new kmx
- Thread starter d
- Start date
CGameProgrammer
10 kW
I still don't know how people ride that thing around traffic. It's so ridiculously low! You'll be squooshed.
Hi
No they are ok really, they also come with an orange antenna you plug in the back with a flag on them, assisted on mine I sit right in the middle of the road, my head is 4 foot off the ground at level with the light on a normal car, there is no excuse to not see me, I agree it could be a little dodgy with no assist but my KMX can do 40mph unassisted and it pretty much out accelerates most cars up to 20 mph unless they are really trying, so you are always out in front.
They are not as safe as a normal bike i agree as you cant get right out of the way should someone jump lanes as things, I tend to ride mine mainly on the paths, mainly because its more fun and riding anything on the paths is safer (I dont do 40mph on the paths by the way) infact I only normally run the KMX at 25mph max, its more than enough
Knoxie
No they are ok really, they also come with an orange antenna you plug in the back with a flag on them, assisted on mine I sit right in the middle of the road, my head is 4 foot off the ground at level with the light on a normal car, there is no excuse to not see me, I agree it could be a little dodgy with no assist but my KMX can do 40mph unassisted and it pretty much out accelerates most cars up to 20 mph unless they are really trying, so you are always out in front.
They are not as safe as a normal bike i agree as you cant get right out of the way should someone jump lanes as things, I tend to ride mine mainly on the paths, mainly because its more fun and riding anything on the paths is safer (I dont do 40mph on the paths by the way) infact I only normally run the KMX at 25mph max, its more than enough
Knoxie
Geebee
1 kW
I ride my trikes on road 99% of the time and have no problems even in peak hour.
Cars tend to give you a lot more room than a bike, you can ride in a mm straight line at any speed, no wobbling, and if someone does clip you at least there is some protection and you won't be flipped over the handle bars.
They can also out brake a bike by a massive amount and I have found that I can out brake a car as well.
They will out handle a bike in that they can change line instantly, I have been saved from being doored by that ability and in situations where a bike would not have a chance.
Height wise a Lotus sports car is a similar height.
I would actually say that a trike is considerably safer than a normal bike, the vast majority of cycling injuries are head injuries ie. going over the handle bars for one reason or another, it can't happen on a trike and even if you get hit front on your legs will take the worst of it, not your head, also you do not have to spend all your time watching the road as most suface issues are a nonevent, a blown front tyre, pull over when you are ready no rush.
Cars tend to give you a lot more room than a bike, you can ride in a mm straight line at any speed, no wobbling, and if someone does clip you at least there is some protection and you won't be flipped over the handle bars.
They can also out brake a bike by a massive amount and I have found that I can out brake a car as well.
They will out handle a bike in that they can change line instantly, I have been saved from being doored by that ability and in situations where a bike would not have a chance.
Height wise a Lotus sports car is a similar height.
I would actually say that a trike is considerably safer than a normal bike, the vast majority of cycling injuries are head injuries ie. going over the handle bars for one reason or another, it can't happen on a trike and even if you get hit front on your legs will take the worst of it, not your head, also you do not have to spend all your time watching the road as most suface issues are a nonevent, a blown front tyre, pull over when you are ready no rush.
Jozzer
100 kW
Very nice...shame you had to sell all your furniture to pay for it
d
100 W
knoxie,
I love riding it... its such a great alternative to an upright bike.
The yellow clamps are my workaround solution to a problem I had with the front-boom clamp bolts... basically, there was no quick release, just 2 regular bolts which you tighten... problem is I tightened them ridiculously tight, but the boom still wanted to slide inward (toward me) due to the pedaling forces. I kept tightening and tightening until finally, SNAP. One of the bolts sheared clean off at the nut. So I bought the clamps last night and I hope it fixes the problem, I'll have to wait till it stops raining before I test it.
The only other problem I have, which will be fixed in the next couple days, is the seat is basically unpadded, so the metal frame sticks slightly into the sides of my lower back. I will correct this problem by inserting foam padding into the seat, and it looks pretty easy and straightforward to do this, in fact, I don't understand why they didn't do that at the factory.
But other than that, the handling and riding position are great.
CGameProgrammer,
as far as being squooshed, I ride with a tall flag, but also I restrict myself to safe routes, sometimes using the sidewalk if necessary. I also feel that on neighborhood streets with lots of stop signs and relatively slow traffic, which actually is what the vast majority of streets in SF are, that I am quite visible, and cars give me a wide margin when they pass. also, there are quite a lot of bike lanes and paths which I make full use of. I have a car and have tried to imagine what I look like from behind the wheel and I feel that it is safe considering my riding style.
deecanio,
I definitly cannot wait to take this thing across the bridge into Marin... and I probably will today if the weather clears up.
