Meridian Tricycle Rear Wheels

Joined
Oct 16, 2020
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22
The Meridian tricycle rear carriage and axle were designed for a top speed of about 8 mph. A 26 inch wheel and 48 volt battery/motor can achieve 24 mph. The 26 inch Meridian rear wheels are not the strongest and the spokes could be a thicker gauge - stronger.
26 inch Trike 001.JPG
Motorized speed increase 12 to 24 mph is hard on the rear wheels - spokes are weakened or broken by horizontal forces when turning. A trike doesn’t lean like a bicycle which has equal weight force to the ground when tilted for cornering. Tricycles want to slide, riders must corner slowly, under 8 mph kinda generally.
IMG_0027.JPG
Spokes will break or get loose. While riding, occasionally observe the rear tires in motion for any wheel wiggle which is the first indication that a spoke or spokes are problematic. Tighten or replace the spoke(s) - it’s easy and fun. One way to break spokes is to have a young person demo riding a trike on two wheels. It did happen - 4 broken spokes. A source for spokes is the front wheel that was replaced by a motor.

An interesting solution for the rear wheels is to purchase a spare set from Pacific Bicycle. $50 or so each. Fast way to change out a wheel that has to go to a shop for a fix or a flat tire, keep on riding.

The rear wheels are the weakest part of the trike.
 
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