Author Archives: Steve Newbauer

Introduction To The Recumbent Trike: Types, Wheel Sizes, Seat Types, Brake Types & Potential Issues

Feb 12

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Here is an informative video covering various subjects …

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THE BATTLE OF THE E-TRIKES … WHICH ONE SHOULD YOU CHOOSE?

Feb 10

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Some people buy Chevys and others buy Cadillacs and fewer still buy Yugos. There is nothing wrong with the Chevys but they supposedly don’t have as much to offer as the Cadillacs. Some people drive a Chevy even if they could afford a Cadillac. Some people drive a Cadillac even though they can’t really afford it. We all have our preferences, abilities and limitations.

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GREENSPEED OFFERS BOSCH CRANKDRIVE MOTOR

Feb 8

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For some 25 years Greenspeed has resisted offering an electric motor. Well, that has all changed now. Here Mickey of Laidback Cycles tells about it. If you have a newer Greenspeed with a square tube frame you can add this motor kit to it.

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USING WHEELCHAIR RAMPS

Oct 7

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I have written about ramps before. I have made a couple of sets of them for a friend. I purchased some telescoping wheelchair ramps for my own use. They work pretty good although I seldom use them. For me they are just too much of a hassle to go thru each time. I just lift my heavy trike which is quite challenging. I think it probably helps maintain my muscles and strength as I age.

Here is a video showing how to use wheelchair ramps to load and unload a tadpole trike into and out of a vehicle.

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TRIKE RIDING TOGETHER AS FAMILY & WITH FRIENDS

Oct 31

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I am past 70 years old so I have to think back a ways to remember as a child growing up doing various things together as a family. Still I have fond memories and appreciate those times we spent together. We didn’t have tadpole trikes then. We did have bicycles and motorcycles which we rode together. My parents may be gone but friends are still around and almost daily I am making memories with them riding our trikes. When I look at videos online showing families/friends riding together it brings back those memories. Perhaps it will for you as well. And if you are younger than I am perhaps you are still making memories with your own children. Anyway, here are some videos of families enjoying riding together.

 

HERE are more videos.

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BICYCLE AIR PUMPS & TIRE PRESSURE

Aug 25

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Published by Steve Newbauer on August 25, 2017

Most recumbent tires are high pressure tires … up around 100 psi. If you don’t have an air compressor at home or in your motor vehicle I strongly recommend purchasing a floor type bicycle air pump … one designed to pump high pressure … preferably 140 or 160 psi. That way when you pump up a 100 psi tire you aren’t maxxing out the pump to accomplish it … or maxxing yourself out using it. 🙂

In fact, I suggest getting one of these pumps even if you do have an air compressor available to use as they are quite handy and practical.

Most good quality pumps nowadays have a built in gauge making it very handy. I suggest checking the accuracy of the gauge initially and from time to time to be sure you are getting the right pressure in the tires.

Here are a couple of examples of pumps available.

Blackburn air tower 3 bike floor pump

Park Tools PFP-4 Professional Mechanic Floor Pump

They can be purchased at your local bike shop. I want to emphasize that it is best to buy a good quality pump and not settle for some inferior pump at a lower cost. I don’t think you would regret paying more for a quality pump. I would also suggest that you talk to a local bike shop mechanic to get their recommendation as to what pump to buy. You could also research them online to get customer feedback.

I am not making any recommendations as to what pump to buy. I am only showing these two as examples of what is available. There are lots of different ones out there. The first pump I have pictured above is a Blackburn Air Tower 3 Bike Floor Pump rated at 160 psi. To the best of my knowledge it is a good quality pump.

The second pump I have pictured above is a ParkTool brand which normally they make pretty good quality stuff. However, the customer reviews of this pump are not all that impressive. That is surprising.

Most pumps nowadays have a dual head on them so that either Presta or Schrader valves are accommodated.

The pump I have is a Pedros Domestique air pump. It is a good pump, but I know that there are better ones available.

In case you didn’t know it an innertube loses air on a continual basis so it is necessary to inflate them from time to time. That’s right … air leaks right thru the rubber so they are constantly losing pressure. The higher the pressure the more they leak down. It is important to keep your tires inflated to the correct pressure. You will get better wear, mileage, handling, and performance out of your tires as well as make it easier to pedal along since low air pressure equates to more rolling resistance.

