Which recumbent trike?

tomdrift
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Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby tomdrift » Sat Sep 19, 2015 11:23 pm

Hi, I'm keen to buy my first recumbent trike. Anyone know anything about the MRT trike (by MR Components) as compared to say the Greenspeed Magnum?

I live in hilly, bumpy, pot holey country so good clearance and low gears are essential.

tomdrift

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chuckchunder
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Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby chuckchunder » Sun Sep 20, 2015 10:21 am

Hi Tom

If you're looking at new, I'd also consider Performer, either directly or thru A1 Sports in QLD, particularly cause you can get rear suspension.

I have no experience with an MRT other than looking at and test riding one for sale a couple of years ago. I have no experience with a Magnum other than discussing them with Ian Sims just prior to their release. In bent trikes I currently ride a Catrike 700, Steintrikes Mad Max and a Greenspeed Anura. The 700 gets most of the miles by a long shot. In the past I have put significant miles on a Greenspeed GTR, GTS and a Logo.

On paper the MRT is steel, disc braked, mesh seated, foldable and has no adjustabililty in the height or recline of the seat. The Magnum is aluminium, drum braked, mesh seated, foldable and has adjustable seat height and recline. They are similar in track and wheelbase, so should handle similarly with the Magnum seat set similar to the MRT. Neither has suspension.

The MRT is direct steering and the Magnum indirect. Indirect steering takes less hand movement for a similar amount of turn, so feels more "twitchy" until you get used to it. I didn't like the high hand position of the MRT steering. The hand movement is also different in that on indirect steering your hand moves for and aft, whereas on direct they move left and right. The only real difference I've found in practice after lots of miles on the direct steering 700 is that if a front wheel is caught by say a crack in the road, it is easier to pull out with indirect steering. All that said, if I could have indirect steering on the 700, I would.

I've not found a lot of difference between drum and disc brakes (cable operated). My drums were 75mm and lasted 70,000+km before I got any grief from them. The BB7 brakes fitted on the MRT and on my Steintrike and 700 required endless adjustment to stop pads rubbing on the discs (keeping in mind I ride 200+km a week). Greenspeed claim the 90mm drums on the Magnum are as good as discs, I have no reason to doubt the claim.

Hope these off the cuff musing are at least a little helpful.

If you are in Perth I'd be happy for you to trundle around the local bike paths on my trikes for a test ride.

cheers

glen
"We have thousands of miles of cycling infrastructure, we just need to get the cars off them....." US advocate

tomdrift
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Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby tomdrift » Mon Sep 21, 2015 10:00 pm

Much appreciated Glen. That has given me some good leads to follow and feedback to digest. I'll be working up to 150+kms/week so if the disc brakes are as fiddley as you say, I'll be considering the drum brakes offered by the Greenspeed Magnum but also having a look at the Performer and Catrike trikes.

Thanks again,

Tom

tomdrift
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Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby tomdrift » Mon Sep 21, 2015 10:02 pm

PS I live in Northern NSW, so thanks for the offer of test riding your trikes but Perth is a bit far...!

Recycler
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Location: Woolgoolga NSW

Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby Recycler » Wed Sep 23, 2015 1:14 pm

Is Coffs Harbour any closer,
I have a ICE Trike you could try.

OldBloke
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Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby OldBloke » Wed Sep 23, 2015 10:41 pm

Tom, my wife and I have Performer Trike-Fs (folding) that we are pretty happy with. We imported direct from Taiwan so had to add GST and customs but still a lot cheaper than other brands.

We have BB5 cable operated disc brakes. I average about 120 km per week (except the last few weeks) and haven't had any problems with adjustment of the disc pads and rubbing. I generally check them (and adjust if necessary) when I service the trike every 3 months or so. One thing with discs is that you need to bed them in properly when you first get a new trike or new pads.

Ken

Arakasy
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Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby Arakasy » Fri Nov 13, 2015 12:19 am

Performer is a good entry level brand...but buy direct
I have had serious issues with A1 action sports in qld. But purchasing direct from performer is a breeze.

The x trike is back suspension, works ok with the stock bits. And yes the BB5 brakes are the bomb, a touch fiddley but damn they stop you.

I have 2 that have bafang crank motors installed... They do 125 km a night without missing a step (when the battery works) :roll:
Don't Panic
And I don't know
Ride casual... Not to casual
They might snap out it's comfortable !!

