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

Joined
Feb 7, 2008
Messages
4,572
Location
Nottinghamshire England
Ok so from this :-



to this :-



The easiest way was to cut the corner off and weld it to the other piece ! yes that sounds odd but it was the right length front to back and just to long side to side ?

Once welded to the other piece the long parts could over lap and so I could measure across the width front and line the back up to that length and trim off the surplus , hit with the hot glue stick and we are in business

I have cut to length and drilled the two new side uprights and they are going to be held by 6mm bolts into the redundant brake back plate anchor towers , yep bet you didn't know this trike had 2 of those ...

Now this is one of the missing pieces of frame [ cut off to allow the wooden rear fairing to fit , progress on that soon honest ] , the tent rack.



As you can see it squares off the frame and the raised piece nearest the seat is to allow the tent to be strapped to it.

The piece of tape that says ' base ' upside down is where the fairing floor will come to , if this tent rack was sunk below the level of the top of the frame and extended just past the tape it could remain on whether the fairing was on or not [ food for thought ]

However the tent does still fit on the angled part of the frame and I may even be able to strap it on there ? meaning NO added metal to carry it - less work and less weight - win - win ?



usually the space this side of the central upright would be filled with panniers [ 3 or in the past it carried 4 [ unsure now if 4 will fit ? ]] so really it is better if the tent can come out without having to unload all the panniers.
It is currently possible to wriggle it in through the gap between the seat and wheel from underneath , whether you could then fasten the straps remains to be seen.

The other missing rack carried 2 water bottles and was further forward still ...



here seen resting on some wood in it's approximate position , it was just right to get a water in and out whilst pedaling so I could drink on the move.
I may look to re-siting them somewhere else , I also have a secret weapon to revealed next post hopefully .

next up some paint on this rack and get it mounted for real.
 
Joined
May 31, 2013
Messages
3,980
Location
South Benfleet, Essex, England, UK
Joined
Feb 7, 2008
Messages
4,572
Location
Nottinghamshire England
Its an age thing. Apparently you get a saggy bottom after a certain age :eek:
Actually this is miss leading and can in some instances be dangerous ?

You not see or feel ' your ' saggy bottom , it tends to be noticeable in certain ' other ' people.

The danger lies in pointing this out....

Does my bum look big in this ? the answer ' well the bathroom is quite small ' apparently is not suitable..
 
Joined
Feb 20, 2013
Messages
869
Location
Axedale, Victoria, Australia
Website
axerail.coffeecup.com
Does my bum look big in this ? the answer ' well the bathroom is quite small ' apparently is not suitable..
Neither does "No bigger than usual" or "What do you want to hear?" or "Do you want the truth?" won't either. Any answer you give can attract adverse criticism a short time later when the "wearer's" mind changes. Reality is, there is no right or sustainable response. A tactful decline to answer is my approach.
 
Joined
Feb 7, 2008
Messages
4,572
Location
Nottinghamshire England
Ok lets talk about the elephant in the room ?

The acquired detritus that constitutes the permanent load of tools and spares I carry ?



Ok top left tool box 1 ltr tub that weighs = 780 gm
to right is blue bag of the puncture repair outfit with contents in front = 580 gm [ 1 inner tube is 170 gm ]
black wood is stand [ allows front of Python to be in air aiding wheel change ? ] = 270 gm
pump = 200 gm

So a grand total of 1.3 kg of stuff

Not shown is first aid kit 170 gm and tool roll of spanners/10mm allen key 530 gm so another 700 gm ! and that is without the bike lock.

Contents of tool kit look like this :-



Some of the tools are pivot related and not normally carried , some are insurance after an incident in Holland when the left pedal decided after a 8 days of riding to come loose about 16:00 on a Saturday somewhere near Molembaix...

Now I have a cumming plan , as the tool kit - puncture kit and tool roll takes up a 1/3 of a pannier ...

I am going to fit this externally on the trike , a tractor/motorcycle tool tube.



Screw top with a seal and water proof I will get my 1/3 pannier space back AND the tools will be easier to reach should I be fully loaded as they will be outside the panniers.



It does not have the volume of both of these , however there is plenty of room to slim down and shed some weight at the same time.

However it will be quite a challenge to find somewhere on the outside to mount it with the main frame being 5" from the deck 😭
 
Joined
May 31, 2013
Messages
3,980
Location
South Benfleet, Essex, England, UK
Ok lets talk about the elephant in the room ?

