Category: How To

INSTALLING A BAFANG CRANKDRIVE MOTOR KIT

Bafang is one of the most popular crankdrive e-motors being offered. Most trike riders who buy them install them themselves. I have a Bafang, but I didn’t install it. I did install a Tongsheng motor kit however. Mostly I use rear hub motors however.

Here is another Utah Trikes video which covers how to install the popular Bafang kit.

Next is the installation of a 1000 watt Bafang e-motor kit …

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TIPS & TRICKS FOR SURVIVING WINTER ON A TADPOLE TRIKE

Do you have winter to deal with where you are at? I know lots of people go into hibernation and put their trikes up for the duration. Depending upon how severe winter gets one can continue to ride their trikes thru the winter. I try to, but I admit I am not as brave in doing so as I was when I was younger. I still get out but I don’t deal with the cold as well as I did years ago and therefore I don’t venture out if it is worse weather than I care for.

Anyway, here is a Utah Trikes video with tips and tricks on surviving winter on a tadpole trike.

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HOW TO SET TOE IN ON A TADPOLE TRIKE

Toe in adjustment is another subject I have covered several times. Proper toe in adjustment is most important for proper and safe handling as well as achieving maximum tire wear. When I first bought my Catrike Trail the Catrike dealer had set up the toe in a full one inch off. It was hard to pedal and handled horribly. And it wore the two front tires out in only 30 miles. Here is a video covering the subject …

Most tadpole trikes are pretty much the same but there can be some differences with some brands. And trikes with direct steering are different than trikes with indirect steering. That is something I have covered in my previous postings about toe in adjustment. On a few models the rear wheel camber is adjustable. This next video covers that.

I have come up behind trikes that had the rear wheel way off and in need of adjusting the camber angle.

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SETTING UP BOOM LENGTH

Well known triker,Sylvia  Halpern created a video to help others learn about setting up the boom length of their tadpole trikes. This is a subject I have covered a few times over the years. HERE is one of those articles.

And here are some other videos covering this subject …

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TWO TRIKE CARRIER

As the saying goes … there is more than one way to skin a cat. In this case, there is more than one way to transport two trikes with just one vehicle. Here is a video showing just this …

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HOW TO TRANSPORT 2 TADPOLE TRIKES IN 1 VEHICLE

This certainly is not  anything all that challenging. It is simple enough to figure out how to accomplish this … at least it should be. However, in case anyone is struggling with this here is help …

 

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TADPOLE TRIKES IN THE SNOW

 

This is a topic I have written about several times. For those of us who live and ride in areas which have snow it is something we must deal with unless we hibernate thru the winter months. Our trikes  in some ways are better than bikes for winter weather but we dare not fool ourselves as they do have their limitations. The depth of the snow as well as the snow’s wetness and weight definitely play a big part in whether or not our trikes can ride thru it. A light dry show is much easier to ride in than a wet heavy snow. With standard wheels and tires I have found that about 3 inches of snow depth is about the limit I can ride thru … and that is when it is a light dry snow. Personally I think skinny tires on the front and a wider tire on the back is probably the best combination for riding on snow.

Have you noticed that I have used “in”, “on” and “thru”?  Which is it? I think all 3 are correct. If we can stay on top of it then “on” it applies. But if our tires go down into it then “in” applies. If we are fortunate enough to be able to ride along with our tires down into it then “thru” it applies. All too often we find ourselves unable to progress forward. We just spin our rear tire having lost traction.

That is where the type of tire comes into play. A standard road tire is not much good when it comes to traction in the snow. We need a good aggressive tread like a BMX knobby tire. Such a tire makes a world of difference.

I have not touched on FAT trikes which are definitely superior for riding on snow. I have also not touched on tire pressure which also makes a big difference. Lowering the air pressure in the tires, especially the rear tire, helps a lot increasing traction when riding on snow.

The use of skis on the front sounds great, but there is a problem with that. Our braking is on the front wheels so with skis our brakes would not work.

Lastly, when riding on virgin snow we need to keep in mind  it covers over the surface we are riding on effectively hiding it from our sight. We need to be careful as we can easily ride off the edge of pavement and get ourselves in trouble.

One thing I have observed over the years is that most videos about riding in snow show very little snow on the ground. Well, yeah, anybody can ride in those conditions just using a standard trike with road tires.

