Qulbix Raptor 140

[Offroader]

Orange may make it look super ditbike-ish... think KTM. If the color wheel is your oyster, maybe something not offered by anyone else (Qulbix, Stealth, etc)...

Edit: Qulbix did color my white raptor's swingarm white for a fee... though in fairness, it was not a custom color but rather non-standard application of an existing color.

Funny you mention KTM, I'm going to ask for the KTM orange color. I want my bike to look like a dirt bike actually so I guess this is a good color.

I guess they paint a lot of frames at the same time so a custom color is going to cost extra.

Mammalian04, if going with the orange color, what stickers would you get? Do you like the gray or would you consider another color? I think black with orange looks really nice, the gray also goes well with those colors. I think it will have a nice elegant (if that is the right word here) look to it. Or I could get the blue stickers instead, for Blue-black-gray.

 

[Mammalian04]

After some searching, I haven't really come up with any examples of Orange KTMs with accents other than black. It's a good look and I think I would go black over gray. I'm not crazy about the shading combination of their gray and KTM orange... You could always order an extra set of stickers in a different color if you didn't like it but peeling old and lining up the new ones would be a pain...

 

[Offroader]

After some searching, I haven't really come up with any examples of Orange KTMs with accents other than black. It's a good look and I think I would go black over gray. I'm not crazy about the shading combination of their gray and KTM orange... You could always order an extra set of stickers in a different color if you didn't like it but peeling old and lining up the new ones would be a pain...

Good point about replacing the stickers. It got me thinking...

Maybe I'll get an extra set of side covers painted in orange also. The side covers don't cost that much money only 29 Euro. This way I'll have a set of orange side covers color matched to the rest of the bike and I'll also take the black side covers for a different look.

You also got me thinking about the gray, maybe another color would be better.

Take a look at the orange bikes below, one looks like it has blue graphics and the other black. It seems the Orange with blue looks best. What do you think?

 

[Hyena]

OK derailleur gurus, what are your thoughts on this ?
I've finally had time to take a look at the bike, fiddle with the derailleur adjustments and what not and I'm now not convinced a fancier clutched derailleur will actually solve this issue. My issue doesn't seem to be a matter of derailleur positioning or tensioning ( I fitted a shifter and it does the same in 3 different gears) but that the chain is "bulging" and skipping off the back of the freewheel gear.

Thoughts ?



Here's a vid that shows that's happening (does it / skips when your foot is right at the bottom of the crank action)

[youtube]1FBTwgAGycc[/youtube]

 

[Rodney64]

Incorrect chain Jay. Looks too narrow. I've had the same problem before. Try a single speed fixie chain.

 

[voicecoils]

I think Rod's on the right track.

Is your freewheel for 1/8" or 3/32" chains? It may be too wide for the chain to sit into on properly. Or are you using an old worn out chain?

 

[Hyena]

Thanks guys. I did think previously that the teeth on the freewheel looked wider than standard. I thought all single speeds would be the same and when someone else said they were running one I thought it'd be ok, but apparently not. I know the electrics inside out but the old bicycle mechanical stuff still brings me unstuck occasionally

Rod, I actually had a single speed chain on there before but then fitted a derailleur to solve the tension issues, then of course the fatter chain didnt work with the derailleur properly so then I put a 7 speed chain on it, and not it's playing up as above. All good, I'll yank it back off and fit another freewheel and hopefully that solves it.

Voicecoils, everything is new. The freewheel is just a standard generic chinese one so must be for the thicker chain as you said. Funnily enough it spins backwards almost flawlessly with the occasional hickup but under leg load it quickly shows up.

 

[Mammalian04]

Offroader, I think orange and blue would look good. Redbull KTM team has a little blue for reference (though red bull is a deeper blue than Qulbix blue).


Hyena, I had same issue. Can't fit through derailleur with single speed chain and a 10 speed chain jumps on the single speed freewheel.

