Atomic Zombie Motorized Tadpole Project

[BentTooner]

Hi, all

I painted the Warrior a bright yellow color so it would have a Yellow/Black look like a bumblebee. So, I decided to call it the Atomic ZomBee...

Here are a couple of pix.

It runs great and I'm enjoying it a lot. I still need to figure out where to mount a mirror and some kind of storage system.

[TREEWK]

Bent

Nice job of building. Have been contemplating such a build for my self, your thread has been encouraging.

Thinking my diy axle mount would work nicely on such a build. The motor (many motor options) could be mounted above the axle, below the axle or behind the axle.

A very low cost dependable build with freewheel on the axle. Have Pic`s.

Then I would extend the frame up behind the head rest and over the back wheel for a rack carrier and right side pannier.

Don`t mean to hi jack your thread.

Thanks for sharing!

Ron

[Big Red]

Hi, all

I cut the crank out of an Murray Cruiser one-speed bike and cleaned it up and welded tabs to it so it can mount on the center boom of the AZ Warrior with pinch bolts, per the plans.

Here's some pictures of the crank being primed and the crank and bearings, races, etc., which cleaned up very nicely. Not too exciting but might interest someone ...

Since I've motorized my bikes, I no longer shift gears. I just put the derailleurs in a gear that is low enough for me to peddle from a dead stop to help save the clutch from wear. Other than that, I rarely peddle and I haven't shifted for 3 years. The derailleurs are pointless to me.

So, I'm planning to use the crank from the Murray and the rear wheel from it with the coaster brake and single rear sprocket to see if that works for starts. If so, I won't need any derailleurs at all.

I don't know if the coaster brake will be enough. If not, I'll put calipers on the front wheels.

I ordered two BMX 20" wheels with 48 spokes and 14mm axles for the front wheels and am waiting on those. Cost was $80 with shipping. I couldn't find affordable wheels that were strong enough that offered disk brakes.

The plans call for cutting up matching head tubes and making steering kingpins from them with extra hardware and fork stems and a very heavy mounting tab.

I just met a guy who is building 2 trikes based on the 'Fleet Trike" web site's plans and he used the 'bushings and bolts' approach to kingpins detailed therein. I looked at his finished product and was very impressed with the simplicity and feel of the steering.

So, I decided to make the "bushings and bolts" version of kingpins rather than cut up head tubes. I bought the bolts, bushings, washers, etc. but couldn't find the steel tube in the right sizes so I'm waiting on that. As soon as I get that, I'll build the kingpins and then go back to the AZ plans.

While I'm waiting, I started on the seat, which is made from plywood. The plans don't specify the thickness of the plywood so I'm guessing on that.

I'll post pictures and details on the kingpins as soon as I make them. That should be interesting...

Coaster brakes only work, and not very well at that, at below 10 or 12mph. anything approching 20mph and they are almost useless. They either wont stop you at all or they will lock up. trying to stop with coasters only can get real scary. TRUST ME, put calipers on it before you even take it out the first time. I leave the coasters on to help assist in braking, but not to rely on. I think a dual pull lever with caliper brakes is your answer. Good start on a great bike by the way.
Just my 2 cents,
Big Red.

[BentTooner]

Hi, BR

Thanks!

I got a new rear wheel for this build ($30) and the coaster brake works very well. I've got lots of control and can feel when it's about to lock up. With a little practice, I've gotten good at braking with the coaster.

I installed a rear caliper on it in case the coaster was not adequate but I didn't hook it up because the coaster works so well. I plan to use the rear caliper primarily as a parking brake.

[BentTooner]

Ron

Thanks!

The axle mount is a great idea. I've considered getting a Staton axle mount to get the engine down and out of the way for noise and storage options.

Is there a post for your idea?

For now, I'm riding with ear plugs and plan to use panniers on the rear legs for storage options.

[BentTooner]

Warrior build update

I posted a lengthy recap of my build thoughts on Atomic Zombie under the heading

WARRIOR BUILD UPDATE

at

http://forum.atomiczombie.com/showth...or-build-recap

if anyone is interested in the details of building the trike.

As for motorizing it, I'm very happy, as always, with the friction drive. It's very easy to set up and reliable and forgiving. I've been riding the trike for about 2 weeks now and loving it. It has the same top speed (about 28 MPH) and fuel consumption (180 MPG) as always. No surprise, I guess.

I plan to put a chain or belt drive on it later so I can ride when the road is wet. I also may put a fairing on it just because I've never done that before.

I've added a rear caliper brake and it doesn't make much difference in braking. I use it as a parking brake and that's a nice feature since a trike can roll away on a slope.

The trike is so much easier to ride that it's easy to cruise a lot faster than I'm used to. Also, you can go in gravel MUCH easier and safer (it seems) so you can get out of the way of cars better.

I added an orange pennant on a long pole and it seems to get people's attention a lot better than before. Only problem is that I've had several people try to flag me down for questions and a couple of motorcyclists have tried to talk to me while I'm riding. I'll take that problem over getting run over any day!!