Sunday, August 31, 2008

i have no idea

I added gas to the tank to take a ride before dinner. It looks like it was less than a quart. So it probably is getting over a hundred miles per gallon. Not sure how much one day I will have to measure it.

I think when I get the Ryobi built, I will put a for sale sign on it and ride it around. Just to see what if anything I can get for it. Believe it or not the most expensive thing is the hardware for the build.
I rode the bike again for about the same distance. I checked the gas with I got home. I think i went about 15-20 on a 3/4 a quart of gasoline. If that is the case I am getting a lot less milage than I should on a weed eater. I think it might be doing less than a hundred miles to the gallon.

To the lake and back

I rode the chainsaw 33cc to the lake and it did perfectly. I pedaled about 200 strokes on the ten mile or so trip. Those were on some wicked hills. I expect the bike would have made it up the hill but I wanted to keep the speed up a little. So the little bike did fine.

If the ryobi actually does run, I should have it up and running next week. Then maybe over the weekend i can get the 42cc chainsaw bike ready. Nothing ever goes the way I expect so most likely it will be a few weeks. Still I am encouraged since I have two simple designs that seem to work just fine.

My friend shoes uses cable for his bike, but I actually like the lever I call suicide clutch. I juse very little cable pull for it and the length of the lever makes it easy to pull the brake handle that works it.

I think I might sell the ryobi if it works and if anyone wants it. It's time I tried to see what these bikes are really worth.

Sunday Sunday

I'm going to take the bike to the lake this morning. The chainsaw bike. I have no idea if it will make it or how it will do. that is the ultimate test big long hills. Oh well got to go for sometime today is as good a day as any to push a bike.

Saturday, August 30, 2008

and now

It's thundering. I was going down to ride the bike but alas the thunder is ominous.

I managed to take the old engine off the mtb frame. I'm going to put the 31 ryobi on it if it ever comes and if it runs. I can tell anyone who uses my pipe nipple drive wheel not to worry, I could not get mine out of the end cap, The end cap almost never broke loose from the fly wheel either so it was a good system.

It's cheap enough to buy another one no sweat.

Still no engine and monday is a holiday...

Worst of all the seller seems less than interested since hs/she didnt bother to answer my first email. I sent a second one today with a slightly less friendly tone. It has been five days. If he/she wont answer my email I expect he/she will hear about it when I write the feedback.

Still no engine and monday is a holiday...

here is the place

Here is the place to say this. I might just disappear one day. if I do it won't be by choice. I had either a brain tumor shift or a mini stroke last night. It reminded me that I need to not get too involved in projects. I had been thinking about going back into business to give my neighbor a little experience in photography as a business but it would not be a good idea.

Last night I spent about fifteen minutes looking at words I could not comprehend let alone get into a coherent sentence. I am fine his morning so I am making plans to build two new test bikes.

I had coherent thoughts and knew what was wrong. I mean i could tell that I was reading the words but they were not registering with me. It was a really strange sensation. Oh well if my motor comes I won'thave time to think about this.

Friday, August 29, 2008

Friday Friday

Well I don't have an engine so I can't build my weed eater bike today. If I get it in the mail, I still might not get to it, since it is market day. Very much like the farmers back in the day. We do our shopping on a schedule.

Friday is always dinner out and then to Wally-mart. Tomorrow will be groceries for the wife and I will be the back animal when she gets home. Then it is thrift stores for bikes (since he gas price increase they are few and far between) and books.

the wife is getting off work early today so we might get the Wallymart over early enough for me to do a little. Then tomorrow after work I might be able to do a few things. That of course assumes the engine is here today. Which assumes a fact not in evidence. Been watching way to many law and order reruns.

Thursday, August 28, 2008

one more time

It cleared off a bit so I rode the chainsaw bike after dinner. The bike pulls really well. It could easily replace the china bike. If that is the case I probably will give some serious thought to selling the china bike.

When the 31cc weed whacker on the suspension bike is finished, I will definitely give it some thought. I still have visions of a 42cc chainsaw bike roaming around in my head. There are a few of those engines around used. I might get a good enough deal to experiment with one of them.

just couldn't stand it

I rode the chainsaw bike between the showers. It was great fun to ride but I did wear my helmet since I though it might be a bit slippery. It was fine nothing happened at all. It was great fun and I got my motorbike fix

again nothing in the mail

Well that isn't exactly true. I did get a bunch of coupons for pizza. I am soooo bored.

engine engine who's got the engine

Well it is too early for the mail so I guess I will just watch the election news. Talk about nothing to do. Not that I don't care who wins but right now it's dog and pony show on one side and a smoke an mirrors magic act on the other. The polls all say. "Hell we don't know whose ahead." Besides I think they really throw chicken bones to predict.