I think the 5 speed freewheel with a derailleur and 7 speed chain is the answer. Waiting on parts to fiND one that fits!

 

[Rodney64]

Thanks guys. I did think previously that the teeth on the freewheel looked wider than standard. I thought all single speeds would be the same and when someone else said they were running one I thought it'd be ok, but apparently not. I know the electrics inside out but the old bicycle mechanical stuff still brings me unstuck occasionally

Rod, I actually had a single speed chain on there before but then fitted a derailleur to solve the tension issues, then of course the fatter chain didnt work with the derailleur properly so then I put a 7 speed chain on it, and not it's playing up as above. All good, I'll yank it back off and fit another freewheel and hopefully that solves it.

Voicecoils, everything is new. The freewheel is just a standard generic chinese one so must be for the thicker chain as you said. Funnily enough it spins backwards almost flawlessly with the occasional hickup but under leg load it quickly shows up.

Jay a cheap derailleur will work best.

 

[Rix]

I think Rod's on the right track.

Is your freewheel for 1/8" or 3/32" chains? It may be too wide for the chain to sit into on properly. Or are you using an old worn out chain?

Hyena,
Adding to what VC said, that looks exactly like my old free wheel and if it is, its 1/8th inch wide. That was the free wheel I had on the bike we built up in Yosemite. Your typical single speed MTB chain is designed for 3/32 wide cogs vs the BMX chain for 1/8 wide cogs. What you can do is turn that free wheel on a lathe and using emery cloth, take it down to say 5/64 and then you will be able to use most 7,8,9 as well as single speed and BMX chains on it. The other option is split your pully cage and put some m5 washwers in between the pulley and the cage. That will widen things up a bit.

 

[Offroader]

I think Rod's on the right track.

Is your freewheel for 1/8" or 3/32" chains? It may be too wide for the chain to sit into on properly. Or are you using an old worn out chain?

Hyena,
Adding to what VC said, that looks exactly like my old free wheel and if it is, its 1/8th inch wide. That was the free wheel I had on the bike we built up in Yosemite. Your typical single speed MTB chain is designed for 3/32 wide cogs vs the BMX chain for 1/8 wide cogs. What you can do is turn that free wheel on a lathe and using emery cloth, take it down to say 5/64 and then you will be able to use most 7,8,9 as well as single speed and BMX chains on it. The other option is split your pully cage and put some m5 washwers in between the pulley and the cage. That will widen things up a bit.

Or just buy a $10 dollar dicta 3/32" thread freewheel?

 

[Hyena]

What you can do is turn that free wheel on a lathe and using emery cloth, take it down to say 5/64 and then you will be able to use most 7,8,9 as well as single speed and BMX chains on it. The other option is split your pully cage and put some m5 washwers in between the pulley and the cage. That will widen things up a bit.

Thanks Rix, I almost had to do that when I went to remove the freewheel only to find there was no way to do so! It didnt have any of the usual splines or keyways for a removal tool, only the 2 shallowest little indents that wouldn't allow any sort of grip (well, enough to twist my long nose pliers)
I ended up slicing away at it with the dremel manually "disassemble" it, then removed the solid remaining thread on body with a big plumbing style pipe wrench. What a saga.

And yeah offroader, I wanted to get a dicta like that today but the 3 LBS's I called didn't have any (only bmx 1/8th). I'll ring around some more tomorrow and try and get one otherwise I'll have to resort to buying one online. I just want to get this bike finished so I can move onto the next project in the queue!

 

[Architectonic]

It didnt have any of the usual splines or keyways for a removal tool, only the 2 shallowest little indents that wouldn't allow any sort of grip (well, enough to twist my long nose pliers)

Hammer + screw driver/punch, there is a video on Youtube (and seen it done IRL), bearings go everywhere though...