For what it is worth I think having e-motor assist is very helpful when riding in snow.  And if you are like me it helps immensely to be able to slide around having fun. I love controlled skids. Just try not to wrap yourself around a tree.

Here are several videos about riding in the snow …

To the next video all I can say is “stupid is as stupid does”. I think he has a death wish.

Next video … no front fenders. I bet this guy got quite wet.

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FIXING A FLAT TIRE & MORE

I have covered all of this before but I offer it as a refresher of some basics we all need to know. This video not only covers fixing a flat tire but it also covers tools you should carry, which inner tube is the right one, tire pumps, flat resistant tires and more. I find myself agreeing with some of what he says but totally disagreeing with some of what he says. I certainly don’t agree with his advice on using tire tools to install a tire. If you know the right way to install a tire on a rim and do it that way tire tools are usually not needed. And I definitely don’t agree that a Marathon Racer gets the same wear as a Marathon Plus. That is pure nonsense. There is no comparison. Not only is there more (thicker) tread on the Marathon Plus but the rubber is an altogether different compound which wears much better and longer than all of Schwalbe’s other tires.

 

A Marathon Racer would do good to get 4000 miles while I have gotten over 15,000 miles out of Marathon Plus tires. I stopped using Marathon Plus tires a few years ago. Now I use Big Ben Plus. I like their ride and handling better, but they wear out much quicker than the Marathon Plus.

Oh well, at least we agree on tire liners. They cause internal flats.

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TADPOLE TRIKE MAINTENANCE 2024 UPDATE

Well made tadpole trikes require very little maintenance once everything is set up properly. At least they should not. It is good to know the basics involved. Watching videos like these are helpful.

Here is the previous video …

It is about 4 years old but I did not come upon it until I posted it back in Nov. 2023 … https://tadpolerider.com/2023/11/17/recumbent-trike-maintenance-workshop/

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THE EASY WAY TO LIFT A RECUMBENT TRIKE

 

If you have a more less bare bones tadpole trike which had not been loaded down with various options making it much heavier  it should not be much of a challenge for most riders to lift. Things such as tools, batteries and e-motors can add on a lot of weight however and make it very difficult to lift. Just adding an e-motor conversion kit can easily add an additional 25 pounds onto a trike. If removing the battery is an option that will help immensely. You might have to resort to using ramps. This video covers it all.

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TOOLS TO CARRY ALONG ON A TRIKE

A well equipped bike shop has lots of bike tools available to use. It would be nice to have all these tools available to use when we are out riding, but obviously that would be very impractical. Never the less, it is a good idea to carry “essential tools” along so we can handle most things that might happen.

I bet very few of us do however. And many riders carry multi-tools which in my opinion and experience are to be compared to teats on a boar. They are just one notch up from being totally worthless.

They are okay for some things but for many things they won’t work. And what do you do if you need to use two tools at the same time and they are both on the multi-tool? That is a common occurrence. No, I am not a fan of multi-tools. I have a few but like I said, I find them very impractical and next to worthless for most tasks.

That means that for me I choose independent individual tools. I do carry more tools along with me than most people do. Yes, it is extra weight, but that is okay. I would rather have what I need than be broken down somewhere and not be able to remedy the situation for lack of a tool needed.

I keep my tools in a canvas bag I bought at Harbor Freight Tools. I keep the canvas bag in one of my panniers. I also have more tools in a smaller bag which just fits in the pocket in the back of my Catrike seat.

Tools I carry are common place  … flat blade screwdrivers, Phillips head screwdrivers, 4 inch, 8 inch and 12 inch adjustable wrenches, medium size ball peen hammer,  metric open/box end wrenches, rat tail and flat files, needle nose pliers,  side cutters, vice grips, slip joint pliers (ChannelLock type), set of metric Allen wrenches,  chain cutter,  missing link chain pliers,  spoke wrench, pedal wrench, Torx head screwdrivers for disc brake adjustment and brake rotor removal, set of 3 plastic tire tools, telescoping antenna used to set toe in and possibly a few more tools that are not coming to mind right now.

Along with tools I also carry some common spare parts such as inner tubes, chain repair links, several connected links (sections of chain), a small assortment of bolts, nuts and washers,  steel wire,  a small assortment of plastic zip ties, extra Schrader valves, spare spokes, chain oil, wet wipes, vinyl gloves, a few clean shop towels and no doubt some other things that are not coming to mind right now.

