My life with Python trikes Mk1 , Mk1.5 , Mk2 ?

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Forgot to post this :-



Interesting shot showing the Northern technology's racing snake mount in front [ as usual ] of the Southern wusses lard mobile ?

Paul
 
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Forgot to post this :-



Interesting shot showing the Northern technology's racing snake mount in front [ as usual ] of the Southern wusses lard mobile ?

Paul
As usual I was giving Paul a push in the right direction, of course. ;)
 
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Hi all

So rear rack is proving a problem when all the bits have to be held in the air whist lengths and angles are worked out....



So as usual 2 pieces of wood came to my aid !

The horizontal line is parallel with the floor and this allowed me to hang my 2 panniers on the wood edge and see how close to the seat they can go and how long the upper rack rails need to be ?
I will put some indexing marks on the frame/wood interface so it can be clamped in the same position if needed when on the bench.

I also put a diagonal from the mount to end of right of the Ortlieb mark for some struts to support the upper rails.



The rack will be cantilevered off the dead axle with 2 M8 bolts , should be strong enough if not I will look at a removable link between it and the frame the box sits on.



Although I would like to ride with one or the other if possible ?

Paul
 
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Hi all

So a bit more TLC , where I fitted:-
2 x M12 rod end bearings @ £8.40
and
4 x M12 lock nuts @ £4.39

Sheesh it's turning into a money pit !

Still they lasted a year or more one of the rod ends was definitely banjaxed [ could easily have been s/h when fitted ! ] the other had some life left in it.
The nut's were also likely to have been pre-used :whistle:

Paul
 
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Hi all

So when is riding a 60cm track trike not fun ?



When you have bought 100cm of tubing and it can only go here , suddenly all obstacles need great care to pass through and a different route needs finding to get home with the least hassle !



Don't you just love friction shifters ? can still work well with this amount of cable slack ! can still get all 7 gears a blooming miracle I say :giggle:

So more on the pannier rack :-



Four more parts added [ tubing in first picture already in use ] just needs some cross pieces to stop it bending out of shape.



It is most likely to spend it's time carrying the 2 x Altura panniers [ probably 15 ltrs each ] than the larger Ortlieb [ 20 ltrs ] although it was sized for the larger .....you never know ;)

Paul
 
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Hi all

Ok to complement the rack i really need a small trailer , well one the same width as the trike [ approx 24" tyre centres ]



So I am going for the simplest trailer that can carry my 4 Ortlieb panniers and if I am lucky the tent.



So the trailer will only be as long as the wheel diameter and as wide as the trike , looks like the panniers will fit nicely and there may also be tent room if it gets some sort of minimalist floor ?
Current weight trailer only 6.85 kg , needs draw bar making next.



Looks like this may work , some re-purposed tubing from a car bike rack the one that clamps to the rear window.
The bend nearest the trailer is to clear the front pannier if carried.

Paul
 
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Hi all

So yesterday I made this brace for the rack.



It fits here , it has to clamp around the tube as I currently have no access to drill a hole through the main keel as the trike is being ridden Mon , Wed & Fri and I don't have the time to disassembly it further.
It works so job done !



These items still need mounting

flag - it needs to clear the panniers and not be in the way when diving into them
tool tube - unobtrusive would be good
rack for 2 water bottles - reached from the seat whilst riding would be good

So lot's to do still.

The reason for the rack and trailer ?



This was the only box I found that fit in the available space , it is much to flimsy for the job as can be seen from the damage in the top corner.
Even with the contents wrapped in old pillows [ eating most of the available space] it will rattles like an empty wheelie bin , most disappointing so it has to go !

Paul
 
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Ok Wednesdays ride ?

test of new pannier rack and panniers [ s/h for a £5 IIRC ]



So panniers held on with their standard clips and the blue plastic plate seen in the pictures , a piece of old chopping board [ well it was old once in the garage and cut up ! ] took 26 hours for it to be missed and the finger of blame pointed at me ? as if !

left hand pannier contains sweat shirt and shower proof jacket and lock in outer pocket.
Right hand bag has all trike repair kit still wrapped in a thin pillow and pump , puncture repair stuff in end outer pocket and human repair kit in outer front pocket.
Go 8 miles of almost silent bliss before the rattles started, seems i had forgot to tighten the lower anchor point of the stay under the seat and the the reusable cable ties had loosened on the upper mount , just niggles.



pressing on we have a small tow-able trailer by jove ,


How does mine compare ?
Total Width 88cm mine 71cm
Box Height 38cm mine 35cm
Box length 84.5 cm mine 50cm
Box width 61cm mine 50cm
Total length 140cm mine 100cm
Weight 18kg mine not weighed yet




Kink in tow arm is to allow a pannier to hang in front of the trailer.
It mimics a normal trailer with bolt on hitch and q/r at trike end.



