Recent content by k2orbust

Sorry to hear of your headset woes, @marka-ee! When I put the suspension fork in my frame I incorporated a Cane Creek headset with cartridge bearings, so I have not experienced that particular set of problems. The head tube is still very short of course, so we may yet see long term fatigue...

To add my data points, my recumbent with GMAC hub motor (slow winding, 26 inch wheel, 52V battery) cruises at 50 km/h using about 1200 watts from the battery. If I turn up field weakening in the BaseRunner controller it can sustain 60 km/h on the flat but pulls more like 1800 watts. In...

Looks like a great ride and a great install! Very envious of the Seavo's clean chain-lines.

Update: I commuted on the bike all summer and the solar worked great! I had a good place to lock it up outside, so after work each day it would be fully charged for the ride home and I never had to plug in. In October the sun angle changed so I wasn't getting a full charge at my parking spot...

Go team solar recumbent! 🌞🚲 There are a few solar powered e-bike projects groups on Facebook but it's a far flung little community of tinkerers. I've been riding mine to work every day and it charges itself nicely at the bike rack.

You need to hear from Peterfr12, he's gone down that road. But I recall he went to a smaller sized rim even as he put on wider tires. My 26 x 2.15" tire (Schwalbe Pick-up 55-559) just barely fits in the rear fork and that's good enough for me.

At the beginning of the solar bike tour I gave this little overview of my ride to Ryan of Sol Mobil. zvk0YV7g37U

I get two for the price of one! Build thread: https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=109786&p=1607805#p1607805

Before: After:

I did indeed take the bike on the Sun Trip's four-day ride from Palo Alto to Monterey and back, which was as much mobile ebike workshop as bike tour. As in, our lovingly handcrufted vehicles kept breaking down! My bike had no problems while riding, but did manage to tip over a couple of times...

The solar panel tilting strut went on just like the CAD model, pretty tidy if I do say so! It deploys and stows with the same pins that hold the panel in place. This is for stationary charging and even then not if it's too windy! In ten days I head out on the Sun Trip California tour with...

And the more you need shade, the more power you are getting! Sometime I might try unplugging the battery and see what happens. The motor controller is set to back off if voltage drops below 45V, and the charge controller floats at 57 V if there is no load.

Yippee, got the second panel mounted and wired in. This is what I have been pushing for since the beginning! At present my land yacht weighs in at 100.2 lb (52% front/48% rear). All that's left is devising a kickstand, and fabricating the panel-tilting strut, and wiring in the taillight and...

More proof two wheels plus overhead solar plus wind isn't an instant deathtrap. Riding pea gravel in a crosswind did take concentration tho! Not a great feeling on a recumbent with your feet so far from the ground. This weekend I will slap on the second panel and we'll see how that changes things.

First full-sun power reading on my setup. 150 W nominal panel rating, 66° F clear day. Output dropped to 120 W as the panel warmed up. When the second (identical) panel is installed we can expect power to double, of course. Cruising to work at up to 30 mph the bike felt remarkably normal, no...