Riding in the hood.

[deacon]

Whenever one of my tensioners runs crooked, I bend it a little so that it rolls inline with the chain... & I also make sure that it "feeds" the chain straight onto the rear sprocket then I pin it in place with a small sheetmetel screw.
Maybe I've just been really lucky, but I've had very few problems with the chains...

Then I think I'm having my share and yours. the stock kit tensioner froze so i bought the bearing one. It has done everything but work right. I had straighted it out on the frame this time but it wobbled and tossed the chain. I removed the old bent washer and I put on a straight washer it tracked fine in the rolling test. I rolled onto the road during a long break in the traffic (im no fool) and it popped the chain. there were other times I didn't mention this morning so I just put the bike away. When the half link comes in this week I'll set the motor chain and do what i can with the bike chain. after I reset the engine, the bike chain was so loose not even the tensioner would keep it tight so I had to take a link out when I did that the darn thing was tight enough but the drive chain is so loose it is a mess now. I'm not going to break that drive chain again it's what keeps breaking my chain tools. I'm just gonna put the half link in and adjust the chains with it.

Tensioners have always been a bane to my existence. When I can adjust the rear wheel for the drive chain it works great when I have to use a tensioner it goes crazy.

 

[deacon]

I have looked at the sites for friction drive engines but they are sooooo expensive. There is a china friction drive made but I don't guess anyone here is importing it. I'm looking at a used honda on ebay now.

If I'm going to junk my car, I obviously need a spare bike lol. A second china kit makes no sense to me at the moment. I have fallen in love with motor biking just not necessarily this bike set up. I think replacing a tire every couple of months would be preferable to pushing the bike home every few weeks lol.

It isn't really that bad but my neighbor does say she sees me ride off and push the bike home. It isn't all the bikes fault and it would happen with anything. I have run out of gas twice. So now I carry spare gas with me. I have thrown chains and had them wreck wheels, but It was with a tensioner I should have known better. I just tend to fix things till then never work again. Bad habit of mine

 

[Bikeguy Joe]

My TAS Spitz is still for sale in the Swap Shop...

 

[deacon]

I just dont want front wheel drive. Can I put it on the back wheel instead. Does it have a centrifugal clutch.

 

[deacon]

It rained today so I worked on the clown bike instead of riding. I don't have the chain fixed so it's a good thing it's raining I might be tempted to work on the china girl bike.

I have been thinking about this thread. This is like the old seinfeld show. The thread about nothing. I have no idea why I keep writing it, I have to be boring you guys to tears.

I have been giving some thought to an idea I'm running with on my blog at the moment. Seems like it might be a fun thing to do. Not run away from home lol...

 

[Pablo]

I think I will write something about my ride in the hood. This is a great thread....my ride in the hood was cold and ice pellets hitting my face is not fun. Then my thumb shifter broke.....I have my "normally on the right thumb lever" switched over to the left side, but facing the rider - so down is low, up is high. Anyways it's just a short leetle 5mm X .80 screw that holds the mechanism to the L bracket attached to the former brake (now clutch) lever holder. Well the screw just tore the threads out and the shift lever on the cable goes - pa-TING - arching into the front spokes and PAAA-tung back at me (I caught it!!). Talk about a near death experience! I rode back home in first - motor was winding!!
Heheheh - I used the other bracket (I can't remember which side it started on at this point!) - and a longer M5-.80 hex bolt and washers. Tightened with a nut driver. Got about 3-4 threads protruding and just touched the handle bar. So unless the threads pull out or something else breaks...... Total = 0.50$. Should hold until twister shifter time later this week.

Everyone has HOOD to ride in and tell a story. I want to tell a warm story.....someday

 

[deacon]

keep at it. the sun has got to come out one day.

 

[Bikeguy Joe]

I just dont want front wheel drive. Can I put it on the back wheel instead. Does it have a centrifugal clutch.

Possibly.
No.

 

[deacon]

I am trying the electric engine again with a different mount and drive. I'll see how it goes for now. That is a cute lil thing though.

 

[deacon]

I was wondering how much trouble it is to get your bike out to ride. Until recently I kept my bike in the shop. Now my shop was once a photo studio so it wasn't designed to take motor bikes in and out easily. First of all the studio floor was about eight inches higher than the exit door. The door is in a tiny little vestibule.

So I had to roll the bike a couple of feet to the vestibule drop. But to make it worse there are two other opening to the vestibule and each is higher than the sunken vestibule. So I had to lift the bike and set the rear wheel on one of the stops then open the door and bend the bike around it. the door opens inward of course.

Then I had the bike outside. I had to lock the door by hand since it has only a deadbolt to secure it. then and only then can i roll the bike into the drive and preflight it. lol...

So how about you guys how much trouble is it to get your bike out to ride?

 

[Pablo]

I have a three bay garage mostly filled with cr.....sh........stuff........

The furthest south is bike bay central - aka chinese girl karaoke bike zone....got a couple makeshift benches, my compressor, a window, and sometimes a place for Chancho the vunder dorg to sleep. For a small dog, he has big gas, so bay doors and back door stay open to fully appreciate the breezes.

