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On top of that, the hydraulic MC includes a pressure switch for a brake light. Our bike does have a tail light, so we might make use of this later on (once we build a wiring harness, mount a battery, and find a handlebar switch for running lights that is).
The new handle slips right onto the Doodlebug’s handlebar. It is much heavier duty than the original handle. The new handle and cylinder are made of cast aluminum, while the original handle was plastic (though the handbrake lever was made of metal). Once you’re happy with the alignment of the brake lever, pop the grip back on.
The new hydraulic caliper drops right onto the original cable caliper bracket. The HRMB brake reuses the original rotor which is very handy. Make sure you use thread locker on the caliper bolts as you really don’t want them backing out! The HRMB also uses standard Doodlebug brake pads, making replacements easy to get ahold of.
With the caliper and handle mounted, we tied down the brake line to the frame with some zip ties and we were done.
Next up is the clutch. The original clutch was rusty and never fully released, making riding very troublesome. It needed to go. We got incredibly lucky in that someone in Dayton, OH was selling a brand new Max Torque clutch at a nice discount on our favorite discount parts site. We happened to be travelling through Dayton for a work trip, so we made a quick detour to pick it up.
You can see how rusty our original clutch drum was. It never released and when we started the bike, it would always lunge forward. The new clutch actually spins freely, which is a huge relief. The new clutch also has a 12 tooth sprocket, whereas our old clutch had a 16 tooth sprocket. This will lower our top speed and give us better gearing for off-roading. The Max Torque clutch is a must-have for anyone making big Doodlebug power. The factory clutches will burn out easily when increasing power on a 212cc engine. The Max Torque clutches include a 3,300 RPM stall spring and include six beefy clutch shoes inside. You can buy these brand new from HRMB with a variety of sprocket options.
