Why no 212cc builds?

Tom from Rubicon said:
Up date on my buddies Huffy Deluxe - Death Row build. Last week, his rear hub seized.
Major wipe out. He over hauled the hub weekly, so lube failure not a factor.
Just a cheap Huffy with a 212 Predator. I am waiting for a post mortem of the hub.
It has me concerned as I have the same bike though only a 49cc 4stroke power plant.
Tom from Rubicon
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Tom, what happened there sounds like the bearing race was loose and allowed a couple of bearings to overlap. That will cause them to grind at each other also causing damage to the other bearings. This will cause the hub to sieze pretty quickly, but there will be a loud screeching sound before that. The other more likely reason is that he overtightened the races which put much more stress on them than they can take, especially with a 212. If his rear wheel was hard to turn, this is why. Usually, there will be no warning before overstressed bearings shatter, instantly jamming the other bearings and immediately seizing the hub. I have had both happen to me before, and the screeching is fairly long, but quiets down and stops. Before this point, you should have stopped and taken a look-see. If you didn't, you will very shortly experience a locked hub. It is the complete opposite with over tightened races. The bearings are working just fine, although the wheel is a bit difficult to turn. Nothing you can't overcome with a bit more leg work though. However, as you're going down the road, you feel a very slight grinding, masked under the engine and road vibrations. Suddenly, your wheel locks up with no apparent cause. One of your bearings just shattered, and jammed up the whole mechanism. What people don't seem to get is that although bikes are built primarily for lower speeds and torques, they are still capable of handling higher speeds and torques, and usually use precision parts, particularly in the bottom bracket, hubs, and headset. Ask him how tight he makes things on his wheels, because you should never EVER tighten things until you can't anymore. It's a good way of either destroying your bike, or killing yourself.
 
All I see here is a bunch of people speculating.

No you don't need a pre-60s Schwinn, and YES you will have to spend more money on wheels and brakes. If your frame isn't a newer steel cruiser like a felt, dyno, or Electra with fat tubes and dropouts then yes it will need gussetting and frame bracing too. A strong rear wheel with sealed bearings is a must. No you don't need a steel wheel. The wheel just needs to be built right with the sprocket mounted to the hub. Mine is a 48-spoke double wall aluminum with 14g spokes. Rag joints are OK too if they are mounted to thick spokes!

My build is coming up on 7000mi! What about yours?

Between my circle of bike friends we have 3 212 bikes; all Schwinns. Two of us have 48 spoke rear wheels, we all run gear ratios between 7 and 8. And I'm building another bike as well, just waiting on a clone motor from somebody who owes me. Frame is a 1982 Schwinn stretched.

Before you guys start posting on how to build these bikes, please do actually build one!! More garbage is just what the internet needs...
 
Tony01 said:
All I see here is a bunch of people speculating.

No you don't need a pre-60s Schwinn, and YES you will have to spend more money on wheels and brakes. If your frame isn't a newer steel cruiser like a felt, dyno, or Electra with fat tubes and dropouts then yes it will need gussetting and frame bracing too. A strong rear wheel with sealed bearings is a must. No you don't need a steel wheel. The wheel just needs to be built right with the sprocket mounted to the hub. Mine is a 48-spoke double wall aluminum with 14g spokes. Rag joints are OK too if they are mounted to thick spokes!

My build is coming up on 7000mi! What about yours?

Between my circle of bike friends we have 3 212 bikes; all Schwinns. Two of us have 48 spoke rear wheels, we all run gear ratios between 7 and 8. And I'm building another bike as well, just waiting on a clone motor from somebody who owes me. Frame is a 1982 Schwinn stretched.

Before you guys start posting on how to build these bikes, please do actually build one!! More garbage is just what the internet needs...
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I'm actually in the process of upgrading from a 66cc china girl to a 212 predator. I'm going to put the china girl on a mountain bike, after I disassemble the clutch assembly and put a centrifugal clutch on it. I'm going to use a cent clutch cover to protect myself from it while cutting out notches for the chain to pass through. This will go straight to a custom front freewheel assembly driving the 7 speed wheel. The outside sprocket will be the smallest, because I don't want to go fast on a mtn bike, I just wanna hit the trails a bit. My road bike will be the 212. I'm buying a weld on kit for this build, and every other 212 I build. 212 will be my new default, with a few 49s and 66s here and there, and a couple bad boys too. (301-420, and pre-ordered 670s)
xct2
 
I have built a few...ha ha 212's and do enjoy the power, matter of fact I have one in the works now. Its going to be a beast, got some really nice go fast parts, custom balanced crank is just the start. 9K rpm monster... I will start a new thread on it soon...

Waiting to see what night rider comes up with...interesting already...
 
culvercityclassic said:
I have built a few...ha ha 212's and do enjoy the power, matter of fact I have one in the works now. Its going to be a beast, got some really nice go fast parts, custom balanced crank is just the start. 9K rpm monster... I will start a new thread on it soon...

Waiting to see what night rider comes up with...interesting already...
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Is this for the build off? I want to build a new one as well. Something I can ride on the highways from here to socal and race.... :) wanna use a Briggs animal.. way better block for strength and more balanced too.
 
Scott.D.Lang said:
Im in the middle of a 212 build myself right now. That frame is cool but if you dont have access to a machine shop it will be all but impossible to put a 212 in that frame. Also is that frame aluminum? If so I would not trust that frame. If you want to do a 212 safely I suggest you either get a older frame like a pre 60s Schwinn frame or spend the money for a frame from Helmet and have a custom made frame.

Good luck on your build if you pull that off it will be cool but be safe as you do the build.
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Thanks Scott, I already have it mounted, it is definately a feat of engineering. What gear ratio should i shoot for??? Seems like 6 to 1 may work. I dont want screamin rpms at 50.
 
Im running a 10 to 1 myself. I should know next week how well that is going to work out. most I have seen seem to be running around a 11 to 1 and Im sure that there are some out there running around a 9 to 1 but the highest I have heard of myself at this point is mine. To me a 6 to 1 seems extremely high so if it was me Id get several different gears so I could play around with gearing and fine tune it to my type of riding if I was you.
 
Scott.D.Lang said:
Im running a 10 to 1 myself. I should know next week how well that is going to work out. most I have seen seem to be running around a 11 to 1 and Im sure that there are some out there running around a 9 to 1 but the highest I have heard of myself at this point is mine. To me a 6 to 1 seems extremely high so if it was me Id get several different gears so I could play around with gearing and fine tune it to my type of riding if I was you.
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You running a 26" wheel. i have a 26" with a balloon tire. I was thinking these engines had enough torque to get going well. Not sure.
 
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