raleigh chopper

[crazy dreamer]

has anyone ever tried to convert one of these with a non-hub drive motor?
C.D

 

[AussieJester]

Haven't seen one converted, seen a few on RatRod bikes, they would go wild over a mint condition
example too...

KiM

 

[crazy dreamer]

just bought that one off ebay cheap so i may give it a go! the 3-speed sturmey archer hub gears will come in handy.
C.D

 

[Grinhill]

When I was a kid many of us dreamed of owning one of those. IIRC they used to have a T-bar shifter on the top bar.

 

[deecanio]

lol no way - i had the very one with the t bar shifter on the frame Grinhill, in silver
it was my progression from a "budgie" then a raleigh tomohawk :lol:
seems to me to have lots of potential for a conversion - all you need now is a playing card and a clothes peg and it would be a genuine child of the seventies


D

 

[Grinhill]

There's always one kid with the latest and best toys isn't there - some things don't change :lol: (looks in the direction of recumpence)

 

[crazy dreamer]

thinking of using the 350 watt unite geared motor on the lefthand crank with freewheel. (i like to pedal) should be good for power wheelies!
C.D

 

[Grinhill]

I'm glad you're still in the "thinking about" stage for that setup.

If I understand correctly, the pedals would always be driven when under power ,but you could also pedal without motor assistance?

The general wisdom around here is that there may be some safety issues with such a setup. It's all fine when you're running along smoothly, but if for any reason your foot slips off, or a pedal hits the ground round a corner, or the throttle gets stuck on, things can turn nasty pretty quickly and give your leg quite a powerful whack.

 

[AussieJester]

thinking of using the 350 watt unite geared motor on the lefthand crank with freewheel. (i like to pedal) should be good for power wheelies!
C.D

Crank setup is definitely a good way to go but as Grinhill touches upon can be very unsafe, it is however possible to make a totally safe cranks setup using a freewheel crank...you can buy these from Sickbikeparts quite cheaply, the motor will still drive the crank (right side) but will have a inbuilt freewheel (similar to on the rear hub) that the sprocket will bolt to so it can spin under motor power, but the cranks do not, you can if you chose still add pedal assistance though... I would look at a full cyclone kit from Cyclone Taiwan, better quality motor than the Unites..


Best of luck..

KiM

 

[etard]

This must be a UK thing, cause I've never seen one in my life. I guess over here we had the Schwinn Stingray, that was some sweet ride. Gotta love those banana seats, no padding for our toosh. A much better looking design if you ask me, but that's just my opinion.

Hey, maybe you build your Raliegh and someone else can build a Schwinn and you could race for pinks!! :lol:

 

[Geebee]

Just bear this in mind, it is an often reported issue if trying to go fast.

"With its wide tyres and tendency to wobble at speed, the Raleigh Chopper is not a bike for covering long distances. It is a bike for people who want to ride up and down the street and look cool.

Read more: http://cyclinginfo.co.uk/blog/bikes/raleigh-chopper/#ixzz0fmN7A69i "

The modern Schwinn Stingray and its clones are ultra stable at high speed, a bit of a handful at really low speeds as are all choppers with raked forks.

 

[crazy dreamer]

i take your point on the safety of the left crank drive but i dont want to pedal the motor, maybe a duel freewheeling righthand crank would solve the problem. this bike is just for fun and does not need to be fast, should be a big hit with my grandchildren.
C.D