Having a bicycle is cool and inexpensive: the prices for new budget models are not bad, the choice of bikes in stores and on the Internet is huge. But a bicycle of his own production, personally patented, would be much more interesting.
A homemade bicycle is popular among fans of the process of assembling and disassembling mechanisms. Is it possible to create your own bike from scratch, having only available tools? Yes, it’s true that you won’t be able to make components such as a wheel, carriage assembly and transmission sprockets yourself.
It turns out that it is impossible to completely make a bicycle with your own hands. Of course, you will have to accept that it will not be possible to create a bike completely from scratch, but it is quite possible to make the most important thing - the frame. What is needed first to assemble the product? That's right, model it on paper.
To make the correct drawing yourself, you will have to try for a long time, since you must adhere to reference data on the length and diameters of the pipes. You also need to decide on the type of bike.
It’s easier to go the other way - take ready-made drawings. For example, let's take a drawing of a diamond-shaped road bike frame. The figure shows that the seat tube and front (cup) tubes must be strictly parallel to each other, and the lower main tube and the chainstay of the rear triangle must be spread at the same angle relative to the seat tube.
The lower and upper main pipes are fixed at some ends to the steering tube, and at the other to the seat tube. The top tube can be positioned horizontally or at an angle, it all depends on the model. In our case it is horizontal.
Picture of a closed singlespeed frame
Taking into account all dimensions and angles, the result should be the same design as on paper. The next steps after studying the drawing are cutting and welding pipes.
To make a homemade frame, you will need 7 pipes of the required sizes. Of these, 2 are short for the carriage and head tubes, four are medium for the rear stays and long for the main seat stays. The supporting structure of a simple road bike is made of steel alloys, so we select the material accordingly. Pipes must not be damaged or rusty. Next, the parts are connected using spot welding.
Manufacturing sequence:
Welded joints of stays and carriage cup
The next stage is the manufacture and pressing of the fork into the front of the frame. The whole process comes down to welding three metal pipes and making special cones for pressing. The length of the fork should be such that the level of the lower end coincides with the tip of the feathers on the rear triangle of the welded frame.
A homemade fork is an energy-intensive option; it is better to make it in the image and likeness of an existing one, or buy a ready-made one for a custom-made frame.
Pressing is done in a horizontal position:
The handlebar is installed in the fork body. It can be made from improvised means, the same metal pipes, and screwed on a special threaded fastener, but it is better to buy it separately. It turns out that you will have to buy everything except the frame and follow the standard rule of assembling a bike out of the box? Almost. After all, you still need to weld the dropouts under the rear wheel, and you need to do this yourself. And if the fork is homemade, seats are made for the front wheel.
So, dropouts are made according to the following scheme:
Both mounting holes must be positioned at exactly the same level, otherwise the wheel will not fit on the dropouts. And one more thing: the distance between the mounting holes should, at a minimum, correspond to tightening the nuts “all the way.” In other words, the wheel should not fall off the dropouts at least at maximum torque.
So the dropout holes should coincide along the axis
To get a full-fledged bicycle, you need to install all the working units listed in the title on a homemade frame. The most difficult stage will be the installation of the carriage and the “crank-rod-pedal” system.
The handlebar is inserted into the fork body and is firmly fixed with a bolt on the top. Before installation, it is recommended to lightly lubricate the inner walls of the fork, and also accurately set the position of the handlebars - the handles are strictly perpendicular to the stroke of the bicycle. By twisting, you can throw off the straight position of the steering wheel. It’s not scary, just adjust the position with one hand while holding the frame firmly with the other.
It is inserted into a vertical pipe and fixed with a metal clamp with a nut. The height of the saddle on a road bike is adjusted to the height of the handlebars.
The next stage is in a glass. The carriage is a complex transmission unit, which during installation will require a special tool - a squeezer. All work on assembling parts is carried out in a strictly specified order.