Jozzer,
lol... I had to sell my wife and left kidney also in order to secure this trike. but seriously, the photos were shot in the communal hallway of my apartment building.
I love riding it... its such a great alternative to an upright bike.
The yellow clamps are my workaround solution to a problem I had with the front-boom clamp bolts... basically, there was no quick release, just 2 regular bolts which you tighten... problem is I tightened them ridiculously tight, but the boom still wanted to slide inward (toward me) due to the pedaling forces. I kept tightening and tightening until finally, SNAP. One of the bolts sheared clean off at the nut. So I bought the clamps last night and I hope it fixes the problem, I'll have to wait till it stops raining before I test it.
The only other problem I have, which will be fixed in the next couple days, is the seat is basically unpadded, so the metal frame sticks slightly into the sides of my lower back. I will correct this problem by inserting foam padding into the seat, and it looks pretty easy and straightforward to do this, in fact, I don't understand why they didn't do that at the factory.
But other than that, the handling and riding position are great.
CGameProgrammer,
as far as being squooshed, I ride with a tall flag, but also I restrict myself to safe routes, sometimes using the sidewalk if necessary. I also feel that on neighborhood streets with lots of stop signs and relatively slow traffic, which actually is what the vast majority of streets in SF are, that I am quite visible, and cars give me a wide margin when they pass. also, there are quite a lot of bike lanes and paths which I make full use of. I have a car and have tried to imagine what I look like from behind the wheel and I feel that it is safe considering my riding style.
deecanio,
I definitly cannot wait to take this thing across the bridge into Marin... and I probably will today if the weather clears up.
Jozzer,
lol... I had to sell my wife and left kidney also in order to secure this trike. but seriously, the photos were shot in the communal hallway of my apartment building.
Hey D
Glad you are liking, I ride mine unassisted as well its not a problem at all, the assist just makes it even more fun, I also did the same with my seat, got this really useful adhesive foam which I attached under the seat, nice and comfy.
One tip if you find your back gets jarred going over bumpy ground or speed humps is to sit up in the seat a little, it stops your back jarring and really helps as round near me they put speed control humps everywhere and the little trike has so suspension, this helps big time.
I think I will take a nice spin out on mine tonight after work, I dont venture too far as I don't have any spare tubes for it so will struggle if I get a puncture, I should carry some slime and a pump as a bare minimum I suppose!!
Cant wait to see some video from your rig, should be such a blast down those steep Marin hill sides!! superb!!
Have a great weekend
Knoxie
Glad you are liking, I ride mine unassisted as well its not a problem at all, the assist just makes it even more fun, I also did the same with my seat, got this really useful adhesive foam which I attached under the seat, nice and comfy.
One tip if you find your back gets jarred going over bumpy ground or speed humps is to sit up in the seat a little, it stops your back jarring and really helps as round near me they put speed control humps everywhere and the little trike has so suspension, this helps big time.
I think I will take a nice spin out on mine tonight after work, I dont venture too far as I don't have any spare tubes for it so will struggle if I get a puncture, I should carry some slime and a pump as a bare minimum I suppose!!
Cant wait to see some video from your rig, should be such a blast down those steep Marin hill sides!! superb!!
Have a great weekend
Knoxie
d
100 W
in two days I've had 2 great rides on the KMX trike...
yesterday's ride took me about 24.5 miles around the perimeter and through the heart of SF on both bike paths and city streets....
today's ride took me across the golden gate bridge and around the marin headlands totaling about 18.5 miles.
I'm really liking the trike unpowered and have started to doubt whether I will add a motor... its such a great exercise machine... I can tell that it is giving me a really good leg workout, possibly better than can be had on an upright bike. i think it has to do with being able to push against the seat. in reality I probably will add a motor, but I want it to be easily removable so I can go human powered as well.
see attached images for routes.
yesterday's ride took me about 24.5 miles around the perimeter and through the heart of SF on both bike paths and city streets....
today's ride took me across the golden gate bridge and around the marin headlands totaling about 18.5 miles.
I'm really liking the trike unpowered and have started to doubt whether I will add a motor... its such a great exercise machine... I can tell that it is giving me a really good leg workout, possibly better than can be had on an upright bike. i think it has to do with being able to push against the seat. in reality I probably will add a motor, but I want it to be easily removable so I can go human powered as well.
see attached images for routes.
Attachments
Geebee said:I ride my trikes on road 99% of the time and have no problems even in peak hour.
Cars tend to give you a lot more room than a bike, you can ride in a mm straight line at any speed, no wobbling, and if someone does clip you at least there is some protection and you won't be flipped over the handle bars.
They can also out brake a bike by a massive amount and I have found that I can out brake a car as well.