Even the bikes I build are more reliable than the polls. So since he bikes break down all the time the polls must really be crap.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

mail call not

Well the engine didn't come today... I will have to find some other way to stay engaged. Oh well it's still raining so no bike riding for me.

10am

I am super bored. I really need for that engine to show up. I'm going to try to mount it so that I can add a front hand brake to the Sara bike. I think I can mount it so it doesn't mount to the fork but to the axle and swings up and away from the fork. That should give me enough space for a brake.

The problem will be attaching the side brace to that spring shock in the front fork. I might have a trick or two up my sleeve for that.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

more rain damn it

It's going to rain again tomorrow and I have less than nothing I can do at the moment. I hope the ebay engine arrives. If it does at least I will have something to do. I can check it out and get it mounted on Sara's bike.

It's not even noon

I got the sara bike cleaned up and pretty much ready to go. I am bored of course since it is raining. I can't ride the chainsaw bike and I really do want to do that today. Oh well.

Monday, August 25, 2008

it's almost midnight.

I think tomorrow I will clean up Sara's bike. Get the rust off so it is ready for the new engine when it arrives. Of course it isn't a new engine but maybe it will be okay anyway.

The gifted engine

Well the engine won't pull at all. It's okay though I will just keep it for parts. I am now down to the china bike and the chainsaw bike.

I rode the chainsaw bike to see how it did and it runs like a bat outa hell. I don't have a speedometer hooked up so I can only guess but it seems to do pretty good. probably over twenty wide open. I have checked with the china bike and I like to cruise at about 15 to 20 so it works for me just fine.

If the 31cc weed eater is a good engine I am going to have three usable bikes. I am supposed to have a buyer for the china bike but I don't have a lot of faith in that. If it comes through fine if not it is also fine.

If I sell it I might just look around for a 42cc chainsaw for the mtb bike. I liked the 25cc just fine for what it was but I would like to have at least 31cc but since I will have a full suspension with that configuration, I will probably go for a 42cc

autopsy on the mtb25

Well it was as I thought sloppy building. One of the screws holding the engine on had worked it's way out of the mount. The case broke at that point and at the point where the mount flexec because I omitted the brace.

I installed the gifted engine and switched out the carb for the 25cc. I started but when I dropped the engine onto the tire it bogged down completely. Nothing would save it. Even lifting it from the tire did nothing. I am going to try it one more time just to be sure that it doesn't just need running a bit with no drag then it is parts for other wounded weed whackers.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

sloppy is as sloppy does

I lost another engine today. I put the frame together and forgot a brace. The frame twisted with the vibrations. It eventually caused the engine to crack at the mounts. Oh well live and learn.

I have that little engine I had on the demo bike, I'm going to switch out the carb and try to use it for something. It is a good little engine for parts but the demo engine is probably 17cc but I will give it a fair shot on the mtb before I chuck it all.

new motor for the demo bike

I bought a motor from ebay for the demo bike. It is a 31cc ryobi and I'm looking forward to it.

compare the bikes

Today I had time to ride all three of my bikes. So I feel it's a good time to make comparisons. Now these are just MY bikes so they may not be true for you, It is also on my turf which is probably different from yours.

25cc mtb.... This bike does great on the flat or a slight decline, It does well on a slight incline and even a short moderate incline. I rode it on a long moderate incline and I had to pedal but it was hardly any effort at all. As a matter of fact it was so simple that when I got to the end I didn't realize where the throttle setting was and had to hit the kill switch to stop the racing engine. I didn't have the engine wot which would be a waste it will only go so fast up a hill.

33cc chainsaw bike ... this bike will go faster than I dare on a flat or decline... on a slight incline it hardly notices. On a moderate incline it doesn't need assistance and is under power all the way. On the steep but short incline it will pull it with just a little assistance.

China 60 odd ccs... It will run well down hill and on a slight incline. On a short steep incline it slows dramatically but does not stall or need help. On the long moderate incline it runs on it's own and a bit faster than the chainsaw bike.

