Transportation

DIY car top carrier

May 9, 2019

Here I am playing around again with a $20 sheet of 4×8 foot 4mm thick fluted plastic. I thought I’d make a car top carrier. I buy my fluted plastic at Laird Plastics Inc. (206-623-4900) in downtown Seattle Washington where they stock several thicknesses, sizes and color choices. Made with zip ties and held down…

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Teardrop bicycle cover

May 8, 2019

  This was an attempt to make a teardrop shell fiberglass plug for my road bike. Plywood ribs were attached together using 90 degree brackets. Holes spaced 4″ apart  were drilled on the rib edges. 1/8″ wire was treaded thru the holes. Thin wire was used to attach the chicken wire to the 1/8″ wire…

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Electric recumbent scooter

April 13, 2019

  This is the first stand up scooter I made into a recumbent. It was a hoot to ride for about 4 miles, then the battery would drain and soon you were forced to walk the rig home.

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Little burningman trike

April 12, 2019

  The second time I went to Burningman I brought my older brother. I brought the big trike and made this little sail trike adding a 2hp Briggs and Stratton edger motor for back-up power. I pounded on a roughed-up tube onto the drive axle for front wheel food activated friction drive. I made a…

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High mileage trike #2

April 12, 2019

This was my second attempt at making my dream 150+ mpg one passenger vehicle. I started out with a rear engine design but opted to try a front engine placement for better cooling and balancing.   Later I tried to make it a rat rod type vehicle, but eventually abandoned the idea all together. Fast…

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Rear steer recumbent bike

April 12, 2019

When I was eighteen I read an article in Popular Mechanics of a rear steer bike. It looked like a good idea for saving weight with the shorter chain. I spent 4 years designing and redesigning this bike. Once it was built it took me 2 hours to get both feet on the pedals. Once…

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My first recumbent bike

April 12, 2019

To the best of my memory, this was the first recumbent I built back in 1975. I made it in my metal class when I was 16. I never did get a picture of it, and I never finished it, but it was to be a two position bike either riding upright or reclined.

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Burningman trike

April 12, 2019

My first motorized trike was made for my first Burningman experience back in 2000.  I used a 3 hp Briggs and Stratton motor with belt drive. This went to a 12″ pulley which drove a 13 tooth sprocket to my rear 6 speed cluster. It could easily carry 3 people, and it topped out at…

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MWB recumbent

April 12, 2019

Itching to have a test ride. Of all the recumbent bikes I’ve made, this was my favorite and most used. I later added a 3 speed wheel with drum brakes up front, then added pontoons for a kinetic race, which never happened. A minute after this image was taken everything went South. The pontoons flipped…

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MWB recumbent bike

April 12, 2019

This was my fourth recumbent build. I built it for my neighbor kid who thoroughly enjoyed it.  

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