How to Trick out your Recumbent Tadpole Trike for Safety
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- Опубліковано 23 лип 2024
- Riding a recumbent tadpole trike, or any bike, can be dangerous, especially if you have to ride in traffic.Few of us have the opportunity to ride on trails where mixing it up with traffic is not necessary, This video will give you options on things to add to your recumbent tadpole trike that will allow you to ride safer and with confidence. Also, adding bells and whistles to your trike makes riding more enjoyable.
Recumbent tadpole trikes allow folks with dissabilities, or just getting older, (like me @ 75) to continue to ride and get the benefits of exercise that riding provides.
I have been riding this Sunseeker Eco Tad SX for over 5 years now, with no issues at all. It is a good solid trike. If you have never taken a ride on a tadpole trike you should do it now. You will wish you did it years ago. Riding comfort and stability are my main reaons for changing to a tadpole trike.
Trikes are getting lots of attention and good press now, especially those with electric assist.
Contact George at: gjchase757@gmail.com
In this video: A man who loves his bike.
Thanks for watching.
From Denmark: Neat and beautifully done upgrade and safety adds on. Thx for sharing. I am 80 years old and ride an ICE SPRINT FS 20" with a ZIFLEX Mono wheel Trailer, with suspension, in tow, NO EL Assist. Last year I completed a 2.886 Kms trip, which took me from Denmark (Ebeltoft-Frederikshavn) to Sweden (Gothenburg-Stockholm) - Finland (Turku-Helsinki) and back to Stockholm and triking the East Coast of Sweden to Gotland Island - Ystad - Danish Island of Bornholm - Køge (38 km south of Copenhagen) - Triking from there though the Danish southern Islands of Falster-Lolland-Langeland to Ærø and back to Ebeltoft over Sjælland Odde. The 20th of March I am leaving again on a 5 months trip which will take me to different places in Denmark.
Hi Ben, Wow I am impressed by your rides. Since I did the video I have removed the small 1volt battery that ran my lights, horn ,GPS etc and installed a voltage reducer that uses the power from my 48 volt motor battery and reduces it to 12 volts then it gets reduced to 3 v , 4.5 v etc to run it all off the one battery. It has worked great for over a year now. So I just have to charge the motor battery once a week or so. I am now designing and building a headrest for behind the seat just for a project. Thanks for sending a note and ride safe.
George, I don't think my first aircraft had as many clever, functional gizmos and safety features. Your attention to detail is worthy of much praise and this is no doubt a great resource for other 'trikers'. I thought my ebike was pretty clever until I watched this! :( Nice job!
Every trike manufacturer should see this and hire you as a consultant! You are a true engineer.
Thanks Benjamin. I think I have way too much time on my hands and/or I am too cheap to buy pre fab items off the net. Thinking outside the box is just fun. During my 10 miles a day on the trike my mind wonders to find projects to keep my 75 year old body thinking and moving.
This is genius! You have thought of everything! And "no little wimpy bell" for you! There are so many ideas here that can be used for many different situations! This is one of the best and most informative videos I have ever watched. Thanks so much and ride safely!
Thank you Nancy
Jack, an amazing job! You should have your own company using all great adaptions to your bike. I was very impressed.
That is a piece of art! Natural born narrator and innovator!
Safe travels!, Kathryn
Congrats on your tadpole trike. I’ve been triking for over 15 years. Just a note, a good whistle will often stop an approaching canine. They hate it. No pepper spray is needed.
Hey George, I ride my e-bike exclusively at night after 8:00PM when all the trucks and service vehicles are long gone and the majority of homeowners are done with their vehicles. Skip and I are neighbors and told me about your unit. He failed to mention that you have radar, front and back. Pretty amazing. I have lots of lights on my bike powered by DeWalt 18 volt battery which I reduce down to 12 volts although I just added a head light with hi-low beam which I power directly off the 18 volts. It is supper bright and helps me with the biggest risk of riding around Punta Gorda Isles which is rabbits that run in front of the bike. Perhaps the flashing lights attracks them but they are the biggest risk. Great job on the entire project. You have created a real marvel of a machine. Hope you have many years of enjoyment with your creation.
Actually the radar only looks backwards but the info showes up on the screen up front on the handlebar.
