Recumbent Newbie

[bladderhead]

On my Silvio I went from 170 to 155. I had a problem with the B bracket, but then I fixed it. I like the 155. The weirdness is going away. The cadence is creeping up. So is the speed. Also, I think it has improved the handling.

 

[torkjunky]

On my Silvio I went from 170 to 155. I had a problem with the B bracket, but then I fixed it. I like the 155. The weirdness is going away. The cadence is creeping up. So is the speed. Also, I think it has improved the handling.

Yes I agree on the handling. Even on my short ride yesterday it felt more stable. I didn't really notice speed change on flats but small grades did seem slower but hope they will increase as I ride more.

 

[torkjunky]

Mounted a bottle cage today. It is in a handy spot, I was afraid it might have some affect on steering but it didn't fell any different. I was going to mount 2 just off center on top of the boom but after drilling and taping the holes I relized it was going to be in the way so mounted one on the top.

 

[thwaters]

Even on my old 2008 model Softrider, I like the 155mm short cranks. I am 70 years old, 5ft. 9 inches, fairly short legs, and not in great shape, and tend to carry too many bags and too much stuff. Yes, it makes the gearing "higher", but my knees love it, and the cadence is easier to maintain. I live in relatively flat terrain. Still, I am going to "gear down" the gearing some to compensate. I spend more time in the lower gears than I used to.

 

[torkjunky]

Well it took me a month to figure out that sitting up while starting and stopping . I know I read it just didn't get it through my head until today. I could even start on a incline, slight one but never the less I could do and be stable and not wobble on starts. I watched a video of Maria ridding and noticed she was sitting up when taking off so I guess a picture is worth a thousand words or my thick skull just needs to see it.
I am going to ride a MS ride in Texas in a couple weeks with my son and wasn't even considering riding the clone but I am feeling more confident on the bike everyday and now it seems I can start out and not need half the road to do it so now I thinking in a couple more weeks I might be good enough to ride it. The only thing I don't know is if I my legs can pedel it for 2 days, seems I am using different muscles and not sure they are ready for that. I have logged 250 miles but 25 is my max ride lenght so far. I thinking if the weather is good tomorrow I might try a 50 to see how I feel. I fabed a headrest the other day and that helps with my neck getting tired.
I'll say again, this site is great.

 

[torkjunky]

A close up of the headrest also covered the seat pad

 

[torkjunky]

I know have a V20 framset that I will be building as the parts come in. I have built another clone from aluminum witch is lighter and longer than the frist one. I went on a 50 mile ride Sunday morning. There is one hill that for the life of me I cannot climb. Haven't been able to on either bike. I am in my lowest gear 34/36 but run out of gas about 100 ft. from the top. It is about 19 miles in on my route. Even though I have to walk the rest of the hill I still averaged 16.8 mph over the ride with one decent speed of 46.6 mph. I am a old fat guy, I have managed to loss 45lbs over the last year. I know I need to keep getting stronger but is there anything I can do to help accelerate the process of climbing. I am begining to think it is mental now. Hoping the Vendetta will climb better, I am planning on 11 speed with 52/34 and a 11/40 cassette.
Picture of the second clone.

 

[Bentas]

Another great looking build Barry, a couple off questions
Are the doval oval rings an improvement over round? Are you happy with them?
And are those forks alu and if so ,how did you get the width?

 

[Bill K]

There is one hill that for the life of me I cannot climb. Haven't been able to on either bike. I am in my lowest gear 34/36 but run out of gas about 100 ft. from the top.

Maybe you are just starting out too hard.
There is a hill on my commute to work that for me is a 7-minute climb, about 27 miles into my commute.
Many riders pass me at the bottom and get maybe 100 yards ahead. I just let them go. Then some of them blow up.
I pass them at about the midpoint and by the top of the climb they are completely out of my sight behind me (I absolutely love doing this, especially on the V20).

My suggestion: try to climb the hill at a constant sustainable effort and save the sprint for the top 100 feet.
If you are not comfortable riding really slow, this can cause you to push the speed up beyond your current conditioning which can cause you to blow up before the top of the climb. If so, practice low speed handling skills so that you are comfortable riding really slow.
Another option: get someone (that is slower than you) to pace you up the hill, then just follow their lead.

 

[torkjunky]

Another great looking build Barry, a couple off questions
Are the doval oval rings an improvement over round? Are you happy with them?
And are those forks alu and if so ,how did you get the width?

