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Posted on: Sat, Jun 14 2008 2:59 PM
Posted by: ShimasChild Posts: 248
TAKE ME WITH YOU!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted on: Sat, Jun 14 2008 4:46 PM
Posted by: ArkanzanWheeler Posts: 385
TotalMechanic, the Grand Prix GT is fine, but jump in a modified GTP and hang on! It is the one with the supercharger. Have you gone on GrandPrixForums.net (or .com, I forget)? I have the same screen name on there. I also run those Falkens,great tires and they are cheap...512's and the 452's now.
For my reverse trike idea I was actually thinking about using a VW bug front end, I used on to make a dune buggy years ago and they are light weight and have a lot of performance parts for them. I have not seen a Miata front end though (try to stay away from those type of cars...lol).
Weight is always an issue with me...lol. I want my vehicle as light as possible yet stong. But if you are asking about the weight it has to carry I am 180 lbs, my heaviest wheelchair is 40 lbs, and if there is room for a passenger I would just put another sticker like I had for my Ninja, something about "This is a performance vehicle so the weight must be kept to a minimum so no fat chicks allowed." LOL...or something like that
Posted on: Sat, Jun 14 2008 7:10 PM
Posted by: SmartAceW0LF Posts: 14
ArkanzanWheels: The great things about the design I built were 1.) The old servi-car trike rearends while not necessarily abundant in availability were still able to be found and usually at reasonable prices. (With the rise of e-bay I suspect this is NOT the case anymore) I do have one left though. Not sure yet if I am going to use it.
2.) A swingarm to match virtually any rear suspension, chain drive motorcycle could be easily made.
Additional notes regarding your last post with regard to the undesirable tilting over problem inherent in three wheelers... the secret to this in the design I built --Please note that I do not call it "my" design. It is not. It was originally designed by a friend of mine in 1977 I believe-- is in the center of gravity. With this design is best to get the ground clearance at the extreme bottom of your shock travel about 2 to 3" off the ground. This will give you a little more than 4" or so clearance while sitting on the bike. I really can't imagine many ppl pushing it in corners any harder than I did because I was hell bent to keep up with all around me on their 2 wheelers and they numbered in the hundreds at the time. I never raised the wheels of mine in any corners. That said, there was a point in time when I first began the 3rd gen. that I used the stock shocks on such a rig and found that it was indeed capable of this undesirable trait. This was simply corrected by purchasing a set of "lowering" shocks and installing them. Basically the lower shocks were 11" in length as opposed to the stock 12".
The only other real mod concerns with this conversion are the brakes and the gearing. (Sprocket sizes to compensate for the very small rearend sprocket)
I too really liked the T-Rex idea. That said, I did NOT like the idea of riding in a caged enclosure for numerous reasons, not the least of which would be the crane necessary to get me in such an obstacle. Wouldn't mind doing it at least once though just to experience the little ride. Thing is though, you can't take the "car" feel out of that ride even if it is in fact a motorcyle. :-)
Posted on: Sat, Jun 14 2008 7:39 PM
ArkanzanWheeler: Thought I would add this. Probably the best and least expensive rearend I have encountered for a conversion like yours would be the Frankenstein trike rearend. At $3500.00 it is a value. I easily had more than that in mine once you consider the additional cost of sprockets from front to rear and the ever so costly disc brake conversion on the servi-car rearend. With one of these rearends all you would need to do is build a swingarm (a thing I will be glad to assist you with in design). Leaving only the wheelchair rack you described. The approach necessary to take with this rearend would be to fabricate something to replace your rear fender that would incorporate the chair rack somehow. Several thoughts come to mind, but there are far too many unkown variables for me to go into it now. Feel free to email me if you like.
The link for the Frankenstein rearends is here.
These can be ordered in 2 different widths. A word of warning though. The narrower the rear end the more apt it is to tip in corners. I believe the wider of the 2 this guy creates is the same as the stock servi-car rearend. I found my trike to fit through some very tight places, and friends of mine rode thousands of miles side by side with me in the same lane with no problems.
A note regarding the Mystery Designs rearends. These rearends, (What I would consider to be the pinnacle of design in this field) are NOT cheap. The rearend itself starts at 6,000.00. If you want the tiltster option it is an additional 6,000.00. That said, the only thing holding me back from getting one is figuring out where I can get some more money. Believe me, I "am" working on it! :-)
Posted on: Sat, Jun 14 2008 7:46 PM
SmartAceW0LF, I was looking at the old servi-car axles but I have enough parts around my place I can probably build something more suited for my bike. I am wanting to keep my hardtail, just add an extra wheel back there...lol. I was already running one car tire, might as well add another. I like keeping everthing low and minimal, old school style. I will also be pushing the limits, I usually run fast but that is also what put me in this chair now. I have a set of Camaro axles, I was thinking of using those with making a mini spool with the spider gears. How was cornering with both wheels spinning the same speed or did you only have one wheel powered? How wide was you axle? How about how wide is the whole rear from outside tire edges? I like those race wheels but I was thinking of using wider ones like you had before, is there a reason you when with the narrower ones? They work better? I would think they would be easier to tip but I am wanting my bike as narrow as possible so I want to know how narrow I can go with it still being stable. If it was up to me the tires would run right next to the frame now...lol.