No, I don’t carry any inner tube patching  supplies as I don’t patch inner tubes. I have had too many patches fail so I don’t mess with patching them. Truthfully I have not had a flat for many years. I have been using puncture resistant tires for many years now and I just don’t get flats anymore.

I carry a small bicycle tire pump with me as well as a battery powered air pump.

That is about all that comes to mind about this subject. With all of this I carry along with me I not only can take care of my own needs but I can help other cyclists in need when I come upon them. I definitely believe in being prepared. How about you?

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CATRIKE HANDLEBARS

Did you know that not all Catrike handlebars are the same? When they came out with the 559 model they changed the handlebars making them longer (higher, taller). As far as I know the 559 is the only model that comes with taller handlebars. I have a Catrike Trail which, of course, had the original handlebars on it. I never liked them because my hands were too close to the front wheels. The handlebars just were not tall enough. I used it this way for several years. Then along came the 559 model and taller handlebars. Guess what … my Catrike Trail now has taller handlebars and I no longer deal with my hands being too close to the tires.

When I bought my taller handlebars I had to order handlebars for the 559 as that is how they were listed then on their website. But now they show them as long handlebars vs standard handlebars making it easier.

I just looked at their website and noticed what I consider a rather strange thing. They show the left side as “in stock” and the right side as “in stock”, but they show the pair as “out of stock”. I would think that a left and a right that they have in stock would make a pair. But what do I know. Maybe things have changed since I went to school.

 

 

Anyway, if you feel your hands are too close to the tires and there is not enough room to wear winter gloves or mittens without them making contact with your tires this could resolve the matter. You can’t buy a pair of these handlebars at this time, but you can buy a left and a right. Who knows … that may even work. It did when I went to school.

BTW, making this change to an older Catrike results in also getting the mounts for wrist rests. I added wrist rests  since I had a place to mount them. I really like having the wrist rests.

 

Having taller handlebars means that reaching down to the locking pin on the brake levers is easier than it used to be. Before I had to reach down into a small crowded area.

Lastly here is an alternate way to accomplish the same thing and for far less money …

Cutting the tubing and using a wooden dowel inside to lengthen them is one way to accomplish it. One could use epoxy to fill in the gap in the tubing to make it look better.

Having taller handlebars just may help you to …

ENJOY THE RIDE!

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THE POSTS ARE ALL DATED

For anyone who thinks that these posts are not dated please know that they are dated. On a regular computer they are readily visible in two locations … in the url and right under my name. They are circled in red in the captured image below …

On a smartphone, well, you are out of luck. You will miss out on a lot when you use a smartphone on the internet. The screen is just too small to fit everything on it. If you greatly reduce the size of the display in settings everything will appear, but then it is too small to see it. I covered this in a previous post when a reader asked me why she could not see on her screen the search box I had mentioned.

There is a way around this for not being able to see the date on a smartphone. Just click on the article title and it will open up again. Then you can look at the url where you will see the date.

Well, now you know. It is all there, but if you are using a smartphone you can’t see it. I personally don’t recommend a smartphone for use on the internet. I also don’t recommend “multi-tools” for the same reason. They leave a lot to be desired and are very impractical. A regular stand alone tool is far superior and will work when the multi-tool shows itself to be next to worthless.

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“NORMAL” is not coming back … JESUS IS!

RECUMBENT TRIKE MAINTENANCE WORKSHOP

Recumbent trike workshop covering basic adjustments, maintenance and safety, i.e. changing a tire, lube points, and more.

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LEARNING HOW TO TRUE A WHEEL

Have you got a wobbly wheel? Most wheel wobble problems can be fixed. Here are a couple of videos to help you learn how to go about adjusting the spokes to true a wheel.

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BIONX HUB MOTOR HACKS

BionX may be out of business but there are still a lot of their systems around in use. And BionX had a good system. Replacement parts are getting scarce now so maybe it is time to do a hack on the BionX system to get around their proprietary  requirements. Using a third party controller and/or 3rd party battery is appealing. 

I forewarn you that this is not for everybody. I consider myself fairly mechanically inclined but I consider this beyond my capabilities, especially as I have aged. The mechanical part I could probably handle, but the electrical/electronic part is more than I would care to tackle as it t is quite involved. I could not even follow all of it in the video. It is obvious this young man knows what he is doing when it comes to e-motors. I know next to nothing about them.

