Motorized Rocky Mountain RM7 -Super Motard-

[lowracer]

Hi,
I finally got my winter project ready to ride...I decided on a Subaru-Robin 4 stroke 35cc & Front belt drive powertrain providing 2 wheel drive (since I am an avid cyclist & enjoy pedaling). The front drive is a rim hoop, JB welded to the front rim & an automotive standard notched 78" V-Belt with a skateboard wheel tensioner & a 1.5" front V-pulley from McMaster Carr. The gear ratio is similar to a friction drive without the need for jackshafts or further reduction.The mount is just some steel bar & 'L' brackets found at the local Lowe's Home Improvement store. I wanted to keep this project cheap & under the price of any kit available such as Gebe/BMP/Staton/Friction & with no welding. I am good at hacksawing & drilling but nothing more hi tech than that...lol. I got the new Subaru engine/clutch housing from Staton off eBay w/Bing discount for $248 & the rest was under $50. The throttle is a bicycle brake lever mounted to the left side handlebar above the front disc brake lever. The 7" front suspension still works perfectly & well matched to the 7" travel suspension in the rear...
-Lowracer-

[professor]

If it works as good as it looks, you will be one happy camper.
JB welded rim will make the stock rim stronger. Great idea! I love your ingenuity!

[Neon]

That bike looks completely awesome. Are those 700c rims and tires on there? If they are they certainly wouldn't be my first choice. But i live in a very rough pot hole infested road no matter what time of year it is. i need something that is a little less prone to bending themselves all out of shape when i hit a pot hole.
But that is just me. Once again awesome bike.

[lowracer]

The rims are the stock 26" MTB (559) wide Sun Rhyno's. The tires are narrow high pressure 1.5 slicks for MTB's. These roll real fast & dont get many flats. The 7" of plush suspension keep the potholes & curbs from giving pinch flats.

[Neon]

Thanks for the info. I've already toasted 2 700c rear rims on my electric bike. And the speeds i get from it don't come anywhere close to the speeds i get with my gas bike. They are both hardtails and the 26 x 2.00 on the gas bike have never once gotten out of true or gone flat. Your rims and tires sound the the ultimate setup to me though.

[Neon]

btw what do you have hanging of the back of your seat post? I have no idea what it is.

[lowracer]

Agreed, smaller wheels are stronger wheels when all other factors are the same (spoke guage & count, rim thickness & width). I chose this bike to motorize since it is a Downhill/Freeride bike & built extra tough for that purpose @ 42 lbs stock.

[lowracer]

The thing hanging off the back of the seatpost is a water bottle holder. They are commonplace on Time-trial/Triathlon bicycles but I use it to hold two 22 oz MSR Fuel bottles full of unleaded gasoline for longer distances between gas station visits. I use two velco straps around each fuel bottle to totally secure them to each bottle cage (no jumping out gas tanks) I just added a few more pics showing the MSR tanks & new larger Kryptos skateboard wheel belt tensioner.

[augidog]

lowracer: i can fully appreciate everything about your "Motor-Assisted-Bicycle" and your pedaling-attitude...clearly, you've been "read read read"-ing a lot of stuff at MBc...i think your creation is awesome

[lowracer]

Augidog,
The people & info on this website are awesome...Discovering motoredbikes.com has really sparked my interest & imagination to make this project happen. Many thanks to all who contribute here...
-Lowracer-