Fully Suspended Tribrid Tadpole

[BarelyAWake]

"We interrupt this somewhat sporadically updated monolog to bring you this important announcement!"

Well, not that important really unless you're nuts enough to want to build your own fully suspended tadpole, hybrid, tribrid or otherwise lol

This is exactly the donor vehicle I would very strongly recommend getting if you're so inclined as it's an inexpensive import, so inexpensive it costs nearly the same as purchasing just the horizontal four stroke alone (far less than an actual Honda) - yet comes with nearly everything needed to custom build your own chassis as well as a true dual A-arm front suspension, even the spindles & brakes look as if they'd be easy enough to re-purpose, as well as the electrical harness, switches & whatnot... which while seemingly cheap enough by themselves, adds up faster than I'd care to admit lol

Note that this one happens to be 100cc, whereas I'd reco the 49cc - but I would assume they're available in either displacement, the mounting & peripherals are the same in any case & usually fully cross compatible with the Honda XR50R, CRF50F, XR70R, CRF70F & similar product line such as their Lifan clones & no-name knockoffs like what's pictured.

Interestingly - this may well be one of the few examples of where "cheap" works to your advantage, the tubing so light as I'd be concerned utilizing it on a 100cc four-wheeler, jumping, racing about & crashing it as they tend to be... but to be cut up and re-used for the far lighter duty demands of a motorized tadpole trike, particularly as you'd be examining & redoing welds as you go... well, as I mentioned this was exactly what I was looking for but failed to find - at the time everything I saw available was single A-arm (causing oddities in alignment & tracking under compression) and/or so heavy as to be useless for a bicycle/tricycle.

So, while far too late for my madness - I thought I'd post up it's plates (manufacturer etc) on the off chance it could help someone else, just in case someone also wants a fully suspended tadpole, for less effort and far less cost than a scratch build, then buying each & every part separately *shrug*





"We now continue this somewhat sporadically updated monolog, or not as the case may be - depending entirely on the whims of fortune, fate & the demands of the so-called 'real life' lol"

[sendler]

That's close. It would be fun to build a real highway capable tadpole using the front end out of a full sized side by side, driven by electric motors and axle shafts in the front and a 250cc motorcycle rear. Tandem seating. Bodywork round at the front and pointy at the back.

[HHOTDI]

....My thoughts Exactly! :{)

[BarelyAWake]

Naturally for a highway capable two seater you'd need a far more stout donor vehicle than the wee lil four wheeler I longed for, but the concept is similar & still valid - though ofc you'd need to meet DOT inspection criteria, something I thankfully need not be concerned with as a motorized bicycle or even as a moped (in the state of Maine)... but registering, inspecting & insuring a "homebuilt motorcycle" as it would be isn't particularly difficult... and I think would suit HHOTDI's diesel interest far better than my tiny creation (motor scale & weight).

Not having a pedal boom comprising 1/3 of the LOA extending from the front does open up a vast array of body shell possibilities, here's a few random examples of possibilities jus' for the heck o'it lol;

The new edition of the venerable Morgan & a vintage Morgan nekkid for the world to see;


If old-school isn't yer thing, there's things like this from Blue Sky Design LLC;


Gettin' a touch radical, there's the destinyparts.com carbon fiber Cyclone;



...but the possibilities are ofc unlimited by anything save physics & the imagination lol;

[BarelyAWake]

These past coupla weeks a bit more hectic than usual, I've spent most of my time derping around w/some new 'puter shinys instead of the various bike projects... so many toys, so little time lol

In any case, I did get my new wheel built & picked it up yesterday & I grabbed a new, heavier duty cassette & chain for the thing while I was at it, a DNP Epoch Freewheel 7spd 11-28 w/a SRAM PC-850 chain, better to swap out the cassette now than later when it gets really torqued on there I figure.

The Alex DX32 26" 36H Black all laced up & ready, it's a bit of a beast & altogether weighs just about 20lbs by itself (obv mostly hub) - the last pic has a regular mountain bike rim behind it for scale;

[Varn]

Around here the four wheeler and golf cart are quite acceptable for transportation. They are not allowed to drive state highways but are seen in town and on the back roads. they are commonly seen parked in front of local businesses No modifications needed.

Once you start piling on the weight and power the bicycle wheel/tire system isn't acceptable. Compare your wheels to the wheels on a common 50cc motorcycle. The axles, spokes and drive train are much beefier.

Originally Posted by BarelyAWake

"We interrupt this somewhat sporadically updated monolog to bring you this important announcement!"

Well, not that important really unless you're nuts enough to want to build your own fully suspended tadpole, hybrid, tribrid or otherwise lol

This is exactly the donor vehicle I would very strongly recommend getting if you're so inclined as it's an inexpensive import, so inexpensive it costs nearly the same as purchasing just the horizontal four stroke alone (far less than an actual Honda) - yet comes with nearly everything needed to custom build your own chassis as well as a true dual A-arm front suspension, even the spindles & brakes look as if they'd be easy enough to re-purpose, as well as the electrical harness, switches & whatnot... which while seemingly cheap enough by themselves, adds up faster than I'd care to admit lol

Note that this one happens to be 100cc, whereas I'd reco the 49cc - but I would assume they're available in either displacement, the mounting & peripherals are the same in any case & usually fully cross compatible with the Honda XR50R, CRF50F, XR70R, CRF70F & similar product line such as their Lifan clones & no-name knockoffs like what's pictured.