I use both normal roadbikes (Pinarello) and recumbents (own a Greenspeed GT20), I must say (I am 48) that recumbents are also amazing for younger people. It's just a lot of fun (not because I could not cycle normal bikes) and I encourage to try recumbents also at a younger age. The lower position, direct steering, being able to take a lot of stuff with you without tipping over with a normal bike and such is simply amazing.
Thanks to all of you that are subscrubing. However I doubt that I wll be making more videos. I think this was a one and only. So surprised to get so many views in only a few days. thanks to all. George
Very cool, George!
You should play "Colors" or "Taps" when you furl your flag!
Happy riding.
wow , Iam very impressed with your trike,I wastched it three times to see every thing again. thanks for sharing this with us.
This is exactly the content I want to see on UA-cam. Great work on the trike! I love it and recon it’s great to get around on
Your the man! Well thought out and nicely done. I enjoyed this.
Thanks Steve.
Excellent video... I will be decking out my Catrike Dumont in similar fashion. Thank you for your service.
This looks like a fun way for seniors to ride safely and enjoy the great outdoors.
Great video. You should be able to eliminate your 12v auxillary devices battery with a 48-12V DC-DC converter and add an ultracapacitor to handle device surges.
Perhaps. but they tell me if I alter the wireing on the e-assist electrical system it will void any warranty. So the 12 v option it is for now. May switch that to lithium ion in the future.
Amazing and ingenius. Will use similar security measures for my future trike. Thanks for sharing your skills.
Thank you for serving the country. My father was a Lt. Colonel in the Army during Korean war and Vietnam war. He served all over the globe before retiring. He'd have loved these kinds of wheels.
Very nice set up. We just bought a set of tadpole trikes the end of last year. Being in Michigan we have only had a few opportunities to take them out. I may have to steal a few of your modification ideas for myself. Thank you for a great video.
Wow , great job mate , lots of thought and effort put into your trike.
I just bought mine in a fairly basic form a matter of weeks ago and have started setting it up how I like it , no doubt some of your very clever innovations will see their way on to my recumbent trike😊 .
Thanks for sharing with us.
Cheers.
Great video. You definitely gave me some ideas for my trike. Thank you!
Trick it out Greg!
Thanks for all the great ideas. I really like the cover idea.
The retractable cover is very easy to use and keeps the bike clean and dry. I have a motion light over the bike and an alarm on the bike as well so I think it is safe and secure.
Great Job ... really liked your turn signals and horn ideas. Thanks for sharing .
Thanks for watching Chris
George, great job on both the video narration and descriptions as well as the trike outfitting. You are a "jack of all trades". Keep up the great work and continued safe riding.
Best Regards, Wayne
George, - nice job on the video and , Man, what a cool trike----!
Best to you and Miss Joyce.
Great job George. You should be safe on that one. I am glad you added all the safety features so people should see you.
Safety is the main thing here. Thank you.
Love the horn. Nice custom job. Enjoy the ride. 😂😂👍
First of all. Thank you for your service. And second, nice video and great ideas. I don't have a recumbent but I do have a RadCity E-bike and I can use some of those clever ideas. You seem like a handy guy to have around.. I hope I and encourage you to make more videos and share your ideas.
Good video, you have given me some ideas! Thanks.
That is the idea Greg, Have fun on the project.
Very informative. Thanks for making the video.
Glad you enjoyed it.
Very impressive setup. I'll be using alot of your ideas. 🕶
Great lesson George, Thank you and happy days always, SkipRay, Kerry, Ireland.
Thank you Kerry, Keep riding and stay young.
Nice set up. 👌
My son rides a Sun Seeker, too. He loves his. Looks like he and I have a project. Thanks for the ideas 💡
It can turn into a long term project ! Have fun
Some of your ideas I will be using when I get my etrike. I will be usiing the trailer idea that you have done. Very well thought out. Thanks for doing this video.
You can spend big bucks on a rack to haul your trike behind your car but you can build one that won't flop around and bounce your trike to death and save many dollars.
@@georgechase3275 Exactly. I want to find a way to fold the trailer up, so it doesn't take as much room behind my Kia Sorento when I don't have the trike loaded. Someone must make the piece that I see on racks and Harbor Freight small carriers so that I could have it welded onto the tonque. My carrier would be made to just fit my tadpole.
