recumbent buying Advice please

[ReclindedPaul]

Hi all - new member here after some basic advice, thoughts please.

I'm thinking about buying my first bike in many years! I'm looking at a recumbent for disability reasons.

The ones I'm looking at are the scorpion, Ice or Hase.

What are the relative advantages of 2 wheels at the front (Scorpion, Ice) or at the back (Hase)?

How are recumbents on hill climbs? ... on a traditional bike you can stand up and really push on the peddles or failing that just get off the bike and walk it up hill! Do recumbents need the assistance of an electric motor as a backup?

Thanks in advance

Paul

[canoesailor]

I would say it's personal preference. I have a Delta (two at the back) and love it, others have tadpoles (two at the front) and love them as much. all will claim that there choice is best. Shop around test ride if you can, only you can really make the choice. Also look at price, my Delta cost £700 ($919) but you will find other suppliers with almost identical trikes charging a lot more. Good luck

[[XAP]Bob]

If you are looking at trikes exclusively then the main choice is two wheels front or rear.

Mathematically two at the front should give slightly better high speed cornering performance, but for most people it's probably much more down to other features of a given trike than just the wheel config.


On a hill climb you just need to have the correct gears - sit down and spin up the hill slowly if you like, or put more effort in and climb quicker. With three wheels you can't stall and overbalance, there is no minimum speed required to stay upright.
You can therefore get your gears down to the single digit inch range relatively easily (i.e. a pedal revolution moves you about 2 feet along the ground) which is almost unusable on a two wheel vehicle.

Think about storage, and manoeuvring the trike when not on it - particularly with regards to your particular disability.

If you are anywhere near Cambridge, or can take a day to go that way, then talk to Kevin at DTek...

[ReclindedPaul]

Thanks for the replies

when i last rode a bike .. it had 3 gears ... what sort of gear numbers should i look for on my purchase?

[[XAP]Bob]

The count of gears matters less than the overall range.

Take a view on range when you test ride.

[canoesailor]

If you are looking at trikes exclusively then the main choice is two wheels front or rear.

Mathematically two at the front should give slightly better high speed cornering performance, but for most people it's probably much more down to other features of a given trike than just the wheel config.


On a hill climb you just need to have the correct gears - sit down and spin up the hill slowly if you like, or put more effort in and climb quicker. With three wheels you can't stall and overbalance, there is no minimum speed required to stay upright.
You can therefore get your gears down to the single digit inch range relatively easily (i.e. a pedal revolution moves you about 2 feet along the ground) which is almost unusable on a two wheel vehicle.

Think about storage, and manoeuvring the trike when not on it - particularly with regards to your particular disability.

If you are anywhere near Cambridge, or can take a day to go that way, then talk to Kevin at DTek...

The high speed cornering "problem" is a hold over from upright trikes and Reliant Robins, in fact simply saying one at the front is less stable ignores mathematics. You need to take into account the position of the riders weight and on recumbents and semi-recumbents the rider is low down and centred between the rear wheels putting it in the best possible position for keeping the trike on the road. Also on a Delta your weight is all on the rear wheels giving it more grip on hills and loose surfaces because the rear wheels are your driving wheels. As an example you may remember the Bond Bug from the 60/70s a delta shaped three wheel "sports car" it had 2 at the back and the driver and passenger sit down between them. They were quick in their day and I never heard of one being rolled.

[[XAP]Bob]

If you are looking at trikes exclusively then the main choice is two wheels front or rear.

Mathematically two at the front should give slightly better high speed cornering performance, but for most people it's probably much more down to other features of a given trike than just the wheel config.


On a hill climb you just need to have the correct gears - sit down and spin up the hill slowly if you like, or put more effort in and climb quicker. With three wheels you can't stall and overbalance, there is no minimum speed required to stay upright.
You can therefore get your gears down to the single digit inch range relatively easily (i.e. a pedal revolution moves you about 2 feet along the ground) which is almost unusable on a two wheel vehicle.

Think about storage, and manoeuvring the trike when not on it - particularly with regards to your particular disability.

If you are anywhere near Cambridge, or can take a day to go that way, then talk to Kevin at DTek...

The high speed cornering "problem" is a hold over from upright trikes and Reliant Robins, in fact simply saying one at the front is less stable ignores mathematics. You need to take into account the position of the riders weight and on recumbents and semi-recumbents the rider is low down and centred between the rear wheels putting it in the best possible position for keeping the trike on the road. Also on a Delta your weight is all on the rear wheels giving it more grip on hills and loose surfaces because the rear wheels are your driving wheels. As an example you may remember the Bond Bug from the 60/70s a delta shaped three wheel "sports car" it had 2 at the back and the driver and passenger sit down between them. They were quick in their day and I never heard of one being rolled.

It's simplistic, I agree.
I did rather downplay it, and suggested that the delta/tadpole wasn't the key decision

[Tigerbiten]

Delta's tend to be a bit higher than Tadpole's, so can be easier to get on and off.
If you after silly speeds downhill then tadpoles can be a lot lower, so more stable.

Delta's tend to need less space to store as you can just tip them up so they are vertical.
Tadpole's tend to need more space as they store flat.

Delta's are only better on hills if there is a diff between the back wheels. Otherwise they can crab sideways on hills.

Tadpoles can fold down smaller. So they are easier to transport by car.

The other thing you need to think about if you get a tadpole is direct or indirect steering.
The likes of Catrike steers straight off the headsets, while the likes of ICE steers off a handlebar that then moves the front wheels.
Indirect steering tends to be lighter at low speed.

Luck ..........

[Lodge]

my wife and I have both a tadpole (ICE Sprint) and delta (Hase Kettwiesel) between us. I also had a Bond Bug in the 70’s. Both formats are great fun. The Kett has better traction in the snow with its two wheel drive and weight over the rear wheels. The Sprint is faster round corners being lower.

I could lift the wheel of the Bug quite easily but it was quite controllable. They were not that fast. 27 bhp from a 700 cc four doesn’t go that far! Perhaps 80 mph at a push. But great fun nonetheless.

I recommend testing both if you can. Bond Bugs can be hard to find these days mind.

PS my father tells me he also had a tadpole, a Morgan Aero. Big problems with traction to the one wheel rear drive. Plus mum got fed up pushing it when the magneto kept cutting out in the rain. Not good when 7 months pregnant with me. It had to go!

[Geoff.D]

PS my father tells me he also had a tadpole, a Morgan Aero. Big problems with traction to the one wheel rear drive. Plus mum got fed up pushing it when the magneto kept cutting out in the rain. Not good when 7 months pregnant with me. It had to go!

I like how this forum has quietly morphed into "Classic Cars"

[[XAP]Bob]

With a pedal tadpole you can add wheelchair drive to get three wheel drive if needed

[Cunobelin]

Simply the Hase is higher and can be easier to mount than a lower model like the Scorpion

However that is not an issue as the Scorpion has adaptations available

I fitted "standing aids" to my wife's Gekko:

[UpWrong]

Depending on your physical abilities, mounting/dismounting a sporty tadpole trike can be challenging. All my trikes have been tadpoles but I can see the advantages of Deltas but there's not been much choice and new prices have been high particularly if you are looking for suspension. However I think it's worth taking a look at the new Hase Trigo.