Wheeled vehicle construction (cont from tracked thread)

Tiahaar · Post by **Tiahaar** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 10:04 pm

that do it? AAAHhh, finally. Now on to more wheeled creativity. Love the hydraulic ideas you guys are batting back and forth. I myself love hydraulics when they work, hate the hell out of the messiness of fixing leaks.

can't sit still · Post by **can't sit still** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 11:04 pm

Edited 90% ?? What did we miss?
Geekster, you should investigate power-dividers. They bias the flow. You can proportion the flow to one side or the other,,,steering.

If you'll settle for 10 Hp, you can buy a log-splitter engine and pump combo from Northern Hydraulics for a reasonable price.

If you're looking for telescopic axles, the cheapest source would be steering columns from old cab-over diesel trucks. When the cab tilts, the steering has to extend.
Dan

Elliot · Post by **Elliot** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 7:21 am

Boy, I'd sure like to figure out how to avoid the overwidth pages. How can we do that? Is it strictly caused by large image files? If so, we could all put a notice in our automatic signatures like "Please do not post images over 20 KB -- it boogers up the whole page" or some such.

For those who do not know how to size images -- and I was one until recently -- I open the image in a program called Paint. Up at the top I click on "Image", then "stretch/skew". Where it says "100" I enter a smaller number, like 25 -- in both boxes -- and then click OK. I find that the size I see on the screen will be the same on ePlaya. When I have the right size, I "save" it and post that smaller copy of the image. That helpful?

Elliot · Post by **Elliot** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 7:37 am

About telescoping shafts: the cab-over truck idea is great. Many conventionals -- fixed cab, tilt hood -- also have telescoping shafts because the cab is mounted in rubber. Look at any modern Freightliner for a start. Make sure the shaft slides when you buy it -- they rust and become solid. (Then the truck steers really wonky!)

For a smaller size, look at some car steering shafts. They are made to collapse in a crash. Pull it apart and remove the plastic that keeps it snug. Slides easily after you remove the plastic.

geekster · Post by **geekster** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 11:04 pm

Geekster, you should investigate power-dividers. They bias the flow. You can proportion the flow to one side or the other,,,steering.

Yeah, that is what I thought I was originally drifting towards but I probably wasn't clear. Leaks aren't that much of a problem if you build a tight system. I don't leak a single drop of power steering or brake fluid from my truck that I am aware of. No spots on the driveway anyway. If you are careful and use good quality hoses and fittings, it should be okay. If I did have a leak, it would be a pretty simply matter to load the vehicle back up on the truck and leave it there for the rest of the event.

Its a pretty involved project. I need to go looking at some junk cars and see what I can find as far as parts for the wheels. Maybe if I can find a place with a lot of old Chevettes or Rabbits or something. Building the rockers and bogies would depend really on the wheels it would be using.

EspressoDude · Post by **EspressoDude** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 6:36 am

Something you might want to consider are wheel chair motors with their gear reducer hubs. put one on each wheel. steer with a wheel chair controller/joystick.

Also the small 3 wheel carts like you see in some stores for handicapped have a differential in them and electric motor

Both run on 12 or 24 volts. You can use a small generator...or better yet solar panel for recharging power

can't sit still · Post by **can't sit still** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 8:35 am

[quote="EspressoDude"]Something you might want to consider are wheel chair motors with their gear reducer hubs. put one on each wheel. steer with a wheel chair controller/joystick"

Now , that's the coolest idea I've heard yet.
Dan

EspressoDude · Post by **EspressoDude** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 12:23 pm

take a look at ebay.com

Search for wheelchair motors, you can get some ideas there.

Also do a general internet search for battlebots. Wheelchair motors were popular for battlebot motion. There are Radio Control units that can handle the power but are $$$$$

dragonfly Jafe · Post by **dragonfly Jafe** » Mon Apr 03, 2006 9:38 am

this is Bob Durst's bicycle (from the rear) showing the differentials and other neat stuff.

dragonfly Jafe · Post by **dragonfly Jafe** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 6:58 pm

a brief diversion for a friend - he wants a sidecar to carry his great dane in....

Atar · Post by **Atar** » Mon Apr 17, 2006 12:36 am

Well, last saturday I got inspired to get that welding appartus to work and bought some electrodes. Turns out it still works fine. I am now the proud owner of a sunburn all over my face, with the exception of where my welding goggles were

I'm still able to place a nice and sturdy weld, now I have to practice welding stuff together.

edit: ow, and I'm in absolute awe over the two pics shown above me

I like the flowing curves of the dogcart and the intricate and probaly useful design of the behind of that red bicycle. I don't understand how it works, but that don't make it less of a beauty

can't sit still · Post by **can't sit still** » Mon Apr 17, 2006 10:10 am

Atar, i'm glad to see that you're progressing. You NEED to wear a full face mask. The burns that you get from welding are dangerous. I got too many on my right shoulder. Later ,it turned into something nasty that was growing. I took dry-ice and burned it off myself--not fun. Then I got smarter and went to a dermatologist. If you check the literature, you'll find that bad burns very often develop to skin cancer years later.

