Thinking about building a trike

KZQ wrote:

750 R1 wrote: Looking good. I think the rear of a trike is the hardest part to get right, are you looking at altering the rear of the frame, or just working around what you have..?

Any thing I do will have to be supported off of the frame sticking out from the back of the seat and the passenger foot peg mounts. I'd prefer to not alter the frame at all. So far the only thing that I've altered is the swing arm which has turned out to be plenty stiff.
I'm still thinking Steam Punk but I need some ideas.
Got any?
Bill

The reason I think its hard, especially with the stock rear section is, once you fit the rear wheels it leaves a big gap where the single rear wheel once was, I like the lowered seat look on trikes, it sort of cleans up the rear.. You could always put the rear tailpiece back on and just leave the rest of the rear stock, that would be the easiest fix... BTW, I googled KZ750 twin trike to see if I could find any inspiration for your build, the only trike that showed up was yours....

750 R1 wrote: ... BTW, I googled KZ750 twin trike to see if I could find any inspiration for your build, the only trike that showed up was yours....

The world's getting smaller by the day.
Thanks
Bill

Looking good. I think once you have a different color on the wheels, it will reduce the trailer-ness look (along with different tires).

Nice Bill

Maybe dont over think the rear treatment :S

AS the picture Steve posted shows a clean trike with a pair of leather bags / why not give it a try ???

Go up to a local bike shop that sells bags and throw a set over and take a picture or 3 ...

Keep the rear simple with no fender under seat and add in a tail piece to fill in the gap.

If you want fenders over the tires go minimalist... Just covering the tire tops to meet any local codes

Just a thought to help spur more ideas

Dave

Maybe some pin stripes on the side covers to break them up a bit? :whistle:
Steve

I put a video up on YouTube Check it out.

No eBay APP ID and/or Cert ID defined in Kunena configurationi think it turned out really cool.
here is my second thought for rear wheels.

i though they might match pretty good with your front mag.

my first thought was h-d fatboy front wheel and www.tirerack.com/wheels/WheelCloseUpServ...a9n:20161121155257:s rear wheels.

leon

It looks like you have some good even spring on the suspension to me, and a nice turning radius.
Was that your back tires I heard when you were braking around 1:12 into the vid?
Maybe a parachute to fill the gap :silly:

Some bodywork as fenders would finish that thing off nicely. How's your hand at fiberglass?
Steve

bluej58 wrote: It looks like you have some good even spring on the suspension to me, and a nice turning radius.
Was that your back tires I heard when you were braking around 1:12 into the vid?
Maybe a parachute to fill the gap :silly:

Yes those were the back tires scuffing a bit when I was trying a hard stop.

I was getting a bit more confident with the turns but I'm concerned that things will get really wild if I cause the inside wheel to lift while turning. I doubt that it'd handle like a side hack, airing the car.
It is fun to ride. Just got to quiet it down a bit more.
Thanks
Bill

WARNING: This is a post by a trike ignoramus.

Why don't trike builders use motorcycle tires in the rear?They would drastically reduce unsprung weight, drastically reduce rotating mass, and could be bought at the same store as the front tire. I seem to recall that the old Hardly Ableson cop trikes were built that way.

www.bing.com/images/search?q=harley+cop+...63a8074d0c24fe2c82o0

Hi TexasKZ,
I would love to mount up a pair of narrow spoked rims to my trike. I went so far as to look for a set of splined hubs from an old Triumph or MG because I found that you can purchase adapters that allow a splined hub to bolt up to a five or four by bolt pattern hub. The reason why I didn't pursue them was because they would move the wheels even further outboard and I'm already a bit over 50 inches wide. The splined hubs with the bolt adapters would make me 12" wider yet. I could perhaps learn to live with the extra width but I would worry about the additional load on the axles and bearings with the wheels cantilevered out so much.
The tires and wheels I have on it now are just meant to keep the project moving. I'm thinking that a pair of these Rocket Launcher wheels from Coker tire are my best option. They are 15" diameter by 4" wide for $190.00 each. The only tires that will fit are made for the front end of a dragster so they will be narrower than the tires I have mounted presently. Price for two wheels and tires, mounted and balanced, about $830.00.



Bill