Electric tricycle.

[toxo]

Hi Guys.

I shoot for a hobby and have recently been asked by a farmer to help keep down the rabbits who are decimating his crops. Too far for my getting older legs so I thought about some help. I bought a Pashley trike with a view to extending and lowering it and possibly motorising it to carry me and the gear slowly around the perimeter of the fields. Don't need speed but I guess i'm gonna need some torque. I have some small 12v motors but have no idea if they're any good for the job. One is 200 watts and the other three are a bit smaller and came off golf carts. The trike has three gears but even the easiest would be no good if I had to pedal it with all the gear on.
I'm an ex fabricator/welder so can handle the cutting and fixing but I'm useless when it comes to electrickery and gears. Any help will be gobbled up with gusto. Thanks.

Here's what I have;

 

[bakaneko]

are you set on using the existing motors that you have pulled? I had a 1000W rear wheel electric bike and loved it. I feel 200W is not enough power. Also, the other question is what kinda roads will you ride on and if you are going to be riding on grass periodically to access remote parts of the field. If you are going to ride on grass, I dont think 200W is going to be enough power.

 

[toxo]

No! Not set on anything at the moment. Just looking for simplest/cheapest way to get it done.
Won't be riding it on the road, only on farm tracks/grass which can be a bit lumpy. And slowly. And at night using night vision. Would using two of those motors be feasable or just false economy? If not what sort of motor should I be looking for? As soon as I know what will/won't work I can make a plan.

 

[bakaneko]

Yup, just take it easy for the planning phase. I think your requirements are very unique and eliminates many common solutions. To further plan it out, I think we need to know the following.

1. When you say carry around gear, what is the weight of the gear?
2. What is the range of the perimeter of the farm or your route TIMES 2?
3. What is your maximum budget?
4. Are you set on electric?

Also, because you are going to be riding on grass/uneven surfaces I don't think a front electric motor will work or any front motor setup. There will just not be enough grip for it on that surface and it will waste a lot of energy spinning and trying to find grip. I don't know maybe it will work

Here are some ideas for your trike.

Gas engine in front


Gas engine in back


Electric engine front wheel


Curious what others think. I like the gas engine in front with either a 2 or 4 stroke kit back to a 56T sprocket for torque and good speed. 2 stroke will be 100-150$ and 4 stroke will be 220-270.

 

[toxo]

Thanks for the effort bakaneko, appreciate it.

If I had to throw substantial money at it I would probably look for a cheap second hand quad bike but I was thinking electric for stealth reasons. In fact it would probably be just as well if I just get someone to tell me what sprockets/gears I need to just pedal the thing. How much would the front wheel motor jobby cost?

ATB Paul

 

[Frankfort MB's]

you could possibly run those motors to a gear reducer to have enough power?? But low speed?

 

[toxo]

How?
Speed is at the bottom of the list. Will be stalking rabbits at night very slowly on rough farm tracks. Will have camo nets draped around at times.
I can't see that I can replace the torque I can generate with my legs with anything that doesn't make a noise.

 

[bakaneko]

A brushless hub electric motor makes less noise than peddling with gears and a chain. The front kits for 48V 1000W run ~$180-200 but the biggest cost is the battery if you are going to go lithium it is going to be $200-300 for a 48V 10AH battery. 750W ~= 1 hp so you can judge your needs based upon that but I would go no lower than 500W. Those other golf cart motors; can you find out what the power are for them?

 

[libranskeptic]

A tricycle over fields sounds hard.

are you sure an ebike wont do? bikes worked for the vc hunting enemy.

weight is ok if u lean it on something

mainly a rifle, right

good point re stealth, DirectDrive hub motors would be a bit quieter if thats critical

u would have a kick ass source of power for a spotlight on an ebike

 

[libranskeptic]

Thanks for the effort bakaneko, appreciate it.

If I had to throw substantial money at it I would probably look for a cheap second hand quad bike but I was thinking electric for stealth reasons. In fact it would probably be just as well if I just get someone to tell me what sprockets/gears I need to just pedal the thing. How much would the front wheel motor jobby cost?

ATB Paul

AHA
So:

your alternative is a ~quadbike (constant pain)

but, thats quite a budget, AND, its no good cos o stealth

so you do have a budget of say $2.5k for a trouble free (vs petrol) stealth solution

so a really KISS solution:

use the trike, front hub motor kit, good battery (lifepo4 pouch cells - probably separately - they take 8-9weeks to send from china so decide that asap) A$800-1k~

DD hub sounds good, but inefficient. allow a bit more battery and power.

very simple,

~ poor traction on front, but never stuck as can walk it too. Maybe bias heavy battery weight forward a bit for grip. DD hub motors are heavy anyhoo. standing on the pedals shifts weight forward a lot.

mid drive motor to drive the back wheels via the existing pedal transmision is a great option too, bar the slight stealth penalty.

not a hunter, but me, a mid drive ebike, 24 gears, 30kg all up & a saddle rifle holster like the cowboys.

still pedals fine