Tool for removing and tightening connecting rods
And finally, inserting the wheels into the seats. We remember that homemade dropouts must be precisely coordinated in advance before production, otherwise they will have to be cut off, made and welded again. Wheel installation sequence:
When tightening, it is better to use a dynamometer to obtain accurate tightening torques and geometric integrity. This is especially important for a homemade design.
As you can see, homemade bikes are a very relative concept. It is still possible to make the supporting structure yourself, but the remaining components will have to be purchased. However, even such a bike deserves the title of exclusive: it was made and assembled independently. The completion of the work will be a thorough running-in of your brainchild, identifying and correcting shortcomings.
When starting to create bicycles with their own hands, craftsmen should evaluate how often and for what purposes they plan to use homemade bicycles. A homemade two-wheeled design is rather an experiment, an opportunity to prove to myself: I can do more than others, because assembling a vehicle from scratch is a troublesome task. Many parts cannot be made on your own, so you have to run to special stores for such components.
Another important point is to understand very clearly what each component of the bicycle is needed for, which components cannot be abandoned, otherwise it will suffer or it will not travel more than 2 m.
If you have a frame left over from an old, leaky bicycle, great, the main thing is that it is in good condition and free of rust. If there is no frame, it doesn’t matter either; purchase steel, aluminum or titanium narrow pipes.
The basis is a drawing on which all the components of the bicycle are displayed. It is better if the sketch is made in 3D mode on a computer, you can immediately assess the real dimensions of the necessary parts and get an impression of the proportionality of each. Welding remains the preferred method of connecting functional components, if you additionally plan to attach a trunk to the frame or provide recesses for bolts. Holes are also left for bolts for hanging components.
It's hard to imagine homemade functioning bicycles without a front fork. If you plan to drive the bike, sliding down the mountain and climbing up, it is better to install a soft shock absorber. You should not mount BMX forks in mountain models - they are too heavy. When making a fork with your own hands, calculate the following parameters:
Transmission components are selected based on the amount allocated for this part of the bicycle. Experts do not advise assembling a chain with your own hands or creating a speed switch; you’ll just waste your time and you won’t achieve good quality anyway. When you come to the store, choose a classic transmission; the placental format has a number of significant disadvantages.
They are divided into rim and disc. If cycling is done in dry weather, rim brake pads are suitable; they are inexpensive and significantly lighten the design. Rim brakes won't withstand extreme travel - use disc brakes. With the latter, riding safety and comfort for the cyclist are ensured.
The wheels, of course, should be bought ready-made, as well as the saddle. If you prefer a sporty riding style, pay attention to hard and elastic saddles that take into account the anatomical features of the cyclist.
It would seem that it would be easier to choose pedals. Beginners in cycling believe that, apart from the classics, designers have not come up with anything else, but they are mistaken. The modernized devices secure the legs tightly, which allows the feet not to slip, which means there is no need to make unplanned stops. At the same time, the risk of injury on the road increases.
Experts tell us how to make a bicycle with a comfortable handlebar. It must meet the basic requirements:
The steering wheel is bent according to a pre-made sketch, but do not forget that it contains important control components that control the activation of the brakes, handles that change speeds, a sound signal, and a headlight. Modern bikes can be equipped with an on-board computer.
The steering wheel is fixed to the stem; it is preferable that the last component be adjustable. To assemble the steering wheel, use durable materials that will not let you down: steel, titanium or carbon.
Craftsmen tell us how to make a bicycle with your own hands, starting with the frame. It's unlikely that you can do the job yourself, so enlist the help of a friend. For the frame, prepare 7 pipes, 2 of them should be short, 4 medium ones - they are placed for the rear stays, the long ones remain for the underseat component.
Follow this frame assembly sequence:
The fork is pressed in in a horizontal position. How to make a bicycle yourself at the stage of pressing the fork, step-by-step instructions are provided by the masters:
The landing recesses are placed at the same level, otherwise the wheel will not fit on the dropouts. The step between the mounting holes is equal to tightening the nuts to the maximum.