It is also important that you never over inflate your tires beyond what they are designed for. Doing so can result in destroying the tire and causing a major tire failure which could be disaterous at worst and leave you stranded at best.

I once put about 10 psi more in a knobby tire I used for winter riding. About 10 miles from home I noticed something which wasn’t right in the ride … a pronounced thump of sorts. I stopped and got off to look. My rear tire was literally coming apart … separating from too much pressure in it. Fortunately I was only about a half of a mile or so from a local bike shop so I made it over there and got a new tire. The tire that had just gone bad would have lasted me for several years more if I had not over inflated it.

Yes, proper tire inflation is quite important … especially if we all want to …

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HUB MOTOR VS CRANK DRIVE MOTOR

Feb 13

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HUB MOTOR VS MID DRIVE MOTOR … yes, the argument goes on. Some say Mid Drive is the only way to go while others say Hub Motors are the only way to go. Hey, they both go and like with most everything there is good and bad & pros and cons concerning each. HERE is a well written and informative article about the subject. I think I made the right decision. I like hub motors. Mid Drive just doesn’t appeal to me. They are hard on the drive train and if the drive trail fails while you are out riding you are done for as the motor can’t help you. With a hub motor you can still go on down the road/trail since it doesn’t rely on the drive train. My thinking and position lines up with the conclusion of this article and this company has worked with them both and speak from experience and hands on knowledge.

Although this following video (and nearly all others I have seen on this subject) is about bicycles it does a good job of covering the topic.

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TRIKETABLE REPAIR STAND

Feb 9

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Update: It appears that this stand is no longer available … as in “out of business”.

There are several trike work stands available as well as lots of homemade DIY ones. I have written about them before. I recently came across one I haven’t seen before until now so I thought I would feature it here. It is the “TRIKETABLE REPAIR STAND” manufactured and sold by Carriage House. I like the looks of it … simple, practical, low to the ground so it is smaller in size than most others. It is designed to be used on the ground/floor or set up  onto something to raise the trike up higher if desired.

Designed to fit every make and model of recumbent trike on the market. This bench mounted recumbent trike repair stand quickly adjusts to cradle your trike and hold it firmly in place. Rugged enough for shop use, simple and effective design for the casual or enthusiast rider.
It sells for $225 with free shipping to the continental U.S.

It is quick and easy to adjust to accommodate various trikes. I like the use of the V shaped rubber rollers to cradle the frame holding it securely without messing up the paint job of the frame.

Originally I had a video here, but it has been made private so I removed it.

Sooner or later all trikes require work to be done on them. Having a workstand makes the task far easier and pleasant than trying to work on them without one. If you have the “moola” (money) and don’t mind spending it you might want to consider this TrikeTable Repair Stand.

I have other articles on trike work stands. Click HERE ,  HERE and HERE to read them.

Keeping your trike properly maintained and repaired will enable you to …

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UTAH TRIKE CUSTOM EZ ENTRY AIDS

Feb 6

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Need help? I am talking about help sitting down onto and getting up from your trike’s seat. There are various aids available nowadays. One of them is these custom made EZ Entry Aids made and sold by Utah Trikes. They sell for $140 according to Utah Trikes website . Although they are made for Catrikes they do work on some other brands. I like the looks and design of these so I bought a pair. They adjust up and down, lean in or out, swivel 360 degrees and can be clamped forward or rearward on the horizontal portion of the steering  bars off of the headsets. So that they can be positioned pretty much anywhere the rider thinks works best for them. You can’t “beat that with a stick”.

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ELECTRIC TADPOLE TRIKE ON SNOW SKIS

Feb 2

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This is an interesting trike. I have a hard time understanding some of this man’s English, but the trike is pretty neat. If nothing else, seeing how he has mounted the skis on the front wheels might give others an idea of how put skis on their trikes, myself included. I have thought about it. Don’t forget that traditional braking is on the front wheels and skis eliminate using them.

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FROZEN LAKE DRIFTING WITH ELECTRIC TRIKE

Jan 26

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If you can handle the weather this looks like it would be fun …

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E-MOTOR BATTERY MOUNTS FROM TERRACYCLE

Jan 16

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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 …

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HOW TO MAKE A TADPOLE TRIKE GROW

Jan 12

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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.

