Horizontal bicycle plans - a question

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Hello everyone.
Please forgive me for my mistakes in English, I use Ggoogle translator for reading and writing.
My name is Michał and I live in Poland. I am hobbyist in designing and manufacturing knives and throwing weapons :)
I've never liked riding a bicycle. However, 2 weeks ago a friend showed me a recumbent bike and I fell in love with them. My physical activity has decreased a lot since I started working. I have been forced home for several years. After seeing trike type bikes, I thought that this might be a way to leave the house again without overloading the spine :) Unfortunately, after searching, it turned out that the cost of buying a ready bike goes far beyond my financial possibilities. I do not know mechanics, electronics or construction works. Therefore, I would like to try to search or buy (as far as my funds) a project together with technical documentation so that I can commission the next stages of construction / assembly, depending on the budget. I am looking for information on internet forums in Poland and abroad. However, without knowledge, it is very difficult for me to know what information is useful to me and how to use or adapt it to my needs.
I dream of a trip that I could pack and go camping for 2-3 days :)
  1. My own current weight of 120 kg (+/- 5 kg) and 184 cm height - I hope that now the weight will go only down
  2. Possibility of packing the entire 100l backpack or equipment that would fit in it plus lumber that sticks to the outside of the backpack (pots, foam pad, tent, etc.)
  3. Electric support focused on range and overcoming various obstacles (packed roads, hills) even when I am packed, I do not need sports performance in terms of speed
  4. Electrical installation resistance to weather conditions
With such complete plans I could gradually raise funds and slowly build my trike.
I will be grateful for help in finding such construction plans with the option of purchasing such a plan later.
 
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Hello Michal,
All of the plans for Atomic Zombie Recumbent trikes are to found HERE.
From your introduction I would suggest either the Aurora or Timberwolf as being suitable for your needs.
On a trike you can go as slowly as you like without falling over, stop for a rest and restart.
Electrifying a working trike afterwards is usually a matter of adding a (hub-motor or a mid-drive) and batteries.
I think all of the Atomic-Zombie trikes from the plans can be made with minimal equipment and mostly just old junked bike parts and raw steel tubing will get you a working trike fairly quickly.
Good Luck!
 
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DannyC and how to adapt these projects to carry such a quantity of luggage or a whole backpack with a capacity of 100l?
I like the TimberWolf project. Probably the easiest way to adapt it to carry luggage.
 
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As well as carrying the gear on the trike you can also tow a trailer for carrying camping gear which then opens up a lot of designs as suitable. You can make your own trailer very easily compared to the main trike or buy a ready made one. Using a trailer means you can then leave it at home for rides that do not require it. For a first attempt at making one I'd suggest it's best to stick closely to one of the plans.
 
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I still have a question whether the plans provide for the possibility of adding an electric drive ??? I do not know it so I prefer to ask :)
If you are adding a mid-drive like a Bafang or a hub-drive, then these are both possible on the Delta Wolf or the Aurora.
 
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Welcome to the fun.
If you choose a mid-drive motor you have to make some adjustment to the Timberwulf plans.
But a front hub motor would fitt straight into the plans, except for adding holders for battery etc.
Whatever you choose this forum will support you in your project.
 
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I still have a question whether the plans provide for the possibility of adding an electric drive ??? I do not know it so I prefer to ask :)
Unless the plans have the word electric in the title then no they don't tell you how to add electric drive.

However once you have built the trike it will be similar to a commercial one and there is lots on the web about converting those to electric.

Don't forget a lot of these plans are ' old ' compared to the latest electric bicycle technology and so if they had described electric assist the parts would probably no longer be available.

If you think you could spend some of your time pedalling without electric assist maybe you would be better with the Cyclebully electric trailer that would give you assist and cargo space ? and can be used on any recumbent you built ?

Cyclebully

regards Paul
 
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I was already thinking about the electric trailer. However, this solution has its drawbacks. It increases the length of the bike and you cannot use electric power without a trailer. My main goal during the construction will be to achieve the efficiency of the electric drive to a minimum of 100km at full load and diverse terrain. This load can actually be reduced by adding a trailer behind the bicycle. And using this solution comes back the question about the plans of the trike. Which design is best suited for long routes in various terrain conditions.
 
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You may be best off with the loderunner. No need for a trailer at all and if wanting 100km range you'll either need to add a lot of pedalling to the electric assist or you'll need very large (expensive) batteries all depending on the power of the assist. The Loderunner can keep all the batteries and electrics in the box and still have room for the camping gear. The front wheel would be best to take the motor. If I were you I'd keep the trike to 20" wheels as bigger wheels are easier to bend particularly with a large rider and doubly so if off-roading. Bike wheels are not designed to take lateral loads so keep to 20" BMX wheels and 48 spokes. If you do choose a design that uses bigger wheels then definitely get a trailer to take the extra weight of the camping gear.
 
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Thanks for advice. I weigh a lot because I weigh 120 kg so I decided to sweat a bicycle with a trailer. I am still thinking about the StreetFighter project. On forest roads, the middle of the road is often impenetrable for bicycle wheels. In this situation, the Quad bike will do much better.
 
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A quad will always be a three wheeler off-road. A three wheeled trike will always have all three wheels on the ground over any terrain. A four wheeled vehicle will only ever have all 4 wheels on the ground on a flat surface. If the wheel that is lifted is your drive wheel you get off and push or rock about to get that wheel down and hope it grips enough. If the four wheeler has some suspension that will go some way to keeping all four wheels down but not all the way by some margin. You simply won't get enough suspension movement into such a design. An off-road quad would need a pivot to allow the front axle to twist independently of the rear. It can be done but it's adding an extra level of complexity. You also need to move all that extra weight associated with four wheels over three. I would not choose the Streetfighter for off-roading.
 
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Good point. In that case, we are coming back to choosing a tourist project for the addition of electric support and a luggage trailer. All for driving both in urban areas and on dirt and paved roads.
 
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I'd suggest the Timberwolf then. The taller rear wheels will provide better ground clearance than 20" and the small cargo area would be perfect for the batteries and electrics. Your other best option may be the Streetfox but built slightly higher for off-roading by welding the front axle higher up the kingpins and a longer rear suspension unit or welding the forward mount for it further back. It'd be easier to protect the rear derailleur with a cage than the Timberwolf which leaves it somewhat vulnerable. The rear wheel could be the motor and would likely give better grip than the front one of a delta trike. The Streetfox has the taller wheel supported at both sides which will help it maintain it's shape. The downside to the Streetfox is you'd need to find somewhere to put the batteries and electrics. A rack above the rear wheel would be the obvious answer.
 
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I'd suggest the Timberwolf then.
Thank you for the advice :) Timberwolf was my first choice and I think I'll grow up with it :) If I like building horizontal bikes, maybe I will think about an ambitious project :) Will I find a trailer design for my luggage? Equivalent to a 100 l backpack and things worn around the backpack like a tent or a foam pad.
 
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My 2 cents added re electric assist. As mentioned the plans were designed a few years ago and adding electric assist puts an additional stress on frames, etc so you might consider adding a few gusset's. I went through this on my Warrior which needed some bracing after it was built due to stress caused by a rear hub motor. What I learnt from that experience I applied to my Loderunner variant and my Aurora trike. Both use a slightly heavier gauge frame and have gusset's at key locations. I have switched to mid drive motors for the deltas. I use a Bafang on the Loderunner and a Tongsheng on the Aurora.
 
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