I spent a few months finding the perfect bike (the oldest bike I could find) to fit an engine to. I got a 58cc 2 stroke engine off of Ebay and spent a full weekend fitting it.
The badge on the bike says ‘The Standard Cycle Co, Birmingham’) and the tyres say ‘war grade rubber Dunlop’ – I think it’s quite old. Everything seems original including the bulb in the front head lamp.
Bolt engine to bike frame
I rested the engine on the frame to get the right position before tightening up the clamps/brackets. I used some rubber inner-tube to wrap around the bike frame to reduce vibration a little bit.
The finished bike
Test ride
I took the bike on a 80 mile test ride from Sheffield to Hull (UK). It was February in the north of England. Bloody freezing with no gloves. I had some problems with the engine which meant I had to stop and dismantle the carburettor with numb hands.
But I managed to get from Sheffield to Hull on one tank.
Thanks to the people that stopped to have a chat with me… and the guy that offered me a lift!
The great thing about this bike is that I can kill the engine from a switch on the handlebars and just pedal like normal.
Top speed is 30 MPH – I don’t think I’d want to go any faster on this old thing though. It shakes and rattles.
Laurie
Fantastic project!
Mike Hudson
Thanks. It was real fun!