Engine/bike wanted for something wild

[Geezer]

Use whatever chassis you get cheap and has room for your powerplant. Any large bike frame will do considering the low power output of the diesel. Your main concern is going to be fitting the engine in the frame. Converting an XS11 swing arm to chain drive is nothing compared to the rest of the project.

An early wing would be interesting but you'd have to use a Beemer or Guzzi gearbox. Ask me off line about the 6 & 8 speed belt drive transmissions I designed.

You're going to end up with a big stinky bike that is slower than a flat head Harley but you're going to be the only one for a long ways around that has one.

Tony

[Shadow]

Justin

I work at a Kubota dealer up here in Canada, I'm familiar with most of the engines & I'm not sure wich one would actually fit into a bike frame. The higher HP ones aren't exactly small. I might be able to help you get a used engine if you want.

[TheDjost]

If this guy managed to get a Mazda 1.3L engine to fit into a bike, I'm SURE I can make *something* work

http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=3988

This looks a bit like what I will probably end up with!!

-Justin

[TheDjost]

Hmmmm, I just might take you up on that offer, shadow. Just not right now. More like the end of the summer. If I can't find something locally, then I'll contact you and we'll see what is available at that time. Thanks.

-Justin

[nashville_bill]

REEFER MADNESS!!!!!

[MartyA]

Been cogitating on this a little, kinda "What if..." What if you could squeeze a diesel in?
Diesels are generally low RPM - relative to a conventional gas engine - torque machines. I'm thinking if you get a strong enough diesel engine to compare to the XS11 engine for actual power output, it will be twice as heavy, and will only rev at ~3-4,000 RPM. Now you need to adjust your gearing, and probably add a few more, and they will have to be much bigger ones. You will likely need some clutch reinforcement. Letting the clutch out at idle will likely try to flip the bike over backwards, so, much clutch slipping will be needed. Throttle action will need to be moderated, so you don't grab a whole lot of throttle and torque the tires right off the pavement in a ground level barrel roll.

If you get an engine that will not have a tendency to do those bad things, you will probably have an anemic cycle that will stink but not do much else. Then you will want to add a turbo....

And of course you will have to carry a 200 lb battery just to fire the glow plugs. How do you keep THAT charged up?

But, it still might be interesting to try. At least you won't have to worry about which spark plug heat range is best. AND, you will have fuel injection!

[TheDjost]

Diesels are great at producing torque. Have you ever driven the new VW TDI's? I just love the torque.....

As for gearing, I was thinking belts. The toothed kind. The same kind that's on a lot of motorcycles and drives the camshafts on most cars. Sprokets for those are very easy to find in all sizes. A nice little(modified) snowmobile transmission will complete the package and keep the engine in the right torque zone. These are lighter than gears so they will help offset the weight difference of the engine... If I could lock up(or just plain remove) the centrifugal clutch on one of those an just keep the infinitely variable pulley I'd be in buisness.
Feather in the clutch at idle and the bike moves like if it was any XS in first gear. Twist the throttle and the engine revs to 2k and stays there as long as you need to accelerate to the right speed. Simple.

I know it will never catch up to an XS, but it will be fun to build and I'd be one of VERY few diesel bike riders around!

-Rant mode on
Diesels DON'T stink!!! The only ones that stink are the badly adjusted ones and those don't stink more than any other badly adjusted gas engine. Where I work we have a very large old truck that has an equally large v8 gas engine and it has a carburator. That thing stinks more than any of the 25 diesel trucks I have in the yard. Diesels that burn all their fuel in the cylinder and not in the pipes will not smoke, nor will they stink.

About batteries: big trucks have big banks of batteries because they have a lot of glow plugs to heat up and said glow plugs live in very large head that heats slowly. A small diesel engine has a lot fewer glow plugs that heat faster since their heat sink(head) is smaller. The little garden tractors with diesels have the exact same batteries than their gas powered counterparts.
-Rant mode off


-Justin

[MartyA]

Just pullin' your leg, Justin. If you can squeeze a small block V-8 into a bike frame, a diesel is certainly possible.
I thought of those infinite pulleys, didn't know if they were in use.
My brother's Dodge Cummins is tuned and does not stink or smoke. Dad had one for years, only thing he would use to pull his Airstream. Set the cruise at 60 and go all day - up hill and everything, 20 MPG.

[wildbill]

Now I might be wrong but Royal Enifield had a desel powered bike a year or two ago.I don`t think they exported them though.I would start with something simple or do a whole lot of thinking about it before I would take the plunge.I think I would try the desel engine out of a small car or truck along with a tractor first or at least look at them.Might look a little strange but who cares as long as it works.Have fun

[steelcat]

Hey Justin:
You may be on to something. There are some "small" air cooled diesel engines made. Perkins for one, The small eng. from Kubota may be another source. I think that there used to be a very small sationary diesel made for irrigation pumps ( can't be sure, a long time ago & fewer brain cells now). Very few newer diesels use glow plugs. Air intake pre-heaters or either start is more common in my experience. Larger batteris are needed for starting, with higher compression of deisels the starters need more amps.

Imagination & determination took the Wright Brothers & Henery Ford along way.