@@user-po4ku2jd3r Hi Chuck, The rack I made is very solid and holds the trike in place very nicely, However it is a bit heavy and if you have any health issues might be to combersom for someone to gt into place and into the hitch. I have not seen any prefab trike racks that just have 3 tracks for the wheels and no bottom floor that I would consider buying. 1 they are very pricey and 2 they tend to flop around a lot. Especially if they fold up when the trike is not in place. So this can be a catch 22. In building it myself I had to add some extra angle iron braces and thus more weight. I ended up with a solid platform and no wobble when hauling the trike. If you find one prefab that is solid and wont break the bank please let everyone know by making a post here. Sorry I could not be more helpful. George
This is awesome George
Excellent i especially liked the radar…a very good feature. Obviously you put much thought and many features that I find real pluses…the electronics and battery charging features are sophisticated! My goodness the pedals too! At 77 the pedals are a very practical addition!
FYI I recently got rid of the small 12v battery and replaced it with a voltage converter. It is tied onto the 48 v output of my electric motor and feeds a separate line going to all my 12 volt stuff so I do not need to charge the 12v battery anymore. Just charge the motor battery and it then supplies both 48 volts to the motor and all the 12 volt needs as well. Much easier.
@@georgechase3275c 14:08
Your setup was obviously very well thought out. I've never seen a bike setup like this, motorcycles yes but not a bike. Some great ideas for safety and comfort. At times it must feel like a cockpit of a helicopter 😎.
Hi MARK, Well I guess that may come frorm my days as a chopper maintenance gut in Viet Nam back in 69-70.
Thank you for your attention to detail.
From Denmark: I stumbled by chance on your video. Now I am a subscriber. Thx George for sharing. I am 80 years young, and I enjoy travelling by bike. Until last summer I used my KOGA World Traveller bicycle + a ZIFLEX monowheel trailer for my extensive tours, 5-6 months a year, with 75 kg gear for camping, cooking etc. Last year I shifted the bicycle for an ICE Sprint FS Trike, using my ZIFLEX trailer with it. NO EL assist.
I enjoyed very much your very creative and useful improvements on your Trike. Very good job indeed. There is always something to add that makes triking more comfortable and safer in the traffic. As soon as I came back home from last summer trip, I changed the seat to an Ergo Mesh better padded one, added a pod of 2 banana bags, each hanging along the seat frame, and bought an original rack that is now mounted on the frame, so the rear suspension and rear wheel have better free movement. Maybe I will add in 4-5 years a Bafang middrive motor for EL assist... if I find it hard/or impossible to climb uphill... Safe Triking.
Hi Ben, Thanks for the kind words on my video. At 75 I only wish I had found out about trikes many years ago. I suggest you don't wait to add E-Assist to your trike. You do not have to use it much if you still can pedal easily in most circumstances but it is sure great for head wind and hills and just to give you a secure feeling about getting somewhere fast if the rain starts to pound down on you. I am surprised on getting so many views on my video, I sure did not expect to hit this high number in such a short time. Thanks for taking time to drop a note from Denmark.
Very interesting, congrats on the 'system'!
I am a mechanic of 25 years and I have to say your trike is bad ass as I’m only 44 years old I would ride that thing in a heartbeat I wish I was half as innovative as you are sir and also thank you for your service
Thank you. Find a trike and take a ride. You will be glad you did.
Hi George! You've really outfitted your trike great. Two things I'd copy from you are the big pedals, and that amazingly inventive side telescopic flag. Safety from cars has always been my #1 priority while riding on the road. I took a road bike safety course years ago and it gave me a lot of confidence as well.
Hi Jim, The side flag has even better possibilities, I had the old portable radio antenna laying around the shed so I used it to mount the pull out flag. It works fine and sure makes a huge difference with the berth I now get when a vehicle passes me. My original idea was to use a motorised car antenna and connect it to my 12v battery so I could just push a button and it would extend out even further but only when needed!!!! Wow, how cool would that be? But I just never got around to it, send photos of your installation when done please. My email is in the drop down info below video. George
@@georgechase3275 Great idea on the power antenna for the flag. I probably won't be doing much work on the trike for a while due to my back problems. It's not idle though because I have it sitting on a stationary trainer so I can do some cycling exercise. I'm just not well enough to
head out on the road for now. I've had the trike for more than 20 years and did a lot of riding locally - San diego. I may get a picture of it
to send anyway. Mine is a Greenspeed GTO, 48 speed. It has a 3 speed internal rear hub, an 8 speed cog set and an internal two speed Schlumpf Mountain Drive crankset that I shift with my feet instead of a front derailleur that uses a cable. I love the setup, but may have to upgrade to e-assist when I'm ready to ride again.