HERE is a hack to get around needing to use a BionX battery with a BionX motor. Again I find itt is over my head. I have a friend who has offered to give me his old 350 watt BionX system he no longer uses. I would love to have it but I would need to get beyond this proprietary battery issue.

EVERYTHING YOU HAVE EVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT THE BIONX SYSTEM. Lots of information here! This document contains procedures and information that gives access to several (not all) configurable parameters and hidden options of the BionX system. It is intended to the bike shop and BionX installation technicians. This paper covers the console firmware revision #12 and higher. All the previous firmware revisions do not include all the functions mentioned in this document and/or the menu structure can be different.
If you own a system with older firmware, we recommend you to call EPS (Endless-Sphere.com) to get assistance as needed. However, it is also possible to upgrade the firmware on all BionX systems. (It is important to remember that the system performance is the same regardless of the firmware versions.) The title say “Everything” but as I read down thru the document I see that it does not cover everything.

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MY CATRIKE … RESURRECTED FROM THE JUNK HEAP?

I read a posting on one of the Facebook trike groups about a triker using Utah Trike’s new rear wheel extension kit on his Catrike to mount a hub motor wheel. That put the idea in my head … hey, maybe this would be a possible fix for my Catrike. I don’t know if it is going to work or not but I emailed Utah Trikes about my broken rear dropouts on my Catrike Trail trike.  I knew they have made the rear wheel extension kits for a number of years so I emailed them about my trike. They told me that I could use their older kit (different than the one this other triker used) to repair my rear dropouts. I had never thought of that. So I ordered a pair of them buying them on credit. I installed them and put everything back together on the trike. It might work, BUT I am concerned as to whether or not the extensions will hold up to the side stress (lateral forces) involved in cornering. They seem fairly weak when I just push sideways on the rear of the trike. They are made to hold a 26 inch or a 700 wheel which would produce even more side stress (lateral forces) than my 20 inch wheel does. Using my 20 inch wheel will result in raising the front of the trike up slightly higher as the extension extends back and up for the larger diameter wheel.

I have my fingers crossed but I am doubtful it will hold up. Here is what the extension looks like on another Catrike (not mine). If I had known that the extensions would sway so easily back and forth sideways I don’t think I would have tried this.

If it does work it is a much cheaper “fix” than buying a new replacement frame from Catrike. They are $1200 plus tax plus the shipping cost. I will have about $300 in this. The extensions cost about $185 with shipping. That is a lot of money for a couple of pieces of aluminum. With my 20 inch wheel  installed in these extensions it definitely makes the trike look a bit different. The rear wheel is position about 4 inches further back than where it was originally.

I hope Catrike changes it’s rear dropouts for the sake of other hub motor users.  I never have liked them even with a regular non motorized wheel installed. The dropouts are just too short and appear weak to me. There just isn’t enough material there to mount a rear hub motor drive wheel in. They know this as they have gotten reports from various owners including me about the bottom part of the dropouts breaking off. And what is left just is not enough to hold a rear wheel.  I was looking at the rear dropouts of the Greenspeed Magnum recently and noticed that they are much better and stronger than Catrike’s. I would not be afraid to install a rear hub motor wheel on it … which I might do as I am not liking the crankdrive motor that is on it now. It is just too hard on the drivetrain. My rear sprocket sounds like “mechanical pop corn popping” as I ride along using the motor. I hate that! It has got to be damaging my sprockets and chain. Whoever came up with putting a motor on the crankset had a bad idea. The drive train of a bike/trike just is not made to take the extra power a motor provides.

Time will tell whether or not this is a fix to resurrect my Catrike from the junk pile. I hope it works as I really miss riding it.

UPDATE — I just took my first ride on it and was thrilled to be back on it. Everything seemed to work well and felt right. Even my concern about lateral forces in cornering are hopefully not a concern after all. It felt so good to be back in the saddle again.  Getting back up out of the seat is quite challenging though compared to the Greenspeed Magnum. I already have my riding in for today. Besides it is just too hot now to go back out to ride the Catrike anymore today. I have really missed the large 2000 watt hub motor and the 72 volt battery. This thing will scoot along compared to the Bafang motor on the Greenspeed Magnum trike. All it does is destroy my drivetrain.

UPDATE 2 —  I rode 37 trouble free miles today ( 8/22) and thoroughly enjoy myself. My Catrike is just so much more fun to ride than the Greenspeed and it handles and rides better as well. I had it up to 33 mph and it felt rock solid.

