time to fully enclose my bike

[bschloop]

The left side plug is coming along nicely. I generally glue on a layer of foam, leave it overnight to set up then sand the profile on that layer, and repeat. I should be ready for layup soon, but holidays tend to get in the way. family takes up a lot of time, but they gotta come first.

I figgured I should try to put together a list of things that need to get done before the snow melts, and I want to be on the road again.

must have(minimum requirements)
Cooling system working
fairing mounts built
seat back bulkhead, and rear wheel surround finished.
headlight, and taillights mounted
at least one external mirror(got pulled over for that one last year)
turn signals, since I won't be able to do hand signals.
Engine tune up

Want(optional)
nimh battery
forward controls
roll cage integrated into seatback.
rear wheel discs
stiffer rear suspension
new seat/lower seat
stretched swingarm

For the seatback bulkhead, I like 3-wheeler's fiberglass over foam type construction. it will be a very small amount of epoxy, which I already have left over from another project. I will probably integrate the tail mounts into this. Would a loop of 1 inch steel square tube make a decent roll cage if braced properly? the cover for the rear wheel could be similar, or it might be csm like the main shell. I want the access for the trunk to be through a lid rather than the seatback. the headlights, taillights, and turnsignals will be all led, as long as the headlights are bright enough. I found a pair of led driving lamps that I want to try. I also want to relocate the battery into the front of the nose. this should help increase stability at speed. I have been hoarding nimh cells thinking I would do an e-bike at some point. I might try to scab some together for a starting battery. I think I remember reading somewhere that they don't mind cold as much as lead. is this true?

I can see the first list getting done fairly easily. as for the second, much of it will have to wait.

[Electictracer]

Originally Posted by bschloop

Would a loop of 1 inch steel square tube make a decent roll cage if braced properly?

Thats a great question. I used two 1" tubes welded together for my "roll cage." Im not sure if it would do for a 60mph roll over but it seems damn sturdy. It does not have to be car-strong since there is much less wieght. Bending 1" tubing over 1/16" is VERY difficult to do by hand. No matter what you will need some type of tooling. I used a compact bender and a die I had machined.

[bschloop]

Originally Posted by Electictracer

Bending 1" tubing over 1/16" is VERY difficult to do by hand. No matter what you will need some type of tooling. I used a compact bender and a die I had machined.

I am looking into one of those three roll benders. the ones that are made for large radius bending. I think I can make one, but I won't waste too much time on it I might just take it to a local shop, or use round tube and a modified conduit bender. since I already have one. unless someone nearby has one I could use??

[Grant-53]

The federal standards for rollover are based on the the vehicle weight. The top safety picks support four times the vehicle weight. I want to test a bulkhead of 3/4" plywood and 0.35" aluminum honeycomb under my car. A motorcycle roll bar would need to support 2400lb.

[bschloop]

Originally Posted by Grant-53

The federal standards for rollover are based on the the vehicle weight. The top safety picks support four times the vehicle weight. I want to test a bulkhead of 3/4" plywood and 0.35" aluminum honeycomb under my car. A motorcycle roll bar would need to support 2400lb.

How are you planning to test your bulkhead? Which direction will the force be applied to the plywood. could you test just the plywood first to find out how much difference the alum makes?

I don't expect to build a top safety pick, but a modicum of safety would be great.

[Grant-53]

The bulkhead would be a vertical panel so I would test a 12" x 12" piece in that position. Using a hydraulic jack to raise my car ('95 Geo Prism) I would put the test piece vertically under a hard point and release the jack. Compare the dimensions before and after. The laminate would be stronger and there would be less problems with splintering than plain plywood.

[bschloop]

my fiberglass arrived the other day, and I began laying up the first piece. after laying in a layer of csm, I realized that the skin of the fairing can be one layer thick, so long as I put enough ribs in. this will reduce the weight of the fairing by almost half, so it will be worth the effort of making tooling, to get a smooth outer surface without having to sand as much.

[Grant-53]

I tested 3/4" plywood today by jacking up my "95 Geo Prism and putting a 12" x 7" piece up behind the front wheel. The plywood supported the front left side of the car with no splitting or buckling. More tests to come.

[bschloop]

Thanks. sounds like 3/4" plywood, or maybe even 1/2" with fiberglass reinforcement would be strong enough. now I just have to figure out how to make it meet my weight requirements. maybe make cutouts in a sheet of plywood and fill them with foam, then laminate over with fiberglass. keeping just enough plywood for the structure.

[godscountry]

Originally Posted by bschloop

This decision was pretty much made for me. I was working on smoothing out my current fairing so that it could be made into something a little more proffesional looking, when two things happened. the tail section got dropped, and subsequently the paint I had been using to seal up the plaster began peeling off, and the plaster also started flaking off. I have since realized that it would be futile to attempt to fix my current tail without peeling off all the plaster and starting over with something better, so...

The new plan is to make an entirely new plug out of styrofoam, incorporating some features that wouldn't work on the old fairing. I will be using the technique I used to make the fiberglass parts of the old fairing. A styrofoam plug covered in aluminum foil for a mold release. this time I hope to make the fairing 24" wide which should be wide enough to fully enclose the bike and rider. I also hope to convert the bike to 100% fan cooled. this should eliminate the need for cooling ducts and scoops. thirdly I am looking into lowering the seat as far as possible and going feet forward if at all possible.
I figured this should probably get it's own thread, since it's a completely new project.

very nice,i suggest if you haven't seen it,is the Honda 125,built with a streamlined body, despite weighing a extra 88 lbs,it doubled his mileage to over 200 mpg.He has some nice photos on how he did the body,might be worth,spending some time checking it out.Also you might try to find some information about the BMW Simple concept vehicle,because the body has a drag coefficient 0.18,but the best part,it is all flat panels,you could do some measurements from the photos and using a large paper cutter ,cut sheets of Aluminum,Their are some nice panels available,I will give you the link,take care.214 MPG DIY Super-Aerodynamic Modified Honda 125cc Motorbike : TreeHugger