Weed Whacker Powered Bicycle!

[themadhacker]

That is why you don't do the "direct drive" method of lawn engine/weed wacker bikes. It is too hard on the engine. My dad did this with and old engine and his bike when he was a teen. He rode it once, it quit, and despite all the work done on it, hasn't started since. The 60 year motor is still hopelessly sitting on our shelf in our barn.

 

[Basement_Modder]

Strange, I know, but I looked in the back of our yard guy's truck bed today to see if he had any extra weed whackers I could buy off of him. He didn't, but the one he did have was the exact same one you used in this project. It was an edger, right? Spooky.

 

[XCVG]

You used a PIECE OF PLASTIC?! Seriously, you thought that plastic could handle any sort of torque? You need steel (not aluminum, it'll bend) for that application.

Also, I agree that direct drive is not ideal. For one, you can't stop without killing the engine. But there should be sufficient slip with your drive system that destroying the motor shouldn't be a problem, though destroying the tire is a possibility.

 

[Basement_Modder]

You used a PIECE OF PLASTIC?! Seriously, you thought that plastic could handle any sort of torque? You need steel (not aluminum, it'll bend) for that application.

Also, I agree that direct drive is not ideal. For one, you can't stop without killing the engine. But there should be sufficient slip with your drive system that destroying the motor shouldn't be a problem, though destroying the tire is a possibility.

He never built the bike with the plastic, just experimented. Also-you can stop using direct-drive if your motor has a clutch, Mario's just doesn't.