View Full Version : Death Trap Mark Three! Photos of push bikes
Jayneflakes
29-12-12, 06:39 PM
The last one failed, I crashed it on the first ride and got flung over the handle bar due to lack of caster on the front wheel and the weight not being between the wheels. But this one is working so far. See what you think.
Making a rear shock mount for the swinging arm.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/531960_10151573499800828_2056230150_n.jpg
Fitting the new shock mount onto the swinging arm.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/14592_10151573500695828_1241023675_n.jpg
Making a seat for the mobile sun lounger.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/551672_10151573501165828_880940822_n.jpg
Half way done, the seat is on and all we have to do now if make a boom for the pedals, work out the steering and then pump up the tyres!
https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/530498_10151573501960828_492552074_n.jpg
I owe a huge thank you to my friend Gareth who is a brilliant welder and was able to knock my junk yard dog together.
The tech side of it is that this is a Recumbent bike. The main frame is a kids bike with a 24 inch from wheel. The swinging arm is from an adults bike and takes a 26 inch wheel. The front boom is going to be made from another swinging arm welded to a BMX down tube and then welded onto the head tube.
a portable massage bike.. love it :-)
fizzwheel
29-12-12, 07:00 PM
The main frame is a kids bike with a 24 inch from wheel.
I'm not sure you can call an Apollo a bike, more like a "Bike Shaped Object" :D
Interesting experiment good luck with it :cool:
Geodude
29-12-12, 07:22 PM
I have no idea what it is or what it does but im glad to see you enjoying yourself JF :)
Fallout
29-12-12, 07:36 PM
I've spotted the problem. How would a nun reach the handlebars? I suspect there are some chopper style modifications in the pipeline!
andrewsmith
29-12-12, 07:56 PM
I'm not sure you can call an Apollo a bike, more like a "Bike Shaped Object" :D
Interesting experiment good luck with it :cool:
Scrap you mean ;)
Interesting want to see the results of mayhem
Jayneflakes
29-12-12, 08:07 PM
Thank you folks for the kind comments.
I have to agree that an Apollo is not what I would want to ride were it not heavily modified! The average life span of one is less than a year!
What this project is, is a recumbent bike. They are supposed to me more efficient, but for some one like me who is damaged, it will hopefully get me back into cycling.
We have talked about a set of ape hangers for this monster/atrocity/junk yard dog! :smt104
xXBADGERXx
30-12-12, 12:55 PM
I`d rather weld and grind (butcher) an apollo than anything else out there :) , interesting project
garynortheast
30-12-12, 11:41 PM
I'm afraid I'm now about to contradict you all over the assertions made about Apollo bikes. I've got two of them, one fully suspended and the other with just front suspension. They may be heavy, and very unfashionable but they are pretty bloody robust.
I've had both of mine for around 11 years, they've seen a lot of use both on and offroad in that time. Nothing has broken, nothing has fallen off, the paint and most of the shiny(ish) bits are still in good condition, despite being housed in a damp stable for the whole of their existence. They do get washed and sprayed with FS365 after they've been used in muddy conditions.
I've had the forks apart for a clean and service once since I've had them, that was back in July, and I replaced the crappy Halfords crank bearings with a new Shimano cartridge at the same time.
Personally, I have no reall complaints about them. They suit me fine for riding around the local lanes, tracks and forests. If I was doing more competitive riding I would undoubtedly want something lighter and a good deal posher but for my purposes they're ideal.
Jayneflakes
31-12-12, 12:48 AM
I'm afraid I'm now about to contradict you all over the assertions made about Apollo bikes.
