Upright Tadpole Tricycle

A custom tricycle built in an upright, tadpole configuration. Great for people with or without mobility issues. (music: 'Low Rider' by Son of Dave)

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• tricycle
• trike
• tadpole
• upright
• mobility
• custom
• bike
• bicycle

[Tricyklist]

May I ask why you made the wheelbase so long by extending the fork framework forward of the original bike? It's not a criticism. Just curious.

[wrique]

Good question. We opted to extend the wheelbase six inches forward partly to reduce the likelihood of the rider flipping over the handlebars under hard braking. The trike can be set up with only front brakes where the left brake lever operates the brake on the front left wheel, and the right lever the brake for the right wheel. The extension also helps stiffen the front end (mostly laterally) by adding more triangulation to the frame.

[cjmotorsified]

@wrique hi, im trying to build a bike like this and i would like to know what size the tubeing is that you used and is it aluminum. thanks

[wrique]

@cjmotorsified - For the two front cross tubes, the left & right head tube stays, & the left & right steer rods, we used half-inch mild steel tubing (hollow: 1/2" outer diameter, 3/8" inner diameter) that one can pick up at any hardware store (Rona, Home Depot, Lowes, etc.). The rest of the frame is a standard steel bike frame. An aluminum frame would be very nice, but steel is less expensive & far easier to work with.

All the best with your build! Please post a link when you are done!

[wrique]

@cjmotorsified - I forgot to mention that the two larger tubes joining the head tubes were salvaged from other bike frames. They are 1" in diameter and I believe had formerly been top tubes. We were fortunate enough to have a source for the two brand new head tubes, however it would be pretty straight forward job to salvage the head tubes from a pair of donor bikes.

[abundantsnotbob]

You should ad a suspension.

[wrique]

Yep, we could add suspension to this design. If we started with a frame that had rear suspension, we'd just have to add a pair of suspended forks and we'd be in business.

[ErgoGuys]

very cool bike i think were gona to try and make one simmilar!!

[cjmotorsified]

@wrique thank you for the reply, when i build mine im going to use aluminum because im making one with full suspension so it will b to heavy if i dont. i will be sure to post a video when i am done but it wont be to soon cause its a future project for the winter. I will be posting a video of a different bicycle i built soon if you are interested. thanks again

[abundantsnotbob]

My Whizwheelz TerraTrike 3.4 (an older version of the tour) doesn't have a suspension, and there are four dips at almost every intersection. I wish it did have a suspension, but it is still a great trike.