E-triker from Brighton

[twinkle]

Hi Folks ,
I live just outside Brighton and retired a couple of years ago , An ex racing bikie from many years ago , and now a carer for my elderly parent , Being Diabetic I kept fit from Cycling as a hobby now , but as an around town runabout I have built my own Electric Trike from scratch ,
This is the second electric trike I have built from 40mm square tubing with a mountain bike suspension rear triangle , 26" rear wheel and 20" front wheels The new one was purposely built lower and with front discs , rear suspension and Under Seat Steering , With 28 gears just in case I have to pedal it home and a rear brushless motor it is smooth and stable . At present it is powered by Sealed Acid Batteries but soon it will have an upgrade to LifePo4 , lowering the weight about 12 kgs to under 40kg The present range is about 15 miles
The next project will be a tandem tadpole e-trike which we hope to start in the spring and I am also interested in building a velomobile body for the single seater trike for weatherproofing .

 

[Clockwise]

Looks awesome fun if you have the roads for it. Having done a short stint on a recumbant in the past I really haven't got the guts to ride something that low in traffic.

 

[twinkle]

Since the photo the e- trike has been winterised , rack , panniers ,mirror , lights and mudguards and a flag on a pole , having spent most of the last 50 years on a bike , I don't feel uncomfortable riding in traffic , I was surprised how conspicuous it is by virtue of being DIFFERENT , the only opportunity with these machines is that you cannot buy parts over the counter and every thing is home made including the front mudguards . and mudguard arms which have the lamp brackets welded on .The mirror is homebuilt using an eighties car mirror on a purpose made arm welded to a modified goose neck .

 

[Clockwise]

View attachment 7671 Since the photo the e- trike has been winterised , rack , panniers ,mirror , lights and mudguards and a flag on a pole , having spent most of the last 50 years on a bike , I don't feel uncomfortable riding in traffic , I was surprised how conspicuous it is by virtue of being DIFFERENT , the only opportunity with these machines is that you cannot buy parts over the counter and every thing is home made including the front mudguards . and mudguard arms which have the lamp brackets welded on .The mirror is homebuilt using an eighties car mirror on a purpose made arm welded to a modified goose neck .

I was riding a recumbant that looked something like this.

It felt amazing to pedal as you get far more power being in that position but then I remember a truck passing and my head being about level with the top of the wheel and then gradually I was noticing more and more how invisible/low I felt and then I wanted to get off. I was also having real issues balancing and turning my head back to peer over my shoulder, on a trike it wouldn't be an issue but on the above I was almost throwing myself off each time as I couldn't get out of the habit of turning the top half of my body slight too.

I always think of trikes bombing it along sandy beaches and doing crazy jumps over small dunes but next you will tell me it's nothing like that.

 

[Geebee]

The green trike in my avatar has a head height not much higher than your knee
Great for checking SUV chassis and truck wheel hubs, the height has never worried me but it is easy to ride and stays dead on track no matter what and can out brake most cars.
I do use a cut down small flag at about car windscreen height.
I have off roaded most of my trikes but not on sand and not the GLR as it is a full blown racing machine, it's cornering speed is insane.

Cars tend to stay meters away from trikes, the same drivers will just about scrape you Bicycle handle bar grips overtaking. I feel safer on the trike.

 

[twinkle]

Trikes are more fun than bikes (IMHO) and people that have tried mine all have enjoyed the experience , This one was built for a purpose , as a lively sports trike for summer use hence the disc brakes and being over 2.5 inches lower than my first one (the seat is under 12 inches from the ground ) although winterised at present , in its summer guise , it lives up to my original description , ,
Leaner , meaner , lower, greener, faster, cleaner, the new etrike on the atomiczombie website

 

[twinkle]

When you cannot buy it BUILD IT
Here is a few interesting photos taken locally
A work in progress on the trike
the new footbridge at Shoreham ( part of the new cycle route )
towing the trailer

regards emma

 

[twinkle]

Hi Folks

Since the original build I have fitted the Li-On battery to the trike it is now 12 kg lighter with 30% more capacity , but the top speed appears to be slightly lower than it was , Oh well you can't have everything , The second E-trike is also finished and running well

both e-trikes on Shoreham Beach

 

[KirstinS]

I'll keep an eye out for you twinkle - I live in shoreham

Love the trike

 

[twinkle]

Look forward to that Kirstin , I often do the Portslade to Shoreham beach ride as mum lives in Portslade .

 

[twinkle]

Here is the new Li-on pack , it looks nicer than the SLA batteries , and at 12 kilo lighter than the SLA batteries , it makes a difference to moving the trike in the workshop . maybe later in the year I can fit a second one on the other side to increase the range to 35 miles


new batteries