DIY eBike w/real Sidecar, must see

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Stimpy

New Member
Jun 24, 2014
15
0
0
Germany
Hello, I made this for my kid 2 years ago,

it's a DIY ebike coupled with a sidecar and this Spring,

I went electric!



Enjoy the process and the pics.

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Spring 2012... They're here! :D



I got 2 of them, 1 for my motorcycle and another for my beach cruiser.



My plan is to build the coolest kid-carriage EVER!



The boot is not too heavy but it is quite long
(about 70" x 20" x 20" / 180x50x50cm),
this is going to be one cool, big, ride!

The other one is going into storage for now.

 
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Stimpy

New Member
Jun 24, 2014
15
0
0
Germany
ok, my registration in the forum has been aproved, we can now continue.

Part 2

[highlight]-- *UPDATE - 12.JUNE.12 *--[/highlight]

...the bike, 3rd wheel and axle for my hack project just arrived, yay!



..


The bike is a direct-drive model, so lets see how the
plastic/carbon-fiber parts and kevlar band hold up with time.
(update: 2 years of almost daily use and no problems so far)

after test ridding this bike for a few hours
I'm happy to report it rides well and feels solid


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This is how the finished vehicle is going to potentially look.


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The wheel, tyre and axle I found dirt cheap online
and come from a 1980's Kawasaki Z440-C,
a new chance at life for a good ol' classic bike part.
 

Stimpy

New Member
Jun 24, 2014
15
0
0
Germany
Part 3

[highlight]UPDATE:[/highlight] July 2012

I had a bit of time this week so the frame and axle are
done and will soon be painted black and coupled with the bike.


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Stimpy

New Member
Jun 24, 2014
15
0
0
Germany
Part 5

[/url]
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...............

Summer 2012 - it's finally done!

So how does it ride you ask?

Well, like a modern light-weight beach-cruiser with a
bed frame and a kawasaki front wheel attached
to it, that is how... in a nutshell: kinda wide and bouncy. * :D


Today I took it for a 2 mile ride in the country and
no problems, uphill is hard but I'm pretty fit so whatever,
brakes fine and my super "swing" system for turning works
surprisingly well, you just have to steer a bit with your
shoulders that's all.

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Stimpy

New Member
Jun 24, 2014
15
0
0
Germany
Thanks Paul, nice forum btw, been snooping around here for a while
but never actually got around to registering, but better late than never,
like the bike? just you wait for the last few pics.

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Part 7






.......................

[highlight]UPDATE:[/highlight] * Spring 2014 * *


ok, almost 2 years have gone by and we've had a lot of fun times
with this hack and it's VERY useful (for going shopping, etc)
but I want to go further and I wanna go uphill dammit!

Time to motorize this sucker!!






...stay tuned for more
 

Stimpy

New Member
Jun 24, 2014
15
0
0
Germany
Last Part


Ta-da! done, [highlight]V2.0 is finished![/highlight]


The odometer is already clocking at close to
200 miles since the electric front hub is operational.

The controller for the tri-phasic motor worked fine and after a few
test runs, some tweeking and few blown fuses i've had no problems
so far.

I did once go off the road into a bush because I took a curve too fast
but it all turned out alright except after we got home my kid told his
mom, "mom, guess what mommy, we had an accident!" rats!

After this I stabilized the frame with 2 more attachment points to
the bike, installed a seatbelt and a rollbar because this thing
now reaches (if I pedal REALLY hard) a whopping 20mph and this might
not sound like much but remember that this contraption was once
literally a metal BED frame that I found on the attic and I only
have so much rubber-road contact and stopping power.


