Monster December 27, 2006

BlueCoyote Monster Dinotte Taillight Mount

Finally, I was able to mount a Dinotte Taillight on the rear of my Monster. Based upon the brilliant inspiration of my fellow BROLer, BlueCoyote, I removed two of the small bolts that secure the carbon fiber headrest to the back of my hardshell seat. Trice sends this interesting little all purpose mount with the custom trikes. The Dinotte taillight rests nicely on this mount. I was able to insert the two headrest screws through the holes of the Trice mount and then through the headrest and into the back of the hardshell seat. With the help of a couple of plastice zip ties (what would we do without them?) I further secured the Trice mount to the back of my seat. The taillight is in exactly the right position for optimal visibility. I was also able to secure the battery pack pouch to the back of the headrest using plastic zip ties. Worked out perfectly.

VK2 Water Bottle Cages

I don't like water bladders and after changing the Terracycle idler for a Velokraft idler was able to mount water bottle holders on both sides of the underseat. Works great. I can still carry a bladder in the pouch of my seat bag, but seldom will have to. The Terracycle idler ran the chain too close to the underside of the seat thus preventing a water bottle cage installation. The cages are positioned so that I can easily reach the water bottles on either side while riding the VK2.

I am selling my Bike Pro Tandem case. I have used it twice to transport my Rans Velocity Squared recumbent. It worked beautifully and was accepted by Delta Airlines.
This is the 2 x oversized model with these dimensions.... 38x72x10

Monster Alterations

I made some final changes to the Monster and have it just right now. I uninstalled the FSA Cranks with Q-Rings and installed Rotor Cranks. The Q-Rings led to poor shifting, especially from middle to large chain ring. The chain was jumping over the big ring and I couldn't adjust the problem away without making the middle-large shift too difficult. I think the steep angle of the derailleur post on the Monster contributed to the problem, but who knows. At any rate, the Rotor Cranks are much better. I get a 26 tooth small ring, rather than the 30 toother on the Q-Rings. I need the lower gears for our hills. The Rotor Cranks shift much smoother and the extra power in climbing is noticeable.

I also took off the front fenders with mirrors attached and installed two Mirrcycle mirrors on the handlebars. Not running the front fenders makes the trike a bit more aero.

I took off the Aerospoke wheel and reinstalled the original Mavic wheel with ti spokes. The Aerospoke, which I have liked on two wheeled bents, didn't seem right on the trike after putting in many miles. The extra pound or so of weight was really noticeable on the trike. I have concluded that the lightest, most durable wheel is right for the trike. The Mavic wheel runs quieter than the Aerospoke also. This is of some importance since my head is so close to the rear wheel.

Finally, I switched out the pedals from Time Atac mtb pedals to Speedplay "lollipop" road pedals. I like the extra float of the Speedplays and I don't have to twist so hard to disengage.

Think I am finished fiddling with the Monster, at least for awhile.

Boom Adjustments

When my VK2 is good...it is very, very good. When it's bad, I'm not a happy camper. This is one of the smoothest riding, comfortable and fastest bents I've had. But I have had a devil of a time getting it dialed in correctly. After I replace the broken boom...see below...and installed a FSA crank things were going very well. I changed to a Rotor Crank within the last month or so and have concluded that I need to bring the boom in a hair to give me the correct pedal stroke position. I was extending too much and feeling some strain in my legs.

I put the bike in a trainer and removed the screws that secure the boom in the boom socket. After putting some protective tape on the nose of the boom, with a rubber mallet, I tapped the boom smartly in an attempt to shorten it about 1/4". I arrived at the 1/4" figure by doing some measurements, with the help of my local bike mechanic, who is expert at fitting bikes. He concluded that 1/4" shorter boom would be about right. I tapped and tapped and the boom wouldn't budge. So, I tapped the other way on the crank arm spindles and was easily able to remove the boom.

I took a flashlight and peered inside the boom socket. Ahhh sooo, there was a large piece of boom material (resin?) adhering to the side of the socket just at the point were the end of my boom used to be. It was that piece of resin that was preventing me from tapping the boom further into the socket. Now this was a big obstruction. Filing it out of existence or knocking it off didn't seem feasible.

So, I decided to hack saw off about 1/4" of the boom. I dared not take any more of the boom off because I am approaching the point where the end of the boom is getting too close to the inside most clamp screw. When I did the original fitting, I sawed off 2". I figure I need to be past the clamp at least 70 mm to keep the boom securely enscounced inside the socket. I was able to take the quarter inch off the boom and easily tap it inside the socket. After tightening the clamp I discovered that my pedaling now felt perfect. I haven't gone for a long ride yet, but my short test ride indicates that I am now dialed in to the sweet spot.

A friend, actually one of my fellow BROLers, said to me that the VK2 is like a fine sports car. You have to have fun fiddling with it to get it just right, and then fiddle again. Well, I have done more than my share of fiddling, and it hasn't exactly been fun. But, I do love riding this bad boy and I guess that 's what counts. Whew!!!!! I just finished what felt like delicate brain surgery.

Tubular wheel for the Monster

I am considering adding this wheel to my Monster. Trikes usually don't have composite wheels because of the side forces, but David from Nimble assures me that he can build it strong enough. I love tubular wheels, so maybe I'll give it a shot.