Im going to be installing a 31cc engine on the full suspension bike in a week or so (when I get one). I expect it to act only a little better than the chainsaw bike. That only because it is lighter weight.

As a helper engine for someone who doesn't mind a little pedaling, or lives in a flat area, I would think the 25cc would be very good. It is light weight enough not to be a burden moving it around when not riding. The chainsaw is heavy and clumsy due to it's size. The 25cc also gets pretty good milage. I have no idea exactly how much but I put about a cup of premix in it today. I just don't remember how long the last ride was.

The chainsaw has a little more guts to it. It feels more in control as it rolls along up the hills. I actually like that it has something extra when I am rolling along. I don't really want to go wide most of the time as I do on the 25cc.

The heaviest of them all is the china bike. It is pretty miserable to move around when it isn't under it's own power. Which includes starting out from a stop on a hill or moving it around inside the house.

I rode the 25cc on a full length errand run and I found it adequate. It was easier to move around because of it's lighter weight. I have to see about the 31cc wead eater on the full suspension bike. It might be the best of the lot.
__________________

new idea and retro fit

Someone on the blog had a great idea for tension so today I'm going to retrofit a couple of my bikes and use it on the new one. I should have thought of it myself but then the younger more agile minds come up with innovations I guess. Us old guys just steal them.

I have to cut my springs down and add a turn buckle to them to control the amount of tension. It is really a simple idea but would be most effective. Not to mention a lot easier to hook up.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Not much since last post

I waited all day for a man from craigs list to call. He has a ryobi engine just not sure which one. Ryobi makes a 25cc engine as well as the 31cc. If I don't hear tomorrow, I will make some local calls then go to ebay for one.

Saturday noon


I finally caught a break... I removed the weak engine from the demo bike. I planned to put on a coaster wheel and change the crank to make the bike more old man friendly. Turns out that the coaster brake 20" wheel did the trick. I did change the chain out for the larger coaster brake one and it worked just fine it seems with the mountain bike chain ring.

You might think it is ugly but it looks great to me form follows function.

Saturday morning blues

Well it's green but today I am going to strip the demobike and rebuild it as a bike customized for my special needs. I am going to change the rear wheel for a coaster brake 20" so that I can mount and dismount the bike easier. I am going to change the crank set and chain ring so that I can pedal it easier.

The bike is a 24inch full suspention but I swear I can mount and pedal the 26" mtb25 much easier. This one is going to be right when I finish with it. That I can promise.

It is going to be a full demolishion day with that bike I can tell.

Friday, August 22, 2008

Friday Morning early

My wife has some routine tests today with the doctor. I have to drive an automobile this morning for the first time in months. Should be interesting.

I decided while asleep last night, of all things, to test the new demo bike today. If the performance is as bad as last night, I'm going to transfer the chainsaw bike to the frame of the demo bike. But only if, I can make a coaster wheel work on it.

If I can, I will use the rear shift cable as the throttle. I can put the front brake from the test bike onto the demo bike as well. But that is only if the coaster wheel will work and if the performance of the gifted engine is still lousy.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

finished but not really...

I had the engine mounted and ready to bolt the whole assembly onto the bike. It took a couple of hours to fit it and to drill a few holes to stabilize it. After that a while longer to get the controls ready. I rode the bike only to discover that the engine is too small. I think the gifted engine is a 17cc. I am going to give it a shot again tomorrow but I am pretty sure it is too small.

Chainsaw on the back burner

I'm going to work on the demo bike today. I hope to finish the work and get the booklet more or less finished. I will need to have it proofed and critiqued by some of the guys on the forum. Since that needs to be done before I print it, I think I will get it done and send out the invitations to some of the older guys to give it a glance.

Right now I'm waiting to feed the dogs, then it's out to breakfast with my wife. She is off work today. I'm sure she will be thrilled to have me work on the bike and stay out of site.

After breakfast we are going to wally-mart for the soda/dog food run. Sam's cola is the only discount soda I can stand. Most of the other house brands taste like industrial waste to me. Then it's on down to get the bike. Both are all the way into the next county.

well wish me luck guys.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

real close on the chainsaw bike.

With the new canteen gas tank installed I began riding the bike today. It runs great even with the wrong carb on it. It will climb any hill on my test track with NO pedaling at all. I have a tiny bit of trouble with throttle and clutch adustment cables but those will get worked out I know. Mostly now it needs to be cleaned up and painted. Not a great fancy paint job just one to make it presentable.

