Presenting the Redneck Recumbent
 

http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r...r/nov15001.jpg

http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r...r/nov15003.jpg

Yeah... went off on another tangent the other day...

Go FrankLee !!
You call yourself a redneck? The paint matches, and its not just primer.
Tell me that you used rattle cans not real paint and I might respect you again ;)
Red and Black, you a bulldogs fan?
Honestly, how does it ride? Got the shifter hooked up yet?

Nice wood work on the seat Frank Lee..:thumbup:............(did you even sand it):eek::confused::rolleyes::o

I hope it doesn't go too well, 'cos it sure isn't going to stop...

The paint is factory original purty.

I thought the plywood and board seat qualified it for redneck status!

I did sand the slivers down from the fresh cut areas. That's it tho'. That seat is more comfortable than it looks. Even with no pad it seems to beat a regular seat even with a gel pad.

Thought it would do for prototyping/testing, until I determine if this thing is junk or not.

It rides like... a recumbent. That is to say, either I'm a clod or you kinda have to re-learn how to ride a bike, just like a little kid. I haven't crashed it tho'! Shifters and brakes = not hooked up yet. I'm not ready for the top gears anyway. The ergos seem great- very comfortable- but then I don't have any lengthy rides done yet.

Edit: One more comment about ride quality: As you can see, there will be no sharp turns done with this set-up, at least until I learn to release my "outer leg" from the pedal. Considering adding rear wheel steering...

Great job, Frank. Expected nothing less than a plywood seat from you... honestly. :thumbup:

I didn't even have to fire up the welder!

Or buy so much as a single bolt. At first I was just going to sort out the ergonomics... wanted something to sit on... went back to the woodpile and picked out stuff that was about the right size... and there it is. Didn't even cut the seat back to size!

What? And sand that nice brown paint off?!?

At 22.5" at the lowest point, the seat height is decently low for such a bike.

I'm going to fab up a different handlebar set-up. My knees brush against this one.

If the concept proves itself I'll make nicer components.

You may want to consider a lower Cg to aid stability, but I believe you'll enjoy the recumbent position.

Frank Lee, I'm sorry :o I questioned your "REDNECKEDNESS" concerning the seat......


I DIDNT EVEN THINK THAT THERE ARENT ANY BREAKS!!!!!:eek::eek::eek:

You are back up (or down) in the evolution pecking order.

(gotta give you credit for not firing up the welder......:thumbup:)

But I take it you did fire up the Sawzall on the donor bike,
which appears to have been a "boys" bike.

I suspect you had to pry the front fork tubes outward quite a bit to accept the
the rear wheel axle. I would expect something like 1-1/2 inches. That would
create a severe bending moment at the crown where the fork tubes attach to
the crown. Better keep an eye on that area for micro-cracking, in the
weld/silver solder, whatever.

"Be careful out there!"

Frank -

Cool. Could this mean you're also a Green-neck? Or an Econeck?

CarloSW2

"You may want to consider a lower Cg to aid stability, but I believe you'll enjoy the recumbent position."

I've got about 2 block's ride time on a low store-bought bent. It didn't seem to have any stability advantage, and the starts and stops were more awkward.

"I DIDNT EVEN THINK THAT THERE ARENT ANY BREAKS!!!!!"

There are no breaks. She's solid as a rock!

"But I take it you did fire up the Sawzall on the donor bike,
which appears to have been a "boys" bike."

That is correct. Sawzalls rule! :thumbup:

"I suspect you had to pry the front fork tubes outward quite a bit to accept the
the rear wheel axle. I would expect something like 1-1/2 inches. That would
create a severe bending moment at the crown where the fork tubes attach to
the crown. Better keep an eye on that area for micro-cracking, in the
weld/silver solder, whatever."

I had to spread the fork legs for the additional hub width and I also had to spread the fork ends to accept the larger diameter axle- no grinding! I'd call the bending moment "minor" or "inconsequential". Of course on the back end I had to compress the frame to fit the narrow "front" hub, and the axle is small in the frame's slots but the axle nuts are holding it securely so far.

The "rear" frame stays going from the front hub to the handlbar stem (running right along the front fork) are redundant and will probably be removed eventually. I wanted to get a sense of the rigidity of that whole assembly before doing that.

"Green-neck or Econeck"

I think I'm a "Stiff-neck" after grabbing all those bike parts and bending them with bare hands! Oh yeah, I felt it later.

The lower Cg suggestion is from riding around on low-slung bikes... cornering "comfort" is increased for me when I'm a little closer to the ground. The recumbent position, for me, is still a bit awkward as well, but I'm getting used to it. (Not lately, since no one around here has one, and the local bike shops don't even sell them. Several haven't even heard of them.)

...heck, I thought a 'lower Cg' just meant there was "...less distance to fall..." when you crashed (wink,wink)!

So Cg = Can-to-ground distance?

You know I like it Frank.

lol, micro cracking :) "IN THE NEWS TODAY, MAN FALLS OFF POS BIKE!!"



"...records indicated a lack of magnaflux testing...no indication of termite inspection..."