They will out handle a bike in that they can change line instantly, I have been saved from being doored by that ability and in situations where a bike would not have a chance.
Height wise a Lotus sports car is a similar height.
I would actually say that a trike is considerably safer than a normal bike, the vast majority of cycling injuries are head injuries ie. going over the handle bars for one reason or another, it can't happen on a trike and even if you get hit front on your legs will take the worst of it, not your head, also you do not have to spend all your time watching the road as most suface issues are a nonevent, a blown front tyre, pull over when you are ready no rush.
Maybe you can outbrake a bike with crappy rim brakes but you're really smoking crack if you think you can outbrake cars. A quick search rates a run of the mill Civic hybrid as stopping from 60mph in just 134 feet. Maybe you outbraked an old beater with 4 wheel drums?
How would you like to take me up on a 200ft skidpad challenge?
Doored? I wouldn't be riding that close to parked cars on an assisted bike. As for going over the bars, I'll take my chances going over the bars and maybe a car hood, than eating a fender at speed. Fortunately I have no experience doing either, but having more time to stop your body makes sense to me.
Jozzer
100 kW
D! Well done on the ride's! Thats impressive considering your legs are just shaping up to the recumbent position! Just out of interest, what kind of speeds were riding at?
As far as removable motors go, just popping your original back wheel in and keeping the batteries in a removable box under the seat would make for a 10 min switchover from powered to unpowered. (at least removing all heavy items). I'm presuming a hubmotor here of course..
Lowell, I HAVE been over the bars. Many times, on bicycles and fast bikes. Hands and face/head are the first in line with anything you hit. I wont be eating a fender on my KMX/recumbent bike, though I may break legs on one. I feel better about that, my legs are far less important to me that my brain/face/hands (musician), as I expect would many others who tried having an accident on both an upright and a recumbent bike! I can confirm also that the brakes on the KMX are far superior to any upright bike I have ever ridden. (and I imagaine they could be even be improved upon with some hydraulic calipers). The very fact that you don't have to worry about falling over the front means you can use more stopping power.
As far as removable motors go, just popping your original back wheel in and keeping the batteries in a removable box under the seat would make for a 10 min switchover from powered to unpowered. (at least removing all heavy items). I'm presuming a hubmotor here of course..
Lowell, I HAVE been over the bars. Many times, on bicycles and fast bikes. Hands and face/head are the first in line with anything you hit. I wont be eating a fender on my KMX/recumbent bike, though I may break legs on one. I feel better about that, my legs are far less important to me that my brain/face/hands (musician), as I expect would many others who tried having an accident on both an upright and a recumbent bike! I can confirm also that the brakes on the KMX are far superior to any upright bike I have ever ridden. (and I imagaine they could be even be improved upon with some hydraulic calipers). The very fact that you don't have to worry about falling over the front means you can use more stopping power.
d
100 W
Jozzer said:
Indeed, my legs are going through an adjustment phase... my muscles do have some soreness in a couple spots as I type this... but I think the fact that I have been riding a fixed gear bike around san francisco for quite some time has helped me considerably because on a fixed gear bike, you have no choice but to use the one gear you have on all inclines, and you also have to use your leg muscles to slow the bike down, so my muscles are already in pretty good shape, but the trike is definitly a different riding position and I think in a few weeks time my legs will be very much stronger. on the ride today across the golden gate bridge I was passing all but the most serious hardcore road cyclists, which surprised me. going uphill did seem slower than I would go on a road bike, but this may change in time as my muscles adapt to the new riding position. toward the end of my second ride I started to realise how to go faster, which, as simple as it sounds, is by pushing harder on the pedals in a higher gear. i now realise on a "traditional" bike, half your effort goes into the pedals, and half your effort goes into lifting your body upward, not so on the recumbent where all your effort goes into the pedals. this makes it seem harder to pedal at first, but I think once I build up some more muscles I will be able to supply considerably more torque to the cranks than would be available on a "traditional" bike. toward the end of the second ride I figured this out and it seemed to enable me to maintain a pretty significant velocity. (i was definitly going faster at the end than the beginning, which is strange)
Jozzer said:
this is a good idea... just curious, how did you create a platform for your batteries underneath the seat?
