Quote:
Originally Posted by jared1970
BarelyAwake, how is your trike coming along? I just found this thread and think your project is interesting. Have you considered using the engine as a generator for the electric hub rather than connecting it mechanically to the wheel? This could eliminate the problem of premature wear on the geared hub. Just use the engine as a range extender like the Chevy Volt does. I'm not sure how you could do it, but if you've managed to build this thing up to this point you're probably clever enough to make it happen.
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Well TBH it's "come along" not even a little bit since my last post... every season I seem to forget I never get
anything done during the sunny summer months as I'm far too busy jus' slackin' and ridin' around lol, this season "worst" than most as the ebike I cobbed together turned out to be not only really entertaining, but incredibly reliable as well - so my tools lay forgotten, dusty & unused, all projects "on hold" till the long cold dark drives me to tinker the madness away... or to try anyway heh
The winter will be here soon though, so it's a mere matter of time before I try to (not) set the shop, me or my projects on fire... the taddy is pretty close to completion, so the remaining winter months should offer plenty of opportunity for refinements, which is good - as evidenced, I can't be trusted to do anything more come spring
As for "consider(ing) using the engine as a generator for the electric hub rather than connecting it mechanically to the wheel?" I have yes, but the Lifan is ill-suited for the task given it's configuration - I'd need to rebuild it to be specifically a generator given the demands of the electric drive, or better yet use an actual generator in it's place... while I gave such a lot of thought during the daydream/R&D stage, I decided against it given the limited selection of 50cc or less generators (there's sorta a lot of them, but few to my liking) and the redundancy of having a generator when the electric hub has not only regenerative capabilities, but adjustable perimeters (level of regen/drag) as well.
Add in space considerations, intended use & the exponential per HP price... and I "copped out" & went with this "sorta" hybrid configuration, It outa work out well enough however as not only are the charging systems "married" - the LiFePO4 battery packs I've gotten have turned out to be
far better than anticipated, or even needed for this project - a pleasant surprise indeed lol
The "the problem of premature wear on the geared hub" isn't near as bad as you'd think - I had reservations myself, but after roughly five thousand miles putting about an equivalent HP through what should be a more "delicate" setup, a
Sturmey Archer X-RD3 (3 Speed internal gear hub with 70mm drum brake) with another build (
a '43 Rollfast) and the absolute lack of any issue of failure and the success others have had w/a powertrain through a derailleur system, I've decided to take a chance & do the same w/this... if the cassette fails I can replace the disc brake w/a sprocket for the four stroke... but obv I'm hoping it won't come to that
Quote:
Originally Posted by HHOTDI
BarelyAwake....that is an awesome job Sir, I am impressed! I too have considered a Tad-Trike Hybrid design to power with a diesel/Pedal power. I have been waiting for over a year for the V-Twin Diesel motors to be imported for my motorcycle project that is still on the shelf waiting, so I am about to settle on a 1cyl 10hp and put it in a Recumbent. I too downloaded the ZombieTrike build. I am trying to finish up a few wood projects before I start cutting/Welding steel! Excellent job Sir, excited to see some pics of you riding it! Punsun-10hp-Specs
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Thanks HHOTDI
I
very much wanted to make this a diesel-electric, it was the initial plan & I still very much yearn to do so... but despite my wants & nearly two years (already? wow) of searching I have failed miserably in finding a small, compact & efficient diesel suitable for the constraints I'm under. The "1cyl 10hp" you've mentioned still 5x over the maximum allowed for the moped/motorized bicycle classification in my state, a hybrid/tribrid a gray area in any case.
As you no doubt know, what's currently available in "small" diesels are monstrously heavy and tend to have severe vibration issues (comparatively ofc). I've learned "average" bicycle components can withstand 2-3hp w/o much difficulty, just the normal maintenance you'd expect with the vastly higher mileage in far less time that happens w/motorization & "quality" components, ie - not necessarily what bicyclists consider quality (usually weight/exotic materials) but durability, can usually withstand roughly 5-6hp without immediate failure...
...but that's with lightweight two strokes or heavyish, but smooth running four strokes... and the failure rate is obv higher the greater the HP... so, with a 10hp
diesel I really would suggest sticking with motorcycle components due to the weight & stresses placed on them - still an awesome idea (recumbent diesel motorcycle) & defo build what you will, but with 10hp you might as well skip the pedals as even with the added weight, you'll never use them - the average speed with even just 2hp is around 35mph and no "pedal assist" is actually required (particularly w/gears). With a 10, the human input would be so marginal as to be pretty much irrelevant...
Nevertheless - defo do w/e ya wanna, far be it for me to discourage the tinkerer lol & with these things there's still so much unexplored, I could well be wrong, it's not like
I've built a 10hp diesel taddy
If anyone's wondering what I've been up to instead of tinkerin' the tribrid taddy as I prolly outa have been, it's this that's distracted me away from my shop heh:
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...arl-21723.html