My first and only one

[Pierre Nieuwoudt]

Hi 

I have just found this forum and see that there are indeed some recumbent riders in SA .

Is there anybody who enjoys building recumbents in SA.

I built my own out of frustration because I could not find any SA builders or riders.

Here is a video of the bike

 

[Mars1967]

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on the build. Looks awesome. 

[Pierre Nieuwoudt]

Thanks 

I see it is a really active forum ........good .......a pool of shared knowledge is invaluable

[MajG]

Welldone on the build, looks awesome.

Seen many on the road but actually never seen them advertised anywhere 

[Pierre Nieuwoudt]

Thanks MajG

I assume that they are too expensive to import because of our wonderful exchange rate

[Never too many bikes]

Brilliant!, I am amazed at your skills. No way i could have done something like this, particularly out of carbon fibre

[Zebra]

I owned two recumbents concurrently; a Linear LWB folding, Under-seat steering, and an Orange GT STREET MACHINE, bought locally, sold both, heaps of fun, but Hout Bay ( think Suikerbossie + Constanta Nek+ Chapmans Peak) we’re not the EASIEST routes on a ‘Bent!
 

In the USA, I took to U.S.S. like a duck to water; thankfully it felt so very natural, never battled, and I prefer it to above-seat-steering.

I lived 2 km from a 40km ex Railway track that was rehabilitated as a jogging and cycling lane (good, smooth, hard-pack). I could easily get up to 40km/hour on the flat, and slung a long wooden train whistle around my neck, which was hyper-realistic sounding….

when 5 chatty Ladies were walking 5-abreast a cross the trail, I would blow my whistle say 300 meters away, and although they KNEW trains no longer ran, they would JUMP aside, then give me a thumbs-up for such a good ‘bluff’…!
 

both bikes are still around CT, I believe, and 2 people well verses in Bent riding are Tim Brink, and a Trike and Bent importer in Noordhoek, will look now for his contact details.

would like to try your bent sometime, where are you located?

cheers

Chris

[Shebeen]

Tim brink will be here soon enough

[Pierre Nieuwoudt]

Hi Zebra

Glad you like USS.

My first one  (MK 1 ) is being tested to destruction.

I have ridden just under 500 km on MK 1 and there has been no breakage but I have noticed that I need a stronger swivel point on the connection between frame and the  USS and the joint needs re-designing

 I assume that at some stage my calculations regarding stress and the strength of the finished frame will be shown up for the armature attempts that they are and something will break......hence my helmet and gloves seen in the video.

So at this stage I would be  worried asking someone else to ride it but MK11 is about to be made incorporating lessons from MK1 and I would be honored if, once I have finished and tested it,  you took it for a ride and compared it to your experiences on the Linear and Street Machine

 

 

 

[Pierre Nieuwoudt]

Thanks "Never too many bikes" it is actually quite easy ......just have to have partner who puts up with the smell of epoxy and a sticky mess every now again.

[Zebra]

Roger Duffett, is likely the Cape ‘Guru’ on things recumbent, as well as Trike; www.trikes.co.za

Cheers

Chris

[Pierre Nieuwoudt]

On 8/14/2021 at 9:00 AM, Zebra said:

Roger Duffett, is likely the Cape ‘Guru’ on things recumbent, as well as Trike; www.trikes.co.za

Cheers

Chris

Thanks Zebra

[Pierre Nieuwoudt]

On 8/13/2021 at 8:13 PM, Pierre Nieuwoudt said:

Thanks "Never too many bikes" it is actually quite easy ......just have to have partner who puts up with the smell of epoxy and a sticky mess every now again.

Have got the building bug.  My first recumbent has just over 1000 KM on it and nothing has broken yet.

I have hopefully learnt some lessons from the build and incorporated them in my new carbon recumbent as well as taken a little bit of a leap into the unknown and made the back dropouts out of carbon fiber .

Painted the bike white to make sure that any cracks or breaks in the carbon fiber show up before  any outright failure.

 

[Pierre Nieuwoudt]

Hi
I have uploaded a short and very amateurish video documenting part of the build of my second recumbent.

https://youtu.be/1va9Lo_toHw

[Shebeen]

54 minutes ago, Pierre Nieuwoudt said:

Hi
I have uploaded a short and very amateurish video documenting part of the build of my second recumbent. HTTPs://youtu.be/1va9Lo_toHw

awesome, looks great!

 

happy miles ahead, time to change the topic title with MKII

[Brakepad]

looks stunning, but why offroad tyres? they slow you down and going gravel is not the best idea on a recumbent.