Jozzer
100 kW
Very easy....I just found a metal plate the right size (old PC powersupply box straightened out), and bolted it down to the frame beam. (self tapping bolts). Adding a box to that would be easy. My batts would be very hard to remove, mainly because I have used every available space. If I carried only 3/4 the batts, they, and all the electrics/relay etc could be in a lift out pack.
d
100 W
well today I had an absolute blast on the KMX speeding around doing bootleg turns ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bootleg_turn ) which are just unbelievably fun.
you definitly get looks when people see you coming on this thing, but when out of nowhere you bust a complete 180 degree turn, rear wheel sliding out, and then take off in the opposite direction, they're expressions become something like this:
i have found that "drifting" ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drifting_%28motorsport%29 ) into the turns is also quite thrilling... you go into the turn, leaning into it and turning the handlebars, then you grab the left brake which locks the rear wheel, the rear wheel slides sideways until you've acheived the angle you wish to proceed in, then you release the brake and the rear wheel starts spinning again and you take off in a new direction having turned much quicker than would be possible through normal steering. its just plain fun.
today I also learned/pushed the limits of handling of the trike, which, while leaving me with slight injuries, I am glad I did because it taught me what not to do during a skidding sideways turn (drifting) and I think i'll be much more capable of pulling these manuevers safely in the future. (nothing makes you learn a lesson as quickly as seeing your own blood :wink: )
what happened was I sped down this grass hill and when i got onto the bike path at the bottom I tried to do a 180 degree bootleg turn, but i had too much speed and I didn't lean far enough and I flipped the trike right over. the cleats on the pedal caught me in the leg, but it was actually kind of fun believe it or not, and after that I did quite a few near-perfect 180 turns and really got the technique down.
looking forward to tomorrow....
you definitly get looks when people see you coming on this thing, but when out of nowhere you bust a complete 180 degree turn, rear wheel sliding out, and then take off in the opposite direction, they're expressions become something like this:
i have found that "drifting" ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drifting_%28motorsport%29 ) into the turns is also quite thrilling... you go into the turn, leaning into it and turning the handlebars, then you grab the left brake which locks the rear wheel, the rear wheel slides sideways until you've acheived the angle you wish to proceed in, then you release the brake and the rear wheel starts spinning again and you take off in a new direction having turned much quicker than would be possible through normal steering. its just plain fun.
today I also learned/pushed the limits of handling of the trike, which, while leaving me with slight injuries, I am glad I did because it taught me what not to do during a skidding sideways turn (drifting) and I think i'll be much more capable of pulling these manuevers safely in the future. (nothing makes you learn a lesson as quickly as seeing your own blood :wink: )
what happened was I sped down this grass hill and when i got onto the bike path at the bottom I tried to do a 180 degree bootleg turn, but i had too much speed and I didn't lean far enough and I flipped the trike right over. the cleats on the pedal caught me in the leg, but it was actually kind of fun believe it or not, and after that I did quite a few near-perfect 180 turns and really got the technique down.
looking forward to tomorrow....
Hi d
Sounds like you have been having fun, I havent been quite as adventurous as you!! I dont have a back brake as its rigged with the USPD so the disc wont go on, I dont miss it and the front ones are amazing arent they!!
I think I need to take a link out of the chain as it skips a little when I peddle, I have adjusted it correctly but it skips under power, very annoying, it may of course be a stiff link somewhere in the chain, I must take it off and go through each link by hand to see if I can find the culprit!!
They are great bikes, I dont ride mine nearly enough!! I have too much choice, the Trek normally comes out as its like a glove and is so comfy to ride for miles and miles (that thudbuster seat post is amazing) cant wait to see some video of you tearing about in the KMX its going to be amazing, please try and get some video up.
Have fun and stay safe!!
Knoxie
Sounds like you have been having fun, I havent been quite as adventurous as you!! I dont have a back brake as its rigged with the USPD so the disc wont go on, I dont miss it and the front ones are amazing arent they!!
I think I need to take a link out of the chain as it skips a little when I peddle, I have adjusted it correctly but it skips under power, very annoying, it may of course be a stiff link somewhere in the chain, I must take it off and go through each link by hand to see if I can find the culprit!!
They are great bikes, I dont ride mine nearly enough!! I have too much choice, the Trek normally comes out as its like a glove and is so comfy to ride for miles and miles (that thudbuster seat post is amazing) cant wait to see some video of you tearing about in the KMX its going to be amazing, please try and get some video up.
Have fun and stay safe!!
Knoxie
d
100 W
knoxie said:
the front ones are amazing... incredibly powerful... I think it has to do with the fact that the ratio between the disc diameter and the wheel diameter is so small.
as far as the rear brake is concerned, its my favorite brake on the trike! its not so good for slowing down, the front brakes are perfect for that, but for quick "drifting" turns and 180 degree fishtail spins, its indespensible! so far, doing these turns and 180's around the meandering bike trails has been the best thing about the trike so far... its like a human powered sports car.
Knoxie try to do what are done on a lot of tadpole bents, separate the left and right brakes, left brake left lever, right brake right lever.knoxie said:
most bents are speed not trick machines, they have 2 or 3 brakes, left and right as above and a rear brake for parking not usually a brake leaver mine used a front mech grip shifter, when on the move I only use it to slow me down if i felt I was going too fast.
Geoff