A fully functioning great bicycle requires installation of working units on the frame. The most difficult thing is to install and debug the cranks and pedals on your carriage. And again, you can’t do without a guide on how to make a bicycle with your own hands:
Now you have the knowledge of how to make a bicycle with your own hands almost from scratch. The work begins with the creation of a drawing, and after that the master’s idea is gradually brought to life. Some components can be made yourself, others are better purchased, so be prepared for the expense. The completed bicycle will become a real landmark of the area; everyone will probably want to ride such a device.
In his new project I want to show how you can use an ordinary bicycle to with your own hands build something unusual. The bike will be easily transformed while riding from a regular bike to a bike with a high handlebar and seat (and back)!
The convertible bike is made from a full suspension mountain bike and a set of gas shock absorbers. The spring on the mountain bike was removed to allow the bike to spin freely; the fork and rear triangle of the bike have been lengthened. Gas shock absorbers expand when the bike is in a high position and compress when it returns to a low position.
Below are the general steps to build this type of bike. Special materials and their sizes will vary depending on the materials available, the type of bike and the body type of the rider.
The bicycle components are removed before cutting and welding.
The connecting rod is removed using a special puller.
For other parts of the structure, use standard tools (nippers, adjustable wrench, socket/hex keys).
The shock absorbers also need to be removed from the fork.
The bicycle is trimmed behind the carriage. Use a sharpening stone to clean up the cut areas before welding the extension.
To extend the rear triangle, you can use a piece of square steel pipe about 27 cm long.
To extend the fork I used two pieces of 60 cm long steel pipe.
Initially, the distances between potential mounting points on the bike were measured to calculate the possible expansion and contraction lengths for gas shock absorbers. The wheels and seat were re-aligned to make the measuring process easier, and the cranks and pedals were also re-aligned to ensure they would not contact the shocks in any position.
Next, gas shock absorbers were used, the length of which in the expanded state is 94 cm, and in the compressed state 51 cm.
The gas shock absorbers used on the bike use a force of 41 kg. With a cyclist weighing 55 kg, the total shock absorption force will be at 66%. This is great for slow riding, but will cause the bike to compress slightly when riding fast over small bumps and potholes in the road. Locking the shock absorbers or using higher damping force may help solve this problem.
The upper end of the gas shock absorbers is mounted in the center of the triangular part of the bicycle frame near the seat. Gas shock absorbers come with metal flare fittings and 8mm threaded ball pins. An 8mm coupling nut is welded to a 6mm diameter steel tube to fit the triangle and the resulting structure is then welded to the bike.
The bottom end of the gas shock absorbers is attached to a similar steel plate, which is attached to the bike's rear frame mounting holes with screws.
The derailleurs were not mounted backwards, so the bike only has one speed. The rear derailleur was used as a chain tensioner and a small piece of wire was used to lock it in place. The two new chains were connected together to make one large chain.
I used new 2 meter long brake cables; for the rear cable, existing cable deflectors and ties were used to hold it in place. For the front brake cable, a single tie was used to hold it in place.
The bike was cleaned and repainted; The pedal from a trial bike was installed on the left side as a step to get on the bike comfortably.
Now you can hit the road on an unusual transforming bike!
But not every craftsman has an experimental chainsaw on hand. And just for those who have already run out of chainsaws, and the scope for mechanization of everyday life is still very wide, I suggest that you familiarize yourself with the review of homemade products using muscle power. Today we will not consider the great variety of vehicles born from the minds of the inventors of the bicycle - this is a topic for a separate discussion. We will look at stationary solutions.
Perhaps the simplest and most obvious application for a pedal drive is an electric generator. The great Chinese industry produces a great variety of all kinds of generators that can be installed on a bicycle in a few minutes, without even losing mobility:
But, as the reader will correctly grin, these methods are extremely unsporting for our homemade person. Therefore, we take a sports, or not quite sports, bicycle, a table, two rollers from a dot matrix printer, a car generator, an inverter and some bright paint:
It is assembled relatively quickly, which cannot be said about the following designs:
And if you combine a bicycle generator with a computer, you can spend a couple of hours on the Internet with health benefits.
