TerraCycle makes some great products for our trikes. With the ever increasing popularity of electric motorized trikes having a way to mount the battery is crucial. It is not desirable to mount a heavy battery up high on a trike as it raises the trike’s center of gravity considerably and effects the handling and therefore safety of the trike. Keeping the battery mounted down low and out of the way is important. TerraCycle offers some solutions … some specifically made for certain trike and battery brands and others which aremore less generic. Actually as far as I can tell from their webpage they only have kits for Catrike and ICE (rigid rear) and (suspended models) at this time.
They do offer a highly configurable mount so chances are pretty good they can help a guy (or gal) out with their battery mounting problem. When ordering one needs to specify what trike (brand and model) as well as e-motor system and battery they have so TerraCycle can send the correct spacers needed for the specific kits or to help them in getting you a mounting bracket which will work on your trike. This mount is rated at a maximum of 15 pounds. I had one of them break and my expensive battery went tumbling down the middle of the road. My battery weighed about 14 pounds. Terracycle replaced it for me. I always use extra support holding up the mount so that it doesn’t bounce around with the battery’s weight on it. I use a leather belt suspended from the trike’s frame up above. I also use a rubber tarp strap.
I said that keeping the battery mounted down low is important as far as the trike’s center of gravity. This is quite true, however, the downside of mounting the battery down low is that it is then very vulnerable to getting water, mud, slush and whatever else flung up on it. I presently have my battery down low, but I am seriously considering mounting it up on the rear luggage rack somehow as my battery is getting so messed up for all kinds of stuff being flung up on it. I don’t like that. When I first got my electric motor pedal assist kit I had the battery located in the rear rack and I didn’t have any issues with handling. The battery certainly stayed a whole lot cleaner up there and it was a lot handier to get to it. Some manufacturers of e-motors offer a special rear luggage rack designed to hold their battery. Unfortunately most of these rack mounted batteries are not very powerful so the cruising range they offer is limited.
A larger battery can be mounted on top of a rear luggage rack, but then the luggage rack can’t be used for a trunk bag. Panniers can still be used. I sure will miss my trunk bag if I end up mounting my battery on top of the rear rack. Keep in mind adding the weight of the battery that high on the trike will raise the trike’s center of gravity making it tip over easier. It is best to mount the battery down as low as you can on the frame so that the handling is not effected. I have has two of these batteries mounted above the rear wheel and my trike would tip over easily when I was not seated on it.
The battery can also be mounted on the boom. However, that is a lot of weight sitting on the boom and the boom was never intended to carry weight like this so I don’t know how wise it is to do this. I am not saying that it won’t hold it okay. I just don’t know. It will have an effect on the handling and therefore I would have to advise against it. A well designed and engineered trike is designed for maximum handling and safety. We can easily mess things up when we modify it.
The Beatles said it all in one of their songs … “we can work it out” … and when we do it will most certainly help us to …
No, you don’t plant it in dirt, expose it to sunshine and add water. I am talking about the HP Velotechnik Gekko FXS tadpole trike … the first expandable trike designed to accommodate short people (kids and smaller adults) and grow as they grow (well the kids anyway). In the case of short adults this trike is just as happy to remain one size all of its days.
What is different about this trike is not only does the boom telescope in and out for adjustment like most other trikes, but the frame itself adjusts telescoping in and out up to 2.7 inches (7 cm). All of this and it folds too!
The seat is also high tech in that it has various adjustments available including adding/removing and moving around foam pieces to accommodate the rider as they grow and their bodies change.
HP also offers some special features as options for those who have children with special needs. They have a harness system to help hold the child safely in the seat. They also have straps to securely hold the child’s feet onto the pedals.
In addition to the above mentioned features they have an assistance pole attached to the steering head with a brake lever in case the child is not capable of safely handling everything themselves.
Yep, this trike is designed to meet the need of your child from a youngster to adulthood … growing as they grow … and without the feed and water your child requires. And having a trike that grows as your child grows will help keep a smile on their face because they will be able to …
This isn’t my mom, but it reminds me of my mom. If she were still alive at an age when she was still able like this mom, I am quite sure I could be making a video like this one of my mom riding my trike. She rode bicycles and motorcycles for many years and really enjoyed it. i occasionally rode with her many years ago. Lots of fond memories filled with fun are mine these many years later. I am pretty sure my mom would be a tadpole rider today if she lived her life in a different time span. And she too would be wearing the infamous “recumbent smile”.
For those on a tight budget here is an option available for a fairly reasonable price. One can also get the same trike without the FAT tires and wheels for a lesser amount. And, of course, one can also get the same trike without the electric motor system.
And Utah Trikes offers the same trike with a Bafang motor mounted on the end of the boom. This particular one is customized for the customer. It has dual cargo racks on the sides and dual batteries mounted underneath the cargo racks.
