Moulton mini conversion???

[homemoz]

I've just been offered the chance of a moulton mini. The bike has been sat in a friend's loft for the last 30 years. As. You know this is the model that is 7/8th the size of the standard moulton with 14" wheels and front & rear suspension. I am very tempted to take the bike off his hands but....and this is the question.....would the bike lend itself to a conversion? The downside are the small wheels but maybe the front wheel could be rebuilt with one of those motors from BMS battery, the 328 rpm version to give a better assisted speed. The battery would be held on the rear rack. Wondered what the views of the experienced bike converters are. Is this pie in the sky & better left well alone or could it work well enough to be worthwhile. Your views welcome, please.

 

[eddieo]

a picture may help. 14 inches a bit small for comfort as 16 a bare minimum I would think. but then if its just a local runabout why not. really depends on what your intended use is....

would go for discrete looking motor though

 

[Deleted member 4366]

I believe that the smallest rim that BMSbattery do is 16", so you'll have to build the motor into your rim or get someone else to do it for you, which will bring further cost. So, unless you can build the wheel yourself, it would probably be easier to buy a used bike with wheels 16" or bigger as a donor bike. Also you need to check the width of the drop-outs in the forks or at the rear to check that the motor fits. You need approx. 85 or 100mm front or 135mm rear.

 

[jerrysimon]

I ran a Tongxin hub on my refurbed 1970s Raleigh Moulton MK3 for a while.

It is of a simlar period to the Moulton Minis but has 16" wheels.

Regards

Jerry

 

[catsnapper]

Plenty of info about them:Moulton Mini

The 14" rim is likely to be the biggest problem as it was 20h or 28h AFAIK, not ideal for building onto an e-hub.
Some owners seem to have fitted bigger wheels with different forks.

If a suitable rim is available it's feasible, a 328rpm hub would probably give 13-15mph max unassisted.

Alan

 

[jerrysimon]

Alan raises a valid point about rims.

I found it hard to find a 36h 16" stock Brompton rims for my EBrompton conversion, although I notice they are available on ebay at the moment. I was able to get some blank undrilled ones in the end and a friend drilled them for me. I think I have three spares now lol

Although Sun CR18 rims come readily available in 36h versions, I find them really hard to get tyres on and off.

Regards

Jerry

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Alan raises a valid point about rims.

I found it hard to find a 36h 16" stock Brompton rims for my EBrompton conversion, although I notice they are available on ebay at the moment. I was able to get some blank undrilled ones in the end and a friend drilled them for me. I think I have three spares now lol

Although Sun CR18 rims come readily available in 36h versions, I find them really hard to get tyres on and off.

Regards

Jerry

I've got a couple if you need some more or if anyone else wants some. I forgot to tick 26" when I ordered them from BMSbattery so I got the default 16" ones.

 

[homemoz]

Plenty of info about them:Moulton Mini

The 14" rim is likely to be the biggest problem as it was 20h or 28h AFAIK, not ideal for building onto an e-hub.
Some owners seem to have fitted bigger wheels with different forks.

If a suitable rim is available it's feasible, a 328rpm hub would probably give 13-15mph max unassisted.

Alan

Thanks Alan,

I'll need to look at the bike more closely. My friend is going to email me with some pics. Also, need to make sure that it is the mini with suspension & not the later Raleigh midi which is unsuspended at the front. If it isn't possible to convert could still make a decent runaround. The minis seem to be getting more popular after being generally disregarded by the moultoneers & it would be nice to have a vintage bike!