HERE is the Operator’s Manual.

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 …

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MOM ON A TADPOLE TRIKE

Jan 9

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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”.

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SUNSEEKER FAT TAD ELECTRIC TADPOLE TRIKE

Jan 5

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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.

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ELECTRIC TRIKE 3500w 40+MPH

Jan 2

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THE JOY OF RIDING A PEDAL ASSIST MOTORIZED TRIKE

Dec 27

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I came across this  video and thought it would be a good one to share with others. This man rides a HP Velotechnik Scorpion FS26 Pedelec trike which is a factory made electric motorized trike rather than an after market add on kit.

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EFFECTS OF COLD TEMPERATURES

Dec 22

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In case you had not noticed in many parts of the world we have entered into a season of colder temperatures. It doesn’t take much to notice it around where I live as the trails are nearly void of cyclists and there are very few walkers out. Most definitely we notice the colder temperatures with our bodies, but one thing I have noticed as well it it’s effect on my bell and squeeze bulb horn. In warmer weather both are fairly loud, but in colder weather their volume level decreases dramatically. Fortunately during such weather I really don’t have much need of using either one.

Another effect of colder temperatures I have noticed is that my battery for my electric hub motor loses a considerable amount of it performance range capacity. In warm weather I usually get 35+/- miles out of a full charge. In colder weather I am doing good to get in the low 20s. That is something which I am not happy about although truthfully in the winter time I don’t usually ride much farther than the low 20 mile range.

Of course, as humans we notice the wind chill effect on our bodies when out in colder temperatures. Just riding provides “wind” and if there is actual wind (which we usually have here in NE Indiana) we can really notice it, especially when riding into the wind. So riding along at 15-20 mph is not something all that pleasant in colder temperatures. Oh yes, we can always bundle up as much as needed … at least up to the point we can’t function. 🙂

For me personally definitely Spring and Fall are my two favorite seasons. Summer and Winter not so much. Too much heat or too much cold most definitely effect me. I try to ride regardless of the weather … but only to a point as I like to …

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HOW TO CHANGE AN INNERTUBE

Dec 15

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HOW TO CHANGE AN INNER TUBE

Sooner or later if we ride any kind of a cycle with pneumatic tires we are likely to get a flat tire. Many of us have been fixing flats since childhood so we can handle flats when they happen. However, some riders have never done so and don’t know how and are intimidated by such a challenge. In today’s world there is help as close as our computers/smartphones/tablets. There are quite a lot of tutorials available in the way of videos where things are not only explained, but they are shown making it even easier to understand. Here is one such video which is pretty comprehensive:

One cardinal rule is never use a sharp object such as a screwdriver as a tire lever. Doing so is just asking for problems as one can easily puncture an inner tube. This young person in THIS VIDEO uses two of them.

If you find you have a damaged tire that you are concerned about continuing on riding on there may be hope for it. HERE is an article I wrote on dealing with such tires.

HERE is an article I wrote on rear wheel removal and reinstallation.

One tip I would share here which makes a whole lot of sense, but is seldom mentioned in instructional videos is to use the punctured inner tube to discover the location in the tire where the puncture occurred. Simply carefully remove the inner tube from the tire paying careful attention to its exact positioning in the tire so that you can later place it upon the outside of the tire the same as it came out. Pump the punctured inner tube back up with air to discover the location of the leak. Once you know where the leak in the tube is at you can determine where to look in the tire for the cause of the leak. The cause may or may not be there, but if it is still there it is most important to remove it before installing the new inner tube. Otherwise it will just cause the new inner tube to fail also. Be very careful running your fingers around inside of the tire attempting to locate the cause of the flat as you could get cut or otherwise injured.

When I watch most instructional videos I usually find at least one thing they cover which I take issue with and don’t agree on. That’s okay, I guess. They can do whatever they want and I will do the task the way I want. That is just the way things are in this ol’ world we live in. I guess the most important thing is that we “git ‘er dun” so that we can …

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3 CHEERS FOR RECUMBENT TADPOLE TRIKES

Dec 7

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