Sociable recumbent trike

[vinid_1]

Is there much interest in sociable recumbent trikes? I'm currently researching to build one for myself, but I was also curious to see if there would be any interest out there for potential buyers. I have the capability to produce them in good numbers.

[Crank57]

What exactly do you mean by "sociable" recumbent trike. I have 4 bikes; never knew they had to be sociable. Heck, I just park em all in the basement together. Is that where all those little kidde bikes, the ones with the 12" wheels, come from.

[Allister]

What exactly do you mean by "sociable" recumbent trike.

http://www.atomiczombie.com/product/kyoto/kyoto15.jpg

I daresay demand would be small, but good luck. Build one and drive it around for a while. Trust me, if anyone is interested in one when they see it, they'll let you know.

[StephenH]

There are some currently being produced. The fact that they are seldom seen is probably pretty good evidence that they're not that convenient.

Main drawback I see is the width. On a bike path, it's too wide; you'd have to drop a wheel into the grass to meet anyone. On a road, you're going to be using a lane all the time pretty much. If you had just the right place to use one, it would be okay.

A while back, there were several Worksman models that showed up in Austin. I'm not sure, but they may have been using those for special-needs persons. But they went on Craigslist I believe.

[BlazingPedals]

Like the pic Allister showed. A Sociable places the riders side-by-side as opposed to a tandem, which places them one in front of the other.

[gbbwolf]

Yeah they are kinda wide just got plans for a kyoto crusier looks like the one in the pic above.
The width being 48" is going to be a problem on most bike paths.
Wish i had the facility to build even one. Need a machine shop for some parts.
I have plans for the kyoto cruiser, deltawolf"which looks like a great design for a homebuilt delta",and the streetfighter 4 wheeler. The plans are not cad drawings if you were going to mass produce them,you would want some i would think. Dont know where you are from but i live in indiana and i cant seem to find anyone who may want to work together to build some of these. I aint got a job due to bad back, Also reason i wanted a trike instead of a bike. Most of these plans i have can be built using some salvaged parts.
But i would just manufature all the parts and buy new stuff for a commercial venture.
And looks like most of the designs would range in the 500 to 600 dollar range if you used new parts.
And we ain't talking quality parts but entry level cheap parts.
Trying to find a decent used recumbent trike for a 330 pound man is a bit of a struggle for me seeing how the only one that will hold my weight is a magnum xl can't remember who made it. But at a cost of 3300 bucks i wont be buying one. So if you want some help building one and live close to ft. wayne In. I would be more than happy to come visit you and bring all my plans lol

[rdmjr]

Lightfoot is the company that makes the Magnum XL. A Sun EZ-Tad SX should work for you, even though you're slightly over the rated limit of 300. I got one in February and it's held up fine so far; my LBS assured me that the trike itself is more than strong enough to hold me (440+ lbs in the beginning, maybe slightly less than 150 miles later); the part they weren't sure about were the wheels. They did tell me that if the wheels turned out to be a problem, they could build stronger wheels for it. So far, though, it feels fine; I've had it up to 24 mph without feeling like anything other than my legs were going to give out.
- Bob

[FlyingAnchor]

I have thought of a bent bike/trike tandem with the front and back offset by just six or eight inches. Only a thought but the back rider could see farther ahead this way.

Steven

[StephenH]

Two of the Worksmans on Ebay right now and one in Craigslist:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Worksman-Cycles-Team-Dual-Trike-side-by-side_W0QQitemZ250239467331QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/Worksman-bicycle_W0QQitemZ160232609565QQcmdZViewItem
http://austin.craigslist.org/bik/625636870.html

[StephenH]

Saw this pointed out elsewhere:
http://miami.craigslist.org/bik/666149204.html