I had to clock the chainring forward one hole to get them at the right timing, I don't notice any difference but haven't put that many miles on them yet. Shifting is good, took a little adjusting on the FD but was pretty easy to get smooth shifting with either oval or round on the small ring.
The fork is aluminum and I used heat to spread it, just have to be really carful and not get it to hot. Lots of trial and error to get it right and everything straight.

Maybe you are just starting out too hard.
There is a hill on my commute to work that for me is a 7-minute climb, about 27 miles into my commute.
Many riders pass me at the bottom and get maybe 100 yards ahead. I just let them go. Then some of them blow up.
I pass them at about the midpoint and by the top of the climb they are completely out of my sight behind me (I absolutely love doing this, especially on the V20).

My suggestion: try to climb the hill at a constant sustainable effort and save the sprint for the top 100 feet.
If you are not comfortable riding really slow, this can cause you to push the speed up beyond your current conditioning which can cause you to blow up before the top of the climb. If so, practice low speed handling skills so that you are comfortable riding really slow.
Another option: get someone (that is slower than you) to pace you up the hill, then just follow their lead.

I will try that, the hill is about 1 1/4 mile long with a short very steep section at the start with a gradual grade and then another steep section [the one I'm having trouble with].
Thanks

 

[torkjunky]

Started putting the Vendetta together yesterday and road it for the frist time today. Frist impression is [I like]. It is stiffer and a little lighter than my clone. Even the handling seems better, atleast frist impression seems that way.
I need to work on the headrest [needs a little more padding at the top]. I swiped the crankset off the clone and noticed that the thread insert on the drive side is loose, so a new crankset is on the way.
It weighed 24.5 lbs as pictured.

 

[torkjunky]

Rode about 20 miles on the V20 today and hearing a creak in the front every now and then. Don't want to over tighten anything, just wondering if anyone else has had this issue or maybe not a issue but it bugs me.
I am impressed with the handling and speed of the bike. I hate to say it is easier to ride than my DIY clone and faster. Have already been 32 mph on flat ground on the vendetta, can only hold it for a short distance but bike is stable and acceleration is awesome.

 

[ratz]

Rode about 20 miles on the V20 today and hearing a creak in the front every now and then. Don't want to over tighten anything, just wondering if anyone else has had this issue or maybe not a issue but it bugs me.

1. Remove drive wheel, verify front end does not fall apart without the wheel, if it does the front triangle is not square and needs to be aligned correctly.
2. If the nose is square check for loose spokes which are always a cause of noise only when under power
3. Failing those two tighten the headset stack

 

[Jeremy S]

hearing a creak in the front every now and then.

For my bike this is about greasing the boom, slider and associated clamps, but unfortunately there are many possible causes.

 

[1happyreader]

hearing a creak in the front every now and then

Don't forget those pesky spokes, I am an obese rider on less expensive wheelsets. creaks happen.

 

[torkjunky]

Thanks for all the tips. Been busy with work haven't had time to look at it last couple days. I will go over it and hopefully can figure it out.

 

[torkjunky]

Well it was either the headset or the boom clamp but the creak is fixed.

 

[Bob10]

Short cranks feel better in my opinion. The smaller pedal circles feel more natural. But there is no advantage or disadvantage in the gearing because you have more than one gear. But short cranks will shift your highest and lowest gears a little in the bigger gear direction. And it will do it by a factor of the ratio of the distance your feet travel in a circle in either case. If you go from 170 mm cranks to 150 mm, the difference will be 13.3%. So your easiest gear will be 13.3% harder. So will your biggest gear though, which is a bonus on a fast bike. So you should consider getting an easier small gearing by getting a bigger large cog on the cassette. This effect is caused by the work it takes to move you and your bike a given distance compared to the distance your feet travel, which means your feet are doing more work per pedal revolution with short cranks. Which means all your gearing shifts in the harder direction. Which means you should get a bigger big cog on your cassette.

Joe,
MANY thanks for this explanation. I "knew" this....but only really now "get it". I plan to get a Silvio this Winter, and this is definitely one of important pieces of information to include on my "To Do" Silvio build list!
Bob

 

[torkjunky]

I tied 150mm on the frist clone I built with the oval chainrings. My knees starting hurting so I went to round chainrings but didn't help so then I went to 170mm and knee pain went away. I think that maybe I mash to hard and that is what caused the shorter cranks making my knees hurt. I have sense went back with the oval chainrings and knees are still OK. Just saying they weren't for me or at least not that short, I would like to try some 165's.

 

[LarryOz]

Not sure if this will work but here is a picture. I need to buil some sort of headrest it's OK now but longer rides I think is will be better with a headrest.

Great job on the build - Looks so much like a Vendetta that it could pass for an early prototype!