Home made mini bike.

[Peyton Price 17]

me and my friends want to start a little mini bike shop. i am not self promoting as i wont say were you can get them. this is just for all of the stuff i need to make one and anyone with experience to give me some advise. this is what i have so far.

 

[Peyton Price 17]

i found a throttle that will fit.

 

[FOMOGO]

Your probably going to want to build a frame jig. You can go through a lot of tubing using the hit or miss method. You will have to come up with some sort of fork assembly, and steering head and bearings which may also be available on line. Kind of a right of passage for young folks to build something fast, loud, and dangerous. As you get older the HP, and dollar figures rise accordingly. Cheers, Mike

 

[Peyton Price 17]

Your probably going to want to build a frame jig. You can go through a lot of tubing using the hit or miss method. You will have to come up with some sort of fork assembly, and steering head and bearings which may also be available on line. Kind of a right of passage for young folks to build something fast, loud, and dangerous. As you get older the HP, and dollar figures rise accordingly. Cheers, Mike

i was thinking of making a jig so that the sides are the same. i have a roller and bearing store down the road. i was thinking of maybe using an old bike steerer tube. but then i would have to bend the fork out ward. i think that making a custom one is a better idea like what you said. thank you very much.

 

[Peyton Price 17]

i found a frame that i like. it should be bigger than the one i have. it has a 3.5hp. the frame design the right size for the 212cc engine.

 

[brino]

Peyton,

That should be fun as a project and to ride!

When I built a go-kart for the kids, I used square steel tube for the frame. As the corners are a little easier to cut and weld, and you have flat faces to bolt things to. I know bikes all use round tube.

Is the frame going to be bent tube, or cut and welded?
If using round tube and welded joints, a coping cutter would be of benefit.

https://www.instructables.com/How-to-Miter-Cope-a-Round-Tube-by-Hand/
https://www.hobby-machinist.com/threads/hole-sawing-pipe.67577/#post-564989
https://www.hobby-machinist.com/thr...d-you-do-in-your-shop-today.14637/post-253337

Have fun and be safe!

-brino

 

[Peyton Price 17]

Peyton,

That should be fun as a project and to ride!

When I built a go-kart for the kids, I used square steel tube for the frame. As the corners are a little easier to cut and weld, and you have flat faces to bolt things to. I know bikes all use round tube.

Is the frame going to be bent tube, or cut and welded?
If using round tube and welded joints, a coping cutter would be of benefit.

https://www.instructables.com/How-to-Miter-Cope-a-Round-Tube-by-Hand/
https://www.hobby-machinist.com/threads/hole-sawing-pipe.67577/#post-564989
https://www.hobby-machinist.com/thr...d-you-do-in-your-shop-today.14637/post-253337

Have fun and be safe!

-brino

i am still deciding on bending or cut and weld. i think that cut and weld would be easier with sqaure tube. ill check the price. 5/8 tube and 1 inch tube with 1/8 wall is 2.06 per foot. i will use tube and cut and weld. it seems to be better than pipe at almost everything.Thank you very much.

 

[matthewsx]

You will want to buy a tubing bender if you're building frames but it may be better to buy them depending on how many units you are planning to build.

These guys have been in the business longer than I've been alive.

Azusaparts

azusaparts.com

They were one of the best suppliers I had when I ran my go-kart company, super reliable and easy to work with. Give them a call (yes, call) and see about setting up an account.

There are tons of other tips I could give you but have to get to work soon.


Good Luck,


John

 

[Winegrower]

I did this very thing when i was in high school hundreds of years ago. i made a bunch of drawings and my dad had a machinist make the parts and a welder make up the frame with my cut up tubing. It was terrific, And over the years as thing slowly fell apart and got patched up, it morphed into a direct chain drive, a rope to wrap around the crank for starting...straddle it, hold up rear wheel, pull to start, drop the wheel and go. Amazing we never lost a finger or broke any bones.

It’s still about the coolest thing I ever did.

 

[MrWhoopee]

I believe those Predator motors are rebadged Lifans, which are Honda clones. I have a Lifan on a used chipper that I bought last year. It has obviously had a hard life. I was told it powered a mini bike before the chipper and was not treated gently nor well cared for. I continue to be impressed with how easily it starts and how well it runs.

Cut and weld is simpler in small quantities, bending is stronger and more reliable in use. Once the tooling and process have been developed, bending is easier and quicker. 1/8 wall is probably overkill, .093 would be more than sufficient and much easier to bend if you decide to go that way.