The next popular use of pedal power surprised me a little. It turns out that washing machines are quite often assembled with pedal traction.
Although it looks like a washing machine, it is already a full-fledged industrial machine for stirring soap:
To grind apples and beans, the following two bicycle grinders were created:
Watering tomatoes in a greenhouse is not a problem when you have a bicycle pump at hand... Or rather, a bicycle pump under your feet:
What does the Chinese woman Kin Min Sal, soy cutlets, cook for lunch? And here the bicycle chopper is indispensable. “It’s a big family,” as the poet said.
In the hot countries of Africa, it is very difficult to supply electricity, and sometimes you just want to drink a glass of cocktail. Not a problem when you have a bike blender:
The hazelnut is certainly hard,
Although walnut too,
However, this unit
They can be easily cleaned by:
In North American countries, the corn shelling machine is probably popular. I couldn’t figure out how she does it from the photograph. It is necessary to note the brutality of the design, apparently this is a tribute to the American traditions of industrial design.
I thought it would be simple and simple to supplement the manual drive of the mill with a pedal one:
A compact snow blower will help you quickly clear paths. Of course, if you have such smooth paths.
And in conclusion, I would like to especially mention our fellow countryman - plumber Mikhalych from Chelyabinsk, who designed and assembled a unique spinning rod design that allows you to increase the speed of fishing. In addition, due to the increased diameter of the reel, high torque is achieved and, accordingly, the tension force of the fishing line increases. Unfortunately, the issues of effective braking of the reel when casting gear and reliable fixation of the fisherman on the shore have not yet been finally resolved.
DIY motorbike
I'm not a fan of high-speed driving: 40-50 km/h in the vicinity of the dacha is quite fast for me. And in order to move one hundred kilograms of “my majesty”, neither exorbitant power nor the elephantine mass of the carrying “piece of iron” is needed.
Someone will advise: well, take a fifty-kopeck scooter!
Firstly, the “stools” are a bit expensive. Secondly, in a village where there is a dacha, this is “equipment until the first breakdown” - it’s unlikely that 300 km from the city I can easily find an imported spare part if necessary.
Thirdly, the scooter weighs a lot: how can you transport it to your dacha in a passenger car? Drive under your own power? Not funny! After 300 km of travel I will be left without arms, without legs, without a fifth point...
Two “idlers” who have become related are going to the dacha.
When I was thinking about this, I came across the article “We’re riding standing up” in “Moto” No. 9, 2005. The author told how he adapted a “cheap” motor to a scooter. I was hooked and I rushed to the bike market.
But the trouble is, the sellers unanimously claimed that they were not releasing the “cheap” product now (maybe they were lying?). I don’t know how it would have ended, but I remembered “Mole”. The one that “lives” in my dacha and cultivates the soil for only two days a year: one in May, the second in September. Its 60 cc two-stroke is twice as powerful as the “cheap” one - 2.6 “horses” versus 1.3. Assembled with gas tank, muffler, manual starter, air filter and gearbox. And I decided to adapt it to another “loafer” - a folding bicycle that had been collecting dust on the mezzanine for three years.
Gas lever (indicated by arrow).
I made a shelf from a 5mm duralumin sheet and installed it instead of the rear trunk. It is held in a vertical plane by two racks from an old bicycle. In the longitudinal one there is a hole with which it is put on the pipe; a saddle is fixed in the hole. And the lateral stability of the structure is guaranteed by the slope on the right side. The motor was screwed onto this fairly rigid structure with four bolts.
On the left of the steering wheel: 1 - clutch release lever; 2 - lock lever; 3 - ignition switch button.