Ha haha, it is bike snobbery I am afraid. :D
A lot of people start on bikes like the Apollos and then move up to lighter and more expensive machines. I did that, I started on an old Falcon that cost less than £60 and lasted close to a week. I then had an MBK and then another MBK after I snapped the first. I snapped that one too and chose an Orange Clockwork which I crashed and then sold so that I could buy a Kona. I sold the kona and commissioned a custom made frame that when it was finished looked and rode beautifully. I retired that and bought my Giant XtC Team edition frame and spent in total close to £2K building the thing. Now I am back on the Apollo bikes while my Giant sits unused in the hallway.=P~
What does that tell you? Mainly that I am not cutting up my two grand giant for a silly project that may not even work. I should point out that it is only the front part of the frame that is badged Apollo. The rest of the parts came from many other scrap yard bikes. The Apollo bikes them selves are not made by Apollo, they are made as bulk frames in factories and then sold to companies like Halfords who badge them up. Having worked for Halfords I saw first hand some of the rubbish that goes through their bike shops and there is a whole lot worse than Apollo in that chain! :smt047
You will find that pretty much all of the URT framed bikes (which the Apollo in the picture is) have the same bearings and pivots. So all of those cheap British Eagles, Claud Butlers, Boss, Growler and Apollo bikes are basically the same Chinese frames. :smt036
Half of the companies that sell really expensive bikes like Trek, Marin, Kona, Orange and many others send designs to Taiwan for the factories out there to make. Badges do not a bike make. Little Taiwanese blokes sure do though. :smt015
Fallout
31-12-12, 10:00 AM
I've had my Apollo for over 2 years and it's in perfect condition. Admittedly I've never ridden it, but it hasn't broken to pieces while sitting in the garage. This is the second one though. The first one was so badly welded the rear wheel rubbed against the frames so Hellfrauds wrote it off.
xXBADGERXx
31-12-12, 10:28 AM
For the kind of riding I do , an Apollo wouldn`t last one season , the only bike I had that was Badger proof was my Orange Patriot .... sold the frame as it was a tad too small , bought a Cotic Hemlock frame to replace it . Snapped that in less than one season and now I have a 2006 Specialized Enduro , not really liking the new frame designs out there right now . Still hankering after a Patriot frame in the right size though .... but I certainly wouldn`t chop any of my decent frames up for a project
ClunkintheUK
31-12-12, 10:29 AM
Half of the companies that sell really expensive bikes like Trek, Marin, Kona, Orange and many others send designs to Taiwan for the factories out there to make. Badges do not a bike make. Little Taiwanese blokes sure do though. :smt015
Yep, in the Giant factory (that make Giant brand bikes, not some secret race of huge taiwanese people making two wheel convayences.)
Having said that, the bike I snapped was handmade in the US using some special aluminium mix. (Klein for those who know defunct mountain bike brands)
xXBADGERXx
31-12-12, 10:39 AM
using some special aluminium mix. (Klein for those who know defunct mountain bike brands)
They were made from 6061 T6 Aluminium , they then went to ZR9000 when they had Alloy going into Carbon Chainstays . Gary Klein did some quite amazing things with very little material , if you wanted to win races then that was a great frame builder back in the day . Not sure about the long term durability but let`s face facts , it`s technology and development like that which make the cheaper frames a lot more durable in this age .
ClunkintheUK
31-12-12, 10:57 AM
It was a later model attitude. Used the Zircomium aluminuim, which was later branded zr9000 alloy after trek bought Klein. It was a post trek model though.
xXBADGERXx
31-12-12, 11:17 AM
Attitudes were a nice frame , smoother than an evening of Jazz , silk bedsheets and a yard of Galaxy
ClunkintheUK
31-12-12, 11:27 AM
Attitudes were a nice frame , smoother than an evening of Jazz , silk bedsheets and a yard of Galaxy
:D that made me chuckle. Very true, was very annoyed when it went. Given where and how I had ridden the bike, its final end was ignominous to say the least. Just rode from the van to the cafe in a car park after getting my wallet for some cake. Pulled a skid and there was an almighty thunk, and the left hand rear drop out had snapped off completely. sad times.
xXBADGERXx
31-12-12, 11:37 AM
My Hemlock started "Creaking" , It had been around Llandegla and went when I was exactly half way round , it didn`t matter which direction I walked in , it was as far one way as the other . The seat tube went with such a bang , the rear end dropped and the tube dug into the rear tyre and over the bars I went ...... I got up and laughed as I thought the rear wheel had come out , I looked at it and there was nothing wrong , the brakes were where they should be .... "hmmmmm" , get back on bike and it drops ..... "uh oh !!!" . Examine closer , and mate has horrified look on his face and points , I look where he is pointing and my heart sank . Cue large amounts of wailing and gnashing of teeth . Shouldered bike and walked .... and walked ... and walked and hated ...... lots . Never again will I buy a boutique frame .
Jayneflakes
31-12-12, 12:41 PM
I was under the understanding that Klein was bought out by Trek and then became Taiwanese built, but maybe I am wrong.
