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Postby AUbicycles » Fri Feb 09, 2007 1:49 am
- Traffic can notice me better than on a recumbent (especially in traffic)
- I can react more efficiently, eg jump up a curb or dodge an obstacle (tighter turning curve).
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Postby Hotdog » Fri Feb 09, 2007 11:31 am
I'm worried about sounding like a recumbent fanboy here, which would be particularly silly as I don't even own one and I do like my upright. They're certainly not for everyone (no good off-road as you can't shift the weight distribution around) but I reckon there are some people who'd benefit (some tourers, speed fiends who aren't into UCI santioned racing, people with back or arm problems).
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Postby europa » Fri Feb 09, 2007 11:52 am
Richard
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Bentech Recumbent - pictures
Postby rdp_au » Fri Feb 09, 2007 3:12 pm
Happy to share a few pictures of the construction of my bike.
Basic frame components

Trial assembly

Completed bike

The bike was built at minimum cost as this was an experimental foray into recumbents. The frame is made of mild steel automotive exhaust pipe tubing. This was cheap, easily bent at the muffler shop, and required no special skills to weld. ChroMo would be lighter and stiffer, but would have cost much more and required access to TIG for welding . The rear seat support stays are aluminium. The whole thing is spray painted in automotive acrylic. I haven't weighed the completed bike, but lifting it around the garage I'd guess somewhere around 15 kg. Drive train is 7 speed Shimano SIS with a Biopace crankset. Rear wheel is a Shimano hub and Araya rim. These were sourced from my old mountain bike. Chain rollers are cut down rollerblade wheels. Front wheel is a new Velocity hub and Aeroheat rim. This was the single most expensive item - decent 20 inch wheels are hard to find, so I had to buy a new one. Also fitted new V-brakes front and rear. Tyres are Primo Comet slicks.
Cheers,
David
- europa
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Postby Bnej » Sat Feb 10, 2007 6:06 pm
Also means less torque applied to the drive train, and a straighter chain path between the chainrings and the freewheel, so in theory your running gear ought to last longer.
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Exhaust pipe tricks
Postby rdp_au » Sun Feb 11, 2007 3:42 pm
I've noticed no difference riding in traffic. My head is about as high as the average car driver, so I can see pretty much what they can. My approach when riding a bike is that I am invisible regardless of the type of bike I'm on (recumbent, diamond, or motorbike).
The long chain is also a non issue. It is actually constrained in the middle at the rollers, so in reality, the unsupported chain run is not much longer than on a diamond frame. I did have a chain break on my very first ride when a link plate pulled off a chain pin (that will teach me to reuse an old chain pin). The chain jammed as it passed through the rollers. Stopped me pedalling pretty quickly, but otherwise harmless.
Cheers,
David
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Postby reparto corse » Mon Feb 12, 2007 8:41 pm

ps: pardon any spelling mistakes.
Pss: great work on building your own David.awesome stuff.
cheers
- Bnej
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Postby Bnej » Mon Feb 12, 2007 8:47 pm
reparto corse wrote:how much do these recumbet's sell for?
Many, many dollars.
The cheap end starts at about $2,000 it seems. I've never seen a cheap recumbent, and you can't buy them in most shops. If I could go down the road and try one, I would. And if I could buy a cheap one, I would.
But I'm unlikely to go interstate and lay down a few grand for something I might not ride long term.
But some of them do look really nice.

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Postby Hotdog » Tue Feb 13, 2007 9:03 am
As for them being fast, well that's half the point of the recumbent seating position. The intended benefits are 1) comfort and 2) aerodynamics, with some bikes concentrating on one more than the other.
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Buying Recumbents
Postby rdp_au » Tue Feb 13, 2007 11:17 am
In Canberra there is a fairly active recumbent population. One thing they do is arrange regular "recumbent demo days". Recumbent owners bring their own bikes for interested people to try out. Sounds like a good idea. Perhaps people in other states could try something similar.
Cheers,
David
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