OldBloke
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Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby OldBloke » Fri Nov 13, 2015 7:15 am

There is a Catrike Trail for sale in North Sydney at a good price:
http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/north-sy ... 1094833138" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Someone please buy it and save me from temptation. [WINKING FACE]

ob

tomdrift
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Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby tomdrift » Sat Nov 14, 2015 10:30 pm

Thanks for the tips. I looked up the Catrike Trail and someone had already bought it - no more temptation! $750 was obviously a bargain 'cos it didn't take long to sell.

Still looking,

Tom

OldBloke
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Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby OldBloke » Sat Nov 21, 2015 11:22 am

There is a nice looking HP Velotechnic Gecko at a good price in Seaham (Hunter Valley) on Gumtree.



http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/seaham/b ... 1095634711" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;



OB

If I'm wrong blame Tapatalk.

avolve
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Location: The 'gong

Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby avolve » Wed Dec 23, 2015 2:15 pm

I have long thought about a trike, and the itch is back again.

I am interested in options for commuting (will need to be able to take panniers). Mostly on a separated cycle way, with some on-road connections.

Other things I need to consider:
— I am not a fan of grip shift (this might be different on a recumbent?).
— Folding would be a nice option to take it on trains (feasible)?
— Suspension?
— Larger (26/700c) rear wheel ?
— mesh v hard(er) seats?

Any experiences shared are appreciated.

geebee
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Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby geebee » Thu Dec 24, 2015 6:54 pm

The best shifter on a trike IMO is a bar end shifter, the way you hold the grips puts it directly under your thumb, grip shifters are ok but a distant second.

I would test the folding before buying, as the folder I had would still take up a lot of space and take several minutes to fold and the seat was separate.

If not long and CroMo with a mesh seat, suspension maybe worth the weight, my steel 700c, hard shell seat trike rides quite well but high speeds on rough surfaces can jar a bit, the GLR just soaks them up.

I like smaller wheels 20" Easy to find tyres or even 16" for strength and handling (also when moving through the house), large back wheels can flex if you are into high speed handling, I would never buy a 700c wheeled trike again I like fast cornering to much.

I like both styles of seats with mesh getting the nod due to ride and sweat.

I also prefer indirect steering, smoother, no kick back if you hit the side of the wheel, lighter.

If you could tolerate an extremely low and very reclined trike keep an eye on ebay for a second hand GLR, handling and speed are off the chart and you can fit a rack and panniers, many would class it as not ideal in heavy traffic I don't notice that much difference in traffic with my other trikes :)

Just my experience in many thousands of km on several trikes in a hilly twisty environment.

avolve
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Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby avolve » Sat Mar 19, 2016 6:42 pm

Anyone have comments-expereince with a Terra Trike Cruier: one is for sale not far from me.

I am (again) considering a trike for my daily commute, of which 23+ of the 30km is on a cycle path. It is mostly flat with a couple overpasses and two small hills.

If I was to purachse, grip shift would be the first thing to go, and I would add fenders, amongst a few other things.

Interested in others thoughts on this model.

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Duck!
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Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby Duck! » Mon Mar 21, 2016 11:21 pm

Grip shift in a trike is horrendous because you grab the thing with the wrong end of your hand. On a flat-bar upright you grip with your index finger & thumb; in a trike you're trying to grab it with your little finger & side of your palm. Not exactly efficient! Bar-end is the way to go.
I had a thought, but it got run over as it crossed my mind.

custard
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Re: Which recumbent trike?

Postby custard » Tue Mar 22, 2016 10:02 am

Duck! wrote:Grip shift in a trike is horrendous because you grab the thing with the wrong end of your hand. On a flat-bar upright you grip with your index finger & thumb; in a trike you're trying to grab it with your little finger & side of your palm. Not exactly efficient! Bar-end is the way to go.
I'm the other way around. On underseat steering is the only place grip shift makes sense to me. I can turn the shift with the bottom of my palm, and still control the grips with the top half. In normal grip shift usage, I either have to let go of the handle grips, or twist them with me as I turn the grip shifts. Both options are less than ideal.

I like bar end shifters too, but on warm days I like resting my hands on the top of the grips in the breeze. If I've got bar ends on, it's plain uncomfortable, and I accidentally change gears if I'm not paying attention.

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