Why did mini bikes die?

Minimichael

Well-Known Member
#41
Well, I haven't been an expert witness, or a math major, but I have been a lawyer, and your narrative ignores the point of product liability law. When your device is involved in hurting people, you either continue to face the consequences of your action in the market, or you fix the device —usually both. The high-risk industry you're supplying to may not like that you're the only fun kart gas-cap game in town, but who's fault is that? Not the injured. Briggs enjoyed the privilege of the market for it's device but cut it's losses when the money dried up for that industry. That the mini and karting industries may have struggled to find willing, quality suppliers thereafter is not the fault of the consuming public, either. Hard-working, god-fearing, tax-paying, santa-loving Americans may have remained willing to buy, and ride, but for the gig being up, the toy being broken, and no adults (other suppliers) sufficiently motivated to stop and fix it. These were grown-up problems, solved by and for grown-ups. Nothing to do with kids.
 
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#42
Up here in the northeast we had a pretty damn sweet 100ft drag race held for years, it was the most fun event ever.
But noise and liability killed it. Trying to find a new venue for the race race has proven very difficult and it's only adults and it's only a 100ft track. So speeds are 40 and below.
Noise is a problem because the cops come, and no one wants the liability.
It's a damn shame imho
 

Bird Brain

Active Member
#45
Alot of valid points voiced. Think its a collaboration of all thats said. Not to mention in the early 2000's any bike under about 100cc's was under hard scrutiny for children under 12 or so being exposed to the possibility of lead in the product. Fear of lick'n on the frame i kid you not i guess. Just the times we are living in. Id still put a 5 year old on some kind of motorized cycle. Its my responsible to watch out for there well being. Telling them don't touch that its hot or hey don't eat on that it might give you Brain damage. All valid points.
 

Thepaetsguy

Well-Known Member
#48
this post just reminds me of all the crashes I have seen. From the top of a dirt hill on are farm the guy started on a bike didn’t hit the brakes before the jump and the ramp against the log broke. Must’ve went over 50ft up helicoptering like mad. Came down and his collar bone was the worst the hospital said they ever seen. then years later on the street. Bike ramp from the top of the hill hit the ramp and this kid also did front flips except not only his collar bone broke. and things like coolrich flipping the big 9hp kart... and we were all hicks in the early 2000’s so of course you know he never got his back fixed correctly. Or at all... my sister getting scalped by the chain... ol’ dirt road roach also flipped the 9hp kart man walked in the door looking like a cut up bloodbath horror movie.. my friend on one of those china 49cc two stroke scooters hit The gas and slammed right into the neighbors car door. What a day that was.
 

GustoGuy

Well-Known Member
#50
Well, I haven't been an expert witness, or a math major, but I have been a lawyer, and your narrative ignores the point of product liability law. When your device is involved in hurting people, you either continue to face the consequences of your action in the market, or you fix the device —usually both. The high-risk industry you're supplying to may not like that you're the only fun kart gas-cap game in town, but who's fault is that? Not the injured. Briggs enjoyed the privilege of the market for it's device but cut it's losses when the money dried up for that industry. That the mini and karting industries may have struggled to find willing, quality suppliers thereafter is not the fault of the consuming public, either. Hard-working, god-fearing, tax-paying, santa-loving Americans may have remained willing to buy, and ride, but for the gig being up, the toy being broken, and no adults (other suppliers) sufficiently motivated to stop and fix it. These were grown-up problems, solved by and for grown-ups. Nothing to do with kids.
Unfortunately people can find a way of hurting themselves with almost any motorized devices. For example just look at all the people missing fingers because they were trying to clear the chute on their running snowblower. There is a sticker on my snowblower warning you not to place your hands inside the chute area with a picture on it of how your fingers will get mangled if you do stick your fingers into the chute yet quite a few people do stick their hands inside the chute of their running snowblower and end up missing fingers. I agree with a previous posting about how cart racers built up engines lead to more people getting hurt on minibikes especially if novices ride. My built Predator 212cc on my Resto-mod Rupp Roadster 2 is not kid friendly or novice adult friendly but if driven by an experienced adult who knows how to drive a motorcycle or dirt bike it is way more fun to ride than the 4 hp stock minibike that Rupp built to be riden by 12 year olds. I am much bigger than a 12 year old and I used to ride my brothers Honda 250cc motocross dirt bike so I know how to handle the extra power. Plus I learned my lesson and even though my wife's 35 year old nephew who claims to have riden a 1999 Yamaha 125cc dirt bike and then disrespects my Resto-mod Rupp ends up getting on my Resto-mod Rupp Roadster with a built Predator 212cc eats $hit and Supermanned and flips my bike smashing the rear fender and tailight and bending the seat pan up over an inch and pushing it over nearly 1/2 inch. I will re-gear it with a 12 tooth jackshaft sprocket which has 1 extra tooth to hopefully soften up the acceleration since a stage 3 Predator 212cc powered Rupp borders on stupidly overpowered for newbies yet fun for experienced riders. Now my Resto-mod Rupp Roadster 2 will be banned for most riders except for a rarified few who proven themselves capable of handling it. Here is a video of it in action. I gps clocked it over a 4 mile run and top speed according to the app was 57 mph.
https://youtube.com/shorts/6jO1Da461EA?feature=share
 