Man, you are one talented fellow. Great build on that trike. You could surely create a riding video and it would be great to see. Keep rolling!
Thanks Phil, There are plenty of riding videos out there with drones, 360 cameras etc etc. The amount of planning and work to make this video makes me think I'm out of that game.
Great job! I am planning a similar auxiliary electrical setup with signal lights. I would love a detail pic on how you mounted your signal lights. I am really inspired, you have done all of the things I want to do!
send me an email . my email is in the info just below the video
you thought of everything, great ideas thanks
Thanks
Thanks for sharing. Welcome home, brother. USAF 1958-1970
Army 70-71
Great video George!
GEORGE, Excellent video! You are Mr. McGiver of the recumbents. I would have liked to see your charge hook up at the end too. Happy Trails! 😎👍
Hi Frank, Charge is simple. the 48 volt for the motor I plug in and charge it in place on the trike about evry 10-15 days as I do not use the motor much here in flat Florida. The 12v battery I plug into a little trickle charger about as often, so the front and rear lights , signal lights , horn, etc all take their power from the 12v battery so do not need to charge them independantly at all. The only things that I charge from the 12v battery that I usually do each time I have that battery on charge is the garmin radar units and the alarm system. Those have usb ports so I just plug those into the adapter that is already in the 12v outlets so while the 12v is charging so are the radar and alarm units. So I never remove anything to charge at all. Just plug in the chargers prior to lowering the cover after a ride. Hope that helps.
Thanks for the video and the information
Good video George.
AWESOME work!
Thanks for your video. I have 3 electric trikes with 48v-52v electric setups. I ride 3-5 nights a week. Suggestions, you can use a pro chaser dc-dc 72v/60v/48v step down to 12v controller directly tied into your ebike battery. The controller is less than 5oz. This will reduce your weight and allow you to use any 12v automotive accessories as well. A small 12v lithium jumper pack will work as well, it will give you more capacity and will last longer than your lead acid battery with reduced weight. I’ve paired these systems with a small 6 way fuse block to power automotive LED foglights as my headlights, LED running lights to illuminate the ground, flashing LED markers, USB plugs for 5v accessories and a 4ft long LED whip light (imagine a light saber) with a flying fish windsock on top as my flag. Because all the lights are LED, they consume very little electricity. 12v lighting and accessories are better and much cheaper than dedicated 5v bike lighting. More choices from automotive, motorcycle, ATV, etc. All these items are on Amazon.
Thanks for your ideas. Could you email me ? My email address is shown above as I have a few questions if you dont mind.
Good job, George!
Nice! I also have a tadpole trike and a 2 wheel bike both power assisted. I’m 66 and have well more than 50,000 miles of biking over the years. I do want to take issue with the front strobe, which effectively blind me, wether biking or (rarely) driving. Please, if you insist on having a strobe, point it at the ground. For safety I’m forced to come to a complete stop if approached by a bike with front strobe that is not pointing at the ground until they pass. Bike commuting year round in Seattle for over 30 years, my ride home was often hell due to people pointing strobes right at eye level, more than once I was completely blind for several seconds. I love your rig, I hope you have many great rides!!!
Thanks for your comments. My front strobe is not very bright and is indeed pointed downward for that reason.
What a cool set up unfortunately I am bit heavy for the trike even thou I ride a ebike 2 wheeler just blown away with what you have done
Thanks very much. You can adapt most of the things I have done to the trike to a two wheeler.
Great Job George…. I’ve tricked out my Catrike 559 and my wife’s Terra Trike All Terrain. I really like the hard cases and the side mounted flag. If you don’t mind I’ll appropriate those ideas. (Marine don’t steal…… but we have been known to….. well you know). I’ll share some photos of our trike hauler which I built our electrical bench/ recharge station into the nose of. Thank you for your service to our country, community! I want to more like you when I grow up. 😂.
Hi Ted, The reason for the video is to give folks ideas and adapt what I hav done to their trikes. So go for it.
Great job Sir.