Posted on: Sun, Jun 15 2008 7:25 AM
TotalMechanic: I apologize but I missed this post asking me about the pics in my trike album. Unfortunately, that is one that I have very little info on. I saved the pics for the sake of the actual rearend.
I gather you have some very specific riding posture requirements. In my experience, the most comfortable riding position is one that sweeps your legs backward. If you will take a close look at picture number 47 of that album, you will notice that in this picture I have my feet situated directly in front of me. That however is NOT the position I would ride in. Look closely at the forearm crutches attached behind me in that pic. You will notice toward the bottom of the crutches that there is a footpeg. Made actually for the passenger, these were the pegs I used to travel with. (Incidentally, when viewing the original pic of that bike you will observe the small bunge cord hook hanging below the trike, that is what I used to wrap around the crutches to hold them on) That would have me resting with the seat directly under my crotch as opposed to setting on my rear. It made it much easier to move a little and relieve pressure and also saved the hell out of my butt which would get sore rapidly if I was on the tailbone all the time. It's funny, from the outside looking in, one would imagine the riding position of most crotch rockets to be uncomfortable at best. Nothing could be further from the truth. Feet extended out front might look really cool, but it has never been a comfortable way of riding. (I wasn't always disabled) and recall the same discomfort quite well.
Posted on: Sun, Jun 15 2008 7:56 AM
ArkanzanWheeler: There are many manufacturers of custom frames that make rigid trike frames. As for just adding another wheel out to the side, I suppose that confuses me a bit. Maybe you could just build an outrigger setup. Sort of like a sidecar without the car. I tried the sidecar route for a bit. Was very dangerous for my riding style.
I believe that in trying to use some of your old car parts to make a rearend you will likely find yourself trying to reinvent the wheel. Several considerations come to mind. Weight, sprocket fitment to spider gears, bearings, brakes to name a few and those take no consideration regarding the housings for your differential and sprocket nor the axle tubes and such.
In answer to your question about my setup, the rearend wheels and all was 44" wide. To get a good feel of exactly how it would feel do this. Extend both arms out at 90 degrees. Now drop them both to about 45 degrees. At that position you could curl your fingers over the outside edge of the tires on each side. As for how it handles, I illustrated that to the best of my ability in my first or second post.
The wheels you see on the 3rd gen trike are the exact width of the ones on the first. They are lower profile on the 3rd gen. for 2 reasons. 1.) In setting this one up I wanted to match as closely as possible the the same RPM range as a stock HD. The only way to do that was to calculate the rpms of the stock tires used on factory bikes at 60 mph. in their final drive. Having that information I knew what the rpms of the motor should be also. I then went about the task of matching my own to approx the same. A chore in that the servi-car sprocket is only 37 teeth as opposed to the 51 tooth sprocket of a stock big twin. The lower profile tires gave me a lot more leeway in my already limited choice of front sprockets. 2.) Another very important choice for not only the ultralight weight wheels but the tires as well is weight. Unsprung wheel weight to be even more precise. The less weight that is unsprung, the less recoil it has when hitting bumps in the road etc. The large tires like you saw on the original bike had me all over the road sometimes. Not only that they always felt spongy. Where the lighter low pro tires were firm and had virtually no spongy feel to them. Same as it would have on your favorite sports car. And when they hit a bump, they came back down with a firm thump and were instantly back in action. The large tires would bounce 2 to 3 times a little before finally resting again at a normal ride. There is one other advantage also, the acceleration factor from dead stop. Again, when riding with other bikes, all Harleys as well, it really turned some heads to see this trike, with its obvious added weight of the rearend, along with my present girlfriend and all my luggage pull away from them from start to top speed. I got used to being called a liar about what the engine had in it.
You ask did it have positive traction. I resound with an unequivocal NO! Do NOT consider live axles for ANY 3 wheeler unless you have a death wish. Live with the fact that the wheel with the least amount of traction is the one that is going to get all the power. That may seem annoying to some, but in this case it is an absolute blessing!
Posted on: Sun, Jun 15 2008 8:05 AM
tsh3406: Thank you so much for posting the link to trikeenvy.com. They have on there a trike rearend that can be purchased (if the site is not a mistake) that is the absolute most reasonable price I have ever seen or heard of! Anyone interested can look at it here. It is trike rearend #3. Unheard of price. I am sure that must be euro or some sort of mistake. Worth a call though if you are serious.
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