New!

[Phluxx]

Hey guys, new to the forum & to building bikes and motors in general. Up in northern Minnesota, so not much time for riding - unless you have any wicked ideas for a snow bike...

So far picked up a 48cc boygofast kit and am working on throwing it on to a Schwinn Lakeshore cruiser. The hockey puck mod came in handy for mounting the motor to the frame. I'm nearing the final stages of the build. I'll post pictures when done!

 

[xseler]

Howdy & welcome!!

Some of the bicycle tire places on the web have studded bike tires.....really.

 

[Master-shake]

hockey puck mod, Minnesota, figures =)

 

[Huffydavidson]

welcome new . if you go to youtube and search motorized bikes with shift kits there's a guy that's got a conversion for snow bike with the engine kit and a ski with a track on the back its really cool he takes it out and everything

 

[Phluxx]

What I'm working with so far.

I just busted the cheap plastic throttle casing that came with the kit. NOWHERE in town carries anything for a replacement. I've been seeing people on the forum here talk about using a brake lever or a shifter with the ratchet effect removed.

I'll have to resume later! Any opinions on lever vs shifter?

 

[wheelbender6]

Welcome to the forum. I replaced my stock plastic throttle with a thumb shifter. The Thumb throttle is durable and my hand does not tire as easily.

 

[2door]

Whatever you use do not go for a 'cruise control' style. You want that throttle to drop to idle when you let go of it. Never, never use a control that holds the throttle at a set position. That's an accident waiting to happen.

Replacement twist grip throttles are available from almost every vendor supplying bicycle engine kits and parts. Check around.

Tom

 

[tim turbo]

Hey, Phluxx good to see another Minnesota guy on here! Where abouts in Mn. are you ? Welcome.

 

[CTripps]

Welcome to the forum. That cruiser looks mighty familiar , nice job on it. If it is the same paint colours as mine (highly likely) the best matches I've found are Tremclad's 'RV White' and 'Dark Blue' (gloss finish).

 

[Master-shake]

I think having a throttle on a gear shifter might me a good idea for a motorized bike because we don't have a lot of pull anyways, here is an example I can think of to FULLY integrate the standard shimano tourney gears to a motor. I have already modded a bike to run the choke off the unused left gear setup as shown (i had to solder down in the brass fitting) I suspect that with 7 gear "options" available on the right, you could also remove the standard throttle and just "shift up" in order to "add throttle" a cruise control as mentioned.

Of course it does not get by me that it is possible for the bike to continue running after someone falls off for whatever reason but if going down this route I would further integrate a "kill swith" not unlike on a sea-doo (jet-ski) in order to make the bike die upon falling off. The sea-doo kill switch could also function as a safety (key for ignition) so no-one could just hop on your bike and ride off. Because the wrist band sea-doo kill switch mechanism would function like a "key."

Example:

The conbcept for a kill switch could be routed before the CDI and after the magneto.

Thoughts?

 

[bill2781]

hello and welcome to the forums and nice build thanks for sharing a pic of it.

 

[2door]

I think having a throttle on a gear shifter might me a good idea for a motorized bike because we don't have a lot of pull anyways, here is an example I can think of to FULLY integrate the standard shimano tourney gears to a motor. I have already modded a bike to run the choke off the unused left gear setup as shown (i had to solder down in the brass fitting) I suspect that with 7 gear "options" available on the right, you could also remove the standard throttle and just "shift up" in order to "add throttle" a cruise control as mentioned.

Of course it does not get by me that it is possible for the bike to continue running after someone falls off for whatever reason but if going down this route I would further integrate a "kill swith" not unlike on a sea-doo (jet-ski) in order to make the bike die upon falling off. The sea-doo kill switch could also function as a safety (key for ignition) so no-one could just hop on your bike and ride off. Because the wrist band sea-doo kill switch mechanism would function like a "key."


Thoughts?

Yes, I have a thought. Killing the engine after you fall off is a lot like locking the barn door after the horse runs away.

You want immediate control of the engine speed in the event of an emergency, like someone turning in front of you. Fumbling for a throttle release can cost you valuable time measured in micro-seconds. A properly installed, spring return to idle throttle takes little to no effort to twist and hold. If a rider's hand gets tired he needs to reevaluate his throttle linkage, not make it so it can be locked in the cruise position. That's asking for trouble and has no place on a motorized bicycle.

Tom

 

[Phluxx]

Hey, Phluxx good to see another Minnesota guy on here! Where abouts in Mn. are you ? Welcome.

Up in Duluth!


I got the build up and running for the first time last night. Today I was daring and tried to take it up to work, but didn't quite make it. The chain gained a LOT of slack to the point where it fell off and or jumped a tooth inside of the drive sprocket casing (not sure if I'm using correct terms).

I thought I had the slack figured out on the chain.. around 3/4" when the wheel was at its most forward position. Is that correct? I'm not afraid of taking out more links, only afraid of taking out TOO many!

Also, my throttle seems to be fairly loose. I ended up using a brake lever that I picked up from a bike shop for $3 to run the throttle cable. The adjustment screw on the top of the carb is set to the max to try to tighten up the line... Is there anything in the internal carb structure that might be allowing too much slack? Spring seemed to have enough tension.

The blocks that I made it around so far have now created an addiction to this hobby. I can already hear my next build calling me....

 

[tim turbo]

If you are running the same throttle cable, that came with the twist grip throttle that broke then the cable is to long. You should probably try to find a new twist grip, or shorten your cable. Just a suggestion. Good luck.

 

[Phluxx]

If you are running the same throttle cable, that came with the twist grip throttle that broke then the cable is to long. You should probably try to find a new twist grip, or shorten your cable. Just a suggestion. Good luck.

I received my new twist throttle in the mail, but I think I might leave the slack on during the break in period. The manual says not to run it over 25, so I'm trying to limit myself. I can still get pretty decent speeds.


On that note, the bike is up and running! Drove it around for awhile today in the neighborhood and got a lot of waves, smiles, and head turns! Woo! The problem I was having with my chain was remedied by installing the #41 chain.

She idles a little high (gotta mess with that screw some more), but overall a very enjoyable experience!