[Stubby79]

I would have (probably) been more impressed/thrilled if I didn't drive battery powered lift trucks every day at work, and if the throttle had been more responsive.

I've just fixed the latter...pot box was not changing resistance until the arm was at least 1/4" off the stop...leading to a very un-metro-like feel to the throttle. I've now got it lined up so just as the microswitch closes, the resistance is just starting. It's much better for my feather foot. And now it will actually hit full resistance (thus full power) at the end of the pedal's stroke.

Kind of silly how such a little thing can almost ruin a good moment.

Anyway...driving it was weird, in spite of being used to battery powered equipment. Why? Becuase I was expecting it to be a car, since I was sitting down and behind a wheel. The LPG forklifts we use still behave like cars, mostly. This was...confusing! Eyes/body were seeing one thing, brain was going another direction. Getting them both to clue in took a couple of minutes.

Brakes totally sucked, adding to the confusion. As did the silence(Except for the low frequency hum on gentle throttle). Heck, I had hot-wired it, and forgot to put the key in, so I couldn't steer for the first few feet. Oops! Brakes got better as I got used to them and wore the rust sheen off of them (but they're still weak without vacuum).

The throttle confused and annoyed me most, though. I did adapt, but still didn't appreciate that i had to push it quarter the way down just to get the slightest response. After driving it up and down the street a bit, deciding that everything was feeling fine, I just mashed the accelerator to see how responsive it really was. While I didn't have to hold on to the steering wheel for dear life, it was still surprising after the lack of response at less throttle. It took off faster than my 3 cylinder gas firefly ever has! That, at least, was a pleasant surprise.

Not sure how much more I'll get done today, but I couldn't just leave it alone now that it can actually do something. I'll update later if I get anything accomplished.