Prep bike, roll out or I guess now it's pedal start the thing and not kill my legs, until I get the new larger gear.....

 

[deacon]

I am jealous but i have moved mine to the lawnmower shed. I can roll it out and ride off into the sunset. But of course I have to fight it inside to work on it.

Dont even want to think about how much trouble it is to get the electrified clown bike and trailer out of the shop

 

[Ilikeabikea]

I just open the little door to my shed, walk in, open the big door and ride the bike down the ramp. Really simple...............

 

[deacon]

God I wish I had built my storage building with a door on each end. it would have been simple to do and a lot more efficient.

 

[deacon]

Half link came, I broke yet another chain braker. I am going to start grinding them off this is ridiculous. I am going to just go ahead and order the master links for both chain sizes.

Like I always said i fix things till the will never work again. I reset that nmotor with new nuts and I also adjusted the chains. So now of course the chain noise is horrendous. It fell off half a dozen time till I finally got it in alignment and straight in the frame. The bearing nut got loose and that was throwing the chain. It was just a mess. I rode it two miles without anything happening so I called it healed.

I expect I'll be doing it again tomorrow. Never ever going to buy another supplimetal chain drive again.

 

[deacon]

two tips from todays ride... first: beware of the knobby tire. I have had this terrible chain noise since I had the great train wreck, aka chain tensioner going into the rear wheel and distroying it.

I switched for an almost new wheel from a kids bike. turns out the wheel had an almost new knobby tire so I left it on the wheel. Then I started to have chain noise big time. I checked everything. Even stopped riding the bike till I could get a half link to end the use of tensioners forever. Well the noise got better but didn't stop. It wasn't the old rattle noise it was higher pitched. Today I spotted the culprit just before it stopped. The knobby tires were hitting the chain and throwing it around just enough to change the tone of the chain noise. It stopped Later in the day I guess the knobbies are finally worn down.

Tip two: Set a schedule to clean your in tank filter or throw that sob away. I was at the auto parts store five blocks from home when the engine died. I checked and couldn't see any gas so I thought it was empty. I had removed my extra gas from the basket to work on the week eater engine. So I rode and pushed it home. That's when I noticed that the in line filter was dry. I pulled the tank which had gas by the way, took the shutoff out and yep the filter was clogged. I wiped it off and then shot it with carb cleaner and it works fine now.

Those of you who don't have these penny ante things go wrong ALL the time consider yourself lucky.

 

[deacon]

Since I finished the clown bike I took it out for its final test run. I rode it a mile with no problems at all. I will only do about 8 to 10 miles an hour but it is pretty consistent even climbing a hill. It might drop one or two miles and hour but it climbs them like a mountain goat.

I was struck by how quiet the electric motor is. I also kind of liked going that slow. I could actually see what was going on around me. I even got to say hi to the people I passed and they interacted with me. It was a totally different experience from the gasoline bike.

I think the clown bike would be ideal for someone who just wanted to run to the store and who was in no hurry just wanted to enjoy the day and enjoy being outside. I quite enjoyed the ride and plan to start range testing on the batteries with this configuration.

The pure math says I have 30 amp hours with my batteries. If I ran the engine the whole time it would be a two hour ride, but that wishful thinking. I expect it will be more like one hour tops if that. At eight miles an hour that is an eight mile range. I'll have to lay out a course and see how many laps I can do before the bike falters.

 

[Norman]

Deacon
sounds like you have a hellofa time with your bikes the great train wreak line made me laugh! I personally don't like the knobby tires at all they are for off road and will drop you like a bad habit on pavement not enough friction or grip on the pavement and if its wet better get out the bandaids cause you will go down if you get a little wild and try leaning on a turn when its wet. I busted my butt last year on knobs and of they came. I run the smooth pavement tires from wally world the cheap ones.

 

[deacon]

I took the bike out for two rides today. I did not have any chain problems at all. One thing did happen that is almost always the same. People ask me about the bike and are really excited. Right up till I tell them it is a kit and I built it myself. That's when their yes go dull. I have no idea what it is that makes people afraid to try to build one of these. I tell them that it isn't that hard.

I also was passed once by a cop who squeezed by me in the same lane. Anybody else I would have cursed. And of course there is the dog story. This one is a little different. I was on main street and a wave of traffic came up from behind. The light behind me changed I guess.

I heard this dog woofing. I was trying to stay as far to the right as I could so I didn't look for him. Then the barking was right on top of me and I looked to my right to see what kind of dog was running that fast beside me.

The dog wasn't running he was half in, and half out of a pickup truck. I swear I think he tried to bite me as he passed.

 

[deacon]

I know I have gotten sorta used to the china girl bike. I don't ignore her but I tend to forget that it is a very unique piece of machinery. I know there are those who say it is crap, and it may well be, but today I took a short cut through a new neighborhood.

Two small boys gave me a long stretched out wow as I passed. It might not be a chick magnet, but it sure is a wonder to little kids. That almost made up for the jerk who tried to kill me earlier lol.