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Thepaetsguy

Well-Known Member
#51
Unfortunately people can find a way of hurting themselves with almost any motorized devices. For example just look at all the people missing fingers because they were trying to clear the chute on their running snowblower. There is a sticker on my snowblower warning you not to place your hands inside the chute area with a picture on it of how your fingers will get mangled if you do stick your fingers into the chute yet quite a few people do stick their hands inside the chute of their running snowblower and end up missing fingers. I agree with a previous posting about how cart racers built up engines lead to more people getting hurt on minibikes especially if novices ride. My built Predator 212cc on my Resto-mod Rupp Roadster 2 is not kid friendly or novice adult friendly but if driven by an experienced adult who knows how to drive a motorcycle or dirt bike it is way more fun to ride than the 4 hp stock minibike that Rupp built to be riden by 12 year olds. I am much bigger than a 12 year old and I used to ride my brothers Honda 250cc motocross dirt bike so I know how to handle the extra power. Plus I learned my lesson and even though my wife's 35 year old nephew who claims to have riden a 1999 Yamaha 125cc dirt bike and then disrespects my Resto-mod Rupp ends up getting on my Resto-mod Rupp Roadster with a built Predator 212cc eats $hit and Supermanned and flips my bike smashing the rear fender and tailight and bending the seat pan up over an inch and pushing it over nearly 1/2 inch. I will re-gear it with a 12 tooth jackshaft sprocket which has 1 extra tooth to hopefully soften up the acceleration since a stage 3 Predator 212cc powered Rupp borders on stupidly overpowered for newbies yet fun for experienced riders. Now my Resto-mod Rupp Roadster 2 will be banned for most riders except for a rarified few who proven themselves capable of handling it. Here is a video of it in action. I gps clocked it over a 4 mile run and top speed according to the app was 57 mph.
https://youtube.com/shorts/6jO1Da461EA?feature=share
Stuck my fingers in the metal fan blade spinning on the front of an ol 258 grabbed my finger and split the tip wide open like a... well never mind. It should of sucked my hand in and been worse. I get anxiety thinking about life without a right hand/arm... Over a Jeeps fanblade..
 

GustoGuy

Well-Known Member
#52
Stuck my fingers in the metal fan blade spinning on the front of an ol 258 grabbed my finger and split the tip wide open like a... well never mind. It should of sucked my hand in and been worse. I get anxiety thinking about life without a right hand/arm... Over a Jeeps fanblade..
Thankfully it was only your finger tip. That will heal. I was reading about some of the other people's posting here and it's amazing that we survived childhood. Back 50 years ago an HS40 Tecumseh was just enough engine for an adult to go on a minibike ride and not too much engine for your 12 year old kid. Now a good dad doesn't buy the stupidly overpowered minibike that ends up killing or seriously injuring their kids.
 

Thepaetsguy

Well-Known Member
#53
Thankfully it was only your finger tip. That will heal. I was reading about some of the other people's posting here and it's amazing that we survived childhood. Back 50 years ago an HS40 Tecumseh was just enough engine for an adult to go on a minibike ride and not too much engine for your 12 year old kid. Now a good dad doesn't buy the stupidly overpowered minibike that ends up killing or seriously injuring their kids.
A good parent is capable of making rational decisions... No ya know what I don’t think little Johnny can hold down the might of an h40 yet... A bad parent wouldn’t make assumptions just cut’em loose on the xr100 and film the aftermath..
 