Looks like a fun project, Mr Lee. Now I want a recumbent project too.

Ha Ha- I was telling a friend about it, and that I'll probably be in the local paper. She said "In a good way or in a bad way?" I said "That remains to be seen"! LOL

As far as can-to-ground distance... there is a point of lowness where it gets awkward to put your foot down and save yourself; the same is true for launching I think. For me, this seat height is about perfect for that- not too low, not too high. I've read about guys having plenty of problems with higher (around 30") seat heights.

Metro, this is about the easiest way of getting into a recumbent without buying one that I've ever come up with. A little hacking, a little bending, and there you are. No welder or stuff to buy outside of the two donor bikes needed. I did it all from 2 a.m. to 3 p.m. in one day, and that includes digging through my parts bikes with a flashlight, and lots of standing there looking at it, deciding what to do.

Originally I was thinking of using the "his" from the matching his-n-hers bikes as the main chassis as it had a damaged top tube anyway. But in looking at it I decided the "hers" frame would get my seat height low enough and then I wouldn't have to weld anything. Not that I'm against welding, but to make a seatbase even lower than what I have would likely result in a weaker frame, and I didn't know where I was going to end up "fore and aft" at the time anyway. I was imagining problems with weakness in the head tube area. I can easily go an inch or two lower on this one too. Maybe I'll test that.

It may not be apparent from the pics, but the seatback angle and height are fully adjustable. I could lay it back probably up to 45 degrees. The best spec for that will gel as I get more riding time on it.

Frank -

I think at some point you should do an instructables or something. You could become the "Dobson" of DIY recumbents.

Hey, let's over-engineer it! You should have drop-down safety-wheels where the "normal" pedaling gear would be.

CarloSW2

I love this design! How did you do the joint between the seat post and handlebar stem on the two bikes?

I have factory made recumbents. A tadpole trike and a few 2 wheelers - long and short wheelbase, but I don't have any front drives. But I have a bunch of donor bike waiting in the wings to be reintroduced into action.

...I foresee a "new" slogan: "...don't judge his recumbent before you've pedalled his metal." (ha,ha).

Too bad I can't take a close-up pic of it right now. Basically I have the regular seat post clamp on the "his" seat post and another identical clamp with the bolt hole pointing forward on the handlebar stem- yes, luckily, the stem and the post are the same diameter. I cut two short pieces of angle iron from an old bed frame, drilled two holes, and bolted it together. Strap might work too but I had the angle iron so went for that in case it needed lateral strength.

Now that you have a description, maybe you can tell what you are looking at in the pics I have up already.

Adjusting the "seat" post on the "his" frame allows for crankset height/distance-from-seat adjustment.

Maybe R.R. Mark II will be with the "his" frame as the main chassis with a super low seat; then the deployable outriggers would really be useful! :thumbup:

I want to master riding this thing before unleashing an instructables on the public.

I should also point out that the "regular" bike I ride looks like this:

http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r...ncher/2001.jpg

http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r...ncher/2002.jpg

^ Two seatposts welded together

Your seating position may have to be different from what I came up with.

the thing I just remembered about that type of fwd is it really gives your arms a workout.

Could use a steering brake or something so you you don't have to oppose the pedals with your arms. (coordination required)

I don't know who "Dobson" is, but I definitely see "McGyver" at work here! Maybe some chewing gum and duct-tape for effect. And of course, eventually a Coroplast fairing...

Any updates Frank?

I've been outta town for a week- no playing with my toys! :(

redneck?


no green and yellow paint?
no beer holder?
no gun rack?


methinks not
:D

http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r...aa1bc847cb.jpg

http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r...her/155976.jpg

http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r...her/136588.jpg

Might as well throw in a few classics too...

http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r...kRepairs11.jpg

http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r...er-bike-03.jpg

http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r...ck-carpool.jpg

http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r...Motorcycle.jpg

Are those aero fenders on the mower, or just tires painted green?? :confused:

and the circle is complete

http://tessamcnabb.files.wordpress.c...up-holder2.jpg

I don't think you should be so quick to 'un-judge' Frank's self-annointed title.
I mean, by his own words he's used 'old bed frame'!!??:o ;)

And MAYBE.........he's not thru 'detailing' his ride!!!:turtle: :D :eek:

Is everybody w/ a gunrack a redneck? or does every redneck even have a gunrack????

AND after his real-self shined thru on his post with the chicks of SEMA.......:thumbup: :cool: :thumbup:



(and it's only 10am!!!!!):rolleyes:

mark

well maybe not a gun rack

but an ac always helps


all in all, the bike looks mighty fine

http://www.thought2go.com/photos/red...k_truck_ac.jpg

Anyone ever tried to mow a lawn with one of those reel bikes? They're a PITA, you've got to seriously regear it to even get moving.

I take it the Redneck Recumbent is now under a foot of snow and we'll have to wait until next year for the YouTube video?

Yeah. -10F, snow, wind, cold. The recumbent won't see action again until at least next April.

next up... redneck snowmobile?


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...2/KFXSkies.jpg

Recumbent pedal-powered 'bile.