This currently needs some work as it rattles , however it can be tweaked [ I hope ]

Whole thing has been ridden around estate and empty it seems stable enough despite the tyre centres only being 24" apart [ like trike ]

Next up an interior possibly 90 lts easily found inside it then a ride to mothers with a load looks possible Friday.

all for now Paul
 
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Wouldn't a pannier hang in front of the trailer even if you'd used a straight arm? At worst it'd sit on that arm which would provide a modicum of extra support to that pannier. With my trailer it tried to crab on being pulled from one side but has been fine with a central bar. I would ask someone to film you riding it with the trailer attached to see if it follows straight.
 
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Wouldn't a pannier hang in front of the trailer even if you'd used a straight arm? At worst it'd sit on that arm which would provide a modicum of extra support to that pannier.
Sadly no the pannier bottom will be 5"" below axle height to keep the weight down.
With my trailer it tried to crab on being pulled from one side but has been fine with a central bar. I would ask someone to film you riding it with the trailer attached to see if it follows straight.
All commercial trailers are like this to clear the rear wheel , filming unlikely , although I will be followed for a hundred miles + so a report could be forth coming :sneaky::whistle:

Paul
 
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Looks Good Paul. :)
 
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Ok so meet the ' Flying Porcupine ' !


So called because of all the untrimmed cable ties holding the plastic netting to the frame , if this is successful they will be replaced with bigger ones and properly trimmed.

It has one large pannier hanging off the front and the bigger of the two tents and the other 3 inside , none are properly loaded the big one at the front has 8kg of magazines in it for towing testing
the others just light padding for volume testing.

I realised I had the proportions wrong as the wheels should be 2/3rds of the way down the trailer mine are 1/2 way until you add the front pannier not in the trailer and then things look
a little better ?



I did not quite achieve my goal of the pannier being 5" from the ground [ measurement errors on my part ] , nor having the trailer floor 5" from the ground [ mesh chosen did not come in big enough pieces ]

Strangely it is fairly easy to move this rig backwards ? just lift the front wheel off the floor with the handle and push backwards whilst with your hand on the left handle bar steer the trike , possible not
something you can do with a tadpole ?

So tomorrows ride mothers 8 miles there and 4 - 6 back depending on route chosen ?
Just to add a frisson of excitement no Loctite has yet been deployed on the pedal/crank joints or the pedal end locking nuts used for the wheel axles , will they hold ?
Watch this space !

Paul
 
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Ok so meet the ' Flying Porcupine ' !


So called because of all the untrimmed cable ties holding the plastic netting to the frame , if this is successful they will be replaced with bigger ones and properly trimmed.

It has one large pannier hanging off the front and the bigger of the two tents and the other 3 inside , none are properly loaded the big one at the front has 8kg of magazines in it for towing testing
the others just light padding for volume testing.

I realised I had the proportions wrong as the wheels should be 2/3rds of the way down the trailer mine are 1/2 way until you add the front pannier not in the trailer and then things look
a little better ?



I did not quite achieve my goal of the pannier being 5" from the ground [ measurement errors on my part ] , nor having the trailer floor 5" from the ground [ mesh chosen did not come in big enough pieces ]

Strangely it is fairly easy to move this rig backwards ? just lift the front wheel off the floor with the handle and push backwards whilst with your hand on the left handle bar steer the trike , possible not
something you can do with a tadpole ?

So tomorrows ride mothers 8 miles there and 4 - 6 back depending on route chosen ?
Just to add a frisson of excitement no Loctite has yet been deployed on the pedal/crank joints or the pedal end locking nuts used for the wheel axles , will they hold ?
Watch this space !