As for Giant, there is a reason why they are called Giant. Them and Merida produce almost all of the frames that are then shipped to the big name brands. When Giant wanted back into the Market in the 90's they started producing Loss leader bikes that undercut the market by a significant amount. They used the tech to make bikes that were leagues ahead of similar priced machines from the big brands. It was very naughty, but I loved working for them!
My Orange Clockwork was probably the biggest disappointment, it rode really nicely, but it had no excitement. I tried it with short travel forks and even they messed it up, so I went back to the original rigid fork and then crashed badly bending the back end of the frame out by six degrees. Being steel I put it in the frame jig at work and bent it back into shape, but it always failed to inspire. The steel Kona I bought after that was sublime and I swore I would never buy an Orange again.
The best frame I have ever ridden was my custom bike, being thin walled steel it rode with that zing you only get from steel and being made to fit me perfectly meant that every ride was lovely. It hangs on my wall as art now and I really miss riding the little beauty.
The Giant was my first Aluminium bike and the ride on that is gorgeous. I had a friend who bought a brand new Orange in 2007 and we headed out onto Dartmoor to race. My bike sprinted faster than his, was lighter than his and performed better over rough stuff. On a down hill run I was forced to stop and wait from him on three occasions. With 100mm Marzocchi forks compared to his 120mm Fox forks I should not have been faster, but I was. I was also in recovery from serious surgery and he still could not keep up! I can only put it down to the beautiful ride of the Giant.
However, there is one bike I will always miss. That Kona with its superb steel frame and sublime ride was one of the best bikes I have ever owned.
My step son has a new GT and I sort of like it, although I have not ridden it. At some point I have to strip and service the thing, then I will really know if I like it. I also have some of the XT race parts from another of my bikes to go on it too, so that will get it running a little sweeter too. :D
Jayneflakes
31-12-12, 12:52 PM
For Nerds like me, there is the Museum of Mountain Bike Art and Technology and I love trawling through there.
Check it out if you love your Mountain Bike history. They have one of the bikes I always wanted, the Brent Trimble Inverted Four Frame. It is utterly gorgeous.
http://www.mombat.org/
ClunkintheUK
31-12-12, 02:13 PM
I miss mountain biking.
I lived in Bristol for 6 years, and went on the local trails 2-3 times a week, and out to wales about once a fortnight. I had a couple of BSO's including a 24 inch wheel Trek when I was a kid. I had to spend 1/2 an hour after every ride (not even serious off road) maintaining it. First proper bike was a Specialised Rockhopper. Lovely steel frame (back in '97), rigid with v brakes (which were high tech at the time). Was doing a lot of fast off road and it was lovely. Since then got the Klein Attitude in my gap year, and spent about three years upgrading as bits broke before upgrading the frame to a Rocky Mountain full sus, which i still have. I raced the klein and it was absolutely superb for that. With super stiff lightweight wheels, 100m fox forks, and narrow flat bars, most of my uni club couldn't understand how I rode it, but I loved it, went up hill as fast as it went down. The klein snapped after this when I set it up as a singlespeed. It was awesome, the power transmission was instant, and never had to worry about being in the right gear (you were never in the right gear, so dont; worry about it.) and even on the steep techinical climbs, you just stood up and cranked it over the rocks.
Recently acquired a rigid On-one frame to re-build the singlespeed, which I love. You really have to be on the ball when riding it, but its so sure footed over the slow, really technical stuff. and scampers up the single track. (nothing too fast and rocky though, bounce around so much you get a headache and can't see where you are going).
Jayneflakes
03-01-13, 12:11 AM
Time for an update, progress seems to be coming easily and my mate Gareth is really cracking on with it. We now have the top bottom bracket in place and the roller that changes the direction of the chain.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/407925_10151198189796519_372990235_n.jpg
https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/543792_10151198192566519_891520882_n.jpg
https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/12553_10151198193416519_1741909700_n.jpg
The final few jobs will be to sort out the stearing, which is going to be between my knees. We plan to use a proper handle bar and not just a coupe of bits of string! I hope to have a test ride very soon, which should be a lot of fun. I fully expect to crash though as I get used to the monster! :laughat:
Expect more silly updates as they come! :smt080
BanannaMan
03-01-13, 06:57 AM
It does looks awesome Jayne!
Quite a bit of work gone into that.
Just wondering though, (not trying to be an ar$e)
Will you able to take off on it from a stop?
