# Perfect yacht bike!



## DavidB.UK (Sep 11, 2011)

Hello everybody!

Some of you will remember one of my early threads, in which I posed the question on using the boom to crane a lightweight dirtbike on and off.

well for various reasons it appeared that said idea was not quite as sound as I thought it was. But...

Yesterday I found a solution!!!!

Let me introduce the FX...








The way is was explained to me is that if you imagine a continuum with an enduro bike at one end and a mountain bike at the other, then the FX fits somewhere in the middle.

125cc (bigger models in pipeline)
57kg (125.4lb)
125mpg

Now at 125lb you could lift the bike on and off without a crane, you could even lift the bike (with care) onto a tender and presto you have transport when you arrive at the beach!

I have just reserved one of these bikes!
I think they are *INSPIRED*!

And yes they have already thought about the sea air/corrosion issue!
And they have a '*Marine*' version with extra corrosion resistance and fully encapsulated electrics!!!

And at just $3'999 (((Brand new))) they are a bargain!
Here is the website for further details:

FX Bikes Mountain Moto World's Lightest Motorcycles 125lb 125cc 125mpg


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## dacap06 (Feb 2, 2008)

Wow, that's interesting. I had expected that you would eventually settle on a motorized bicycle but you were more creative than that. What size tender will you need to haul something like that?


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## DavidB.UK (Sep 11, 2011)

dacap06 said:


> Wow, that's interesting. I had expected that you would eventually settle on a motorized bicycle but you were more creative than that. What size tender will you need to haul something like that?


That's what I had thought I would end up with too, I found this website yesterday quite by accident, but I am so glad that I did!

I think a certain amount of trial and error on hardstanding will be required, but just off the top of my head I think something like an Avon 310 would be be enough.

At 57kg thats about the weight of an average sized... woman, so from a position of weight in the tender perhaps something even smaller could be used.

But care would need to be taken to protect the tender from any sharp points on the bike. I will post another thread when the bike arrives and then can post real world findings.


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## bljones (Oct 13, 2008)

No lights- how do you plan to license it for the road?
Although light, it's still a pretty big package.

I like something like a di biasi better:
Di Blasi of America - FOLDING MOTORCYCLE MOTOR BIKE MINIBIKE MOTORBIKE MOPED COLLAPSABLE MOTORSCOOTER PORTABLE SCOOTER MINI-BIKES MINI BIKE PRIVATE PILOTS BOATS SAILING RECREATION TOURISTS ACCESSORIES TRAVEL AIRPLANES ALTERNATE TRANSPORTATION VEHICLE
Half the weight, half the size, fits in a carrying bag.


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## ccriders (Jul 8, 2006)

Also, is the "marine" version equipped for carring stuff? Ideally some of that wheel travel would be reduced and collapsible compartments and a load carrying platform provided. Show us a picture with the cycle in the dinghy.
John


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## DavidB.UK (Sep 11, 2011)

bljones said:


> No lights- how do you plan to license it for the road?


I don't know what the score is with road reg in the states, but to register a bike in the uk is fairly straight forward process.

You can get a 'daylight only' MOT (MOT = annual road safety check) which allow you to use the bike on the road only in daylight hours with no lights at all as long as you have a horn and a reflector on the back.

To get a full MOT for use day or night you need a horn, dipping headlight and stop/tail light on the back (but still do not require indicators) horn/lights (as described) is a fairly simple DIY job.

There are lots of aftermarket (universal fit) parts designed specifically for the purpose of converting off road bikes for dual use.

Things like this:








and this











bljones said:


> Although light, it's still a pretty big package.
> 
> I like something like a di biasi better:


I have seen the DiBlasi before and whilst it has some advantages of being smaller/folding etc it is strictly a road going only and I really like the idea that the FX can go offroad too.

Similar to DiBlasi is this cool little electric thing I found that might be of interest

















YikeBike - The world's first super light folding electric bike. | Urban Freedom
10kg only for the Carbon fibre version!
Fully electric and that looks like a great little tool, but for me the winner is still the FX because it will happily go offroad too.


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## DavidB.UK (Sep 11, 2011)

ccriders said:


> Also, is the "marine" version equipped for carring stuff? Ideally some of that wheel travel would be reduced and collapsible compartments and a load carrying platform provided


Hadn't thought of that, but I would think it would be relatively easy to add a simple carrying rack above the rear mudgaurd just like you can fit to a regular dirtbike like this:








And use some good old bungee cord...
Beyond personal transport, for food shopping etc I guess a rucksack would be the way forwards.



ccriders said:


> Show us a picture with the cycle in the dinghy


As soon as mine is delivered I'll post a new thread showing my real world findings


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## DavidB.UK (Sep 11, 2011)

ccriders said:


> Ideally some of that wheel travel would be reduced


You really need that level of suspension travel to be useable offroad.
But the idea or collapsable compartment is a great idea though.
Something that unfolds above the rear mudgaurd for carrying stuff would be great idea, kind of like a folding basket or something similar for when being used for carrying stuff.


