Worksman PAV Trike w/ Staton-Honda 35

[bamabikeguy]

Putting a Staton 35cc 4 cycle engine on a Worksman PAV3 is pretty straight-foward.

When I unpacked the box, there was no instruction sheet, rather there were two crisp black and white photos, side and rearview, of what the kit looks like when complete.

Now that the kits are up and running, I can fully understand why instructions are unnecessary, and trying to think of "how to present this install" in a thread, I realize how hard it would be to "step by step" walk a person through the process.

So, all I can do is present some hints and tips, and maybe some folks will ask a key question that I skip over in this overview.

Besides the engine/tank (pic 3) the kit consists of:
a front engine mount
an upper rear engine mount (pay close attention to the Staton photo)
a 3 piece axle set up
chain long enough to make two installs, plus 2 master links
toggle kill switch

Dave is sending the 86 oz. remote gas tanks, which fit in the baskets, next week. This is very adviseable for easy fill-up.

Time frame for an install (2 persons is VERY adviseable, and necessary in some instances) is about 5-6 hours. Two people, to get everything aligned, torqued and adjusted.

You will need a pair of jacks under the rear.

The axle nut on the Worksman is over an inch, so you need a large crescent.

The chain has to be draped over the engine/axle sprockets, so you need a chain cutter OR what we used, grinder/punch. Another spot where TWO sets of hands really pays off.

The second install was easier because of what we learned on the first, you have to completely disassemble the right rear side of the axle, PLUS Worksman "air wrenched" the left rear side. And since the axle has to be loose, a second person operating a "pipe on the wrench" is necessary to break the threads on the left rear.

ONE IMPORTANT THING WE LEARNED, not visible on the instruction photos included with the kit: (pic 7) On the rear mount there is a long bolt with spacer. CUT THE EXCESS ON THE MOUNT BOLT WITH A HACKSAW. We didn't cut the excess on the first install, and realized how much easier shifting the engine up/right on the second install after we cut off about 1/4"-1/2" of excess thread that got in the way.

Because of the two "finished" photos included with the kit, you have a clear idea what the spacing and tensions should be, ONCE YOU'VE CUT THAT EXCESS BOLT THREAD, the engine can shift pretty easily to get clearances and tensions.

All in all, pretty straightfoward, and the comfortable seats on the Worksman could make it "addictive".

By having the two trikes side by side, we could swap rides and compare apples to apples, and we think the chain tensions/spacings on the two are very close to identical, neither has a vibration or any rattling or "chain rubbing against metal" sound.

We rode back streets of Vestavia Hills for about half a tank full of gas, our estimate of top speed is 18 mph. The gearbox takes a bit of "getting acquainted with" time, for instance avoiding throttling downhill is different than what we do with our GEBE's (Dave owns two GEBE setups for him and his wife).

The Honda engine is extremely quiet when you let of the throttle going downhill, that is a fact. And the pull string start is VERY smooth.

Apologies for the scattershot reflections in this thread, maybe a question or two will get ideas more concrete....

 

[srdavo]

Hi Paul,
the staton kit sure tucks in there nicely. ya almost don't notice it being there.

handling? do the pav's seem tippy on corners? or are they stable?

how's pedaling without the engine? any drag felt from the gearbox & all those chains?

this has sure been a long road, from start to finish. Looks like it was well worth it.

Dave

 

[bamabikeguy]

Hi Paul,
the staton kit sure tucks in there nicely. ya almost don't notice it being there.

If the trike was mine, I might do a bit of modification on the front mount/spacers, maybe add a little rubber strip behind the turnbuckle, maybe find a specific sized spacer on the back of the turnbuckle to replace the oversized nut and washers. Little things, nothing major.

The rear upper mount is pretty clever for making the final chain alignment/tension, loosen up at the frame allows you to slide the engine right, adjust the nuts on the threaded bolts hanging down allows it to go up and down evenly.

Yes, it is neat and tucked away.

handling? do the pav's seem tippy on corners? or are they stable?

Dave's driveway is down in a hole, a real steep grade to get up to the next level. Joe had a spill trying to make a tight turn in that bottom part of the driveway, too tight a turn at too high a speed.

However, Daves idea from the get go was to go about 10 blocks away to an out of business steak house parking lot. Friday, when we got the two bikes ready, put a little white lithium grease on the throttle cable to get them good and loose, we quickly got the feel of the rides.

So when we went round and round that steakhouse parking lot, within a few minutes I was doing slaloms and figure 8's.

MUCH more stable than a regular trike, AND much easier to manuever than the front mounted GEBE at the top of the thread.

It is a matter of letting loose of the throttle, USING THE FRONT BRAKE as primary brake, coaster brakes only 10% of the time. The brake on the front is great !!

how's pedaling without the engine? any drag felt from the gearbox & all those chains?

This was hilly territory, I don't think a trike without engine is feasible. After lunch, in another parking lot, I tried peddling without engine (flat), and the drag was NOT tooooo much. You could feel it, but a little momentum and it disappeared.

 

[azbill]

very informative thread bama
well done !!!

 

[bamabikeguy]

The Saturday coincidence.....

On the ride to Sacred Heart/Oktoberfest I passed a church fundraising car show, a clown holding a balloon waved me in, and there was a $42,000 yellow BossHog with '57 Chevy trunk/fins on back.

That got us talking about the trikes just built, and a cowboy (husband of the clown) was talking about a trike he saw in N.B'ham, except the engine was on the front.

"Was it yellow??"

"Yep"

"Was he wearing a gold football helmet with a brushbroom sticking out the top? Like a Trojan???"

"Yep, looked funny as ****"

"I built that bike too."

 

[bamabikeguy]

I was wondering if a moderator could break this thread in half, at post count 20:

http://www.motoredbikes.com/showpost.php?p=81164&postcount=20

Maybe the title to read something like:

"Worksman PAV Trike w/ Staton-Honda 35"

(I think I have some more pix on my hard-drive of these builds, might be useful)

I just noticed the sprocket on a PAV was installed from the right, while the Schwinn on the carport will slide on from the left....

appreciations.....bbg

WOW, that was fast, thanks uh, er, whichever of you snipped the thread !!

 

[PatrickW]

Speaking to the spill at the end of the drive, and zooming around the abandonded Steak House parking lot...one of the first things you are taught in a good Police Pursuit Driving Course, is to 'stab' the front breaks of the Patrol Car going into the turn to shift the weight from the whole vehicle to the front steering wheels, then, about half way thru the curve, slam the gas to the floor. I've never had a problem doing that, and never spun out of control.