Those pedals look really high!
xXBADGERXx
03-01-13, 09:31 AM
Is the steering going under the knees or over ? I know you said between but I`ve seen a couple of these locally and they were both very different in their setup . You doing an outrigger wheel for swift stops or are you chancing it with getting a foot down ? . Looking good so far .
Jayneflakes
03-01-13, 10:02 AM
The steering should be on a high level stem infront of my chest. I did think about under seat steering with linkages, but the work involved was far too complicated and I did not fancy crashing right onto my little fingers!
I have ridden these sort of bikes before and am used to the strange starting position. The tip is to scoot along on your toes for a meter to start rolling and then get onto the pedals. Crashing at this point is not always optional! :D
Sir Trev
03-01-13, 12:05 PM
https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/407925_10151198189796519_372990235_n.jpg
Good to see you have the snack dispenser in place Jayne but won't it make the seat a little uncomfortable?
Jayneflakes
03-01-13, 05:57 PM
Good to see you have the snack dispenser in place Jayne but won't it make the seat a little uncomfortable?
Ha haha, that is my fuel tank! The engine that runs this bike works very well on sweets and fizzy drinks! :smt053
Jayne. why didn't you just use some old idler wheels from gears instead of the bearing?
Jayneflakes
04-01-13, 06:03 PM
Jayne. why didn't you just use some old idler wheels from gears instead of the bearing?
I am not sure what you mean by idler wheels to be honest. :confused:
The reason for the bearing being there is because the chain has to change direction while under load. The spindle it runs on is a huge steel bolt that is about 16mm thick This should be able to deal with the load of generated by the chain running over it while pushing hard on the pedals.
This bike is made almost entirely out of scrap and spare parts. The bearing I used came from our old XJ550 and has a slight wobble to it, however it works well enough for this. The only part of this bike that is of any worth is the rear wheel which came from one of my old racing mountain bikes. It is an old XT hub with a set of stainless DT spokes and an Araya double wall rim. I picked up another couple of knackered bikes this week and stripped them to the bare frames. This gives me a whole load of steel, more junk parts and yet more duff wheels!
If anyone wants any old duff bits, give me a shout and I may have what you want. :D
the cogs that the chain goes round on the rear derailleur.
Jayneflakes
04-01-13, 06:37 PM
the cogs that the chain goes round on the rear derailleur.
We did look into using an aluminium jockey wheel, but the axle would have been less than six MM and would have bent under load due to the direction change. The return chain underneath may well need a sprung jockey wheel but because that is not under load, it does not really matter about the strength. :D
i'm just concerned that the bearing will eat the chain in no time if its running against a flat surface. old BMX rear sprocket?
Jayneflakes
04-01-13, 09:38 PM
This is a recognised way of doing a direction change on recumbent bikes, as a prototype machine a plain bearing is fine, but a lot of finished designs use a hard plastic pulley wheel or occasionally an inline skate wheel with a groove machined into it for noise suppression rather than prevent damaged to the chain.
Jayneflakes
05-01-13, 09:49 PM
There was more progress today, we got both of the bottom brackets in and connected the chainsets together.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/406068_10151587998235828_418596693_n.jpg
Then Gareth and I mocked up the steering system to see how it is going to work. The bar has to be low enough not to disrupt forward vision, but high enough to clear my knees.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/150646_10151587997725828_1197155616_n.jpg
We also had help from my friend Jan today, who is also another biker albeit on a provisional license. Gareth is a lover of twins, but can you guess what his bikes are? (excluding the broken GT550 that we pinch spare parts from!)
https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/394881_10151587997040828_708160725_n.jpg
I finally pumped the tyres up too. Fifty PSI front and rear should get this thing singing along the road. We do need a chain tensioner for the front drive chain though, but with a pile of worn out old deraileurs, we should be able to mock up something.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/74593_10151588017645828_354379714_n.jpg
The hope is that we can test ride this coming week and then we find out how painful it is to crash! :smt084
widepants
05-01-13, 10:20 PM
tell me where and When and I'll bring a flask
Geodude
07-01-13, 11:15 AM
Cool :) is carol on standby with the booboo sticky plasters ;)
_Stretchie_
07-01-13, 11:23 AM
Lookign good Jayney
I keep finsing myself on the following website, always thinking about doing one, but never getting around to it
http://rat-patrol.org/Rat2.html
Deffo keeping an eye on this thread
yorkie_chris
07-01-13, 12:32 PM
I likes a good project :)
This is a recognised way of doing a direction change on recumbent bikes, as a prototype machine a plain bearing is fine, but a lot of finished designs use a hard plastic pulley wheel or occasionally an inline skate wheel with a groove machined into it for noise suppression rather than prevent damaged to the chain.
