Categories: all aviation Building a Biplane bicycle gadgets misc motorcycle theater
Around 11 last night, I got the Xtracycle finished. Well, "finished." There's more to do, but it was finally to the point where a bike shop would have been comfortable selling it as a complete bicycle.
Its first ride was a very brief ride from work to home (around .7 miles -- maybe a whole kilometer!). No headlight, no mirror, but it was all there.
Its first real ride was tonight. I rode the four and a half miles from my temporary dwelling to my house. It was something of a non-event, really. Everything just worked like it was supposed to, for the most part. The rear derailleur isn't adjusted quite right, so there were a few spastic moments as the chain jumped between gears, but I think I got that sorted out. The seat wasn't adjusted exactly right, so I shifted it around -- it's still not right, but it's closer. But, other than that, everything was fine.
The bike definitely feels different. Compared to my commuter, it's a bit more steady (due to the considerably longer wheelbase), but turns feel odd. There's something strange about the geometry, but I can't quite figure out what it is.
After its proper inaugural ride, I spent a few minutes installing the horn. This is a great horn, I'll have to take a picture of it in daylight. I got it at Aaron's Cycle Repair, at the same time I got the Xtracycle add-on. It's a hand (or foot) operated manual pump, which directly operates a pair of car-type air horns. It's impressive looking, with two full-size air horns strapped to the legs of the fork, and this big red plunger up near the steering head. Once you get over how it looks, the sound is even more impressive. It's deafening, and being a two-tone like it is, sounds exactly like a car horn.
I'll have to see if my installation will be durable or not -- the horns are strapped to the unsprung side of the forks, and they may bobble too much in actual use.
In any case, a pleasing enough first ride. Hooray for cargo capacity!
Posted at 23:22 permanent link category: /bicycle
Categories: all aviation Building a Biplane bicycle gadgets misc motorcycle theater