rubber drive roller or steel?

M

masterx1234

New Member
well im going to be getting a friction drive kit soon and it has a choice between a rubber drive roller and a steel one, my question is, which one will perform better, i live i a town where theres lots of hills, so i want the best drive roller possible...

heres what im getting

engine: titan xc50 from thatsdax.com (going with 4-stroke for its torque)
friction drive kit from bikemotorparts.com

im gonna buy it when tax return money comes around
 
I don't have enough experience with friction drive to help you masterx. When I first built the Jdog I made it a friction drive and used a fence post as a drive wheel. Worked okay just did not like the friction drive so I swapped it over to chain.

I would think the rubber drive wheel would work better but I guess the steel one would last longer. But with out having much time on a friction drive and never using a rubber drive wheel I just don't know. Be patient I am sure others with more experience will jump in.
 
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well i did some research and the rubber drive roller is for lighter riders and that doesnt apply to me cuz i weight 232 pounds, guess ill go with the 1.5 inch one way bearing drive roller
 
Well here is my humble opinion thought it is antidotal not real side by side comparison. I have used metal friction drive wheels and found them adequate but also found them to be rough as heck on tires. small rubber wheel like a skateboard seem to do well. I think they actually have more grip but thats just me. My weight runs between 200 and 220 lbs these days.

I now use a 12" scooter rear wheel on my ebike friction drive and find it perfect. It is best not to run knobby tires on a small wheel friction drive, it will beat the motor and drive to death. Constant and deep vibrations you see. On the drive I use, it makes no difference for some reason. I guess that is because the wheel is large enough to roll right over the indentations. No vibrations. Of course it does look weird. That's why I call it a rhino drive. It looks like one giant horn on the bike either front or back.

Good luck and I love friction drive best. If I were going back to gas and I do threaten to every few weeks, I would go with gas friction drive on the rear wheel.
 
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When I built mine I did a lot of reading on this forum. It seems that by and large the steel is the best all around. I have about 375 miles on mine and it appears that the tire will last in excess of 1000 miles. I have very little slippage. I use a heavy spring for tension and and have a small turnbuckle for fine tuning.
Elmo
 
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