ARCO Ez Rider.

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OrangeAnimal

Member
#1
#1
Ok so I sort of created a monster. I have been lurking around reading stuff from this forum for quite sometime it’s been a huge help in the last year or so. I helped a friend with a lil Indian mini bike and now decided to build my own. I found this old ARCO for sale pretty cheap thought I would go check it out. I ended up taking it home cause he gave no warning about the governor being bypassed and the lack of brakes that were actually useable.
This is it when I brought it home after looping it in the middle of street. It had a HH60 on it first pic. Then I tore it completely down and redid everything installing the correct HS40 which had a very short life. Now I got the dumb idea to pull that engine and install a predator on it. A 212! Obviously even though the engine is all stock it’s more than a handful to manage.
So my query is what would it be like with a stock predator 79cc? I have a feeling that would be too small. Could I do anything to make it more rider friendly with the 212? Not really looking to keep it stock at this point even though that would be cool. I just started out wanting a good rider that had that vintage look. 9B78BD05-7372-482B-A290-E35E10F0971A.jpeg ADC89734-F911-4364-B9A5-B445BBE7A72D.jpeg
 

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sparkwizard

sparkwizard

#2
#2
Nice job on the restore!
If you want less power, you could screw the throttle stop screw in. I have a CT100U with a little 3 horse that came on it. It is pretty peppy on flat grass with me on it. 165 pounds. My 65 pound son thinks it is too fast.
 
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OrangeAnimal

Member
#3
#3
I guess the top speed isn’t really the issue more the torque and tendency to lift the front tire sky high. The poor front end is in rough shape. I have also been trying to find a decent replacement piece. But yes I could try the screw and see how it responds to limiting it. I am 165 and it can easily get away from me. But I am careful and know when I can and better yet how much I can twist the throttle.
Thanks!!
 
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panchothedog

Well-Known Member
#4
#4
Learning to ride the thing is your key to success. No law says you have to goose it all the way when you take off from a dead stop. The day will come when you'll want everything it's got.
 
sparkwizard

sparkwizard

#5
#5
You can experiment with the spring on the governor arm. Moving the spring to the hole closest to the block will give you the least amount of power and RPM. Moving it to the farthest hole will make it stronger. That is probably what you should mess with until you master the beast. Good luck and be safe.
 
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OrangeAnimal

Member
#6
#6
What about front forks? Mine are pretty loose where the slide for the springs and have got me a bit concerned about what is going to happen at higher speeds and especially off road? Any suggestions for replacement? Or is it going to be a diy sort of solution?
 
pomfish

pomfish

Well-Known Member
#8
#8
OrangeAnimal said:
What about front forks? Mine are pretty loose where the slide for the springs and have got me a bit concerned about what is going to happen at higher speeds and especially off road? Any suggestions for replacement? Or is it going to be a diy sort of solution?
Click to expand...
Damn nice resto!

Yeah, hear you on the fork slop, had a couple of these bikes (still have one with fixed seat) and also do not trust it at speed and only ride slow on genuine trails. They are never going to act like a Yamaha Gt80 or even 50 with real motorcycle hydraulic forks.
At the end of the day these were made for 100 lb kids, not full size adults. Treat as such.

As far as wheelie action, again that happens not only because of the increased torque of the 212 Predator but also because of your weight positioned near centerline of rear wheel. Just a product of wheelbase. Manco Thunderbirds with a Predators a real terror for this worse than the ARCO.
Adjusting throttle stop only helps so much. Just get used to rolling into acceleration after some movement. Loose gravel or dirt is another story and you can get away with more.
 
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OrangeAnimal

Member
#9
#9
Yeah it’s nice to have more throttle through the yard and tall grass. But on the pavement you gotta watch it. I am 45 and I can tell you I don’t heal like I did when I was 20. I have already gotten hurt a couple times recently on other bikes I was too big to be trying to ride lol. Throttle control and body position do help a lot!

I think I may just build a set of forks for it.
 
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OrangeAnimal

Member
#11
#11
Yeah I can tell when it engages. It’s pretty low speed. My estimate is about 1800-2200. I know if your on that throttle good when it does it’ll try and dump you right off lol.

Back to home built front ends. I had an idea, I have a beat up ct70 frame. And maybe even better a Tomos moped frame I might be able to rob the parts including the steering tube and really make a nice suspended front end maybe even use the front mag wheel it’s 16 inch though but if I added some rake to it that might make a really cool chopper style and add some decent front brakes to the mix.
 
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OrangeAnimal

Member
#12
#12
Well I got the original front suspension setup fixed up. Better bearings in the front wheel and I was able to tighten up the axle bolt more and now no more loose slop.

I did remove the predator engine though. I am going to sell the ARCO with the Tecumseh HS40 and let someone else enjoy it the way it was meant to be. I wanted to go faster and that just ain’t a thing for this bike without hacking it up and it’s too nice for that. I am including the original gas tank, throttle, and handle bars as well. I also have the front plate that was welded to the fork tubes. With the ARCO decal. Interested drop me a message I am in North Carolina I will post a proper ad soon. When I get it back together with the Tecumseh.
 
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