This missing post from last week has a good shot of the front end:  pre-hacksaw.  The front end, slimmed down somewhat, has the alloy wheels with new spindles, and a even lighter steering setup with ht. adjustment.   

The Tanktrike Lives!!! It rides!!!

The Tanktrike Lives.  Dusk on the last day of our trip, Ian test rode it with a unpadded wooden seat form on it.  Brakes work, chain stayed on, steered ok. 

My short term help Gordon who installed the tensioner on the chain.

Next steps:  finish seat, tweak steering, create rear rack/fender,

Back on Track? This is the latest version of the rear end. The custom seat design is yet to be completed.

 This is the latest version of the rear end with the new FSA bottom bracket and the Xtracycle frame extension.  Tomorrow, I will have the drive train complete and a field test ready tanktrike.  The custom seat design is yet to be completed.  I think it's time to take some measurements.  

The positives!

The front end now has 20"alloy wheels, an even lighter steerer setup, and brand new spindles.  I have the new rear wheel with shifter etc.  I also have a pile of materials for doing a cool seat. including the black banana seat with a sissy bar.  My brother is coming in next week and I want to have this beast ready!

The new vision !#?%&* ?! or the down and dirty

This project has just had the 40% of the damn thing junked! The parts shown and a rear wheel are basically all that is left.  

The silver and blue frame in this picture will supply the new back half, though I might save the bottom bracket, crankset and rear brakeset.  I'm fairly sure this next step will solve the major problems and a least make it ridable.  This is assuming the new frame fits!  Wish me luck.  I'm waiting once again for delivery of Tanktrike parts.
 

Forced back to the drawing board!

My efforts to solve the bottom  bracket ht. issue by adding the section of frame from the Mixte frame were a failure. The change introduced way to much flex in the frame and I can't figure a way to fix it.  I'm probably going to find a larger rear suspension frame and use that instead of two frame sections bolted together.  I haven't been able to find a cheap frame of the type that matches the setup from the pivot point and has the bottm bracket in the right place.   

frame picture-assembly details

Taking tonight off!.  I'm wiped out.  The picture is the new rear section of the Tank Trike shown upside down.  I cut the rear off of a Mixte frame and cut the chainstays in front of the kickstand plate.  I also cut the bottom of the seat tube off to make installing this easier.  This will be bolted to the remainder of the existing piece of the kids suspension bike at both kickstand plates.  The lower seat stay bolts to the brake bridge and the seat tube will be through bolted to the original false seat tube of the suspension bike.   more picture to follow during the next 2-3 days, scout's honor !

The Tank Trike grows!

On the most recent test ride, the pedal strike was intolerable.  The bottom bracket is so low the pedals hit the ground.  My overly complex solution was to cut of the back of the kids bike and attach an old Mixte frame rear that can take a 26" wheel.  I also flipped the stem to face toward the driver instead of away, put on a wide set of handlebars off of an old cruiser.  I used the seat tube from the new rear to move the front of the banana seat back.  My goal is to have it all together for the 4th of July!  I'll post sooner this time Trust Me :)

the master and apprentice

My wife's Facebook photo and caption of this evening's efforts.

Finally, an update on the "Tank Trike" AKA the "Lowrider"

This has turned into a much bigger project than I ever imaged!   I replaced the whole rear end with a kids suspension bike frame with a 6 speed cluster and a proper brake setup.  Then I decided the whole thing now rode way too close to the ground.  I replaced the spindles to be able to install the 20" custom wheels off the old trike.  This gave us a lot more ground clearance and hopefully easier rolling.  I need to install the new tie-rods, and provide a shifter and brake lever. Hopefully, we will have our first test ride this weekend!

I have found out that the tank trike began life as a "WRFF" trike (see picture)not the front end of a go-cart as the seller indicated with a smaller rear wheel and no suspension. This doesn't impact my immediate plans but showed me that it originally had a running board or floor board mounted on the front of the main tube. That's something worth considering closer to completion of my changes.