 

[Artur]

After some searching, I haven't really come up with any examples of Orange KTMs with accents other than black. It's a good look and I think I would go black over gray. I'm not crazy about the shading combination of their gray and KTM orange... You could always order an extra set of stickers in a different color if you didn't like it but peeling old and lining up the new ones would be a pain...

Good point about replacing the stickers. It got me thinking...

Maybe I'll get an extra set of side covers painted in orange also. The side covers don't cost that much money only 29 Euro. This way I'll have a set of orange side covers color matched to the rest of the bike and I'll also take the black side covers for a different look.

You also got me thinking about the gray, maybe another color would be better.

Take a look at the orange bikes below, one looks like it has blue graphics and the other black. It seems the Orange with blue looks best. What do you think?

My orange Vector ) Just to give you idea how orange bike looks like.

 

[Rix]

Orange looks great with black in the mix.

 

[Jonboy]

Hi Guys, could someone clarify if the sunrace 5speed freewheel will work with a cromotor in a 165mm Raptor swingarm? I've offered the cro up & centered it's about 33mm gap not to exact at this stage as I've just got it.

Which dropout version of the Cromotor do you have?

We've got ours working with a 5 speed freewheel and it's centred enough that you couldn't tell with the naked eye unless you pulled some calipers out.

Our 5 speed freewheel stack height is under 30mm as well, so it's quite thin.

Off top of my head its 150, I got a 5 speed sunrace coming to play with, it's going to be tight.. Which make you got working?


Regarding colours I'm a big KTM fan & am just tempted to order another RAPPY while the deal is on! But the "Met / pearl orange i think" of the intense is stonking.

 

[Hyena]

Hammer + screw driver/punch, there is a video on Youtube (and seen it done IRL), bearings go everywhere though...

Tried that, no luck. It was on tight, hence having to bust out option D(remel).

And yeah, orange and black is a sweet combo.
I was very tempted to do my own raptor in orange but went with white in the end as I already have matching white helmet and stuff from my stealth fighter.

Automotive 2pac paint is probably a better option for getting a really sweet looking bright custom colour. Powdercoat colours and options still seem a little more limited.

On the topic of custom colours, here's an army green one I had qulbix do for one of my customers recently. I'm looking forward to seeing it all built up

 

[marcn]

That orange vector is HOT!

Hi Guys, could someone clarify if the sunrace 5speed freewheel will work with a cromotor in a 165mm Raptor swingarm? I've offered the cro up & centered it's about 33mm gap not to exact at this stage as I've just got it.

Which dropout version of the Cromotor do you have?

We've got ours working with a 5 speed freewheel and it's centred enough that you couldn't tell with the naked eye unless you pulled some calipers out.

Our 5 speed freewheel stack height is under 30mm as well, so it's quite thin.

Off top of my head its 150, I got a 5 speed sunrace coming to play with, it's going to be tight.. Which make you got working?


Regarding colours I'm a big KTM fan & am just tempted to order another RAPPY while the deal is on! But the "Met / pearl orange i think" of the intense is stonking.

Hi Johnny,

From memory the Cromotor either comes in a 145mm dropout or 155mm dropout. The 145mm dropout will work with some 5 speed freewheels. We've just updated our Raptor build which you can follow here.. I'm using the 165 Raptor and 145mm Cro, but the drivetrain setup shouldn't be that different.

 

[Offroader]

I have to decide between a blue sticker package and asking Qulbix if they can do a black sticker package. Hard to decide but I think I'll just get the blue and get both black side covers and orange side covers for the bike, both with the blue sticker package.

The army green raptor with the DMR fork looks nice with the colored stanchions guards on the fork. It would look awesome having that painted in orange like the KTM bike in the picture.

I just hate the fact that the DMR fork can not easily fit a small fender over the tire because of the way the fork is designed. Maybe this is possible somehow? I know from experience that without a small front fender you will constantly get mud and dirty road puddles shot on you even if it is dry out.

I think the blue mixes with the orange nicely like in the KTM bike below, I think those are modified graphics on the bike.

