Thinking about a M-Bike in E NC

[gobigkahuna]

Hi,

I'm thinking about building a motorized bicycle. My dad and I almost built one back in the 60's, even had the perfect cruiser for the project, but just never managed to finish it. Now I live about 4 miles from the beach and am looking for a way to get around the hassles/costs of parking a car there (they charge $10 a day to park at the beach now). A couple months ago I saw a kid on a mountain bike that he had motorized and it got me to start thinking. The 4 mile bike ride would be a piece of cake, but there's a 1 mile long bridge with a 100 foot incline that would be real tough to peddle up, so a motor would be a god-send. I'm a big guy (6'4" and weigh around 240 lbs) but in good shape. I've been keeping my eye on Craigslist for a suitable bike, but to be honest, Craigslist isn't a great place to shop here since we're really in the boonies and I don't want to drive 100 miles just to look at a used bike. I read some of the bad comments on Walmart bikes, but unfortunately that's likely to be my best option. The bicycle shops here cater to tourists, so that's way out of my budget. I'd like to keep the entire project under $250. My wife is also mildly interested in this, so if it works out well I'll build her one as well. I'm hoping some of you more experienced builders / riders can give me some links to bikes / motor kits that I can just buy and assemble knowing it'll work OK and be within my budget.

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[Dave31]

Welcome to the forum, glad you joined us.

 

[gobigkahuna]

Thanks. I talked with my wife and she is now -more- than mildly interested in getting one too. I started to look at some suitable bikes this morning and I'm not entirely sure how to decide which to get. Keep in mind my budget limits me to bikes in the sub $100 range. From what I've seen, that limits me to a cheap mountain bike because they all come with center pull brakes (not coaster brakes). But most mountain bikes have non-cylindrical front tubes. Also, my wife is pretty short, so a 24" or girls bike is a better fit for her. But can a 24" or girls bike be customized with one of those 40 or 60 cc kits?

 

[rddrgn2]

ah the bug is just nibbling! yes you can put one on a 24 inch'er, and yes a 20 inch'er as well. just how much modification ya want to do is up to you! as long as the frame has a space 8" wide x 9" tall you should be ok!
mike

ps think of a up side down "T"

 

[rddrgn2]

also the smaller the bike the faster ya feel ya go! (evil)ha ha ha ha ha mao ha ha ha
mike

 

[gobigkahuna]

I'm looking at a Schwinn Clairmont (or similar) for my first bike. Reason is because I can get it from Walmart and it seems to fit the bill best of all the bikes I've seen there (has front & rear center pull brakes, good amount of space in the frame, etc.). Any thoughts? Also, I weigh 240 lbs and will need to go up a 100' incline (a bridge). State law says I can't have bigger than a 50cc engine so I'm wondering if a bigger rear sprocket would help. Suggestions?

 

[wheelbender6]

Welcome to the forum. To get over the bridge, I recommend motorizing a bike with multi-speeds. I used to cross a steep bridge on my commute to work. My bike was a single speed, so I couldn't peddle fast enough to help the motor much.
The best setup would be to use a jackshaft/shift kit if it is in your budget.

 

[gobigkahuna]

Thanks wheelbender6. I'm looking at getting a 7 speed Schwinn cruiser, so I'm hoping that'll work well.

 

[silverbear]

I think your Schwinn cruiser is a good choice in the bikes available at Walmart and in your price range. The seven speed would permit you to assist the motor some on a stiff incline. A 2.125 tire gives a nice ride. You will want to beef up the fender supports to keep it safe, but that's what we're here for, to advise as well as we can. I also think it's cool that your wife is interested. Riding together could be a great thing. For her I'd suggest a 24" cruiser in a man's bike with a cantilever frame. Should have plenty of room for the engine even with the smaller frame (but measure first before you buy, of course), she also would have multi speeds for pedal assist and the 2.125 tires for comfortable riding. I'm guessing that cruising along at 20mph or so, having fun together and arriving at the beach without a sweat is more important to you than how fast you can go. Sounds like a fun thing to me. Welcome to the forum.
SB

 

[gobigkahuna]

...I'm guessing that cruising along at 20mph or so, having fun together and arriving at the beach without a sweat is more important to you than how fast you can go...

You guessed right!