87 y/o Las Vegas drummer needs trike. What?

Ok, so my best bunky was Pearl Bailey's drummer at "Bugsy's Place" in those story filled years. G is slowing losing his driving skills. He's very active and lives in two cities, both with sidewalks, trails and controlled access to the grocers and pharmacy. We've been beating the idea of a trike around. He has the ability to maneuver at trike speeds 10-12 MPH. BUT, there seems to be no service in Las Vegas or Lincoln City OR that sells anything to sit on.

Despite that, what would be the most sustainable trike for him.?

I find Cozy an odd looking and daily cheap looking rig, and the other most common, the Worksman, is liked by those using the industrial trikes but what about the folding models with 20" wheels?

No where to go to sit on a trike is our biggest frustration. I'm stumped. $1200-$1300 for a powered trike with SLA batteries seems cheap. But to me the trikes both LOOK cheap.

Thoughts?

You mean no place to go test sit, or test ride one? That is a problem, nobody puts them in a showroom.

The one I had, the Schwinn you order shipped to a local walmart, was cheap. But they still stood years of beating on the job, at 5 mph. Only the actual rear wheels were a problem. That's solvable.

The Schwinn was just not up to me roaring around on it at 30 mph. The frame is fine, brakes ok, basket good but noisy. Just kept breaking spokes hitting bumps. A new wheelset with strong rims and used but good spokes fixed that.

Thanks again! What about Worksman? Have you seen their recreational version?

I have ridden a Worksman trike, I powered it (electric motor) to go at about 7mph, (for a friend) that thing is a flat ground only trike, the cg is so high compared to it's wheel base, one has to be very careful of the surface that you attempt to go over, a lady I talked to with scrapes on her arms, said that her first ride in her trailer court hit a speed bump sideways and she went over. Need something with a seat lower to the ground.

This one's not cheep but seems to be fairly good quality and has everything to ride. One of our members has one and has modified it extensively, but he is an engineer and likes to do that stuff. It has a suspension, big batteries and a motor plus is street legal.
otherDoc
http://www.belizebike.com/english/coolerider.html

Thanks for the warning and lead. He won't part with 3 grand for a trike. Nice rig even at that price. I'd go for it! Most oldsters think the money is going with them if they have it.

I don't have experience with the worksman. I'm sure though, that they come with a stronger wheel than the Schwinn.

Keeping it cheap is a problem. At one point Currie was making a trike based on the Schwinn. I don't know if they still do, but it was a scooter type motor driving the rear wheel rather than a hubbie. I recall it being under a thou.

Are you referring to Las Vegas NV. ?

Yes I am. I see you are there. Any ideas?

There was a rental place in Las Vegas that handled e-Bikes and trikes.
I owned an eTrike. It would be exactly what you want.
Comes with a 9Ah Lithium battery.
I would think they're still in business but that was in 2011.

Most oldsters think the money is going with them if they have it.

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You must be talking about my brother in law :lol:

I have a buddy only 92 that rides a Schwinn trike all the time. Has Jasons frt kit on it with slas. Runs great and can do 18mph on flats. He's really careful about turns and bumps. This keeps him busy. Still cuts his own lawn and drives better than half of them out there.

Dan

Whatever trike you pick, that Ebikekit trike motor is one of the few really slow motors still available. It's perfect if you don't find a gear drive one. At 10mph, the trikes work great. Just slightly harder to maneuver on sidewalks than a 2 wheel, where there is always some damn light pole to weave around.

ddk said:

There was a rental place in Las Vegas that handled e-Bikes and trikes.
I owned an eTrike. It would be exactly what you want.
Comes with a 9Ah Lithium battery.
I would think they're still in business but that was in 2011.

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Name? Location? I've googled for an hour and no joy.

tomjasz said:

Yes I am. I see you are there. Any ideas?

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IIRC Bike World on Rainbow and Oakey had a few trikes on their floor. They are not electric; but I'm not sure if you are just looking for one to put a motor kit on or one that is all ready to go. I also came across this one on the local CL...
http://lasvegas.craigslist.org/bik/4457786694.html

That kent on CL is same as the Schwinn, FWIW. Good price on it.

tomjasz said:

He won't part with 3 grand for a trike.

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How `bout $500 (as a start)?
http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=57408

Paderolis said:

tomjasz said:

Yes I am. I see you are there. Any ideas?