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## SloopJonB (Jun 6, 2011)

DavidB.UK said:


> The way is was explained to me is that if you imagine a continuum with an enduro bike at one end and a mountain bike at the other, then the FX fits somewhere in the middle.


What a sweetie. It reminds me a lot of a trials bike. A 125 is plenty big enough to keep up on the highway but I'd change those knobbie tires for something a little smoother for road use - learned THAT from hard (pavement hard) experience. 

You'd definitely have to have a thickly padded carry bag or something if you wanted to put it in an inflatable - look at those footpegs


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## AncientTech (Jun 16, 2012)

If/when I ever get a yacht bike, I would have something more like this in mind...

Electric or manual to be more versatile. And it folds up as well!


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## DavidB.UK (Sep 11, 2011)

bljones said:


> No lights- how do you plan to license it for the road?


Also, according to the manufacturer's website; there is going to release a full dual sport version with lights and indicators at some point in the near future.


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## K Cuv (Jun 18, 2012)

The fx bikes look pretty legit. Write a review after you get it!


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## DavidB.UK (Sep 11, 2011)

K Cuv said:


> The fx bikes look pretty legit. Write a review after you get it!


Will do! 
Although it will be sometime next year sadly, still looking at 12 months for delivery of the first bikes


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## bljones (Oct 13, 2008)

why not just buy a whizzer, or a power pack to install on a dual suspension disc brake mountain bike and have what you want for less, right now?

Kings Motor Bikes,Motorized Bicycle,Bicycle Engine Kit,Bicycle motors,bicycle engine kit parts


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## Jgbrown (Mar 26, 2012)

I wouldn't go with that FWIW. Looks like a lightweight play bike, not good for transporting goods, no passenger possible. Gimmicks are great, but for a tender to a boat, I'd go reliable, well known and predicatable. Especially if travelling out of the country. Few things appeal to me less than the idea of arguing why a border guard should understand that my piece of paper makes a not originally road legal bike road legal in a language I don't speak well.

CT110 or Yamaha 125 would be my choice. or a light small 250 if you can afford the space/weight. Something with an actual dealer network, common parts and known reliably. If you really want to go lighter still, a 50CC 2 stroke scooter upgraded to 70CC scooter would work well as well. That FX strikes me as the worst of both worlds; The motorcycle equivalent to a jetski. I once upon a time considered a similar bike as a cool alternative, I thought, a GASGAS with a hotted up WR250F engine in it. 
I am very grateful I didn't. Expensive and frequent servicing, constant demand for parts and hard to find. As a on boat motorbike I'd think toughness and reliability would be priorities. 
I have a WR250R insetad, which shares little in common enginewise, tough, reasonably light, 42, 000 km valve service intervals(vs 300, not a typo, for the GasGas).

Something that is commonly known and predictable and tough would be better in my books.

EDIT: This is a rider I met along the road, I think he's in Albania in the picture. If he can ride this all over the world, you can use it as a tender reliably I think. Fuel injected, reliable, used as delivery bikes worldwide.
EDIT2; BL, I wouldn't want one of those on my boat! Can't take it on the road around here, and could get you in a lot of hot water just about anywhere.










$5 a day, dirt roads RTW on a 125cc Yamaha YBR - ADVrider


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## SloopJonB (Jun 6, 2011)

Jgbrown said:


> I wouldn't go with that FWIW. Looks like a lightweight play bike, not good for transporting goods, no passenger possible. Gimmicks are great, but for a tender to a boat, I'd go reliable, well known and predicatable. Especially if travelling out of the country. Few things appeal to me less than the idea of arguing why a border guard should understand that my piece of paper makes a not originally road legal bike road legal in a language I don't speak well.
> 
> CT110 or Yamaha 125 would be my choice. or a light small 250 if you can afford the space/weight. Something with an actual dealer network, common parts and known reliably. If you really want to go lighter still, a 50CC 2 stroke scooter upgraded to 70CC scooter would work well as well. That FX strikes me as the worst of both worlds; The motorcycle equivalent to a jetski. I once upon a time considered a similar bike as a cool alternative, I thought, a GASGAS with a hotted up WR250F engine in it.
> I am very grateful I didn't. Expensive and frequent servicing, constant demand for parts and hard to find. As a on boat motorbike I'd think toughness and reliability would be priorities.
> ...