Interestingly - this may well be one of the few examples of where "cheap" works to your advantage, the tubing so light as I'd be concerned utilizing it on a 100cc four-wheeler, jumping, racing about & crashing it as they tend to be... but to be cut up and re-used for the far lighter duty demands of a motorized tadpole trike, particularly as you'd be examining & redoing welds as you go... well, as I mentioned this was exactly what I was looking for but failed to find - at the time everything I saw available was single A-arm (causing oddities in alignment & tracking under compression) and/or so heavy as to be useless for a bicycle/tricycle.

So, while far too late for my madness - I thought I'd post up it's plates (manufacturer etc) on the off chance it could help someone else, just in case someone also wants a fully suspended tadpole, for less effort and far less cost than a scratch build, then buying each & every part separately *shrug*





"We now continue this somewhat sporadically updated monolog, or not as the case may be - depending entirely on the whims of fortune, fate & the demands of the so-called 'real life' lol"

[BarelyAWake]

Originally Posted by Varn

Around here the four wheeler and golf cart are quite acceptable for transportation. They are not allowed to drive state highways but are seen in town and on the back roads. they are commonly seen parked in front of local businesses No modifications needed.

Once you start piling on the weight and power the bicycle wheel/tire system isn't acceptable. Compare your wheels to the wheels on a common 50cc motorcycle. The axles, spokes and drive train are much beefier.

I could I s'pose simply ride a golf cart or four wheeler around, but where's the fun in that? If I didn't wish to tinker something together, I'd just use a car & be done w/it lol

If you mean the "common" bicycle wheel/tire system (ie typical box store bikes), adding a 50cc engine's weight & speed is pushing your luck as they're barely suitable for the task at hand even unmotorized... which is why I don't use them, preferring instead to avail myself of the plethora of quality yet not terribly expensive aftermarket parts available today. In this instance the rims were meant for downhill racing & freestyle (rear & front) as are front axles, the rear being the same thickness (keyed shaft) as a Puch moped, without the ridges & indentations the 'ped has (weak points) all of which has higher load value capability than I would ever expect to see except perhaps in a high speed crash, in which case all bets are off & it doesn't matter anymore anyway

Sure, there's always something bigger, stronger, faster or whatever - but to put the weight in perspective, the tadpole and myself together weigh almost exactly the same as a rather large co-worker of mine, whose stock mountain bike's wheelset still hasn't collapsed. I could use moped/scooter wheels... I even gave it some thought, but in this game every ounce counts & to be completely honest when considering weight, durability and cost for this application, custom bicycle wheelsets with their quality sealed bearings, double wall alloy rims and short stainless spokes win hands down *shrug*

Ofc... it would have been cheaper to just buy a moped/scooter - as before though, where's the fun in that?

[Christopher Jordan]

Originally Posted by BarelyAWake

where's the fun in that?

Rebuilding my condo has taken 3 years now. I have lost interest in rebuilding my old tadpole when I move back but it is still in the condo garage. When I moved temporarily for the rebuild I purchased 3 power wheelchairs and a 3-wheel Handy scooter (I can drive them all over town then right into my bedroom) that I could use here.

In three years I have done a lot of tinkering! Seeing the photos of your quad gave me a terrific idea! When I move back and have use of the garage again - I could very easily dismantle one of my hot rod wheelchairs and bolt or weld a wheelchair seat and arms to a quad!

Now **that** would be fun!!

[HHOTDI]

Originally Posted by BarelyAWake

Sure, there's always something bigger, stronger, faster or whatever - but to put the weight in perspective... I could use moped/scooter wheels... I even gave it some thought, but in this game every ounce counts & to be completely honest when considering weight, durability and cost for this application, custom bicycle wheelsets with their quality sealed bearings, double wall alloy rims and short stainless spokes win hands down *shrug*

Ofc... it would have been cheaper to just buy a moped/scooter - as before though, where's the fun in that?

The thought of the Honda CT90/CT110 wheels came to mind. I believe the gentleman that built the 55mph California Cruiser that was white (looked like a Star Wars Speedster). I believe he used them and had great luck with them, being able to take advantage of the high speed bearings and light skinny wheel/tires sets... Just a thought. :{)

[HHOTDI]

Originally Posted by BarelyAWake

Naturally for a highway capable two seater you'd need a far more stout donor vehicle than the wee lil four wheeler I longed for, but the concept is similar & still valid -... and I think would suit HHOTDI's diesel interest far better than my tiny creation (motor scale & weight).

Not having a pedal boom comprising 1/3 of the LOA extending from the front does open up a vast array of body shell possibilities, here's a few random examples of possibilities jus' for the heck o'it lol;

The new edition of the venerable Morgan & a vintage Morgan nekkid for the world to see;


If old-school isn't yer thing, there's things like this from Blue Sky Design LLC;


Gettin' a touch radical, there's the destinyparts.com carbon fiber Cyclone;



...but the possibilities are ofc unlimited by anything save physics & the imagination lol;

The Velomobile world has a plethora of body designs/syles to match ones every need..! The World Speed records they are setting with these new body styles are incredible, so fascinating to dream about! :{)