Tote Gote Nova

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Lynnrb

New Member
#1
#1
I just pick up this bike, and I am new to the Tote Gote forum so I will have a lot of questions. Any help the forum can offer will be much welcomed.
I rode a Tote Gote one summer in the late 50s or early 60s out in west Texas, I still remember riding now 50 years ago, a real blast for a 12 year old.

To start with it will need in addition to a motor, drive shaft seals, fork bushings, rear brake caliper,ect.

I restored a 71' Honda Trail 90 last year and have had a great time riding the forest service roads in AZ,UT and NM.

Lynn
 
KustomKartKid

KustomKartKid

Administrator
#2
#2
you have come to the right place...there are several Tote aficionados on here to show you the way...Richard Trotter, Dzlbike, Smallbore..........I'm forgeting some others but they will chime in....




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jbrewton

jbrewton

#4
#4
Welcome, Totes are fun but the correct parts are hard to come by, start looking for a parts bike!

The correct clutch, which that thing HAS to have will be 200$ alone!
 
DZLBIKE

DZLBIKE

New Member
#5
#5
Welcome to OldMiniBikes!:scooter:

The correct clutch, which that thing HAS to have will be 200$ alone!
Click to expand...
Yep, a 100% correct statement. Back track and see if you can find the drive clutch. It is well worth the effort, as they are hard to come by. Nice bike, by the way!
Here is a pic of mine;

 
dajsnipe

dajsnipe

New Member
#6
#6
Nice Gote, and welcome. The parts are hard to find but they are out there, check back often and try posting in the "wanted" section.

I don't have a Nova, yet -but hears my 530

I'll have to get some photos of my 770 -must be on another computer.
 
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Richard Trotter

Richard Trotter

#7
#7
You have a nice model 780 Nova II. The original motor would have been a Briggs 7hp. These guys are right about the clutch. The only clutch that will work on a Nova is the original Bonham Climbaway clutch. Your best bet to find one is to watch for other tote gotes for sale. You need a clutch from a 6hp or 7hp tote gote for a 1" shaft. The 3hp, 4hp and 5hp gotes have a 3/4" shaft clutch. Luckily tote gotes aren't rare.
 
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jeep4me

jeep4me

Active Member
#9
#9
Welcome to the site. There's a wealth of knowledge around here from plenty of great guys who are willing to share it.

Here are some pictures of the Nova 680 I restored a few years ago.

Luckily mine was complete.




 
totegotes

totegotes

Member
#13
#13
The climb away clutches are keyed not splined. On the nova shaft drive models the driver clutch is installed with the spider and balls inward.
Many people say no other clutch will work but I have used a comet mag 44 on a nova. I had to have the outside retainer machined a little to fit over the shaft. The clutch worked well and I would do it again if I had to. I'll fin the pictures of that Gote and post them.
 
jeep4me

jeep4me

Active Member
#14
#14
Lynnrb said:
JEEP4me

You set a pretty high bar, looks like it just rolled out of the factory.
Mine is a 680 also. Lynn
Click to expand...
Thanks. I had fun doing this bike. It's more complicated then it looks. I had to have the transmission housing welded due to some hairline cracks in it, which was causing it to leak a little. The inside looked like it had hardly been used. So it was either hardly ridden or Bonham had the engineering near perfect.

I think I had over $2300 invested in that build. Doesn't take long with $20 here .... $75 there....you'll get the picture once you get started on it. But don't let that scare you away from restoring it, they're alot of fun once you get to ride them.
 
Richard Trotter

Richard Trotter

#17
#17
I believe totegotes. He has taught me a lot stuff about tote gotes. I hope a replacement clutch can be used. I always thought there were belt alignment problems with a comet clutch.
 
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Lynnrb

New Member
#18
#18
Looking at the Comet 44 drive clutch it appears that the stationary sheave is nearest the motor. This is the same as the driven stationary sheave on the climbaway. So there shouldn't be an alignment issue. Am I seeing this correctly?
 
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Lynnrb

New Member
#19
#19
Tore into the Nova today. This Nova is one clapped out bike. I am sure this was a parts bike that ended with all junk parts that were left over. This is not going to be a first class restore. But it is worth making into a user.
 
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