Obviously those are more substantial bikes but do any of them weigh 125 Lbs and fit in a typical dinghy? A Honda Cub weighs almost twice that (200 Lbs)


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## DavidB.UK (Sep 11, 2011)

The WR250F is one of the best dirt-bikes available & is on my shopping list, but will be kept in my brother's garage to ride with him when back home.

But at it's heart, it is a competition bike capable of landing 30/40/50ft jumps etc and as such needs to be very tough, that toughness comes at a cost... weight! Ok, yes its less than 100kg (220lb) dry weight but that is too heavy to think about keeping on a small boat and you would need to crane it on and off etc

The little FX is light enough that it could be lifted onto the dockside without a crane, and (i think) put onto a tender safely, as long as some care was taken to protect the tender.

Any use abroad is going throw up problems regardless of what you were to take with you.
as long is the FX is properly road legal then it shouldn't (in theory) be a big problem.

Initially however it will be used as a commuter tool and play thing around the UK, if for example I decided to sail up to Scotland and explore some of the Scottish islands then I can do so on the little FX without needing to hire a car etc.

Here is a picture of the 'paps of Jura' for you all to enjoy, I lived on the west coast of Scotland in 2010 and fully intend to go back that way sooner or later and explore some of those waters in my little boat...


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## smurphny (Feb 20, 2009)

What registration problems might you run into trying to use the roads in foreign countries with a motorized bike of any sort? It's difficult enough getting my bike to shore in a lot of places. You can easily pedal 20 miles or so with a regular bike to get supplies in a backpack. Anything farther than that and it's time to rent something with a motor ashore, get a taxi, a bus, or bum a ride.


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

Hey, if you have to ride, you have to ride. I get that, I have a couple of bikes myself. Go for it, if you must.

However, I'm quite suspicious of dead lifting 125lbs into a dinghy. I'm trying to envision my wife, just lying on the dock, while I am sitting in the dinghy and trying to pick her up and put her aboard. Not quite the same, but that would be hard. Now I'm trying to imagine getting it off the sailboat at anchor. Not gunna happen for me.

Naturally, you're going to have to wait for pipes to cool down when you return as well.


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## DavidB.UK (Sep 11, 2011)

Minnewaska said:


> However, I'm quite suspicious of dead lifting 125lbs into a dinghy. I'm trying to envision my wife, just lying on the dock, while I am sitting in the dinghy and trying to pick her up and put her aboard. Not quite the same, but that would be hard. Now I'm trying to imagine getting it off the sailboat at anchor.


I think for the most part you could use the boom as a make shift crane, with a little ingenuity I think this could be done easily enough.

The only scenario I can see that it might be an issue is if the boat is tied up along side another. Then it may be a taxi ride instead.



Minnewaska said:


> Naturally, you're going to have to wait for pipes to cool down when you return as well.


Good point!


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

DavidB.UK said:


> I think for the most part you could use the boom as a make shift crane, with a little ingenuity I think this could be done easily enough.
> 
> The only scenario I can see that it might be an issue is if the boat is tied up along side another. Then it may be a taxi ride instead.


I'm a little confused, but you'll figure out a plan.

If you are loading into the dinghy with your boom, you must be at anchor/mooring. Otherwise, you would put it straight to the dock. It's getting it back into the dinghy from the dock that seems daunting to me. No boom available. Although, dropping her into the dink from the boom at anchor is a minimum two person job too.


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

I guess this is worth mentioning, as you have some real $$ on the line. Most everyone I know that has a 100 lb outboard mounted on their stern rail, finds it and enormous PITA to deal with it. They often have dedicated motor hoists too. Just something to think about.


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## DavidB.UK (Sep 11, 2011)

Lots to think about for sure 

But I have some until the bike arrives to figure some solutions.

I think you are right about dock to dinghy being the most tricky to sort though.


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## Brent Swain (Jan 16, 2012)

I have found my Crescent Swedish made folding bike does the job, no motor needed. Reduces my odds of winding up in the cardiac ward.
I have had to make some marine improvements. Got rid of the ball bearing pedals. They grind to a sudden halt, without warning, miles form your destination, when they give up. Then ,to make maters worse, all bikes have left hand threads on the left pedal and right hand threads on the right one. That way, when they start to seize up, the pedal is designed to unscrew itself every 50 feet. Were they the other way around, they would tighten; far more logical , but logic is too much to ask. I ended up welding a 7/16 stainless bolt to the pedal thread, then drilling a hole in a square piece of poly plastic , putting that over the bolt, and super gluing the nut on. I think that will last my lifetime. I also replaced the pedal mid bearings with bronze bushings.
As one Lasquetian told me "We ride our bikes thru clouds of grinding compound." When the two speed hub starts misbehaving, I pump it full of "Corrosion Block" a sealer in a pressure can I bought from an electronics place, Quaele Electric, designed for reducing corrosion on electronics. It foams like peroxide. Thus it gets under the crud and blows it off. When it starts leaving the hub, it first looks like mud gushing out. When it comes clean, the inside of the hub is clean. Then the gear works much better , until the mud fills it up again. Thankfully , this lets me clean it without taking it apart.


