Fuel Mileage

[Nuttsy]

Hi, again, Nuttsy
I forgot to ask you...
Did the rain sting at all????

LOL!
Steve G.
Grants Pass, Oregon

LOL, Yeah mostly coming down the bridges at higher speed. Not so much on the flats.
Forgot to mention, when it started raining I got off and pushed a little more pressure on the drive to dig deeper into the tire. Not the most efficient use as far as motor is concerned. But more efficient than slipping roller. It didn't need a whole lot more, just enough to ensure a better bite o' the apple. Don't know if your 'clutching system' is capable of adding more pressure to the tire. With my Staton, you just loosen the Q/R skewer and push down a little. Thinking of rigging up some sort of spring and lever system to engage/disengage instead of getting off the bike to do this. Have to see how that pans out. Might also add a slinger to each side of the roller at the bearings to try and keep moisture/dirt from reaching the bearings.
WC

 

[seabillco]

Hey!
Yes, I see that might be needed to get the grip on the tire.
I use a bungee that I loop around a bolt. I have drilled several holes in an aluminum strap at various heights so I can fine tune the tension.
If it were wet, I could stop and adjust the tension as you say.
I'll let you know how it goes but I'm a little concerned that the crank seal might fail on me since that is exposed in my contraption...
Rain riding may not be a very good idea with my Ryobi weed eater style engines.

Any thoughts?
Thanks!
Steve G.
Grants Pass, Oregon

 

[Nuttsy]

"but I'm a little concerned that the crank seal might fail on me since that is exposed in my contraption...
Rain riding may not be a very good idea with my Ryobi weed eater style engines."

A slinger just outside of your crank seal would probably be a good idea for you too. Couldn't hoit!
And yeah, avoid rain with the friction drives. I would avoid rain on anything just due to the slippery nature of the stuff. I got caught again this AM on wet roads on my way home after a rain. Just as sloppy but no stinging ! Afternoon spent cleaning again :/ But, what the heck! For a while I was having a blast and I was at work! Now, that's what I'm talking about!
WC

 

[Alaskavan]

These days, I only ride my trike in the rain. I wear goggles and just peak over the windshield. On the friction drive I have a turnbuckle and chain on one side. I can tune the pressure pretty finely.

 

[Nuttsy]

These days, I only ride my trike in the rain. I wear goggles and just peak over the windshield. On the friction drive I have a turnbuckle and chain on one side. I can tune the pressure pretty finely.

Yeah, Alaskavan,
I had seen a pic of that setup and am gonna try to do similar to mine. I'll have to get out the torch and weld up a mount for a threaded rod and find some maybe 2-4lb. springs. I also want to add a lever to lift the drive off the wheel without stopping and getting off to do so.
Playtime's comin'.
WC

 

[Alaskavan]

I find that I rarely ride with the drive disengaged. When I first put the chain and turnbuckle on there, I was a little comcerned about what little time and effort it would take to disengage. But I don't have bike paths where I might need to ride un-powered, and the engine never skips a beat, so I haven't needed to be able to ride pedal only.

 

[Nuttsy]

Alaskavan,
I hear what your saying. For me it would just be a convenience thing to be able to disengage while coming down a long hill to avoid engine braking. And too, when I get to the places I need to be, I still like to pedal and/or go silent.
WC

 

[pumpbuilder]

Hmmmm, you know all the features you guys are talking about came standard on my kit.... engage disengage on the fly.... wet weather drive roller that doesn't wear out, the other ones will but I have had the same one of those for years, actually I have 2 one for "standard" and 1 for "climbing up the sides of trees" really slow but OMG I think I could add 100' lbs of cargo and climb a really steep hill in the rain with that one.

I love being able to pedal only as I do that until I am worn out, then I use the engine kit.

The bearing failed when you added the extra preasure I am thinking or it was a really cheap bearing but the extra "dig" you put in I bet was a cause.