Those sweeping curves that you admire so much are quite difficult if you don't have some equipment.
It sounds like you're on your way. Fabrication can be a lot of fun. I made a log-splitter out of a discarded trash compactor. Go-karts are a great start. There's almost no limit to what you can do.
Get the right face shield and practice away.
Dan

Mister Jellyfish Mister · Post by **Mister Jellyfish Mister** » Mon Apr 17, 2006 5:34 pm

dragonfly Jafe wrote:a brief diversion for a friend - he wants a sidecar to carry his great dane in....

I had one of those when I was a kid. Put the newspapers in it for my route. I rocked for a 12 year old because I lied to people and told them I welded it myself when I actually bought it that way. Hollow victories, those.

Lassen Forge · Post by **Lassen Forge** » Mon Apr 17, 2006 5:47 pm

Mister Jellyfish Mister wrote: I had one of those when I was a kid. Put the newspapers in it for my route. I rocked for a 12 year old because I lied to people and told them I welded it myself when I actually bought it that way. Hollow victories, those.

Nay not... the subconscious guilt of such tales, and the inner desire to bare ones soul and make things right and bring peace to your mind, were what led you to hone your skills, and become the much feared world famous mad scientist, inventor, and bug builder you are today...

bb

Elliot · Post by **Elliot** » Wed May 31, 2006 8:36 pm

Awful quiet around here. But I can fix that.
(Brrrmmmm, brrrmmm...!)

That's The Pear County Chopper at the Grand Championship Arcata-To-Ferndale
Kinetic Sculpture Race last weekend. Who says Wheeled Vehicles have to be limited
to land travel?!

That's not me riding it, but I plan to ride it myself in the next KSR in
Klamath Falls 17 June. And of course, at BM.

Gravity Mike · Post by **Gravity Mike** » Thu Jun 01, 2006 10:01 am

Elliot,

It was great meeting you at the KSR extravaganza. I wasn't able to stick around for the finish due to various time constraints among my fellow travelers.

However, I learned alot and am definately addicted. I'm already working on ideas for next year.

Gravity

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Thu Jun 01, 2006 3:55 pm

Okay...you geniuses have been enough inspiration to me to make me FINALLY get my vehicle knocked together...sort of. I'm STILL working out how to get a pic on, but in a nutshell or nut's hell it's a scratchbuilt UFO trike...Wheels from Barbie bikes, diamondplate scrap from a bedliner, and a "central column" from a solar pool reel. Working on a totally unique (to me) steering system, with detours to the first aid kit from greasy scrapes, a NASTY scratch from falling Art Supplies and several hangovers....
Keep doin' what you do, Smart Thangs. You're feedin' my brain.

Elliot · Post by **Elliot** » Thu Jun 01, 2006 4:17 pm

:D
Woo-hoo, Howdy -- feeding and excercising the brain is what it's
all about, eh!
As for getting photos onto this site, I use a free hosting service
called Photobucket. PM me if you would like me to walk you
thru it. 'Coz I wanna see that UFO!

Rockdad · Post by **Rockdad** » Thu Jun 01, 2006 4:39 pm

Atar wrote:Well, last saturday I got inspired to get that welding appartus to work and bought some electrodes. Turns out it still works fine. I am now the proud owner of a sunburn all over my face, with the exception of where my welding goggles were
I'm still able to place a nice and sturdy weld, now I have to practice welding stuff together.

edit: ow, and I'm in absolute awe over the two pics shown above me I like the flowing curves of the dogcart and the intricate and probaly useful design of the behind of that red bicycle. I don't understand how it works, but that don't make it less of a beauty

Welding goggles are for Oxy-Acetelyne not Arc welding!

Big difference in lens darkness too your asking for not only skin cancer but blindness too.
Seriously get a full face shield designed for arc welding (shade 11) you should not be able to see through it much at all till you strike the arc, even better auto darkening shield for about 125.00 from Northren tools.

Once you go to auto you never go back it allows you to see thru it till you strike arc then in milliseconds goes dark

Gravity Mike · Post by **Gravity Mike** » Tue Jun 06, 2006 9:50 pm

Elliot, Jafe, Tiahaar, everybody,

So this last weekend, pumped up from the kinetic sculpture races, I finally got the steering linkage on my 'trike' working and rode it around the neighborhood. Some of them have no 'inner child,' but all the kids want me to make them one!