As to performance I can tell you right now the bike will be scary fast on the flat. I can't bring myself to open it up since the roads are so rough around here. I might find a place that I feel comfortable giving it a wind out. But it does what I need it climbs the hills. Not only that but it climbs them pulling not bogging down at all.

I believe the 31cc weed whacker would do just as well but I don't have one at the moment to test that so I can't swear to it.

I have one china bike now and think it is really going to sell. I believe the man will come back for it but who knows.

The chainsaw will be the replacement for that bike, I have the 25cc mtb I will ride around just for fun I guess. It is a good back up bike if I have to go somewhere and the chainsaw won't start.

Then I am going to have the demo bike that will be no bigger than 25cc and maybe even less. If it is less, I will be on the prowl for a 31cc weed whacker.

Oh well time to paint the chainsaw massacre bike.

I am going to rename the chainsaw bike. I am going to call it sissy333.... sissy because of the frame. 33 for the cc size of the engine, the other three is because it started life as a three speed. Also at 333 it's only half evil...

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

the new gas tanks came.

I bought five plastic gas tanks on ebay. they are shaped like the old ww2 metal ones. The ones I got are plastic and thicker than a coke bottle and a little thinner than a weed whacker gas tank. I rigged one to replace the chainsaw leaky one and it works really well. I spend the afternoon adjusting the throttle on the chainsaw. At the moment it is working pretty darn good. I rode it about three miles total and about two with the throttle fixed. It does pretty good. Maybe I won't build another one after all. Just wait and see what my grand daughter's bike is like with the gifted engine.

The chainsaw bike has a front hand brake and a rear coaster brake, so it has the best brakes of them all. It is a rear engine mount for the heavy chainsaw engine. It's an okay bike all things considered. It does pull the hills better.

the new gas tanks came.

Is the china bike gone??

The man who rides bikes like me in the hood, stopped me on the street. He wanted to buy a bike from me. Turns out he wants to buy the china bike. I haven't ridden in for a while so I told him sure. We agreed on a price so now I just have to wait a couple of weeks for him to get the money.

I need to start getting either the chainsaw running well or look at a 31cc engine. I am sure now that my grand daughter's bike after the demo for the how to book, will get a 31cc engine. Of course I might put leave the gifted engine on hers and put the 31cc on the mtb. Either way I want one 25cc to putZ around with and one 31cc to ride in case I need to go somewhere. They seem to pull a little better for a longer ride.

Of course if the chainsaw bike does well, I don't really need the 31cc since it is 33cc. I am waiting for the canteens I bought to make a gas tank for it.

Tuesday

Well today's plan is to ride my bike and check the adjustment on the friction drive. I think I might take it to the home depot and look for some fine chain. I would like to end the constant adjustment of the clutch lever. It is about time to really give it the test it deserves. I would like to wait till I have a 31cc to use for this run so it's kinda up in the air.

I think what I am going to do is to pick up the Grand Daughter's bike on Thursday, then finish the demo build and test it. After I finish the pictures, I might just take the bike apart and put a 31cc engine into the frame. I really do want a 31cc to compliment my mtb25... Of course I have a perfectly good gifted engine (I think) as a back up for the mountain bike.

I do need to test the gifted engine to make sure it isn't a 17cc engine since it isn't marked. I also might put a twenty inch coaster brake onto the mtb25. I would have to very sure that the coaster brake worked and also that I put a hand brake on it as well.

For that I would have to arrange for my neighbor to weld a bar on the rear forks. If I do that there is no going back. Then again maybe the way to go is to bolt a sandwich bracket onto the rear fork. That way I can do back. There isn't a lot of weight on a brake holder.

Monday, August 18, 2008

by george I think I have it

I just moved the cable tie down over the drive wheel and not at the front of the mount. It should make the required pull less than when it was farther away. On the test ride it was pretty good, not perfect but pretty good.
Publish Post

still cant get it

I can not get enough throw in that brake lever that I am using. I need one with a straight handle not the curved one. Time to check out ebay.

Monday morning blue (bike)

I had a good morning already.

I adjusted the blue mtb again but better yet I simplified the design for the how to bike. I also found the source of a nasty vibration on the blue mtb25... I had left off an important brace on the motor frame. Since I built the new easy mount that problem is gone on the new bikes just this old test one has it.