Paul
That light-blue ended roll of whatever looks like it has almost made it to "spoke-interference" territory, I hope its just the camera-angle. :)
 
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That light-blue ended roll of whatever looks like it has almost made it to "spoke-interference" territory, I hope its just the camera-angle. :)
Well yes and no ?

It is the footprint and porch for the bigger tent , it needs unrolling folding so it is slightly smaller than the tent and re-rolling.
As long as tent does not move during cornering we should stay clear !

The red and orange straps are pulling the tent up to the lower front cross member so we should be ok 😁(y)

Paul
 
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Hi all

So yesterday I made this brace for the rack.



It fits here , it has to clamp around the tube as I currently have no access to drill a hole through the main keel as the trike is being ridden Mon , Wed & Fri and I don't have the time to disassembly it further.
It works so job done !



These items still need mounting

flag - it needs to clear the panniers and not be in the way when diving into them
tool tube - unobtrusive would be good
rack for 2 water bottles - reached from the seat whilst riding would be good

So lot's to do still.

The reason for the rack and trailer ?



This was the only box I found that fit in the available space , it is much to flimsy for the job as can be seen from the damage in the top corner.
Even with the contents wrapped in old pillows [ eating most of the available space] it will rattles like an empty wheelie bin , most disappointing so it has to go !

Paul
Hi Paul, I wonder if 2 of the plastic containers would work, one inside the other. Maybe some silicon sealant around the top between the two, to act as a dampener to the vibration transmitted. They should nest ok as the shops stack them one inside the other. Probably a bit academic now as you have the bit between your teeth. Good luck with your quest. BTW, chopped metal for two trikes. welding course 3/4 way through, but ready to run rampant with the welder.
Martin.
 
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So ridden it was ! first obstacle was this :-



Some vehicle driver unable to follow the white lines [ again ! ] normally I would approach from the other side and the narrow trike just gets through , however this is NOT the place to prove the trailer can't !
It is very narrow where the yellow and red are opposite each other , and as you can see lots of ' junk ' supporting them where my wheels need to be.



5 miles from home all's going well it is so quite compared with the box it replaces ! The geese were not impressed and left :whistle:

Mission accomplished and outside mum's...



She likes to send pictures of my creations to a friend , so here's her shot.



Towing well it has been 3 years since I last towed a trailer , it's bl**dy hard !

Normal riding I am in the 38T ring and use the 28T as a bail out 2 gears for hill climbing.
Now I am in the 28T all the time and sometimes struggling in the 28T to 28T [ direct drive !!! ] to get up some of the hills , I seem to have no reserve gears at all ! [ that is a shock ]

Otherwise no rattles or odd noises and no evidence of it either fish tailing or swaying , it has been pretty fast down the hills and across adverse camber and not put a wheel wrong , so very pleased.

i have re done some cable ties and added more and trimmed those that stayed , it now looks quite the part.

Bit more maintenance on trike and we are being to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Sunday is trike at York for the cycle show and hopefully the velodrome in the afternoon.

Then Monday a fully packed dress rehearsal with the trailer to mothers again

Seems do able Paul
 
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Looking good Paul. Would like to be at York myself but I'm required for a garage construction at my eldest's this weekend.:(

Perhaps you need to add a motor to that trailer? Or perhaps the towing vehicle?
 
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Looking good Paul. Would like to be at York myself but I'm required for a garage construction at my eldest's this weekend.:(
Shame it would have been nice to see you and one of your creation's.

Paul
 
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Hi Paul, I wonder if 2 of the plastic containers would work, one inside the other. Maybe some silicon sealant around the top between the two, to act as a dampener to the vibration transmitted. They should nest ok as the shops stack them one inside the other.
It's everything you put in them finding an excuse to hit the sides/bottom all the time , every thing wrapped in pillows was as close as I got to living with it !

Probably a bit academic now as you have the bit between your teeth. Good luck with your quest.
Aye another path taken , just a swerve and last minute panic , however we are close to it working

BTW, chopped metal for two trikes. welding course 3/4 way through, but ready to run rampant with the welder.
You can't start soon enough welding , especially as they let me take my stuff in for critique which was informative and confirmed I was on the right track [ i.e ugly but strong enough welds ]

Paul
 
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Glad the trailer works well. :)
Sorry to hear about the lack of bail-out gears because they are already in use. :(
Enjoy York! :)
 
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