I might have a spare slug of oil impregnated nylon I could knock you up a proper idler wheel from if you need one.
Jayneflakes
07-01-13, 03:45 PM
tell me where and When and I'll bring a flask
Meanie! :D
Cool :) is carol on standby with the booboo sticky plasters ;)
I wish, it is more likely that she will be stood with the video camera watching the blood run free! :geek:
Lookign good Jayney
I keep finsing myself on the following website, always thinking about doing one, but never getting around to it
http://rat-patrol.org/Rat2.html
Deffo keeping an eye on this thread
Cool thank you. Gareth and I have talked about building a rat chopper with a wide bike or car wheel on the back. The main difficulty being making the hub to run the wide rim on. Braking would be simple to sort, not that it would ever go that fast!
Have you seen Atomic Zombie Bikes (http://www.atomiczombie.com/) at all? They sell some plans for making mad chops and trikes. :D
I likes a good project :)
I might have a spare slug of oil impregnated nylon I could knock you up a proper idler wheel from if you need one.
Thank you for the offer, for this though I do not think it would be required because this is purely a prototype being built to find out if I am still capable of cycling after so many injuries and damage done to my body. :smt036
There is good news on the steering front, I think that Gareth and I have worked it out, so the bike should be up and riding very soon. I am sooooooo looking forwards to the first ride, even if it does prove to be a near fatal RTA involving me, a funny looking pushbike and a large brick wall! :smt047
_Stretchie_
10-01-13, 11:08 PM
Have you seen Atomic Zombie Bikes (http://www.atomiczombie.com/) at all? They sell some plans for making mad chops and trikes. :D
Yeah, been looking at stuff like this for ages but it's been more on my mind since I bought a welder last year now I'm really wanting to do it, but I never got around to finishing the blast cabinet or the tyre changer I started so we'll see.
Keep the pics coming, especially if you do the car wheel.
How do you do the spokes on a car wheel? Just remove the normal middle bit and drill holes in it?
cb1000rsteve
10-01-13, 11:58 PM
Apollo went to the moon and back. Raleigh can't make the same claim!!!
_Stretchie_
11-01-13, 09:37 AM
Apollo went to the moon and back. Raleigh can't make the same claim!!!
True, but he brought us the potato and ciggies
:smt048
Jayneflakes
13-01-13, 02:19 PM
We hope to have an update soon, the bike is nearly finished, but there are still a few things to work out. I have started thinking about making a collapsable steering stem that will make it easier to get on and off the machine, but to do so is going to require a little more thought than I am capable of while sat in the bath.
We shall see.
Apollo went to the moon and back. Raleigh can't make the same claim!!!
More than once too! I think that Halfords should make more of their involvement in the space program! :smt017:smt081
yorkie_chris
13-01-13, 04:48 PM
but to do so is going to require a little more thought than I am capable of while sat in the bath.
Try thinking about it on the khazi, works for me.
Jayneflakes
13-01-13, 11:49 PM
Try thinking about it on the khazi, works for me.
Good idea, next time I shall take my pen and paper! If I don't get any inspiration, I can always draw what I see! :smt081
What about a hinge to pivot the bars forward, then a sleeve to go over the hinge to hold it in place when you are on it. If you get what I mean?
Icanopit
14-01-13, 08:55 AM
Collapsable stem, perhaps cut stem in 2 make a "peg/tennon" on one end and a "slot/mortice" on the other with a pin through both and when put into the "driving" mode a sliding collar over the join to stabilise.
Used the constipated thought process of a mathemetician and worked it out with a pencil :confused:
John (yes it's an age thing)
Jayneflakes
14-01-13, 08:48 PM
What about a hinge to pivot the bars forward, then a sleeve to go over the hinge to hold it in place when you are on it. If you get what I mean?
I had not thought of that. :smt038
Collapsable stem, perhaps cut stem in 2 make a "peg/tennon" on one end and a "slot/mortice" on the other with a pin through both and when put into the "driving" mode a sliding collar over the join to stabilise.
