Recumbent design
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Recumbent design
Postby geoffw » Mon Jun 16, 2008 12:15 am
It would be great if someone could help me an even give me some tips on designing the frame, i really wanna get this going soon
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Postby Low Racer » Mon Jun 16, 2008 8:31 am
Welcome to the forum.
How tall are you? If you are over 175cm then the heel strike would not be an issue. LR like M5 would pose a problem to short legged people due to the low BB. So have a look at the bb height in your design too. Too high and you may get numb feet. Design like Challenge LR bike is suitable for short people due to higher BB than M5 and also smaller front wheel (406, M5's 451). Someone did a test on both wheels and he found that he was a bit faster on the 451 and more comfortable than the 406. Less tyre choices on the 451 compare to 406.
If you are not running front chain idler, the chain will strike the tyre/front when doing sharp turn. My low racer has no front idler so I learned to live with it. The idler will sap some speeds and if your intention is to race than a dropped chain will be faster.
Good luck in your bike building.
Regards
Chong
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Postby DaveW » Mon Jun 16, 2008 2:17 pm
There are lots of places to find on the net that talk about this sort of thing - you just have to figure out what they mean.
I also want to build a low racer myself, and have found out heaps, but not sure what is relevant to me?
By the way, you happen to have a Delica on you would ya?
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Postby Poiter » Tue Jun 17, 2008 8:24 pm
Medium low chain rubs but it doesn't matter so much.
Legs generally don't rub and you can splay them out when doing the tight stuff anyway.
Lowracers with dropped chains go real fast but don't do tight turns well.
See my pics under Canberra HPV Racing.
Pete
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Postby geoffw » Tue Jun 17, 2008 11:08 pm
Im yer 175 so hopefully that wouldnt be a problem,
for my front wheel i was planning on using a very nice 16inch wheel i have of my trike, I reakon it would be perfect anyone disagree with that?
Yer i plan to make a really low lowracer, but thinking about where im riding wont be sharp turns so chain rub wont be an issue so i wont run chain rollers.
Peter is that a nocom is it? Anyway i was planing on building something with geometry that was very similar,
And Dave wats a delica?
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Postby Kalgrm » Tue Jun 17, 2008 11:14 pm
Trikes usually have a custom hub on them for mounting on one side only. You might find you'll need a new hub, at the very least. One that will fit into a fork.geoffw wrote:for my front wheel i was planning on using a very nice 16inch wheel i have of my trike, I reakon it would be perfect anyone disagree with that?
Cheers,
Graeme
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Music was better when ugly people were allowed to make it ....
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Postby Kalgrm » Tue Jun 17, 2008 11:20 pm
A Delica is a 4wd van (a bit like a loaf of white bread on steroids. )
Cheers,
Graeme
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Postby DaveW » Wed Jun 18, 2008 12:10 am
I think I'm offended by that Graeme!Kalgrm wrote: A Delica is a 4wd van (a bit like a loaf of white bread on steroids. )
Cheers,
Graeme
Mine is definitely a full grain loaf - none of this gutless white bread stuff here bud. (3.0 ltr 24 valve V6, superselect AWD/4WD with Low range - at least the steroids bit was right. )
Yep Geoff, it is a Mitsi Delica 4x4 Van, and there is someone on the Deli site who also ride bikes with your username - I took a punt, but was obviously wrong - sorry for the confusion
They are basically a Starwagon but with 4x4 under them - and although I got mine because I have four growing kids and the Deli fits them in with ease, but there are some guys on the site who have bought them to transport their bikes to meets and rides.
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Postby Kalgrm » Wed Jun 18, 2008 12:16 am
A mate of mine has one (turbo diesel). We give him hell, stirring him about it's resemblance to the aforementioned loaf. We call his "Buttercup". Nice units though; He spent 6 months driving around Oz in his.
I took the punt you had one and I would get a rise if I put enough yeast in the mix.
Cheers,
Graeme
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Postby Kalgrm » Wed Jun 18, 2008 12:45 am
Here's something to whet your appetite.
Cheers,
Graeme
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Postby geoffw » Wed Jun 18, 2008 1:02 am
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Postby geoffw » Wed Jun 18, 2008 9:20 am
CHeers Geoff
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Postby Poiter » Fri Jun 20, 2008 8:11 pm
Hmmm - not for a fast lowracer.
For one thing the tyres are going to be fat but there is a Stelvio in that size. Small wheel will hold back speed potential.
You should be able to build a steel bike that is fast and practical and weigh aound 14 kg.
The NoCom is great but really is a Com when you think about mixing it with the traffic or dropping off even 50mm gutters.
Pete
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Postby geoffw » Sat Jun 21, 2008 12:03 pm
But woul it actually slow me down that much? i hadnt really thought about it in taht sense, the tyres are 16x1.15 i think it is, so what would you say would be best size front wheel?
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Postby Low Racer » Sat Jun 21, 2008 5:34 pm
IMHO 16 inches front and a 700c rear wheel will look unbalanced and make the steering probably very twitchy. I don't think the geometry will look right or make a stable bike. All the low racers that I have sushed out are 20 inches (either a 406 or 451) and a 700c / 650 rear. If all the major manufacturers (M5, Challenge, Optima) are doing it that way, it must be saying something.
I read somewhere that even a swapped of 406 to 451 made a huge difference to the handling of the bike. Just make sure your front fork is able to accommodate bigger wheel if need be. Good luck.
Chong
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Postby Low Racer » Thu Jun 26, 2008 10:46 pm
406 front - 650c rear or 451 front - 700c rear. These are the norm combination on commercially available LRs. Many other factors will affect the stability of the bike apart from wheel sizes. I am no expert. You have to do your homework to see what will work and won't.
Thanks
Chong
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Steel SWB
Postby Freddyflatfoot » Mon Jun 30, 2008 3:53 pm
If it helps, I made a SWB, 700C/20"(406), out of mild steel, using sq tube as the main boom, (50mm sq x 1.6mm).
Weighed in at about 16.5 kg, before I added a front suspension fork!
But no matter, its still a quick little bike, and much quicker than a comparable weight MTB. I regularly ride with some roadies, and usually don't have trouble keeping up, but am a little slower uphill.
I personally wouldn't worry about using mild steel for your first build.
As you said, its cheap, easy to work with, and easy to change if you muck it up!
You may even find you can use some frame parts if you pick up an old steel framed bike. For my SWB, I found a ladies bike useful, as the handlebars work well for OSS, and ladies bikes usually have shorter cranks, which is also useful for a 'bent.
When I've been on this form a bit longer, I'll even be able to post some pics and links!
Rob
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Homebuilt trike, with electric assist
26"/20" trike, "Goanna"
SWB recumbent, 700C/451 , "Kookaburra", homebuilt.
FWD project (Cyclone).
Optima Raptor
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