Sheltering in place project...FWD recumbent bicycle with coroplast streamliner body

I built this bike about a year ago mostly from parts on hand.  To date, the only pricey part is the multi speed internally geared front wheel with disc brake.  It is a very simple frame, lightweight and fast!  After being notified that we would be Sheltering in Place for 30 days, the coroplast body seemed like the perfect project to complete at my apartment building.  I rushed to gather supplies and tote them all home.  Here is the bike as built 1 yr ago, less a seat back

Here are a couple of photos of the progress made in 3 days....to make a large parachute brake at this point!  The back half of the body is mostly done.  I ordered a pair of 100lb capacity drawer slides (used) from amazon warehouse for $20.  They should be delivered tomorrow.  These will be used to allow the front half of the shell to slide open and allow my feet to touch down for stops. The local Fastenal provided me with red/white outdoor reflective safety tape for the seams.

I always wondered what the side winds  do to bikes like this or bikes with solid rims......

californiamilleghia said:

I always wondered what the side winds  do to bikes like this or bikes with solid rims......

Thankfully I live in an area with tons of foliage and will likely never experience big cross winds!

Do you have a build thread for the bike itself?

moxnix said:

Do you have a build thread for the bike itself?

Just a video, but it is thorough.

I have a bit of experience having been involved in the IHPVA in the late 80's.

The shell is interesting although I'd replace what looks like a metal tube with PVC unless its very thin wall.  One of the best designs I saw covered a skeleton with ripstop nylon. That way if it got hot or windy, you could pull it off. While aerodynamics are important once you get over 14 mph, you my find the weight does not justify the gain in aerodynamics. I think the old Easy Racer front shield ( http://www.easyracers.com/bicycles.html  ) is a more pratical approach.

And yes in a cross wind or side draft of a truck, a full fairing bike will get sucked in or moved around.

FWD bikes are a nice design in that the chain is significantly shorter. Every time you need a jack shaft or tensioner you're adding an energy consumer.   It looks like you have heel clearance for the pedals and rider's shoes. One of the cleverest things I've seen were extensions on the pedals like reverse toe clips for the heels of the shoes.

I encourage you to look at your seat. I think you have much more power gain there than streamlining. If your back flexs the seat, that's power not going into pushing you forward.

Best of luck and have fun!

iborg said:

I have a bit of experience having been involved in the IHPVA in the late 80's.

The shell is interesting although I'd replace what looks like a metal tube with PVC unless its very thin wall.  One of the best designs I saw covered a skeleton with ripstop nylon. That way if it got hot or windy, you could pull it off. While aerodynamics are important once you get over 14 mph, you my find the weight does not justify the gain in aerodynamics. I think the old Easy Racer front shield ( http://www.easyracers.com/bicycles.html  ) is a more pratical approach.

And yes in a cross wind or side draft of a truck, a full fairing bike will get sucked in or moved around.

FWD bikes are a nice design in that the chain is significantly shorter. Every time you need a jack shaft or tensioner you're adding an energy consumer.   It looks like you have heel clearance for the pedals and rider's shoes. One of the cleverest things I've seen were extensions on the pedals like reverse toe clips for the heels of the shoes.

I encourage you to look at your seat. I think you have much more power gain there than streamlining. If your back flexs the seat, that's power not going into pushing you forward.

Best of luck and have fun!

 

Thanks so much for the information.  I really like the rip stop idea!  Yes, the steel tubing is thin wall and is the brace for the seat back, so no losses there.  The shell so far is quite effective as a parachute!!  I took it for a ride, just for the fun of it, and it causes a huge drag.  Sadly, UPS managed to lose my sliders for the front half of the shell so I am now waiting on a re-order.  The bike is still quite light and before closing in the back half was fast.  I have fond memories of receiving my copy of the IHPVA news letter in the mail and later checking out the website every chance I got. Thanks so much for your feedback!

Progress on the plastic bike body

Body open

In reply to Ben_Modified :

That's going to look great!

In reply to Pete Gossett (Forum Supporter) :

Thanks Pete!  Are you guys on lockdown also?

In reply to Ben_Modified :

Sort of. They reopened the beaches last weekend & there's now talks of reopening the casinos. The restaurants are still take-out only & stores are enforcing social distancing, at least for now. 

In reply to Pete Gossett (Forum Supporter) :

Hope it all clears up soon!

Progress. Body open. Left front to go!

You should add an electric bike back wheel with a hub motor, just cause ive seen your other builds on YouTube and i think you actually would

Justjim75 said:

You should add an electric bike back wheel with a hub motor, just cause ive seen your other builds on YouTube and i think you actually would

 HaHa. I have been looking! Good 16" hub motors are hard to find but I am keeping my eyes open.

This is my first time using lexan.  I get terrible glare when moving from full sun to shade.  I am thinking of tinting most of the it to control the heat.  Any idea if this will help with the glare issue? Thanks!

Still at work on the Pandemic Project in my Apt building Utilities closet.