Got My Tri-Sport Going

[bilbo]

This is far from a restoration; more of a Frankenstein type resurrection. My wife found a Tri-Sport frame last fall and I've spent the last few months gathering parts to get it running.

It started out looking like this:

And now looks like this:

I had an old school chair that I hacked the legs off to make a seat. This will suffice until if/when I ever find a body for it. I made a bolt on adapter plate so I can just pop it off and put the body on if I find one.

The wheels are from a camper trailer I rebuilt and are temporary until I can get new tires on the original wheels. Even with the big wheels, it still accelerates nicely. To echo previous comments the brakes are garbage. Think of it as a feature, though...Anti-Lock brakes!

I used a predator 8hp engine and comet 40 torque converter. It gets going very well even with my big butt on it. All in all, it is a riot to ride and definitely turns heads.

One question for others with these trikes. Do you ever run into trouble with dirt building up on the axle sprocket and making the chain too tight? It didn't look bad in my trial runs last night and it was very muddy, but I know it has been an issue with other machines I've had that use chain for the final drive. I may make a deflector or something to try to keep the slop out of that area.

 

[we4amigos]

That's a big improvement. I bet that Predator with a 40 series makes it scoot ! I've got one with the original 8hp Tecumseh and it does alright once you get it cranked up,,but a new Predator has instant throttle :thumbsup:
Can't help ya much on the chain ...I rarely get my muddy.When I do I just use a wire toothbrush..scrape it clean & oil her down before putting away.

 

[bilbo]

It does move pretty well. I tested to see how fast it would go with my gps last night and it logged 39.6 before I ran out of road. The proper wheels are a bit smaller so I think I'll lose some top end but it will accelerate even better. I have a few different jackshaft sprockets I can play with to dial it in how I want. Like I said, it's a total blast to ride. It really is different from anything I've ever driven before.

 

[bilbo]

Another question. What do you use for front wheel bearings? I bought the kind that were in it when I got it, that press into either side of the rim. Not the cheap pressed steel ones but ground bearings. One has already failed.

 

[we4amigos]

If you bought good sealed roller bearings they should last for years. I've only put new front bearings in one of mine & it's still going fine. All the rest are still running original '70's vintage bearings.

 

[bilbo]

They were sealed precision ball bearings. The ground type. I bought another set and replaced them last night. After 20 minutes or so of puttering around town those are toast too. Gumpit recommended a different type that are wider and more like roller bearings. I'm going to give those a shot. I can't find anything out of whack that would be causing premature failure. I'll see how these others work.

 

[we4amigos]

Those ones he recommended should do the trick :thumbsup:

 

[jada555]

Do you have a tube between the bearings, (inside the rim, around the axel)? So when you tighten, you don't ruin the bearings?
Because without that tube\spacer thingy the bearings are more or less ruined from the beginning...

 

[we4amigos]

Oh ! Jada555 is on to something there....I never thought of that:thumbsup: That's some solid advice there.

 

[bilbo]

Thanks for the advice jada555! It did not have a spacer when i tore it apart, but I made one out of some pipe before i put it back together. Maybe I need to make it a bit longer; I'll check on it when I put in the new bearings. I think I'll need to make another one anyway to accommodate the roller bearings as they appear a bit wider than the ball bearings.

 

[bilbo]

I got the roller bearings in the mail today and noticed an issue. They do not have an inner race, so the spacers on either side of the bearing clamp down on the outer race and prevent the wheel from turning. Gumpit, how did you deal with this?

 

[jada555]

Pic og the new bearing or bearing number?

 

[gumpit]

I got the roller bearings in the mail today and noticed an issue. They do not have an inner race, so the spacers on either side of the bearing clamp down on the outer race and prevent the wheel from turning. Gumpit, how did you deal with this?

Sorry,I just saw this. I can't remeber if I just used oversized washers on the outside or not. So the spacer was against the washer and the washer was against the outside rim of the bearing. Maybe Chad could go and look. The trike is in his shop. However I did it,it worked. I had been using those bearings for a couple years without a problem. I think I kept blowing out the stock thinner ones from wheelying too much.....the force of the axle when it came down.