Cool setup
Hey George. My name is Fred and I just recently won my disability rating with the VA and I am looking forward to building something like this and hitting the road myself. Thanks for the video.
Hi Fred, Congradulations on getting your rating. Most times you have to appeal to manage to get what you deserve as I well know. Good luck with the build and have fun doing it. FYI I have replaced the small 12v battery that runs my lights etc with a converter that goes in line from my 48 volt motor battery and that supplies the 12volts to those items. The new very bright led lights of today are small and use very little power. That way I only need to charge one battery. Most of those items can be purchased with USB type charging cords so by installing long usb cables you never even need to remove them to charge. George
Thanks, Im impressed and will buy a bike myselves
Dang! This is impressive. I have a Catrike. I think you should continue to make videos.
Thanks Brett. I doubt more videos are in the cards. I am 75 and making this video was a huge project for me. Shorter videos are better but I think I covered everything with this one. Keep us updated on things you do to the cat !
Cool mods I like the Army Avationt sticker the best.
Great Job! Thanks for sharing, maybe I'll see you and the trike at a Taco Tuesday.
I have a suggestion for your flag, if you find yourself riding your trike at dusk, or at night, like I wind up doing more often than not. I went to a fabric store and pretty much bought them out on reflective piping, then added it to each of my flags, mostly because we have a lot of large pickup trucks and SUVs with impatient drivers that can't see what's in front of them unless it's at eye level. I also added an orange LED beacon that sits just over 5 feet off the ground. It has several strobe modes including a chaser mode that mimics a rotating orange tow truck lamp. Very eye-catching at night, and it gets me a lot of room I wouldn't otherwise get. Look up 'Enhanced visibility mast'. There are a few more add-ons I've made that might be of interest.
Very neat. I dont do much night rideing but that is the way to go for sure. Do they each have their own power or do you have one power source for all of the lights?
@@georgechase3275 I like redundancy, so each light has it's own set of rechargeable batteries, and the headlights each have two sets of 18650 lithium batteries, so that even if three batteries are down, I can still get home. And there's enough reflective tape on there that people on the moon can see it, even if the lights are out. I also have a DC-DC convertor brick so that I can recharge batteries on the fly while riding, should that become necessary, and to power the brake/signal/flasher/clearance lights from the motor battery when I get around to installing them.
I have also installed bell (for dog owners), an electric bike horn (for less observant trail users), and a Zounds airhorn (for idiots watching their phones with headphones on, which still does not get their attention... go figure... makes you wonder how humans became the dominant life form on the planet, doesn't it?).
@@awvankats7550 Yes and humans will soon be the dogs of the universe as A.I. gets into full swing.
@@georgechase3275 maybe, but I have a few surprises for any A.I. that thinks that it can drive a virtual trike on a virtual path is going to intimidate me, and a few more for A.I.s that try driving a real trike on a real path. Skynet's not gonna like me much...😏
I was looking to add a 12v battery mostly for a car horn, a gps tracker and a motorcycle style alarm. I would still use the bell mostly on the trails but having the horn on the road would make a big difference.
George…..Great ingenuity & video , sir ! Thank you for your Service, too ! Might you be willing to share a list of parts for all the customizations ? I just acquired a trike & plan to spend the winter customizing it ! Happy Holidays….!
Hi Gary, most of the items are just off the shelf bike and auto stuff. hard to find the same items as things change so often on the shelves. Basic flasher lights I used needed batteries but I did remove the AA bateries and now supply them by running wire to them and used a 12 battery to power that stuff, then used DC to Dc converters to drop the voltage down to 3 v or 4.5v out of the 12 v battery that they require. Now I have eliminated the 12 batery and added a 40-70 volt imput with 12v output converter and have that connectted to my 48 v electric motor battery . Still using the little voltage reducers for the flashing lights . When they bite the dust I will go to the newer led's that can be charged with a usb and have the usb all in place at all times and just push them in when I need a charge. Take a second look at the video and most items are explained fairly well I think so you can figure out what is needed for each thing. signal lights, horn use the full 12v as they are motorcycle and regular car parts. It can be a fun project and looking for special parts to use to accomplish the job is 1/2 the fun. Good luck.