Tiahaar, you're far to humble - I'm seriously impressed with your vehicle! This is my first welding project, so I'm pretty proud, even though it's not much. I don't think I'll be able to build my railroad handcar, but I sense a chopper (as this trike is for my wife - I can't ride a *regular* bike with her!).

You can get it up on two wheels if you turn going fast. When I get the shopping cart basket with some wieght in it it'll be more stable. I drive the steering linkage with a shaft (from a universal to kick to the side). I made an adjustment for the toe-in.

Remaining problems: I need steering stops; you can 'oversteer' and get into the regime where the wheels go opposite directions. Also, I'm trying to think of a way to balance the two front brakes. Otherwise, I'll forgo back brakes and have two individual front brakes and balance the braking force manually.

Gravity

Tiahaar · Post by **Tiahaar** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 11:13 pm

Way cool, a double-steered trike! You know if you squint a little bit while looking at that photo the front-end tube geometry has a striking familial resemblence to...ManTis

(with the triangular dewlap shape to the two front frame pieces and tires for arms and...ok I've been on a little long tonight)

capjbadger · Post by **capjbadger** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 3:29 pm

Just sniped another ebay auction. This time for some cloth/screen to make the "sail" for my art car.

Little by little...

"Doom Is Rising(tm)"

MWAHAHAHAHA....

Elliot · Post by **Elliot** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 5:19 pm

.
Mike:

Excellent! You will obviously fit right in with the Kinetic Racing crowd!

As for the steering going wonky, I cannot see your linkage in the photo, but
Henry Ford Goes Surfing did what you describe when it had a simple "go-kart"
steering linkage. I used that feature as a parking brake! Plus it looked pleasantly
goofy. The reason this happens is simple enough to understand once you look
at the movements in the linkage. You can install stops, or you can change
the linkage ratios, or both. A minor thing. To get rid of the issue alltogether,
I installed a steering gear from a lawn tractor on Henry.

capjbadger · Post by **capjbadger** » Sat Jul 01, 2006 11:55 pm

Yay! DMV app fianlly in (well, in the other day). Now I just have to see if the Hotties like my idea as much as I do.

How long do they usualy take to get back to people?

capjbadger · Post by **capjbadger** » Wed Jul 05, 2006 2:37 pm

Bump....

So I'll ask again. Does anyone here know aprox how long the DMV takes to get back to people?

Gravity Mike · Post by **Gravity Mike** » Thu Jul 06, 2006 9:25 pm

Elliot, Everybody (who cares),

Here's some photos of the steering linkage:

Pretty straight forward. I welded a couple of little knubs on the 'arms' that connect to the rack. They bump against the rack to prevent overturning.

This is the reverse trike with the custom 'basket' I made out of a shopping cart. Lots of small welding - I hope the bottom doesn't fall out! :

This is pretty much done except for hooking up the brakes and shifters.

Don't worry, I've got plenty of other projects.

Gravity

Gravity Mike · Post by **Gravity Mike** » Thu Jul 06, 2006 9:35 pm

And here's another project. The reverse trike is for the Mrs. I built myself a crazy chopper over this past weekend. A simpler job, for sure, but certainly I'm getting better and faster working with metal.

This is still going to get painted, likely the flourescent orange that I painted the trike handlebars. I ordered some small black lights for these rides. Speaking of which, this thing is pretty challenging to ride, definately a sobriety test!!! I had to redo the fork cuz initially I had a negative 'trail' making it pretty unstable. Now it has proper trail, but the frame actually rises and falls an inch or two as you turn to exteme left/right to straight. You have to actually lift your weight to come out of a turn! The fork isn't straight, either. It goes an inch or two to the left, which isn't too bad considering the fork is nearly 5 feet long and I still barely know what the heck I'm doing!!

I might bring a back-up bike for when I want to get toasted.

Gravity

dragonfly Jafe · Post by **dragonfly Jafe** » Fri Jul 07, 2006 3:13 am

Love your bikes, and the photo's of the trike's linkages may help inspire my friend's rickshaw project...thanks for sharing!

Mister Jellyfish Mister · Post by **Mister Jellyfish Mister** » Fri Jul 07, 2006 7:13 am

Here at Apokiliptika Labs, we've removed the chamber and will use her for troop transport, utility flatbed, and to haul the launch gantry for Mantis. Not as elegant on the stearing functions, just another fine way to deliver the doom.

Does she qualify for the tank races?

LeChatNoir · Post by **LeChatNoir** » Fri Jul 07, 2006 9:29 am

Gravity Mike...

I am so flippin inspired by the trike. The basket maes it!! I'm considering building one myself now. Jeez... not sure there's enough time between now and the burn.

But I love it...

Wheeled vehicle construction (cont from tracked thread)

Too quiet here