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TECHNICAL INFORMATION

BIKE......................GT Streamline 28" Beach Cruiser, 2009, single speed model
BOOT.....................Dnepr, Made in Ukraine, new, purchased from factory through middleman in Bulgaria
3rd WHEEL..............Kawasaki Z440, front, using original axle
FRAME...................Steel-alloy angular 2" tube bed frame (from the 60's)
DRIVE....................direct-drive Kevlar belt
MOTOR..................36V/250w front hub mounted on re-enforced 28" Vuelta-III rim
BATTERIES.............(3x) 12V-12Ah/h German made Siga phaeton, 2000-cycle/10 year, sealed
CONROLLER.............Made in China, 24-36V, 15Ah, bridged (speed limiter and pedal sensor disabled)
TOTAL WEIGHT........Not sure, about 140lbs or 60ish kg
MAX SPEED.............20mph/32km/h
RANGE....................not sure, but at least 20miles (30km), maybe double that, haven't ever drained the batteries yet
TOTAL COST............about $700 USD
LOCATION................Central Europe
SOURCE OF
COMPONENTS...........junk yard, hardware store, attic, ebay + some handmade parts



Thanks for looking


Hope this has inspired a few of you to try and build your
own dream the way I did,


it's easy and it all starts with one simple idea
...if you can imagine it, you can build it!

trust yourself, anyone can do it, just take it one screw at a time,
if it's above your skill level, simply ask-for-help, can't stress this enough,
people will gladly come to your aid. learn from youtube tutorials or
maybe a crafty neighbor and start getting hands-on experience that
will last you a lifetime! *you just need to be resourceful and think a bit
outside the box. Also the right tools and materials help a lot.


Cheers.






...bye for now.
 
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fasteddy

Well-Known Member
Feb 13, 2009
7,440
4,877
113
British Columbia Canada
Hello Stimpy,

That is a very sweet build. The hub motor makes it easier to get up hills,
Silverbear and I both put our bike and sidecars into the woods getting used to them. Fortunately I didn't have anyone with me and Silverbears dog didn't mention it to anyone.

Steve.
 

HotRodRob

New Member
Apr 14, 2013
77
0
0
Western KY
Really cool ride. I love that GT bike. Sounds like a lot of fun and a good time with your family is always nice. Accidents just grow your bond even stronger because you both experienced it together. You both ended up alright and that is most important.
 

silverbear

The Boy Who Never Grew Up
Jul 9, 2009
8,325
670
113
northeastern Minnesota
Thanks for all of the photos and commentary. You had a vision and made it real. Your kids will remember this even when they are old people showing photographs to their grand children. Well done, sir!
SB
 

Stimpy

New Member
Jun 24, 2014
15
0
0
Germany
Hi everyone, I'm working on a new project,

I bought a new, open box, transport-trike on the
cheap, cause the box was damaged and they
misplaced (lost) both baskets but overall in good
shape apart from a few very minor scratches,
so instead I made a long wooden bed for it.



The main plan was to have a 2nd bike and be able to run chores around town
with it, weather permits, and put things like kids, coolers, groceries or stuff from
the hardware store in it; so far I've had it for a month and works beautifully.

Removable canopy, seats and higher wooden sidings will be added later on.

The good. Cool, inexpensive ($200USD), light and nimble,
easy to ride, low center of gravity and the main frame is
strong enough for light loads (maybe under 200lbs).

Also it is pretty thin so it is a whole new experience for me to
be ableto fit anywhere, as opposed to my wide-a** sidecar rig.
(link to this other vehicle under)

The bad. The china-trike itself is pretty crappy and ALL
screws, welds and components are of very sub-standard quality,
even the shimano DX 6-gear system is a POS and the rear
drum brake is bad prank from a practical-joker chinese "engineer",
a new rear "v" or disc brake will need to be installed soon.

Also, on assembly, the holes where the main bolts were supposed
to meet the frame did not match so those had to be re-drilled

This generic chinabike is called or marketed as "2fast4you bicycles" so now
you know what to expect from this cheapo company. But all in all, for the
price, I can live with this plus it gives me something to mod.

The ugly. Everything in this life is relative but since this thing is like 3 meters long
(10ft) you should see the looks I get! too funny; but then again, 5crew everyones
opinion, as if people knew anything anyway aside from being all judgey all day long.

The drive. Later this year I'll install a FWD, 24 or 36V, 250-350w hub
in it along with a few 12ah batteries in the back or vertically mounted
under the seat basically because, as light as it is, this thing sucks uphill,
even in 1st gear.

...I'll update the thread when I do.

 

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