KCvale
Well-Known Member
The Raleigh Talus 3.0 mountain bike is a nice bicycle for $350, very light carbon frame and good parts, but not something you want to motorize unless you have time to get creative.
The down bar is square and changes size and shape it's whole length, the chainstay bars have a Z-shape with the bend right where the tensioner needs to go for a direct drive, and nothing on the handlebars can be re-used as the shifters are trigger/brake combo's, and I needed to buy longer bolts to mount the CDI.
The customer bought the bike at the bike shop around the corner from me.
I pulled both shifter/brake controls and front derailleur off and they let me swap them for a nice 7 speed rotary shifter for the back and my favorite foam grips, and I used an SBP brake lever so it worked out, but you may not be so lucky.
I used a SBP front mount but put the flat part on the flat frame, then took a grinder to the half round muffler clamp bracket and packed a doubled up piece of grip to protect the frame, and I managed to mount the tensioner on the middle part of the Z and then just bend the top so the idler wheel was in line with the chain.
A tough build so I'd look at other bike options but I'll be darned if the thing doesn't really ride like a dream and look pretty cool ;-}


The down bar is square and changes size and shape it's whole length, the chainstay bars have a Z-shape with the bend right where the tensioner needs to go for a direct drive, and nothing on the handlebars can be re-used as the shifters are trigger/brake combo's, and I needed to buy longer bolts to mount the CDI.


The customer bought the bike at the bike shop around the corner from me.
I pulled both shifter/brake controls and front derailleur off and they let me swap them for a nice 7 speed rotary shifter for the back and my favorite foam grips, and I used an SBP brake lever so it worked out, but you may not be so lucky.
I used a SBP front mount but put the flat part on the flat frame, then took a grinder to the half round muffler clamp bracket and packed a doubled up piece of grip to protect the frame, and I managed to mount the tensioner on the middle part of the Z and then just bend the top so the idler wheel was in line with the chain.
A tough build so I'd look at other bike options but I'll be darned if the thing doesn't really ride like a dream and look pretty cool ;-}