Fair enough , thanks !! Onwards and upwards…..!🚴♂️
Great thoughtfulness/work. I'm always impressed by the inventiveness of persons with electrical talents. In your process of upgrading your system would you add to your next video a bit more focus on the mounting hardware and methodology thoughts. Your layout puts me in mind of a UH-1 cockpit layout. Thanks. Army Aviation 67-69. Be well.
Thanks for your comments. I was Army Aviation in Nam 69-70 All the mounting hardware I built myself as it all needed custom fits. Working in Aircraft airframe repair helped a lot in this respect. I am very familiar with the UH-1 as well as all other Army choppers.
My dad was Army Air as well in Vietnam, Korea, then served abroad before retiring. I've found that some of the simplest and well thought out builds for things in general tend to come from people with military backgrounds. Thank you for your service to the Country. @@georgechase3275
great job!!!
Thanks Carlton.
Please tell your riding buddies about this video.
is there a good place to find the dc to dc adjustable adapters . could not find a way to ask discreetly. sorry amazing setup
@@tracypatterson8991 did you get your answer Tracy?
Good job 👍
Thank you !
Not a recumbent trike, but my trike I put a small 12v battery on it and got an LED antenna for it, along with tail lights, headlight, and an air trumpet
Keep biking
Nice job George. I have the same trike and would like more info on the e-assist package and the mesh seat you added. Thanks again .
Glad you enjoyed the video. The Padded seat is called a Ventasit Just google it. the electric kit is from ebikekit.com again find on google. I am in the process of ditching the 12v battery and hav got a 40-90 volt input converter to 12v output to eliminate charging the 12v battery. I will just take off the output of the 48 v lithium to reduce to 12v .
What size waterproof case do you have on the side of the back rack and can you provide a picture of how/where it is zip tied to the rack. Great video. I’m picking up my new trike today! This has given me some great ideas on some must haves!
Hi Karen, As for size of the side storage boxes you need would depend on your rack and what fits nicely. I held them in place and marked places to drill holes for zip ties to go through and around the rack then back inside the container where the zip tie was terminated. Making sure to have 2 of the 4 in each unit placed so they would support the wieght and not drop downward and the other two to keep the unit in tight to the rack. They have foam inside so I removed that to install the ties then put some back and left some out depending on what was to be stored in that particular unit. I have time I will try to get a shot of how the ties fit. Hope that helps. Bottom line is do not overthink it just use 4 or more ties thru the unit and around a part of the rack to hold them in place.
Impressive build George. Very well done. I'm looking at doing something similar but with ham radio and APRS. What model GPS is that where it has a bike mode?
I have an old Garming GPSMap 76CS I was thinking of using but when you mentioned bike mode, it got me curious.
Also, first and foremost, thank you for your service. I could not serve due to eye problems, but since I can't drive, your setup has given me some ideas.
This an old Garmin Nuvi from way back prior to when most cars had gps installed from the factory. However there are many bike gps computers on the market now that would probably work better for you.
You have many great ideas. Your side flag is unique and probably the single best safety device you added. Unfortunately your pedals are NOT safe. They'd be great on a bike, but they're actually dangerous on your trike. Trike riders face a unique danger, which is "leg suck." This is all over google and there are even videos about it. Bad things happen if your leg comes off the pedal and gets sucked underneath the frame while you're riding. To prevent this danger, trike riders need to have their feet either strapped to the pedals or clicked in with clipless pedals. And BTW, I used to use your kind of pedals on my recumbent bike. Those little spikes on the pedals hold your foot pretty well ... until the day they don't. The one time my foot did come off, those little spikes ripped heck out of my leg and I had blood all over - but at least I didn't have to worry about leg suck on a recumbent bike! So even if you don't get leg suck from the frame, your pedals might rip up your leg. For your sake, I hope you replace those pedals, get clipped in and stay safe.
Thanks for your comments John. I think we will have to dissagree on the pedals. If your feet come off the pedals on a recumbent trike you probably have one of two things going on that are not set correctly. First is the boom lenght. If it is out too far your knees will not be bent enough and with your leg straight out the foot easily comes off the pedeal. Second issue could be your seat is too far back cusing the same issue. If you have enough of a bend in your knee when the pedal is at its most forward position your foot will not come off the pedal with the Catalyst pedals. Also dont forget that your foot position on a catalyst pedal is different than other pedals... the pedal should be centered on your arch not the ball of your foot. I have seen all the stories about "foot suck" I will bet dollars to donuts that every one of them had no bend in the knee at all meaning that the foot had no pressure on the pedal at all making it very easy to drop to the ground.