The simplification was to leave the hinge under the motor mount but remove it from the off side. There I am just using a spring to keep tension on the engine. The bike seems to do just as well. It will cut down a little on the cost of the mount for the new builder.

I am going to try to pick up the bike from my grand daughter sometime this week. I want to get the booklet finished and ready to print by the weekend. Of course that is a false deadline. I have no need to finish it by then. I would just like to

Sunday, August 17, 2008

It's been a good day for a change

I swapped out the carbs on the gifted weed eater and it works now. Just a little bit of a problem but not that much.

I finished the mount and made the illustrations as well. So all in all it weren't a bad day atall in the old man's shop.

I put a much better carb on the 25cc weed eater I am curious to see how it does.

Saturday, August 16, 2008

yes look a gift weedeater in the mouth

There was a lot wrong with the weed eater but I used it to make the strip down illustrations. It was an all day affair and I was pretty sick of it when I came in from the shop. I was thinking about just junking it till I tried it one more time anf found that I had spark. So it might be worth another look.

New project begins I hope...

I was up early today. Anticipating the beginning of my new project bike and instruction booklet.

After my normal Saturday morning chores, I need to call the man who has the Weed Eater he is going to donate to the cause. I can prep it today, and even buy the list of things to build with. It should be a good day.

Friday, August 15, 2008

update chainsaw bike

today I accomplished some things and learned some things so it was a good day.

I had an idea for an improved drive wheel. I tried it and it is at least 50% more effective. That was very good news since it fits into my existing plans for a bike.

Then i found out that my gasoline mileage with the chainsaw33 bike was terrible. It took most of the day but now I know why. There is a leak in the gas tank. Since I have new things coming to use as a gas tank, I just put the bike away. I rode the mtb25 bike instead. It does just as well as the chainsaw33 bike. Probably because it seems to rev higher and the drive wheel is better.

Thursday, August 14, 2008

It was another one of those days

Actually it wasn't terrible just full of problems. The chainsaw bike is giving me fits with little things. It did very good first thing this morning. That was before the jb weld/sand wore off. After that it was pretty much try this then try that.

I don't think any of these friction drive bikes is getting the kind of gas mileage they should be. Of course the gas tank might be leaking or I might be putting in less than I think. I will just have to wait and see. Once i get the drive wheel thing settled I can begin to adjust the bike for max performance. I reduced the length of the spring today after the jb weld wore off. I don't know that it did much except to make the hand clutch harder to pull.

I'll get it sooner or later just a matter of time.

Today it is supposed to be good weather

So today it's a test of the chainsaw bike. I have adjusted the cluch, and put jb/sand on the drive wheel so now it's time to test drive it....

I have new neighbors next door, so I will have to give it a rest till about nine am today. No sense starting their day off with the roar and smell of a chainsaw engine. I would like to get along with them for a while anyway.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

No biking today I fear...

My wife said rain in the forecast for today. I have all the indoor bike work done on all my bikes so I will have to find something non bike to do to relieve my boredom. I might outline my how to pamphlet.

I'm thinking three sections at least. All of them small and with illustrations.

I think an introduction is in order Then section one

1. introduction
2. preparing the bike. (Since there are so many mountain bikes out there I will probably use one. If not my grand daughter's then one from the thrift shop.
3. preparing the engine. Stripping it down.
4. Building the engine frame.
5. installing the motor and rigging the controls.

I can actually write the pamphlet draft now. The rewrite I want to do as I go along.
Sounds like a plan for a rainy day to me.

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

didn't get a roundtoit

I didn't get back to ride the bike again so the test with the good trailer got put off. I did put an adv on craig's list looking for dead weed whackers. I got my first email a minute ago. The man is willing to give me one that just has a bad fuel line. I think I can fix that okay.

If I take my grand daughter's good looking bike and put a motor on it and keep it clean looking it will make a good demo for my how to pamphlet. That looks like my next project.

pulling the tiny trailer

I pulled the tiny trailer that I used for batteries with the mtb 25 and it did very well. Actually I hardly knew it was there except for the added noise of the trailer. The one I used for the test it the worst trailer I own. I will have to try the good one this afternoon.

I give it a b+

I ran the home to shopping center test of the bike and it did okay. It wasn't great I had to pedal maybe twenty strokes up the hill but it was doable no problem. It didn't set any speed records but i would have probably passed an ordinary bike.