#54
XR 100 is a bad example. They were pretty tame and easy to ride. They were great little woods bikes.
YZ 125, CR anything are good examples of bad decision making if a parent put ANYBODY on one.
Good example of a bad mini to put a kid on was a Bonanza with a Hodaka engine on it.
 
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GustoGuy

Well-Known Member
#55
A good parent is capable of making rational decisions... No ya know what I don’t think little Johnny can hold down the might of an h40 yet... A bad parent wouldn’t make assumptions just cut’em loose on the xr100 and film the aftermath..

Let alone a stage 3 Predator 212cc. Lots of fun until someone looses an eye but even adult unexperienced riders can be hurt with a built Predator 212cc. My Resto-mod Rupp Roadster 2 is not rideable by little kids or even adult newbies who don't heed my advice when I tell them not to gun it on asphalt or cement from a dead stop because it can throw your sorry butt. No one but a rarified few will be riding my Resto-mod Rupp.
 

GustoGuy

Well-Known Member
#56
Let alone a stage 3 Predator 212cc. Lots of fun until someone looses an eye but even adult unexperienced riders can be hurt with a built Predator 212cc. My Resto-mod Rupp Roadster 2 is not rideable by little kids or even adult newbies who don't heed my advice when I tell them not to gun it on asphalt or cement from a dead stop because it can throw your sorry butt. No one but a rarified few will be riding my Resto-mod Rupp.
XR 100 is a bad example. They were pretty tame and easy to ride. They were great little woods bikes.
YZ 125, CR anything are good examples of bad decision making if a parent put ANYBODY on one.
Good example of a bad mini to put a kid on was a Bonanza with a Hodaka engine on it.

Or a Rupp Roadster 2 with a stage 3 Predator 212cc. The kid will most likely develop a bad case of road rash if they attempt to ride that. Even with the heavy Suzuki K10 Motorcycle fork it will throw you if you crack the throttle wide open on asphalt or cement. Ironically the 35 year old used to ride a Yamaha 125cc dirt bike and he couldn't handle my Resto-mod Rupp Roadster with a built Predator 212cc. 20210919_184032_resized.jpg
 
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Minimichael

Well-Known Member
#57
Or a Rupp Roadster 2 with a stage 3 Predator 212cc. The kid will most likely develop a bad case of road rash if they attempt to ride that. Even with the heavy Suzuki K10 Motorcycle fork it will throw you if you crack the throttle wide open on asphalt or cement. Ironically the 35 year old used to ride a Yamaha 125cc dirt bike and he couldn't handle my Resto-mod Rupp Roadster with a built Predator 212cc. View attachment 302696
35, huh? That's no kid. Amazing restore on that Roadster! It looks pretty showroomy there on the driveway. The seat and everything look great.
 
#58
You are showing a bad example, also. You purposely built a monster that would NEVER have been offered for retail sale, even during the "Muscle Car" era. It is my thought that people building things like you have, using parts and tricks developed for gokart racing, that led to the demise of production mini bikes.
 

Mr. Pink

Well-Known Member
#59
This is my experience.

In the early to mid 70’s when my friends and I were into mini bikes, we all had the inclination to tinker on anything with wheels and there was never any parental involvement.
All parts were scrounged on garbage day or bought with money earned delivering newspapers.
By the late 70’s, we all were into cars and had lost interest in mini bikes.
In the 80’s when cars became computerized, it seems like fewer people were doing their own maintenance, and the 11 - 15 year olds who would be discovering mini bikes now had Pacman, Asteriods, Space Invaders, Atari, Commodore and TRS-80, so fewer people were getting their hands dirty.

I just know that when I tell stories of my youth to my son, he envisions the black and white scenes from Little Rascals.

Little Rascals.jpeg
 
#60
You are 100% correct. That's funny, too...
I must be about your age. My son, when he was about 8, (last year) asked me what color flowers were before there was TV.
I told him they were the same color as now. He informed me that in school they told him flowers got colored in 1968.
 
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