Check out these videos from Steve @ Trike Hobo for more good info on this subject.Steve and others have studied this issue and posted many videos and none of them have found an issue if the pedals are used properly.
Thanks for watching and posting a comment, I appreciate all feedback.
Check out Steves videos on this subject as well as others and then perhaps try the pedals again after making some adjustments to your boom or seat position.
Steves videos here:
ua-cam.com/channels/NLZ05mDZEEk106xu7hxhng.html
@@georgechase3275 , George, you are very wrong regarding the risk of feet coming off the pedals. This is a well known fact, established overall the years people have been riding recumbents in general, and tadpole trikes in particular. Many people every year have severe leg injuries from the resulting "leg suck".
While a trike's boom length and seat position can contribute to feet falling off the pedals, they are not usually the cause. Some major causes are leg fatigue and rough rolling surfaces (roads/trails/sidewalks). All that needs to happen is the rider relaxing their legs a bit at the wring time when the trike hits a bump, and the rider's heel(s) can hit the pavement in a split second. The severity of the resulting injury will then depend on the speed of the trike at that moment.
You have a lot of good ideas demonstrated in this video, but not having clipless pedals (and shoes) on a recumbent trike is very risky. If you want to use regular shoes on your trike, there are alternate pedals that are shaped to hold the heels in place when a strap is around the toes of the shoes.
@@youtuuba Thanks for your comment. However we still dissagree on this issue.
that is KOOL !!
W O W ! . . . Informative & entertaining - excellent. Just didn't understand how/where the '3 modes' were selected? (where is this)
Hi Randy, The e-assist will operate in 3 ways. 1. you can pedal the bike with no assist at all ( even when the system has the key in the on position). This works just like regular non powered bike. 2. If you begin pedaling the e-assist kicks in and will provide assistance to your pedaling depending on what level you have set between 1 & 5, with 1 being very little assistance and 5 being lots of assistance and going faster with little effort. 3 You can just use the power on demand lever that I showed and stop pedaling and the motor will take over fully. When using no pedaling, using only the moto,r your power and speed avaiable will be determined by the level of assist you have set on the computer 1-5 with 5 being going the fastest. So, if you have it set on power level 5 and turn the lever downward with your thumb it will go from very slow to full power. But if you have it set to level 1 it will go slow only as the power level being set to 1 will limit your pedal assist and speed to that level. I hope I didn't confuse you more.
@@georgechase3275Got it - THANKS
Hi All, For those of you that would like specific info or photos of a particular installation please send me an email( it is in the info below the video) and I will try to send you back a photo of what you may need to see how I attached things. tks George unless someone can tell me how to attach a photo to a comment below.
cant find the dc to dc adjustable converter online, do you happen to know a website that has it or a link please
I sent ans in email to you
I am a disabled veteran too and just bought a trike. I would like to know more about the trailer rack. I would like to make one. Because a manufactured one is just out of my funds.
As mentioned in the video I made it out of 1inch angle iron for hte frame. made it just a bit bigger than the 3 wheel foot pring so had room for the wheel chocks etc on the deck. I used 3/8 plywood for the floor. One pc of 1in by 1 in square metal tubing for the tounge that goes under the metal frame at the cneter point and runs from inside the hitch reciever to the back of the frame. Also used an additional pc or 1 in angle on the front and back that runs about 3/4 of the width from under the frame down under the 1in sq tubing and back up to the other side of the deck for extra braceing for hte width of the rack. The rack was welded together at each corner etc but if you cant have that done you could use bolts at each junction point. But that may not be as ridgid. This rack is not light and probably weighs 40-50 lbs but once on the car it is solid. The trike rides great on it. If you require more info or photos of parts of the rack send me an email (listed in just under the video in the dropdown area) Good lick with the project. George
Thank you for your response. I am working on this project in May.
