Paulywombats Honda St1100 Conversion

[Manky Monkey]

Only 2 years old then?

[paulywombats]

I've always liked you team leader.

How's the Big Apple?

[Manky Monkey]

Just woken up after a very late night last night. 8.30am here & 85 degrees. Feeling knackered after a long day travelling yesterday, so might just have a day of mooching about around the city today. I want to across the water to Brooklyn. Haven't been there yet.

[paulywombats]

Last time I was there I walked from hotel to Empire State Building to see it lit up at night time, probably half an hours walk.

Talking to a guy from New Jersey and his Jewish princess wife the following day at breakfast, he said 'you walked....what are you from Mars?'!

He was so funny, his wife said he gets the car out to go around the block.

All said in that fantastic New York accent. Often use the phrase myself.

Enjoy the stay, I have only fond memories of the state capital.

[paulywombats]

Road legal trike, just in time for the weather to break....thanks DVLA, we all love the work you do there (NOT!!)

Insurance via Whittlesey insurance Peterborough £250 for the both of us.

[BikerGran]

I think it's obligatory for DVLA to lose the paperwork!  They lost mine for 3 weeks, and that was only getting in changed from bike to trike! (kept the original reg as it's a bolt-on).

[paulywombats]

Now the real work begins.....went out for a shake down ride yesterday evening, waited for it to cool down....both heat and traffic.

Petrol station was the first stop, very close to where I live, petrol gauge is not reading correctly. I put 20 quids worth of the good stuff in, the tank was near empty, and gauge is showing full. Think this will be more to do with sender rather than gauge.Then onto A6 heading North out of Derby. Drove for half an hour, got off to check visually.
Only one of the wheel centre caps dislodged, one of the plastic tangs needed altering and popped back in.

Turned around and headed for home, managed to dare to raise my speed a little. Finding it heavy turning into a bend, my wrist is aching today.

This is probably me not having rode a trike before, and the fact that I want to take it steady until I get used to it.
I am going to experiment with tyre pressures and see how it goes. Any advise on this welcome boys and girls.

Visual check when home, nothing missing or loose

[Stix]

Easiest way to lighten the steering but not the cheapest is to fit raked yokes, another 5degrees makes the steering lighter but might drop the front a touch, I fitted 4inch longer stanchions to get the ride height how I wanted it, it does lessen the steering lock a bit so you might have to modify the bottom yoke to allow a bit more of a turn lock to lock.

[paulywombats]

Hi Stix thanks for the advise.

Would I be able to keep the top position of the yoke the same and taper out from there? The offset would remain the same. The wheel would end up further forward.

With how the ST1100 is at the top of the forks there is no room to move anything.

Workshop manual has castor angle of 27deg30 min, and trail of 101mm or 4 inch.

[Olds]

Hmm. Normally if raked yokes are used on trikes, it's to increase the rake because what you are trying to achieve is less trail.
Other ways to do this is to use yokes with more offset (distance from steering head shaft to tubes) or changing to leading axle forks.
 A small amount of reduction can be achieved by dropping the front and/or raising the back but this isn't likely to make a huge difference.
Most folk just fit wider bars and build up arm/wrist strength.

[paulywombats]

Thanks Olds, back to the gym for me, when I say back....I mean return after 30 years. lol

[Olds]

 
Take up blacksmithing. It's great for building arm strength.
My bars are 39" wide because the rake on my trike is over 40 degrees and despite the forward axle forks, the trail is excessive. This does mean that the trike steers arrow straight (even on roundabouts  )

[paulywombats]

Dropped all tyre pressures, 19 psi on rears and 21 psi on front. Handling much better, plus I'm starting to get more used to the feel.

Think I am going to go for a side car tyre on front wheel, mainly for looks.

[Olds]

Think I am going to go for a side car tyre on front wheel, mainly for looks.

A good idea and not only for looks. You should get more grip in the wet compared to a motorcycle tyre, because of the wider footprint and it shouldn't wear out as fast.
Check speed / load ratings and also that it can be front fitted, as some are marked for rear use.
Mine are 19" and I was going to use the Avon Triple Duty but ended up fitting a tyre made for vintage car racing.

[BikerGran]

When I first rode my Kwak GT550 trike round our estate I came back in tears thinking 'I can't do this, it's just not possible'.   Then I realised that the builder had ridden it a few miles to deliver it, so it must be possible.  I juggled with tyre pressure and the air in the forks (lowered the pressure and eventually ended up letting all the air out of the forks).   After a while I didn't even notice - part of the problem is that a trike doesn't steer like a bike, you have to actively steer it - ie one arm pushes while the other one pulls.  Keep riding and after a while you'll wonder what the problem was.