AZ inspired trike build starts!

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Ha! Yes I was in a hurry and fairly tired when I posted last night and forgot to even address that... Yikes! This has me thinking twice about using that thing anymore. If prolific garage hackers I have sworn off of them then maybe they're not for me LOL!
 
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Still working on steering. Today I did call a place about an hour from here who sells foam. "Do you sell small quantities to individuals?" "Sure do!" Sweet! I told them what I'm doing and what I need, and they offered a 40"x80" piece of foam that would be perfect for my use.

$291.

Looks like I'll be using the memory foam, even if it is open cell. It's going to be covered anyway, and I'll be scotch guarding the heck out of everything too. Hopefully it'll be fine. if not, I'll "go fish".

Made a little progress tonight, but had really long day and it was slow going due to me being pretty tired. I got the steering tube tacked down, but I'm not confident that it's positioned correctly. More test fitting is needed before I finish weld it.



I may have picked a color... more soon!
 
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Wow, $291.00. That sort of price is why I went for the Barnett Williams style of seat - Google it if you haven't come across it before. Didn't like the idea of a mesh seat initially but now that I have tried it I have no need to look elsewhere although I did manage to pick up a fancy seat from a trike I picked up for nothing recently. I'm not sure how well it will breathe though and waiting to get a chance to do a Google on it. A mesh seat works like a hammock - without the swinging.
 
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IMHO memory foam is far to soft for a recumbent seat , you need a foam that only compresses about 1/2 it's depth with all the force you can apply to it with one hand , else you will bottom out over bumps.

Brads designs won't hold you in the seat much whilst cornering and will give you a sweaty back

Barnett is probably over complicated [ can't see the lumber support working as mesh is much to stretchy for the curve to remain when sat on it ? ] and is best made with a tube bender ?

Try the seat from here https://archive.org/details/AtomblasterLowRacerBuildPlans half Brads and half Barnett with none of the hassle , you could even make the back without a tube bender just mitered corners.

It is even possible the base of Atoms seat could be made from one of those ' Big bum ' seats at the right angle ?

Wide seat only cheaper ?

regards Paul
 

SirJoey

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I'll echo what Paul said. Memory foam's not gonna cut it.
Additionally, regardless of the type of foam, I'd buy a complete,
finished recumbent seat before I'd pay $300 for the stuff! :eek:

***
 
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Thanks gents, I appreciate your input a lot. I am going to continue forward with the seat I have simply because it's what I already have. I've had this kind of seat before on my Meridian and while I used better foam then, I'm comfortable in the seat generally. The worst that can happen is that I need to build a different seat. I just need to get riding in the mean time. Thanks for the link to the Atom Blaster too, definitely going to be checking that out!
 
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I haven't found that my mesh seat has stretched at all. I use what is called Supermesh (or is it SupaMesh?). It is impossible to tear, not what you would call expensive (I think it cost me $A40.00 made up), has lacing eyelets along side edges and RF welded cutouts where it wraps around seat frame components. The lacing preserves the lumbar support in the design.

I made my own tube bender form that I have used on a couple of occasions.

In any case, use what suits you at the time. My initial Warrior seat did not breathe and was replaced with the mesh design when I replaced the rear with suspension. You can always change the seat, or anythings else for that matter, later if you wish.
 
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You could get a camping roll for a few bucks either locally or via ebay. That type of foam is closed cell and doesn't compress overly much so you don't need a vast thickness of it. I've also used foam kneeling pads for the same reason.
 
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You could get a camping roll for a few bucks either locally or via ebay. That type of foam is closed cell and doesn't compress overly much so you don't need a vast thickness of it. I've also used foam kneeling pads for the same reason.
Why didn't I think of this? 72x24" EVA closed cell foam, in red, for $20 shipped. I just placed the order. Thanks for the idea!
 

SirJoey

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Don't feel bad. I didn't think of it either,
& I've been doing this for 12 YEARS! o_O
Thanx, Kevin! I'll keep this in mind for my next seat! :)

***
 
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Today's accomplishment can be summed up in this image:



The Steering Tube is welded to the frame now, and the handlebar setup is done. Now I have to do the steering tabs and tie rod.

I also had a mishap with the steering tube riser- it was crooked by about 30 degrees. So that was a cut/weld operation that went smoothly. Welding that bicycle tubing to the main tube of the bike was an exercise in hole filling and fiddling with amperage. Still figuring all that stuff out. This is definitely amateur built! I'm okay with it though. It's a prototype. Once it's successful and I get some strength back, it's going to have a two wheeled little brother. I don't know what, though. Something that can haul cargo, at least!

On another note, I used to read magazines about homebuilt aircraft, and while I'll never build one, one of their principals applies: The last 10% takes 90% of the time! I hope not, though... I want to be done with this thing before the end of the year :p
 
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So that was a cut/weld operation that went smoothly. Welding that bicycle tubing to the main tube of the bike was an exercise in hole filling and fiddling with amperage.
I guess that is because you had an edge meeting a tube so the edge needs less heat than the tube and burns away from the joint ?

In these circumstances especially if the parts are different thicknesses I try and put an internal sleeve into the thinner part , so making the edge thicker ?

I would do this before shaping and by drilling 2 holes 180' apart in the outer piece I would plug weld through the holes to the inner piece stopping it moving and adding to the joint strength ?



I have done that here but for different reasons [ strength ] I chopped 10" out of the rear of the Mk2 Python frame and inserted a round internal sleeve , plug welded at the slot and left hand hole and same underneath.
So when I came to weld the joint the tubes were effectively double thickness at that point , unlikely to blow through.

regards Paul
 
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plug welding is in welding terms called blind welding. Whild reading your post I got confused "what is plug welding"
 
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Excellent feedback guys, thank you! I do see how I could have fairly easily made a liner for this and tack welded it in so that this would not be a problem next time. I will *certainly be doing this in the future. This also supports my experience too, since I noticed that after the first round of welds were done, I could really crank up the heat and do a finish weld that went much better. I'm hoping my next build is much nicer in that regard!
 
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Today's progress picture:



Those rod ends are hilariously oversized! 🤣 But they're what I ordered, and there's no going back! What's needed: spacers to give the rod ends room to articulate, and then building the Actual Tie Rod. More tomorrow or the next day.

Also, a word to the wise: Make sure that the stem you cut down and weld a bracket to actually fits the headset you're using. It sucks having to do the job twice :p
 
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Ok no expert on this aspect 😕

But my gut says the two plates the rod ends are attached to should be parallel to the floor , so when they turn they remain parallel and just rise and fall with the angle of the fork head tube and the steerer head tube ?
 
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Ok no expert on this aspect 😕

But my gut says the two plates the rod ends are attached to should be parallel to the floor , so when they turn they remain parallel and just rise and fall with the angle of the fork head tube and the steerer head tube ?
Input appreciated! Yes the plan shows this too but for some reason I didn't do it. I was going to let the rod end do all the work in that regard, since the angle changes when you steer anyway. But, I see your point and will adjust it. There's definitely still work to do :)

@SirJoey If you're really nice I'll leave you at the top for a couple of extra minutes!
 
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