Since that was a tougher test than the long neighborhood hill, I'm going to pass on that one. I need to do the home depot test then I think I'm going to trailer test it. I can't have too much weight in the trailer but I would like to be able to pick up some things.

tueday morning...

Today my plan is to real life test the 25cc/mtb. I have two or three tests I want to make.

One is to ride it to the shopping center about five blocks away. It doesn't sound like much but all of the return trip is uphill with absolutely no downhill sections. It is steep and there is a stoplight. So it will be a test to see how far it can pull uphill and how much help it needs.


Also it will tell me if I can start it off from a dead stop going uphill. That was always a problem with the china bike because of weight. It might be with this one as well.

Another test is to ride it around a longer loop with a long uphill climb but without the busy intersection. I will probably do it first, then the shopping center ride.

Third will be a trip to the home depot. That one has a short but very steep hill, then it goes downhill through a busy intersection. A left turn at a stop light then on to a four way stop sign. then I have to reverse it and go up a really long upgrade. Fortunately I can turn off the long upgrade at several places if it gets too much for the little engine.

I also need to knock the really high spots off the chainsaw drive wheel. The jbweld clumped up on me. I think I'm going to ride to the hobby lobby on the china bike one day. I need to buy a piece of that netting that they used to make women's skirts stand out. I'm sure they still make it. That embedded in jb weld might do better than sand to texture it.

Monday, August 11, 2008

monday night

I just figured out why the clutch was slipping. I didn't adjust it after I went to the smaller wheel. I did that this evening and also added the uplock cable for the motor. The drive wheel is coated with jbweld and sand. I'm going to let it cure for a couple of days.

I made the first real life test of the 25cc mtb. I passed just fine. It doesn't have the guts of the 31cc but it still pulls just fine. I'm going to do a real life test of it tomorrow as well. Tomorrow it is a long hill between the shopping center and my house.

It should be an interesting test ride.

still monday morning

I cleaned up the drive wheel and readjusted the carb on the chainsaw bike. It runs pretty well. I have two problems it seems. The drive wheel is not getting enough friction. I am going to try the jbweld and sand surface. I haven't had much luck with it but some have it seems.

For the gas milage I'm going to look for a larger tank. I'm also going to ask about adjusting the carb from some of the guys on the forum.

While I wait for the jbweld and sand to cure, I'll begin my real world test on the 25cc bike.

Monday morning

I finished the 25cc yesterday and it runs very well. I also got the smaller drive wheel on the chainsaw bike. Since I have the 25 finished and the stuff to improve the chainsaw bike, i am going to work on it today. It really doesn't need much just a fresh mind for the carb adjustment I think.

If I get it running clean I'm going to test ride it today. If not I'm going to start the real life tests of the 25cc. Either way as long as the weather cooperates I'm riding today.

Saturday, August 9, 2008

sat night

Well i did get more done, but I stopped for the night short of having the bike complete. I think I still should go for the carb with the throttle control. That wide open carb scares me to death. I think I'm going to try it one more time tomorrow then switch it for a better carb. I also want to give the chainsaw bike some more work.

My son in law called he has a photo shoot in the morning so the bike ride is off for this week. It suits me I need to get the two friction drives ready for a good test ride anyway.

Saturday noon.

I have a family cook out so I am not going to be able to get a lot more done. I have the 25cc running and I test rode it. The muffler came off and a bolt shook loose. I had to rig a throttle of some kind. It is done and I think I am about ready to declare it good to go. It actually runs very very similar to the 31cc. I think the biggest thing I did to help these bikes was to put the engine in the front.

Saturday

Saturday here is shopping day. My wife will be leaving soon for the grocery store and sticker shockville. After that we will wander around a couple of thrift shops and probably home depot as well.

I'm trying to get in touch with a man in the town next door who has a ryobi 31cc for sale as a blower. If I can get that I can have a bike ready to go in a week or so. A lot less if it runs.

Also I need to give th 25cc a fair shot with all I know now about use of the gravity clutch. First I have to start it.

Friday, August 8, 2008

what a day...

ist of all the spring and the road tread tire worked really well. I didn't much care for the feel of the bike so I decided that since it worked I didn't really need to do anything else, so I retired it to the museum.

I took a ride on the Weed Whacker bike to celebrate. After about a mile it literally flew apart. The drive shaft broke and the drive wheel and the fly wheel took off in a different direction.