......................................However it will be quite a challenge to find somewhere on the outside to mount it with the main frame being 5" from the deck 😭
Clearly, you need to get up and out of the dirt & the weeds and join us "Above-Axle" types ;)
Where although the air is a bit rarefied you get to look motorists in the chin (if not the eye).
I suspect though that change from a proven formula that works for you is a hard step.
I shall let you try my Python and you can critique it while riding with your knees up under your chin. 🤪
 
Joined
Feb 7, 2008
Messages
4,572
Location
Nottinghamshire England
Ok the northern Python pilot and the southern pretender are discussing the move to 24" wheels for a trike or two....

Now in the heady rush of new horizons I bought 2 x SA hub braked front wheels 1 x Nexus rear wheel and 2 Schwalbe tyres ..

However why I had neglected to do was using my existing 24" wheels and tyres to see what the thing might look like ?



Now as can be seen 24" overwhelms the existing front and and may cause inseam problems ?



It is close here



and even closer here !



and look what happens at the back


we live in interesting times...
 
Joined
May 31, 2013
Messages
3,980
Location
South Benfleet, Essex, England, UK
Ok the northern Python pilot and the southern pretender are discussing the move to 24" wheels for a trike or two....

Now in the heady rush of new horizons I bought 2 x SA hub braked front wheels 1 x Nexus rear wheel and 2 Schwalbe tyres ..

However why I had neglected to do was using my existing 24" wheels and tyres to see what the thing might look like ?



Now as can be seen 24" overwhelms the existing front and and may cause inseam problems ?



It is close here



and even closer here !



and look what happens at the back


we live in interesting times...
Clearly Mrs. Stormbird needs to get you on the rack a bit more often (to remove money from that very secure northern wallet); in this fashion perhaps the inseam will improve?
Or, we need to think about putting the rider higher up and wheels lower-down but the BB and seat in a relationship similar to today's Python so the rider can feel comfy? :unsure:

My big fat 24" Eunuch-cycle wheels will certainly result in my gelding if my Missus finds out how much I have spent on the next Delta-delight. 🤪
 
Joined
Feb 7, 2008
Messages
4,572
Location
Nottinghamshire England
Of course this is the dogs danglies of big wheeled Pythons :-



There was an extensive build log at one time , excellent engineering involved , long since disappeared into the ether ...



more big wheels ....
 
Joined
May 31, 2013
Messages
3,980
Location
South Benfleet, Essex, England, UK
You are Sooooooo tempted to get yourself up and out of the weeds, dust and dog- 💩, we can tell. ;)
 
Joined
Feb 7, 2008
Messages
4,572
Location
Nottinghamshire England
Or, we need to think about putting the rider higher up and wheels lower-down but the BB and seat in a relationship similar to today's Python so the rider can feel comfy? :unsure:
Well the math's don't work to well ? I was heading for a 12" seat height and guess what the biggest distance across a 24" wheel is at [ hmm let me think ] oh axle height which is 12" !

Initially without trying I assumed there was enough ' slack ' space in the 20" frame I already have to squeeze a 24" wheel in ? that works as long as I don't put a tyre on the wheel !
The one pictured has a 24" x 1.95" tyre , I do have 2 x 24" x 1.75" tyres to try , as Tesco says every bit helps :whistle:

A 24" wheel is of course 20% bigger than a 20" wheel and that 20% has to go somewhere...

My big fat 24" Eunuch-cycle wheels will certainly result in my gelding if my Missus finds out how much I have spent on the next Delta-delight. 🤪
Hush money is forth coming I assume ...
 
Joined
May 31, 2013
Messages
3,980
Location
South Benfleet, Essex, England, UK
Joined
Feb 7, 2008
Messages
4,572
Location
Nottinghamshire England
Well the mule is back together briefly :-



It now has an attempt at handle bars , they could be wrong/not long enough/angled to sharply etc etc only riding will tell.

It also has a front mech post , but no mech yet.

Brackets for mud flap and guard were also added whilst in bits oh and the 2 stubs for the rear brake back plate anti rotation pins.

That means the brakes can be cabled up , however we want to ride it and we want to ride it NOW !!!



This is a temp front wheel whilst the Nexus 7 hubbed wheel gets trued and tensioned [ wheel jig is still not right [ but working on it ]]

As you can see there are still chain issues that need addressing.



So it was taken out for a spin.

My right ear [ the only working one ] could hear a huge amount of tyre scub from the nearest rear wheel , I put that down to the non smooth tyre tread ......as you can see there was another reason ;)

The rear end is only held by 2 x 8mm bolts , that isn't enough !!! I was considering bracing it before this so nothing lost there then.