 

[Rix]

Hammer + screw driver/punch, there is a video on Youtube (and seen it done IRL), bearings go everywhere though...

Tried that, no luck. It was on tight, hence having to bust out option D(remel).

And yeah, orange and black is a sweet combo.
I was very tempted to do my own raptor in orange but went with white in the end as I already have matching white helmet and stuff from my stealth fighter.

Automotive 2pac paint is probably a better option for getting a really sweet looking bright custom colour. Powdercoat colours and options still seem a little more limited.

On the topic of custom colours, here's an army green one I had qulbix do for one of my customers recently. I'm looking forward to seeing it all built up

Damn Jay, this army green raptor looks sick. Your client will really like it no doubt. I see you have a TC motor on the rear. I have a TC4080 on the way that I will be testing on my Fighter for Electric Rider. With the new roof I just paid for, wouldn't be able to do it any other way :?

 

[Offroader]

Does anyone know if the raptor 140 comes with two seat height options like the raptor 165?

If anyone remembers the raptor 165 had a higher seat originally then they offered a low seat option. I am not sure if this is the same case with the raptor 140.

Thanks

 

[Jonboy]

From memory the Cromotor either comes in a 145mm dropout or 155mm dropout. The 145mm dropout will work with some 5 speed freewheels. We've just updated our Raptor build which you can follow here.. I'm using the 165 Raptor and 145mm Cro, but the drivetrain setup shouldn't be that different.

Hey Marc, great build there..

Indeed you are correct my cromotor is the 145mm version & the raptor swing are is the 165mm version. I have my sunrace freewheel now & done some measuring etc What method did you use to cut the aluminium threaded freewheel mount down.. I figure I need to take close to 5mm off the top of it for the freewheel to sit as close as poss without rubbing the hub.
Also what did you use for spacers between the axle shoulder and drop out, the ones which came with the cro are bigger diameter than the splined hole in the freewheel?

Many thanks mate!

Jon

 

[marcn]

From memory the Cromotor either comes in a 145mm dropout or 155mm dropout. The 145mm dropout will work with some 5 speed freewheels. We've just updated our Raptor build which you can follow here.. I'm using the 165 Raptor and 145mm Cro, but the drivetrain setup shouldn't be that different.

Hey Marc, great build there..

Indeed you are correct my cromotor is the 145mm version & the raptor swing are is the 165mm version. I have my sunrace freewheel now & done some measuring etc What method did you use to cut the aluminium threaded freewheel mount down.. I figure I need to take close to 5mm off the top of it for the freewheel to sit as close as poss without rubbing the hub.
Also what did you use for spacers between the axle shoulder and drop out, the ones which came with the cro are bigger diameter than the splined hole in the freewheel?

Many thanks mate!

Jon

Hi Johnny, thanks!

Yes you are correct that you need to cut down some of the thread off the hub. I maybe cut around 3-5mm. Start small if you're worried. I just use a hacksaw then filled the edges down to make it smooth and straight (flat) for the freewheel to easily fit on.

I also used one 2mm bottom bracket spacer on the hub to prevent the freewheel locking on.

None of this is mentioned in the build because i forgot to put it in there! Thanks for the reminder.

 

[Jonboy]

just read through most of your build.. Really like those wheels & that battery pack is super slick!

Did you use the cromotor "c" washer/spacers on the freewheel side and somehow shave the diameter down to fit within the freewheel splined hole?

Cheers

 

[marcn]

I've updated the freewheel section on our website now to explain things a bit better.

We used the spacers the Cromotor came with. No need to shave them down to fit within the spline. If you do that you may have trouble removing them, especially if you want to use the freewheel removal tool. We've just got them sitting against the inner diameter of the freewheel.

You also want to make sure the dropout clamp bolt washer clears the freewheel when you tighten the axle bolts on either side. We needed to use 3 of the spacers to get enough clearance.