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SLIPPIN & SLIDIN HERE, BOSS

SLIPPIN & SLIDIN … UMMM, YEAH … CAN’T STAY PUT IN THAT RECUMBENT TRIKE SEAT. Sliding forward is a common problem many riders deal with. Some have found a fix for it while others still deal with it. I see the question asked often … what to do to prevent it from happening. Years ago I found my cure and it has worked well all this time. It is what I always recommend to others struggling with this problem.

Some use cushions, some use wedges. Both of these raise the rider higher up which is not something I want. They may also eliminate ventilation the seat offers. My solution doesn’t raise me any higher and it is very inexpensive. I use non-slip rubber tool box drawer liner which can be found at many different stores … Walmart, Target, Lowes, Home Depot, Harbor Freight, hardware stores, etc.

Yep, it is sort of like Brylcreem … a little dab will do ya. Well, it takes a little more than a dab, but only about 15 inches square. I don’t just lay it on the seat as it will blow off when the rider gets up out of the seat. I learned that by chasing a distance after it. I use an elastic bungee cord to hold it down to the seat. Then the rubber piece is folded over it doubling the rubber piece. It is smaller by doing this, but it still works fine. It doesn’t take much to do the job.

About the only thing I can think of which might work better is to sew matching strips of Velcro on your pants and on the seat. But then you might have problems getting up out of the seat. 911 might become involved. And it might draw a crowd which would be embarrassing. Ya gotta admit it would look pretty silly walking around with a tadpole trike stuck to your britches.

KEEP ON TRIKIN’

A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

TODAY IS THE OLDEST YOU’VE EVER BEEN, YET THE YOUNGEST YOU’LL EVER BE SO – ENJOY THIS DAY WHILE IT LASTS FOR THIS IS A DAY THE LORD HAS MADE! REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT!

You are invited to come join the Tadpole Rider Facebook Group. Please note that in order to join you must first answer the three membership vetting questions.

“NORMAL” is not coming back … JESUS IS!

 

GOING DOWNHILL FAST

Utah Trikes has lots to offer. Among those things are articles and among those articles is one entitled “PREPARING YOUR TRIKE FOR HIGH SPEED“. It is written by Ashley Guy of UtahTrikes.com He seems to be writing mostly about TerraTrike models. It is an old article written back in 2007. That is the year I built my first tadpole trike. I studied/researched the physical aspects of tadpole trikes to know how to design mine. It paid off as it handled great. Anyway, perhaps you can gain some insight into what it takes to have a great handling and fast trike if that is your thing. And if it is not your thing … well, hang in there. Something might come along you like.

KEEP ON TRIKIN’

A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

TODAY IS THE OLDEST YOU’VE EVER BEEN, YET THE YOUNGEST YOU’LL EVER BE SO – ENJOY THIS DAY WHILE IT LASTS FOR THIS IS A DAY THE LORD HAS MADE! REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT!

You are invited to come join the Tadpole Rider Facebook Group. Please note that in order to join you must first answer the three membership vetting questions.

“NORMAL” is not coming back … JESUS IS!

CHARGING YOUR CYCLE TOUR GEAR

I have never toured on my tadpole trike but I do have to charge batteries daily. Of course, the charging is almost always at home so I don’t have to concern myself with finding a place t charge them. Never the less, I do carry my charger right on my trike along with an extension cord in case I need to charge my batteries while I am out away from home. And I have done this many dozens of times. The problem is I can’t get much of a charge into a battery in the short time I have available while I am out away from home. Usually a maximum of an hour is all the time I have and truthfully it is almost a waste of time as very little charge goes into the battery in that amount of time. Anyway, here is another one of Matt Galat’s videos on charging cycle tour gear while travelling by tadpole trike.

Here is my setup on my CatrikeL

I only have one charger on the Greenspeed Magnum. I have it mounted down under the Bacchetta Big Bag so that it is protected from rain:

KEEP ON TRIKIN’

A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

TODAY IS THE OLDEST YOU’VE EVER BEEN, YET THE YOUNGEST YOU’LL EVER BE SO – ENJOY THIS DAY WHILE IT LASTS FOR THIS IS A DAY THE LORD HAS MADE! REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT!

You are invited to come join the Tadpole Rider Facebook Group. Please note that in order to join you must first answer the three membership vetting questions.

“NORMAL” is not coming back … JESUS IS!