I have to make it lighter and I’ll figure that out soon enough
I don't know about George's recommendation on what to do when a dog goes after your bike/trike. Conventional wisdom in the overall biking world is to keep riding, making sure to do so in a way that does not further excite the dog. In other words, keep pedaling steadily at the same speed, and try to totally disregard the dog, as if it were not even there. Unless a dog is angered or has been trained to be aggressive, they will usually just chase for a bit of fun (it is hard wired into their brains), but will give up if their 'target' disregards them. Some dogs, especially at farms, will chase until they get past the boundaries of their territory. Changing speed, looking at the dog, yelling at it, making sudden motions, etc; will only entice the dog to keep chasing. A bike & rider that just keeps rolling without reacting quickly becomes boring to the dog and it will lose interest.
Also be careful with Mace or other sprays. Many nervous riders carry such products, but they can backfire just as easily as they can deter the dog. Depending on wind and such, the rider can get a face full of the spray. Also, dogs hate being Maced, and there have been reports of dogs remembering their attacker (that is how they see things when a rider causes them pain) and perhaps going after them with more vengeance the next time.
I have been been an active long distance touring cyclist for about forty years, and have had countless dogs try to chase me. Using the 'disregard the dog' strategy, I have never once had a dog do more than run and bark. On the flip side, I have ridden in rides with others, and have seen dogs lunge at riders who act all hysterical when chased, and some have even nipped at the riders. The same dogs showed much less interest in riders who ignored them.
I wonder what would happen in a situation where a dog chases a bike rider, and the rider just stops. Maybe the dog will stop chasing and will trot up the the rider and look for a good head scratching. Maybe the dog will take the act of stopping as further incentive to act aggressively. And what happens when the rider then resumes riding; wouldn't the dog be inclined to resume the chase? Or, at the very least, the dog starts to learn a bad behavior, because the riders who react are essentially training the dog to keep chasing, because they react in the first place. This strategy seems more likely to encourage bad behavior in dogs than the time tested strategy of simply disregarding them.
There are many different responses from dogs and bikes moving past their property. I for one have found that its "the chase" the dog is interested in. And have indeed learned from over the years that by just stopping the bike and speaking to the dog in a calm soft voice that all is OK that they all stop chasing and stand there looking at you. I then slowly start riding again and they watch me pull away every time. The pepper spray should be the gel type as it has a much less chance of "blow back" I only had to use it once many years ago when a attacking dog came out of nowhere...he got a face full and ran back yelping.
What size ventasit are you using?
The ventasit is made in many diferent sizes. Just measure your seat width and height and get the one that fits best. I would add that her in Florida where it is hot in the summer it does not do much to keep your back from sweating.
I have a quick question about the battery. What is the Amp Hours?
Not sure ... it is a security system back up battery. I have since changed it out and in its place have installed a voltage converter that takes the 48 volts from my motor battery down to 12 volts that run all my lights, horn, gps, security system etc etc.
@@georgechase3275 No worries👍
I was just curious on run time with what AH battery.
It was probably about an 18ah they are the most common for those systems.
I have used them a lot over the years for other purposes 🧐
@@jamesglenn520 I was wanting a sealed battery that would supply the 12v power needed and that fit the bill. But the new voltage reducer means I do not have to charge a separate 12v battern any longer, When I charge the 48 v bike motor battery ( usually about every 2-3 weeks) I flip the switch to the reducer and also charge the garmin radar units (front and back) most of the rest of the 12v things are just supplied by the reducer when they are being used so no need to charge at all. Much easier.
@@georgechase3275 Sounds like a great solution.
Wife and I are getting ready to Gadget out our trikes and videos like yours are Priceless🙏
@@jamesglenn520I had some sealed FLA alarm batteries which were 7aH, but they are dead now so I have a lithium battery coming today that is much smaller and lighter to power my new whip light that might replace my flag pole if I like it. The whip light is an ATV thing. I have other lights that plug directly into the bikes 48v battery via usb, but the whip light needed a 12v that I will plug in, or possibly charge via a small solar panel on top of the rear rack if it fits. I might go to HF and look at one of those hard sided boxes to replace my old bag.
So what was cost of it
I probably have about 3,000 dollars in the bike, motor, and all the extra foo foo
A difference in the UK from the USA is that I was in the army and disabled but wouldn't announce it on a trike or expect special treatment.
Perhaps the difference is that we are proud of our service and not afraid to admit we have problems and still manage to function even if it is hard. The point is we both served our country and have made the best of it. Thanks for your service.
Cheater, riding an evil machine. Your efforts are nil and your rewards are none.
Thank you for your kind words. Have a wonderful day.