Used the constipated thought process of a mathemetician and worked it out with a pencil :confused:
John (yes it's an age thing)
Another good idea. Liked your joke too! :D
Collapsable stem, perhaps cut stem in 2 make a "peg/tennon" on one end and a "slot/mortice" on the other with a pin through both and when put into the "driving" mode a sliding collar over the join to stabilise.
Used the constipated thought process of a mathemetician and worked it out with a pencil :confused:
John (yes it's an age thing)
That's what I meant just without the fancy language. :)
Jayneflakes
05-03-13, 09:06 PM
So you may remember my rediculous project where I have been trying to build a totally silly push bike.
Well, it is built and this evening I took it for the very first test ride... and crashed! :cheers::smt104
Death Trap Mark Three works until I go fast and then it gets a strange speed wobble on the front wheel and under cornering, it feels like the front wheel wants to fold under the frame. I have wondered if it is a lack of caster on the front wheel, but this is something that I need to think about.
Anyway, have some pics of the machine in action.
This is me on the test ride.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/313838_10151745125165828_1101252145_n.jpg
Nearly running the Wife over.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/481697_10151745136080828_1673480047_n.jpg
My Friend Ash gave it go, but needed a push to get going.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/486677_10151745137830828_1845261178_n.jpg
This is Gareth who made the frame having a go on it too.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/208604_10151745140165828_406849725_n.jpg
Me riding it back up the hill, which was a lot harder than it looks.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/563481_10151745146565828_1066324464_n.jpg
So it works and it is a lot of fun. Not sure what to do on it next, but it will be silly. We have a spare bike battery and I am thinking about a sound system for the bike. I just need an old car radio and some speakers. :mrgreen:
Gareth has suggested a sun shade for those sunny days on the sea front. :smt115
DarrenSV650S
05-03-13, 09:16 PM
lol you are truly insane
Spank86
05-03-13, 09:23 PM
What if the front wheel had more rake? So it was further forward, wouldn't that increase stability?
Jayneflakes
05-03-13, 09:33 PM
lol you are truly insane
Thank you :D
What if the front wheel had more rake? So it was further forward, wouldn't that increase stability?
We have wondered if increased rake would help or just turn the steering into a tiller effect. The other option we have considered is fork length, maybe a longer fork and bigger wheel would help?
These are all things for us to try.
:smt017
Wildkid
05-03-13, 09:39 PM
Do you make a bwa bwa bwa bwa bwa sound as you ride it?
Spank86
05-03-13, 09:47 PM
We have wondered if increased rake would help or just turn the steering into a tiller effect. The other option we have considered is fork length, maybe a longer fork and bigger wheel would help?
These are all things for us to try.
:smt017
Possibly, I think as it stands the centre of gravity is too far forward, your mass is right up at the front wheel, pushing it out would give more straight line stability in theory but might compromise the handling. Lengthening the forks or a bigger wheel ought to have the effect of slightly increasing rake IMHO.
ClunkintheUK
06-03-13, 08:17 AM
Do you have a stem, or is the connection between the handlebars go straight into the steerer tube? I know that makes a big difference to stability.
Jayneflakes
06-03-13, 11:43 AM
Do you have a stem, or is the connection between the handlebars go straight into the steerer tube? I know that makes a big difference to stability.
The stem leans back rather than reaching forwards and although short does have some effect.
I tending to think that the head angle is too steep, fine on a mountain bike, but less fine on a machine that has a bigger back wheel. A 26" rim on the front may slacken the angle enough to have an effect, but raise the seat a little. We shall have to see. :smt115
Geodude
06-03-13, 12:47 PM
Cool :) You're a crazy mofo Jayne, keep it up :)
Jayneflakes
06-03-13, 02:00 PM
Cool :) You're a crazy mofo Jayne
You know me so well Sir. :mrgreen:
keep it up :)
I fully intend to, I have plans for more silliness. :smt115
Jayneflakes
20-03-13, 10:04 PM
I took it for a ride. It has a quality to it that puts this rather large silly grin on my face.
The wife made a video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rekYTkk-_mw&feature=youtu.be&a), that has a punk soundtrack, so there are a couple of swears in it.
In all, this is a very silly project that I am going to enjoy greatly. :smt040
Geodude
21-03-13, 10:47 AM
Cool :) You're a crazy mofo Jayne, keep it up :)
I refer back to my earlier statement and add a +1 :p:cool:;)
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