Let's say you want a little more power POWER in your Pigeon, a little more FORCE in your Forever, how would you go about getting it? One way is with a motor. An old rod brake bicycle makes a prime candidate for motorizing.The frame is tough and can put up with a lot of stress. A favorite method is to mount a small 2 stoke motor in a 22" diamond frame bike. As chance should have it, I was able to photograph two such conversions with in a half hour of each other in the historic and newly revitalized Hepingmen area of Beijing. You can see that these conversions were done quite sometime ago. One is a Forever and the engine is currently non-functional, but it still makes a useful platform for selling sugary snacks.
The other bike is a Phoenix and the drive train looks to be in working order. The bike is started with a pedal start which cranks the engine. The running engine then drives the rear wheel from the LEFT side while the right side chain freewheels.
Another way to motorize your bike would be to use a "Hongdu" motor. This is an almost exact copy (licensed or otherwise) of the old French Velosolex motor. This mounts on the fork and drives the front wheel directly through a friction roller. The normal front tire is replaced with one with a flat profile. The advantage of this setup is you still can pedal the back wheel. Typically though this is seldom seen on bikes, but more often seen on trikes.
As an end note, anyone attempting one of these conversions would be hard pressed to justify it financially: A new electric bicycle can be had for as little as 200 RMB, less than a Pigeon. Plus, they are far more durable and reliable...perhaps that is why these conversions seem so "old school"
It is no use doing what you like,you have got to like what you do.Do you think so?
Posted by: new balance | July 27, 2010 at 08:40 AM