Recumbent - Homebuilts: Bentech, Other?

Who here has built his or her own 'bent? Anyone use plans from Bentech? I ask because there are a couple of guys in my area who build frames. One does his own recumbents, the other does mostly DF's. Bentech has been around awhile; their designs look pretty sound. That is, they look a lot like what the manufacturers have out there.

Does anyone recommend another plan from a designer? Is there some adjustability built in to the plans, i.e. BB height, seat placement/angle, or is everything fixed? Can one really save money building one, or is it folly to think so?

There's some great information in the BentRiders Online Homebuilders forum. (http://www.bentrideronline.com/messageboard/forumdisplay.php?f=12)

i built my two just from pics on the web, kinda made the rest up as i went along, and by luck and a bit of tinkering, they both came out great !
and the above site is an excellent source of info !
good luck !

This guy offers plans for a couple of beautiful bikes: http://www.recycledrecumbent.com/http://www.recycledrecumbent.com/

I built a one out of a 2x4 after I saw some pics on the internet. turned out better than i thought it would.

I recently purchased a pre-bent tube set from Bentech for a 26" high racer. Dom at Bentech is awesome and is more than willing to answer any questions you might have during the purchase/building process. I still haven't gotten started, but when I do, I'll be posting a record of my progress here. Also purchased as a $5 download were the plans for building a euro-style hard-shell seat. When I'm finished wading through my files I'll post the link here. There's also a couple DVDs available from SRT media services at http://www.recumbentbuilding101.com (http://www.recumbentbuilding101.com/). SWB or LWB which are awesome and easy to follow. I'll keep everyone posted on my progress. I'm dying to get underway and take advantage of some of this sunshine!

Here's the e-mail address for the build-it-yourself hard-shell seat: atombikes@gmail.com. Drop the Atkins' a line. In response to your second question, yeah you can save a ton by doing it yourself! Even if you ordered the pre-welded frameset from Bentech, you'd be saving a boat load. Hard-shell seats are crazy expensive to purchase. Making your own is much, much cheaper. My first home-built FWD I made from a couple old junk bikes I had sitting around. I had originally intended to build a LWB so I purchased a complete seat on e-Bay several years back which I ended up using on the FWD. But, you don't even need to do that, 'cause Doms plans include blueprints for a seat, as do the DVD's I mentioned in my last post. Let us know how your project goes!

I can't speak to Bentech but I will highly recomend the plans from Atomic Zombie (http://www.atomiczombie.com). I'm in the process of building a DeltaWolf from his plans and my father has already completed and ridden his. The plans are designed with the idea you will do some customization but all the critical aspects are fully covered in detail. Additionally Brad, the owner/designer is clearly a fanatic when it comes to bikes and his plans show this. The plans are all designed around the idea of DIY and homebrew but are also very approachable and keep custom parts to a minimum. The community based on his plans is very good and very willing to help source parts as needed as well.

The most popular recumbent trikes based on forum actively are likely:
Warrior (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GL74q1vc4no&feature=player_embedded) - Tadpole-style
DeltaWolf (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxggZkwpwe8&feature=player_embedded)(the one I'm making) delta-style
StreetFox (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RK2WK0ax_gU&feature=player_embedded) - another tadpole, a bit simpler design than Warrior

As for the 2-wheel recumbents, it's harder to judge but I think they are the:
Marauder (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emh9R0zrJp0&feature=player_embedded)
High Roller (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYJ43fnrIpA&feature=player_embedded)

Almost all of his designs are built around off-the-shelf bike parts and square tube (far easier than round tube). He does assume you will weld but he provides some tutorials on that too if needed. He assumes you have an angle grinder, hand drill, and a welder and basically nothing else to make the bikes. I don't mean to sound like a sales pitch for them so I'll stop here - I'm simply a very satisfied customer and I love to see small DIY-oriented businesses succeed so I'm more than willing to pimp his plans based on my family's experience.

Mike

Well this thread is a bit old but here goes.

I have built two Bentecs from scratch. Nice bikes and no vices. I used muffler tube in each ccase and it is more than adequate. Make the seat narrower. I actually used the design from recycled recumbents on mine.

I have built five recycled recumbents both mk1 and mk2. They are brilliant and pretty easy to do because you mainly recycle existing bikes.

AtomicZombie bikes are easy and the forum very helpful. I have completed a DeltaWolf and a Marauder mk2 LWB lowracer. I enjoy riding both of them.

I built a tadpole trike to my own design and it turned out well too.

If you want a bent and can't afford to buy one just get in and have a go at building. You won't be disappointed. Just realise that once you start you won't stop at one. Building bents is addictive.

Good luck,

John

I too built a recumbent out of 2x4's. I am glad I did. I put several thousand miles on it. I did that because I had access to a small cheap table saw but do not have access to welding equipment. Google "2x4 recumbent" for Robinson 2x4 recumbents.