
Always get slime tubes or put slime in your tubes because you WILL get punctures, and you WILL eventually have to replace your tubes. ALWAYS carry a CO2 inflator and six cartridges in case you get a flat anyway. Always bring a hand pump if all else fails.
Tips to improve tire and brake life:
1) you must use your front brake more than your rear. This will increase the life of your rear tire, because this tire is already under immense drive and cornering forces. Your front tire will be a viable replacement for your rear tire, and vice versa, because as your rear tire goes a bit bald, your front tire will have much more tread, and your worn rear tire will allow for better grip on road surfaces for cornering while it's on the front.
2) Use your brakes gently, and lengthen your stopping distances. Not only is this safer, but it also makes your brakes last almost three times as long. You can also move your less worn rear brake pads to the front, but replace them with new ones. Unlike tires, you CANNOT swap brake pads.
3) ALWAYS keep your tires at the upper end of recommended pressure, especially if you have slime in your tubes. This will not only increase your tire life, but also improve gas mileage. Your brakes will wear down a bit faster, but that's cheaper to replace than tires or a bike.
4) Stay lean and healthy, and you wont have to worry too much about these things, but an extra mile or two out of your gas tank, tires and brakes is nice to get, especially if its because your bike is in tip top shape.
5) Keep your hubs GREASED and TIGHT, but not so tight you're fighting it so much you can't get to the corner from your corner house without breaking a sweat. Your hubs should be loose enough to allow the wheel to spin freely, but tight enough to prohibit any lateral movement. This will ease the strain on your spokes and rims by reducing the amount of force required to turn the wheel, and marginally increase tire life by reducing rolling resistance. This will very marginally decrease brake life. This will also increase gas mileage.
Follow these tips and wheels and brakes will live long, happy lives.
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You mentioned slime in your tube, how about tire liners. I have them in my tires and have used them before in bikes that I pedaled. I've had good luck with them. I don't really like slime, I used it before and still got puncture flats, I prefer kevlar tires, but not sure they are available in cruiser style tires, maybe I will look into it. Kevlar tires and tire liners might just make a nearly puncture proof tire.
I have used rhinodillo liners plus slime, and I've used Kevlar tires plus slime, and i got very good results with either. I always use slime because it seals the holes caused by a puncture, it doesn't necessarily keep tires from going flat. So I would use Slime, Kevlar, and Rhinodillos to make a truly puncture proof tire.
Kevlar tires i have found on amazon for every tire size there is. Except fat tires, I've only seen studded fat tires.
The thing about Kevlar tires is they aren't too comfortable unless you have quite a bit of weight on them. I'd use Kevlar tires for things like cargo trailers or the likes. Get Kevlar tire liners or Rhinodillos, which by far I have found to be the best. Keep Slime in your tubes to seal any holes you may still get, and keep a hand pump plus co2 inflator cartridges to replace the lost air. I've been stuck on the side of a rural road with two flat tires before, simply because I had no Slime, no liners, and no patches. I had a pump, but what does that matter when your tire won't hold air? I've since learned that liners and Slime will save your life.¦
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Dang this is a nice quote, pleasant and informative. Should be a sticky!
As for your Kent I'll have to agree they stock parts wear out quickly but it gives to a reason to buy better parts and keep improving the bike. Only stock parts left on my kent glendale is the frame handlebars and crank. The steel frame has been bullet proof I've had serious wreaks I've jumped it etc and it still is like the day I bought it. Be mindful all my stock brake cables snapped so you should replace those asap its cheap.
Your in for a fun ride. Here is a link if you want to see the current state of my Kent Glendale. http://motorbicycling.com/showthread.php?t=62774
Are the Tektro a direct swap(no mods)? My Kent is on it's way, gathering parts
The other kids here are gonna make fun of me for this but i prefer the pads on cheap breaks. ( to a point)
The hardware, that is Big Time worth upgrades.
Ultimately, brakes are way high on the safety list and honestly I listen to these folks really well and carefully. (Then go try crazy stuff, and if I live, post about it. Have you seen my rubber mufflers?, snork)
The hardware, that is Big Time worth upgrades.
Ultimately, brakes are way high on the safety list and honestly I listen to these folks really well and carefully. (Then go try crazy stuff, and if I live, post about it. Have you seen my rubber mufflers?, snork)