getting started

[SUMO]

believe me i blew plenty of holes in the off cuts till i got the settings / my speed right

not at dragon because this was my view out of the door on friday when i was meant to be setting off - dont mind cold, but im not risking trashing my bike coming off it just to say i went. i have enough projects on without having to straighten one of the bikes that are actually done and running...

getting started

[VALLEYSBOY]

my only advise would be...dont start off with a morris fg engine

[Manky Monkey]

Hiya Gareth 
Nice to see you back mate. So, any progress on the truck trike?

Sumo, looks like you could hold your own Winter rally in your front yard.

[The pointy helmet]

Hi (again) Insolent Minx.

The welding thing has to be top of the list.
Once you're in with a crowd on a course, it will lead to other more experienced people.

It depends on what exactly lurks in the mind.

Some designs are very subtle variations on what is to hand.
Fibreglass moulding can be a nice bit of knowledge.

What is your budget?   E BAY>>>E BAY>>>E BAY  research what is going for what.

Quicker usually means more expensive.

snout around a bit and pick up bargains PARTS YOU WANT Not just bargains to sit for ever more in the garage.

Engineering skills are just part of it.

Don't forget hire shops can give you access to some hefty bit of kit rather than buying.

Good luck setting off!

[InsolentMinx]

sorry for the late repy.

many thanks all!

it never really occured to me how easy it could be.
I just assumed anyone who chopped or built trikes and the like were experienced/professional fabricators.

Just knowing that most if not all of you started on your own and worked your way up is confidence enough.

I've got quite a few ideas already i just need to sit down and work out a budget etc.

But firstly i need to figure out what bike to use.

Also what kind of underwriters do you use for insurance on bikes that have been chopped etc. If the bikes old enough to have the carbs re-jetted i'd want to do that along with a funky air filter set-up and interesting pipes... but other than that the performance wouldn't be affected much.

I have to worry about inurance because as a kinda-new bike rider and only 24, i can get screwed for insurance quite easilly from most places.

[BikerGran]

i just need to sit down and work out a budget etc.

That would be your first mistake....................

Well I spose there's no harm in working out a budget but from what I've seen it would be a waste of time!!!!! 


"Oooh look, that's a nice shiny thing, it would look good on my build......................!   

[toad]

I've got quite a few ideas already i just need to sit down and work out a budget etc

easy way to work that out.
a rough estimate of cost an time. then treble it then your looking somewhere close.

[InsolentMinx]

haha... i did the "no budget" thing for my current bike... i had to draw the line at a few excessive items like custom wheels and the custom rear 'fender' which would be needed to accommodate said new rear wheel.

But for this one I'd like to see if it's possible to make a good looking budget bobber for under £2500 ...
err... maybe £3000 just for a little extra leeway.


...i know i should be saving money to move out, but ... umm... it's keeping me off the streets and from doing drugs 

[morrag]

I always thought a Fender was something my dear old Mum had in front of her open fire, made out of brass, and designed to keep the sparks off the carpet!!, or maybe a stringed instrument as made by Leo!!!!

[tazet]

Ooh we could do with something to put on the carpet in front of our fire 

[TwistedPatience]

But for this one I'd like to see if it's possible to make a good looking budget bobber for under £2500 ...
err... maybe £3000 just for a little extra leeway.

Almost build a trike for that!

[InsolentMinx]

But for this one I'd like to see if it's possible to make a good looking budget bobber for under £2500 ...
err... maybe £3000 just for a little extra leeway.

Almost build a trike for that!

hmmm, true... but i want something with 2 wheels.

As much as i admire your ability to create these 3 wheeled machines, i really (personally, and no offense intended) can't see the point of them.

You get all the negative sides of being on a motorcycle and all the negative sides of being in a car. But i guess there's a lot of positives too.
I see them as a bike you can't filter or lean into corners with, and a car that you get wet on. I know i'm obviously missing the point, but those are just my thoughts whenever i see a trike.
Impressive machines offering the comfort and driveability of a car, with the 'wind-in-you-face' exhilaration of a motorbike... but also restricting you to being the size of a car.

maybe i'll 'get it' when i get older 

anyway, i don't quite think i've got the skill or mechanical knowhow to build a trike

[tbone]

For some its still a way of enjoying a passion for bikes after a disability, for others the joy of owning something you just dont see everyday, then there are people who get to feel the wind in their face without having to have a bike licence, and others find it a way to express a creative side.
Cheeky young whippersnapper, comes on here, picks our brains, nicks our ideas then says he doesnt understand us!!!
Am only joking, we welcome everyone with as many wheels as they are comfortable with 

[Manky Monkey]

Well obviously young Insolent, (now I realise why he's called that!), just can't handle more than 2 wheels! 
I switched from 2 to 3 wheels when I was commuting 20 miles to work every day & wanted something I could ride all Winter without fear of falling off. Also bike parts are horrendously expensive compared to the equivalent car part, so I thought a small car engined trike would be cheap to run. Trikes are completely different animals to bikes -it's not just a bike with another wheel tacked on. They handle differently & require more physical effort & concentration to ride. A bit like comparing a vintage car to a modern hatchback. You have to put more into riding them, but you get a lot more exhilleration out of it. Don't knock 'em till you've tried 'em!
Most of our trikes have been built for around 2 grand. Depends on the level of finish you're after. I'd recommend not worrying too much about the shiny blingy bits during the initial build -just squirt it over with aerosol cans for the first 6 months. Once you're happy that everything works as you hoped, then you can pretty it up. Nothing worse than paying out for a top notch paint job, then finding you need to cut something off & re-weld it somewhere else.
You can pick up a decent donor bike for a couple of hundred quid from any of the big motorcycle autojumbles. I was at the Kempton Park jumble a week ago & could've bought dozens of old Brits & 70s/80s Jap bikes for pocket money prices. You'll also find all sorts of second hand chop parts & lots of original bits that can be adapted or mix n matched to give whatever look you're after. Not sure when the next Kempton meet is, but there's one in Dorking, Surrey, in early April, (check our Events calendar at the top of this page). Mainly Harley stuff as it's sponsored by a Harley dealership, but always other interesting machines for sale. Lots of Harley stuff is chop-inspired anyway, so you could pick up forks, tanks, seats etc. You don't have to spend lots of dosh to build a tidy bike -half the fun of the build is using your ingenuity & your own creative skills, rather than just buying parts off the shelf. Enjoy! 

[VALLEYSBOY]

spot on comments Tbone and Manky i reckon he just aint lived enough yet to appreciate the finer things in life