Interesting way of motorising a bike
 

Seen on ebay.

It's basically a little 4 stroke motor that connects to a belt that attaches to the back wheel.

I can't imagine it would be great to ride :p

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/4STROKE-MOTOR...QQcmdZViewItem

Personally I think it is the stupidest thing I have seen in a long time. Plus it causes more pollution then a car

I like the thick-neck'ed guy hoisting it over his head one handed. It could still be >100 lbs since we don't know if this guy is a serious lifter.

There are times, on hills, when I wish my wife had one of these, but hauling it around and not using is senseless. And using it all the time just turns it into a motorcycle.

Argh!!!!

Went to visit my sister last Summer in San Antonio --- and in her garage was her husband's Frankensteen creation - he put a freaked out motor on her mtb.

And she likes it.

She cannot be of my blood. That's it - she's been adopted.

"Would I like a ride", they ask.

Hell no! I reply!

Even though they live in the "hills" in S.A. so when I ride down to the end of their drive way and look left and right --- all I see is a steep decline - which means my loop around the "block" shall include a nice climb back to their house.

But no motor for me!! :D

What a crazy contraption. Interesting that they would attach it to the existing wheel. I seem to recall that when I was looking into electric hub motors for another project concept that would have potentially used bicycle wheels, there where concerns of putting too much power onto spokes designed to handle the load from a human cranking on the wheels, not a 4-stroke gas engine!

That definitely would not be street legal here in Ontario, Canada.

It's an interesting idea though, but it raises questions, in my mind:
- Will the wheels hold up under such power?
- Will the brakes be able to stop you with the added weight/velocity?
- It's mounted pretty high up in the back. How bad is that thing to balance?
- How safe is it to have a gasoline engine right behind your butt? Wouldn't that cause burns, or risk fire to the seat/rider once it gets hot? I remember working with gas-powered lawn mowers. Those little engines get hot enough to cause a bad burn after running for a little while.

Back to the spoke thought - Wouldn't that big ring, attached to the spokes as it's shown, be applying a fair amount of stress in the middle of the spokes? That sounds like a bad idea to me - betcha it snaps 'em like nobody's business.

Most places in the US have laws regulating scooters and "motorized bicycles". The rule seems to be as long as the motor is sufficiently puny and the bike has pedals - and the operator has a car driver's license - motorized bikes are OK.

Here is the U.S.A. version.
http://www.bikeengines.com/
These kits only add 11.4 lbs to the weight of the bicycle used. Most states consider them to be motor-driven cycles and as long as there 50cc or less they don’t require registration, or insurance. Check your local regulations! I have a motorized bike and it fills a niche between your "normal" bicycle and a motor vehicle. There are times you need to go somewhere and the trip is long enough that you would show up covered in sweat but so short for a vehicle you just hate the thought of driving a 2-ton vehicle to get there and back. Just jump on the motorbike and away you go. They're also nice for people who may not be healthy enough to use a regular bicycle and need a little help.
Check out this grocery getter.
http://www.bikeengines.com/danbike2.jpg

There are an assortment of electric motors available for 'motorising' bicycles. There is also a thread on recent changes to Ontario Law regarding electric bicycles. FWIW I would be interested in a Trike like N4's as an option for hockey equipment or major grocery shopping. I'm quite leery of racing downhill at 40+km/h with 50-100 lbs on a trailer and expecting the brakes to be able to keep me from jacknifing and crashing. Also a motor assist would be useful when carrying heavy loads up major hills.

I have yet to see a trike with a large cargo compartment for my hockey equipment (3.5 ft length 2 ft diameter cylinder approximately).

For these applications I think what could be done is to import cycle rickshaws from India and fit them with electric motors. Who needs a car for moderate (100-300 lbs) cargo hauling then. Of course those Indian rickshawwallahs are able to haul those kinds of loads on their own power only, but it doesn't look like fun.

My grandson started with an old Schwinn men's frame & built up a "Whizzer" type motorbike with a whizzer gas tank & the motor mounted down by the bottom bracket. It used a drive plate that fit down around the rear hub & drove the wheel through the spokes. However he learned to build wheels & rebuilt the rear wheel with very heavy gauge spokes & so far it has handled the stress of the puny 50cc motor he used. Since he caught the "motor" disease, he doesn't ride his Campy equipped road bike much! Don