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IIRC Bike World on Rainbow and Oakey had a few trikes on their floor. They are not electric; but I'm not sure if you are just looking for one to put a motor kit on or one that is all ready to go. I also came across this one on the local CL...
http://lasvegas.craigslist.org/bik/4457786694.html

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Thanks! They were very helpful to Gordon and they had one trike to sit on. A Torker. From simply internet views I still think the Trek Pure trike is the nicest. It's the only one I've at on so it's really not a fair evaluation. I will continue to look for one for myself. I like the idea and feel of the Trek best.

I have the Worksman Mover Industrial Trike. One thing you can't say about it is that it's built cheaply. That thing is a tank. I'm rebuilding it....again....but putting new forks on it in order to have a front handbrake. Getting a good motor kit for a trike is pretty easy, and I actually DO recommend SLA batteries because it adds stability. The Worksman Mover is rated to hold 500 pounds, and when you see the trike in person you see why. They are built for real work, not just for transportation. People who ride for transportation need a light bike (or trike). But if you have a motor then weight is no longer an issue.

The Worksman Trike with a standard EbikeKit SLA kit will run you about 1500 total and will go about 22mph for about 12-15 miles (especially in Vegas which is flat). EbikeKit.com does make an electric kit specifically for the Worksman trike, and I hear great things about it, but it doesn't go very fast. If you're riding down the sidewalk (if that's legal in Vegas) then 12mph is more than enough. If you're riding in the street then you need a little more speed. Keep in mind that those upright trikes can tip over fairly easily. You have to baby your turns. Some guys can take turns at high speeds, but they have to be hyper-vigilant about balance, obstacles, etc. Once you slow to about 10mph the turns are relaxed and easy, but at 15mph+ you're risking a nasty wipeout.

However, at turtle-speeds you can't fall over. You stop and don't have to put your feet down. You can turn in a completely tight circle, and you can carry a ton of stuff in the back.

You need to add lots of lights and reflectors.

The only real modification is the tube that holds the seat stem needs to be cut down a few inches if you are a short person.

The Worksman I have has been crashed, full speed, into a tree and all I had to do was buy a new $40 front fork. It's a beast.


The oddest part about riding a trike is that people laugh at you and think you're dorky....

..... until you wear a beret and dark sunglasses.

I'm not joking a bit. I used to get laughed at riding it around town, but when I put on a black French beret (ten bucks at Disney) and dark shades (one buck) people have a completely different reaction. All of a sudden they are stoked and thrilled to ask about it.

Go figure. People quite often value style over substance, and my skin is thin enough that it matters to me sometimes.

One time I got mocked by teenagers as I rode by. So I turned around and said, "Go ahead and try it. Go ahead." The mocking teen leader tried it and came back giggling like a school girl because he liked it so much. Ha!

Thanks.
What it may come down to for Gordon is what is available and has some level of service. I just found the Sun branded work trike and it looks quite stout as well.
I also ran into this one. Odd duck for sure with two front wheels.
Half the year he's in Lincoln City OR beating the Las Vegas heat. Next we're looking for Oregon dealers and E Bike folks.

tomjasz said:

Thanks.
What it may come down to for Gordon is what is available and has some level of service. I just found the Sun branded work trike and it looks quite stout as well.
I also ran into this one. Odd duck for sure with two front wheels.
Half the year he's in Lincoln City OR beating the Las Vegas heat. Next we're looking for Oregon dealers and E Bike folks.

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Dude, what is that trike you posted? I like it.

Price ? it might not be as tippie ? And rear drive a plus for motor traction.

You probably want to point your browser to bentrider.com and get some input there. There is a lot of experience to be tapped from recumbent trike riders.

MikeFairbanks said:

tomjasz said:

Thanks.
What it may come down to for Gordon is what is available and has some level of service. I just found the Sun branded work trike and it looks quite stout as well.
I also ran into this one. Odd duck for sure with two front wheels.
Half the year he's in Lincoln City OR beating the Las Vegas heat. Next we're looking for Oregon dealers and E Bike folks.

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Dude, what is that trike you posted? I like it.

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Late night cruising on the iPad. I haven't a clue. Unfortunately it's a screen shot so no ID and I can't find it in history either.

A similar upright tadpole trike: The Viktor and Viktoria.

I amazed and have a new direction for next season. Still haven't found the first front wheeler I posted. Grrrrrrrr