ok, so i'm looking at getting a roketa mini. anybody have experience with these? been wanting a mini for a pitbike/playtoy for a while now and stumbled across what may be a really good deal on one. after doing a little research i found that they are cheap new but the general public seemed to have a good opinion and i keep seeing that they have honda motors and honda-based motors. obviously there's a big difference there, so does anyone know which it it? TIA
I've actually been doing alot of research on these types of pitbikes since I want something like that myself for next season. It appears that the Roketa model is very similar to the Apollo and Orion model pitbikes in that they all have similar frames and engines and the parts are made in China. Are you buying new? If so, just make sure that the company offers a warranty more than just 3 months long and hopefully they offer a warranty on the frame as well. I've read some horror stories on these types of bikes from back in 2007, but it seems like a lot of issues are being ironed out now. Many companies are starting to replace the factory parts with upgraded suspension, hubs, axles and so forth to ensure longevity. I personally want to get one with a brand name trustworthy motor as well, such as a YX 125 and GPX motors. If you go the cheap route with a basic model that's brand new, just make sure to go over it with a fine tooth comb, loctite the bolts and break it in as instructed. Don't take it off any sweet jumps either. It would make you a good pitbike for the pits, but if you want a toy you can beat up on, be prepared to spend about $1100 - 1400 for a decent, upgraded model that can handle the abuse.
I'm not buying new. Found one being auctioned and current bid is only $100 but they dont know if it runs because it wont go into neutral. I figure if i can pick it up for $200 at the most, i'll tinker with the motor to try to repair and if it cant be fixed (reasonably), then no problem, find a cheap little honda/yamaha/suzuki/kawasaki/etc. motor for it. but i dont wanna be trying to polish a turd either and if everything else on it is still worthless, i dont want to waste my time.
Stuff like that can be a toss-up sometimes. It could be a simple fix and you could make off good, or you could lose money. I tried that once and got burned and ended up selling something I got for $250 for $60 cause it only ran for 2 days before it died. I tinkered and found it to be a waste of money to fix and chalked it up as a loss and a lesson learned. I guess you just have to ask yourself if you want to gamble or not...
I guess my real question is what are all the components aside from the motor like? suspension, brakes, etc.? If I get it, I'm doing so expecting to have to put a new motor in it and if it turns out thats not necessary, then its just a plus. But I don't wanna put a nice new motor in it if the rest of the bike is just going to fall apart around it. hence, why i was hoping to hear from someone thats had one whether or not it was a decent bike or junk.
what do you plan on using it for? trail riding? dirt riding? neighborhood streets? how much do you weigh? As long as you don't need a new motor, you would be ok. Wish I could give you more detailed info, but just from my research on the very basic models, depending on your plan of use, it's all about identifying the weak points and refining them until you have something that can take a beating. You might plan to go ahead and upgrade the rear axle to one thats stronger ($20), and then later on down the line you can look for other areas where normal aftermarket bolt-ons will help
pit bike and parking lot play toy. maybe just throwing some slicks on it and doing some minis stuff. no jumps or off-roading stuff
Q, I take it you are looking on cranky ape.com? If not they have had a bunch on there all look like bank repo's. Dealer must of went under.... Ride safe, AAron
I bought a Roketa 50cc scooter and it didn't work out well. It had 25 miles on it when I bought it and it ran for about 3 months without problems. As soon as I needed to find little parts here and there to make repairs, it became impossible. I did save on the initial purchase price, but I'm just gonna spend the extra few hundred and buy something I know will run and will be an easy fix if it doesn't.
I got burned on a Chinese made quad. Ran great for a short while, but everything was made out of chocolate and butter, and it didn't take long for things to start crapping out. Parts? Impossible. I'll cough up for a brand name every time now.
Thanks for the help. Think I'm gonna pass on it. The availability (or lack thereof) of parts really bothers me and there still seems to be limited knowledge on this particular brand. So probably gonna go with Stephen's idea and find a clapped out xr or nsr or something.
Whats the weight limit on one of these? Can you upgrade to a heavier spring to increase the weight limit/ ride comfort?
Essentially unlimited as far as riding it goes. We race them out on my buddies farm and beat the living hell out of them. They can be sprung and modified to your hearts content. Look around on the web some the parts available and what some people do to them is just silly.
You couldn't give me a Chinese made bike/scooter/four wheeler :down: Don't know what they're like recently and don't care. Worked on them a few years ago. JUNK, JUNK, JUNK! Terrible suspension components, hard to find corrrect replacement parts and heaven forbid you have any electrical issues. For those of you with Chinese made bikes... more power to you and good luck. I've never owned one but worked on many for friends. When the occassional customer wanted one repaired I turned them down. You get what you pay for
Bought two a few years ago to tear around the yard. Everything on them is crap, metal has the consistency of plastic. One clutch works, one doesn't. They shift like crap. Suspension looks cool, but it's crap. Brakes are crap, seat is crap, frame is crap, one of the engine casings has a chunk missing, crap! Replacement parts are crap.... These are no where near the quality of Orion and they are crap. Hope this helps....
The chinese stuff can be a mixed bag. The motors overall are pretty solid. Honda designs, but not made by Honda. I personally prefer the vertical motors, but that's mostly because I understand them more than the horizontals. If you ever end up with one, the frame hardware really needs to be swapped out for decent stainless steel bolts/nuts.
6'3" 240lbs geared up.(#78) At this point the bike still had stock forks and shocks with heavy weight springs. Comfortable? It's setup purely for track use so comfort wasn't a big consideration.