The frame is over long to allow both longer wheel base experiments and iLean tilting etc etc



The eagle eyed may have spotted there are exactly no cables on the beast ....

Now I have ridden it on the public roads , and yes officer perfectly legally ? those red gloves were worn and are within the law ?

2 independent braking systems when hands applied to rear wheels (y):D
 
Joined
May 31, 2013
Messages
3,980
Location
South Benfleet, Essex, England, UK
Well the mule is back together briefly :-



It now has an attempt at handle bars , they could be wrong/not long enough/angled to sharply etc etc only riding will tell.

It also has a front mech post , but no mech yet.

Brackets for mud flap and guard were also added whilst in bits oh and the 2 stubs for the rear brake back plate anti rotation pins.

That means the brakes can be cabled up , however we want to ride it and we want to ride it NOW !!!



This is a temp front wheel whilst the Nexus 7 hubbed wheel gets trued and tensioned [ wheel jig is still not right [ but working on it ]]

As you can see there are still chain issues that need addressing.



So it was taken out for a spin.

My right ear [ the only working one ] could hear a huge amount of tyre scub from the nearest rear wheel , I put that down to the non smooth tyre tread ......as you can see there was another reason ;)

The rear end is only held by 2 x 8mm bolts , that isn't enough !!! I was considering bracing it before this so nothing lost there then.

The frame is over long to allow both longer wheel base experiments and iLean tilting etc etc



The eagle eyed may have spotted there are exactly no cables on the beast ....

Now I have ridden it on the public roads , and yes officer perfectly legally ? those red gloves were worn and are within the law ?

2 independent braking systems when hands applied to rear wheels (y):D
It is progress indeed. Well done. You are braver than I am riding with "hands-on" brakes only. Mind you, I doubt you did 15+mph downhill today 🤪.
 
Joined
Feb 7, 2008
Messages
4,572
Location
Nottinghamshire England
So when riding the current Python I had always though there was a surplus of space in the front of the MTB rear triangle used as a Python front end.

So I set about trying to see if I could use that space ?



So this is the front of the mule with a 20" front wheel and behind it is a 20" MTB rear triangle however I have managed to squeeze a 24" wheel into it by cutting the stand tube out of the frame.

A 1.95" tyre does not fit , mainly because the dropouts slope forwards and the tyre fouls on the BB before the axle gets into the slots , [ not by much about 3 mm ] however a 1.75" does fit., as you can see the axle and BB are the same distance apart on BOTH front ends.



So BB's in same place same



Axles in line as well ...

So I have absorbed the extra 2 " in wheel radius in the front of the axle in the same distance as a 20" wheel.

That just leaves the 2" behind the axle..



There is at least 1" could be got by moving the seat forward and I think I can get 1" out of the pivot steel work.

So theoretically I can manage the extra 4" by making the front 2" bigger behind the axle however with the seat/pedal distance staying the same ?
 
Last edited:
Joined
May 31, 2013
Messages
3,980
Location
South Benfleet, Essex, England, UK
Ooohhhh..... Nice if you can manage it for sure!
Even if you cannot grow "longer legs", 24" wheels may make the trike have longer legs.
That additional 2" is also in the vertical direction so your frame may point upwards a little bit.
 
Joined
Feb 7, 2008
Messages
4,572
Location
Nottinghamshire England
Ok you two keep yourselves company at the back of the class and NO looking out the window.

A 24" Python is the future get me out of the weeds project.

When I mocked up a 24" wheel in a 24" MTB back end I could not reach the pedals using my existing dimensions as a base point
i.e 9" seat height and 15" BB height so for 24" wheel seat @ 11" and BB at 17"

Now because I can fit a 24" in a 20" frame I get the 17" pedal height the seat can at least move up to 11" maybe 12" and i can still reach the pedals ...

So it will not be connected to a 20" back end .... although I do have some 24" SA hub braked wheels and they are a bolt on to replace the 20" back wheels ...

However it is probably time I also left behind the rod end pivot ? so maybe another whole new trike is being fermented.

When we have investigated suspension and tilting of course :LOL:
 
Joined
May 31, 2013
Messages
3,980
Location
South Benfleet, Essex, England, UK
Joined
May 31, 2013
Messages
3,980
Location
South Benfleet, Essex, England, UK
Paul,
Any progress to report on the "mule" testbed and 24" wheels?
 
Top