Now I am down the chainsaw monster and the 25cc that won't start. Not exactly my best day so far.

Tomorrow will be a better day....... or not....

What's new chainsaw cat?

I gave the bike a lot of thought and reviewed my previous experience when it actually worked. I think step one today will be the easiest, I'm going to put a bigger spring on the engine. If that helps then it's just a matter of changing out that tire. Maybe not even that, if the spring does a lot of good.

I have decided, based on the success of the sheathless cable for the front mount engine, that I might need to do something similar with the rear mount engine cable. I'm going to be taking a look at that as well today.

Otherwise it's just another summer day in the land of the old old deacon lol..

Thursday, August 7, 2008

more chainsaw challenges

The throttle needed some help.

Got that going, then I had to change the gas tank. The big one was getting in the way on such a small bike so I changed it for a smaller one. That seems to work okay for now.

I might have to learn to live with a stiff clutch cable or do something totally radical. Like use the cable without sheath. There is a pretty good bit of drag that has to be in the sheath I think.

But it runs. I didn't get completely around the block today because the engine seems to bounce up and down on the rear tire. I think it is a combination of not enough spring tension and a knobby tire. I have a street tire and wheel I'm going to switch it out tomorrow. I will also need to find a better spring.

That probably means a ride to home depot on the china bike. I don't trust the weed whacker enough just yet. I didn't ride anything but the chain saw bike a few yards today.

chainsaw madness

Todays plan is to start the chainsaw bike and ride it somehow. I think I have all the controls mounted. Yesterday I put locktite red on the drive wheel nut. I'm going to try it. If that doesn't work I'm going to switch sides and flip that sucker upside down. I have tried about everything else to make it run tight. It definitely is too heavy for the front of the bike. I wish it wasn't.

More later.

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

motor mount flew apart

I am still testing my weed Whacker bike. Today I got about five miles when the motor frame just seemed to shake apart. I rebuilt it much sturdier and with locktite when I noticed that the friction wheel had worked itself loose. When it wobbled it just blew the motor mount apart.

So now I have redone it with locktite. I hope that helps but who knows. I also flattened out the drive wheel holder's back side to make it sit more secure. I'm not sure that will help any.

One thing I am going to do is change the way I work the friction clutch on this bike. Tomorrow I'm going to a hand pull cable and dump the brake lever cable. At least that is the plan for now

Monday, August 4, 2008

monday morning

today's plan... Test the repairs I made to the WW bike, then finish the chainsaw bike and test it. Some how I need to find my lost allen wrench set. Its around somewhere where I'm not quit sure.

that's how my shop finally gets cleaned. One day I will have two or more things I just have to have to continue. In order to find them I will have to clean the shop. Once i get started it clean it right down to vacuuming the carpet.

Sunday, August 3, 2008

gravity clutch blues/

The gravity clutch is still the best Idea but the cable is a nightmare. I might have to give some kind of cable rod combination some thought. Oh well/

Saturday, August 2, 2008

saturday

I spent most of the day changing the position of the 31cc ww engine. I wanted to put a suicide clutch on it but I wanted it on the left side so I moved the engine. I have got to be out of my mind not to just leave well enough alone. Nonetheless it is done now. Since it rained again this evening I cant test it till tomorrow.

Friday, August 1, 2008

well right from the start

The day went all to hell. The drive wheel kept coming loose so I decided to move the motor to the left side so it would spin it tight. Then it was going to be a nightmare to run the controls since the motor had to be mounted backwards.

It is a heavy motor but I went to the front to make the controls easier. I am going to mount all my engine on the front from now on. The control issues are so much easier to deal with.

The weight is a concern but I think I can deal with. I have the engine on the big heavy framed huffy. The engine is so heavy I had to put scissor hinges on both sides of the font wheel in order to keep it straight. A simple spring would not do, but I think I will build all my bikes this way if I ever do another. I am probably going to retrofit the 31cc with the second hinge.

todays plan

Im going to feed the dogs then put the my big black lady out in her pen. After that I am going to try to ride the chainsaw bike. I'm sure after that I will be making adjustments to it.

If there isn't too much to do, I am going to take a look at the 25cc today.

Thats the plan anyway. Once the 25cc is either running or trashed, I need to start looking for a new hobby. Oh i am going to keep riding these bikes but no reason to keep building new ones.