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## Dirtboy (Jul 13, 2009)

Bought a pair of these last month, neither running. Took 'em to the guy who works on my bikes and he made one good 'un outta two. I'm thinking this would work as good as any of them new age machines .... check it out. 1982 Yamaha Towny 110 lbs (assuming dry,) shaft drive (no chain rust worries) and the suspension actually works ..... sorta. LOL Comes street legal and tops out at about 33 MPH, guess Interstates are out. Anyway, didn't buy for the boat (I'm a day sailor) but for quick runs to the local market a mile or so away. Just brought her home today so here goes:

Look; racks front and rear!









Is that road rash?









I could have them off in no time, them maybe a block of wood for protection.









I'm the second owner; got owners man and everything! 3900 miles.









DB


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## DavidB.UK (Sep 11, 2011)

Can't do this:









or this:









or this:









and I love doing this kind of stuff!









For me the FX will allow me to do this kind of stuff (to some degree) as well as a commuter tool. There have been some wonderful suggestions and I am hugely grateful for everybody's input. And I hope this thread has been useful to others too

But for my own needs/desires the FX is still a clear winner for me!


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## DavidB.UK (Sep 11, 2011)

Not so sure about the gun on the front but this version has a bit of storage!









And here is a picture complete with token hotty!








But sadly I don't think she comes with the bike!


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## Dirtboy (Jul 13, 2009)

Hey David,

My post was a little tongue-in-cheek as the improvements over the last 30 years have been amazing! That FX looks like a nice bit of kit and I wouldn't mind having one myself.

From 50cc to 125cc and roughly the same weight BUT: Disc vs drum; Aluminum vs pressed steal; proper tires (okay tyres) vs moped tires; proper suspension vs junk! LOL

Looking forward to your ride report.

BTW I love doing that sort of stuff, too. Here in Florida no mountains to climb but I'm really good in deep sand! 

DB


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## DavidB.UK (Sep 11, 2011)

lol, no worries.

I know that for many who have posted the function of any on board transport for most tends to be just for nipping the the shops and so on.

To be honest before I accidentally found the FX I has more or less decided that the idea of cruising with a dirtbike on board was too ambitious and the best was forward would be to buy a little diBlasi or yikebike and hire car/dirtbike when required.

There are a few videos and stuff on the web, I just hope that it is as good as it appears to be on paper and in the ride reviews etc.


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## bljones (Oct 13, 2008)

a generation ago we were doing that just fine with old Honda Trail 90s and 110s. 

I had an old Honda 175 streetbike that never saw the street- abandoned rail beds, gravel pits, fields, but no roads.
In the 3rd world, the Honda Cub and it's various knock-offs are still popular family transportation and Off-roading in Britain is equivalent to a good road in Borneo.

You really don't need the latest and greatest to dow what has been done since bikes were first built. But, the one thing the bike in question does have is lighter weight. 
Maybe.
Methinks weight will go up once mass production starts. IF production starts.


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## Jgbrown (Mar 26, 2012)

Best of luck with the FX. The other issue I see with it is that is is quite large physically, if light. A neat looking concept to be sure. However I will go with something a bit heavier, and a bit smaller to load that uses standard parts available worldwide. If it can be thrashed through trails on a round the world ride I think it must be tough enough for most things. I agree with Bljones, there are plenty of older bikes that will do it, the big advantage is parts. I can find a tire to fit a small dirt bike or the yamaha crossover one almost anywhere in the world, dunno about the FX. Likewise a lot of other standard parts. I took a bike with an uncommon tire size on a long trip last year, it was quite a headache, I ended up carrying a full rear tire and 2 tubes on the back. Smaller and heavier may be easier to load on a sailboat. I was quite surprised at how hard it was to load and unload my e-bike by dinghy at anchor(Voodoo mtb+48v 1kw engine in the rear wheel).


IF the Fx every hits production(Advrider shows threads from 2005, 2008 on them, so they've been making bikes and having them tested at least that long) I will probably buy one so long as the tire sizes are fairly standard. I do like that they used Honda engines etc, which I didn't realize and it gives them a lot more credibility in my books, but I will be amazed if they can get an actually street legal version for sale. Downhill bike bars, suspension etc make me think not. And that street legality is a must have. The only other option I could see is if they market them as 50cc scooters with a drop in replacement motor to avoid some of the legalities.


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