Help with centrifugal clutch

hello all

I need to buy a centrifugal clutch for motorizing my bike. The engine is a

31cc weedeater (yes I know those are not the best for this). My doubt is that the clutches commonly available (mainly Comet, 4 inches) usually are rated rated 2.5 to 6 HP. I guess my engine can put about 1 HP., perhaps 1.5 HP at most. Is the engine underpowered for these clutches? I could get a trimmer clutch but then the clutch seem to be small for the task.

Thanks in advance

Camilo

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If the gearing is proper so that your small engine will move the bike then the small clutch will be OK. The stock clutch is made to be able to transmit the engine power at a certain rpm and torque. The higher the rpm the less torque it has to transmrit. Not only that, the faster it spins will also make the clutch grab tighter. So make sure that the engine will be running at the proper design RPM when powering the bike. ERS

get one from a chainsaw.... Ken.

Some weed whackers also have centrifugal clutches.

Today I went to the area in my town where chainsaw and trimmer shops are. There at last a guy showed me the clutch from a Stihl chainsaw.That clutch seems adecuate but it would take some hacking. Do chainsaw clutches have metal shoes as a norm? And are metal shoes superior to fiber lined ones? BTW, why are trimmer spares so expensive? One would think they are gold plated or something.

Camilo

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Every chainsaw clutch I have ever seen has had metal shoes . They stand up very well in commercial chain saws . Metal shoes in the commercial trimmers as well but they seem not to last long . As to price , well no competition in the parts market keeps the prices high I would guess . Luck Ken Cutt

Chainaw clutches are not supposed to slip much. They basically act like a dog clutch in that once they start to engage there is no slipping. This just lets the engine idle without having the chain spinning. The clutch in a mini-bike or go cart will need to slip more because of the much higher mass that needs to be accelerated and the lower relative torque of the engine. If a chainsaw clutch slips much they overheat in a hurry. ERS