Death Trap Mark Three! Photos of push bikes

[Jayneflakes]

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.


Fitting the new shock mount onto the swinging arm.


Making a seat for the mobile sun lounger.


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!


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.

[Bibio]

a portable massage bike.. love it

[fizzwheel]

Originally Posted by Jayneflakes

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"

Interesting experiment good luck with it

[Geodude]

I have no idea what it is or what it does but im glad to see you enjoying yourself JF

[Fallout]

I've spotted the problem. How would a nun reach the handlebars? I suspect there are some chopper style modifications in the pipeline!

[andrewsmith]

Originally Posted by fizzwheel

I'm not sure you can call an Apollo a bike, more like a "Bike Shaped Object"

Interesting experiment good luck with it

Scrap you mean

Interesting want to see the results of mayhem

[Jayneflakes]

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!

I`d rather weld and grind (butcher) an apollo than anything else out there , interesting project

[garynortheast]

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]

Originally Posted by garynortheast

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.

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.

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!

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.

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.