The drive to the rear wheel was made by a belt, with a tension roller from the timing belt of the VAZ-V8. The drive pulley was left standard, and the driven one matched the gear ratio from the MB walk-behind tractor. It is aluminum, two-strand. On a lathe I cut off the extra stream - the one that is wider. How do you attach the pulley to the wheel? I found another pulley (the inclination of the side surfaces of most pulleys corresponds to the angle of inclination of the spokes), and made cuts in it with a “grinder” that coincided with the crosshairs of the spokes. I installed it exactly in the center of the wheel using a special bushing. I drilled holes in it and bolted it to the spokes through large washers. And I already screwed the driven pulley to it with three screws. The gear ratio turned out to be extremely successful. And one more thing: the drive pulley is double, and next to the engine on the shelf there is enough space for a small generator. Do you catch the thread?
Clutch mechanism: 1 - cable; 2 - plate; 3 - bolts - guide plates; 4 - roller; 5 - springs.
The Mole does not have a clutch mechanism. Why not transfer this function to a belt drive? To do this, the roller tensioning the belt was not fixed rigidly - it was constantly pressed by a spring. If you squeeze it and move the roller away, the belt slips. Here's your clutch! The clutch release lever is homemade. The free play of the plate with the roller is as much as 7 cm (this is with a margin - after all, the belt stretches out over time), and for motorcycle clutch levers it is no more than 2 cm. What happened can be seen in the photo. The disadvantage of the design is that you have to directly, without a reinforcing arm, “fight” with the springs of the tension roller. But this can be tolerated - my car does not have a gearbox, so I have to operate the clutch lever very rarely - only during starts and stops. The lever in the clamped position secures a small locking lever. It helps out when you need to disengage the clutch for a long time, for example, when riding “like a bicycle.” Instead of a clutch cable, I inserted a thin steel wire lubricated with lithol into the braid. The braid does not have sharp bends, so the wire moves easily in it. The main advantage of such a replacement is that the wire is much more reliable than the cable that is in short supply in the village.
The main component is under the baseball cap.
Front and rear brakes are regular bicycle brakes. The rest of the controls on the steering wheel are standard from the “Mole”: on the left is the “jammer”, on the right under the thumb is the gas lever.
Conducted tests in December. Starting the motor with a cord. I started using the pedals. Two or three turns - and you can forget about them.
By the way, the forced cooling fan of the “Mole” ensures that the motor does not overheat at low speed. I asked a car driver I knew to drive in sync with me to record the speed. It turned out that the “maximum speed” is over 60 km/h. But such a speed seemed dangerous to me - it was a bicycle after all. And at 40 km/h it’s pure pleasure! For this engine, “forty” is a walking mode. Any rise is a trifle for him.
This is how the driven pulley is attached to the wheel: 1 - driven pulley; 2 - machined pulley; 3 - bolts with large washers.
What did I get? What I wanted. In the trunk of my Zhiguli, it’s easy to put an individual folding vehicle weighing 32 kg (bicycle - 20, motor - 12), capable of moving “my majesty” at a speed of 60 km/h and a little faster. Assembly and disassembly takes five to ten minutes. Gasoline consumption is no more than 2-2.5 liters per 100 km. There is nothing to break in my design. In stock it is enough to keep a belt, one or two meters of steel wire and a tension roller from the “eight”! And as a last resort, there are pedals.
This is how the driven pulley is attached to the wheel: 1 - driven pulley; 2 - machined pulley; 3 - bolts with large washers.
Common data:
Engine- “Mole”, displacement - 60 cm3, power - 2.6 hp, carburetor - K60V.
Transmission:
homemade belt drive, belt - 1400 mm,
driving pulley - standard 60 mm, outer diameter of driven pulley - 255 mm
(optimal for wheel diameter 600 mm). Chassis:
folding bike "Impulse".
Tires:
front and rear - 47-507.
Brakes:
regular bicycle ones. Electrical equipment: not yet available.
