Last weekend, I was cleaning up some scrap metal at my parents' house and I found some long lost buried treasure:
Back about 20 years ago, my dad's buddy gave me this mini bike frame after he found out that I picked up a go-kart. I never got around to do anything with it, because I ended up getting another fully assembled minibike and later a car. I thought for sure it was tossed years ago, but it was just covered by 20 years of debris and leaves.
Anyone recognize the frame? I have looked online and I have no clue who made it. The rear shocks are like none of them that I've seen. It is remarkably intact, although some of the components are not salvageable due to rust, but I'm sure they could be replaced. And the kicker: it's an adult-sized frame. I am thinking of making a vintage pit bike out of it. 
That's cool. I've wanted a a mini bike since I was a little kid. I have a 5 hp engine that's waiting for the right frame to come along.
I looked pretty seriously at mini bikes for pit work. There are huge resources available and some of the old ones are being remade. Seems a lot of people are buying the $100 Harbor Freight motor. Me, I wanted an electric start, so was looking at a Northern Tool motor for only $50 more:
http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200612136_200612136
I had a pull start pit bike in the past and got tired of yanking on it-- you tend to do a lot of short trips in the paddock. Plus my wife didn't like to use it at all for that reason.
I'll probably just end up with a small used scooter instead, though. Building a mini bike from a new frame would be somewhat pricey and time consuming. Building from an old frame would be even more time consuming.
My older brother had one back in the 70's. I'll have to scan an old picture of it and try to figure out what kind of frame it was. His was a hardtail though.
Check out oldminibikes.com/forum
There's a section for frame identification.
Thanks guys! I want to do a full vintage setup if I can. I am talking metal flake paint, sparkly big padded seat, and a vintage Tecumseh or Briggs engine. It would be fun to tool around the yard in it too. 
honda z50...
Dad just picked one up.
Last pic is him and my son.
Bike will pull my 300 lb ass up the hill with no problems. 3 speed gear box autoclutch. (you select the gear like a bike but it does the clutch for you.)
Honda uses the exact some motor to this day for their 50 cc dirt bike.
And off to CL to look at mini-bikes now...
44Dwarf
UltraDork
10/7/14 12:49 p.m.
It is amazing how much old Honda Trails, mopeds and cubs (CT's) go for. I've been looking for a good pit bike and I've looked at all of them. Even 30 year old Sprees go for $500 to $700 around here. Some enterprising individual in a nearby town is asking $1200 for a Spree. Of course, he has been asking for a looong time.
In reply to Basil Exposition:
Really? Makes me think I should clean up the spree I have in the barn and will likely never ride and dump it. IIRC the plastic is nice enough it still has a petcock cover.
44Dwarf wrote:
You can wheelie a z50 by holding the shift lever up then rev it and let the shift lever return to its resting spot the clutch will dump the second you let the lever go. :) 
Or end up on your ass... :D
Dad paid 500 but has already spent 200 in parts...
I told him to just call up honda and see what a new motor/transmission costs. the current 50cc costs 1.3k. i told him just buy one and transplant the fresh heart...
44Dwarf
UltraDork
10/9/14 7:11 a.m.
CHP has boat loads of power parts and restore parts too.
http://www.hondaminitrail.com/
as well as minimob racing out of Canada but they ship fast and have parts that CHP doesn't.
http://www.minimobracing.com/
Kenny_McCormic wrote:
In reply to Basil Exposition:
Really? Makes me think I should clean up the spree I have in the barn and will likely never ride and dump it. IIRC the plastic is nice enough it still has a petcock cover.
You get it cleaned up and running and, depending on whether there is an insurmountable geographic distance between us, I'll give you $500 for it. I'm serious. I wasted an hour this morning trying to buy a Honda Gyro from a Craigslist Moron.
