Building the Atomic Zombie Warrior Racing Trike

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Dwight Mills
6 years ago
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Thanks for the birthday wish. ~ George H., Texas Building a practical velomobile This project is on hold until we find a practical place to build it! AZTV Read our blog!

My journey begins in about 1971 when I was a fourth grade boy without a bike. All of my friends had bikes and some even had custom bikes, but my family did not have the means to buy me a bike.

I found a frame that looked pretty straight, handle bars, wheels and tires. With a little help from a friend, I carried all these pieces home and began assembling my new bike.

1 Thanks for the birthday wish. ~ George H., Texas Building a practical velomobile This project is on hold until we find a practical place to build it! AZTV Read our blog! Building the Atomic Zombie Warrior Racing Trike By David Monk, Elwood, Utah, USA T he ancient Chinese philosopher Lauzi (c604 B.C. - c531 B.C.) wrote, A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. My journey begins in about 1971 when I was a fourth grade boy without a bike. All of my friends had bikes and some even had custom bikes, but my family did not have the means to buy me a bike. So, one spring afternoon, I walked the five or so miles across town to the city dump and began to look for pieces to build my own bike. I found a frame that looked pretty straight, handle bars, wheels and tires. With a little help from a friend, I carried all these pieces home and began assembling my new bike. A few hours and a can of spray paint later I had an awesome bike. It was sized for someone closer to six feet tall, but it was mine and it was fast. I rode that bike for many years putting on hundreds of miles per year. Although, I couldn t sit on the seat for three years until I was tall enough to sit with my feet resting on the horizontal pedals, I still rode everywhere. Continued on page 2) 1

Hello from Italy. Very happy I found your site. ~ Enzo P., Italy (Continued from page 1) Since that time, I have owned many bikes of all types and love riding.

$As the years clicked by I began to think I could have a recumbent at a fraction of the cost of purchasing a factory build model if I used some of the skills obtained as a boy and built my own.$ I looked at different designs and scoured the Internet for ideas but never really found anything that struck a chord. That is, until I happened upon the Atomic Zombie web site. Wow, I thought.

I looked at different designs and scoured the Internet for ideas but never really found anything that struck a chord. That is, until I happened upon the Atomic Zombie web site. Wow, I thought.

2 Hello from Italy. Very happy I found your site. ~ Enzo P., Italy (Continued from page 1) Since that time, I have owned many bikes of all types and love riding. As an adult, I have always been drawn to unconventional modes of transportation whether it is a strange car, aircraft or bike. In particular, I have always wanted a recumbent bike but could not justify the cost when I really didn t have the need. As the years clicked by I began to think I could have a recumbent at a fraction of the cost of purchasing a factory build model if I used some of the skills obtained as a boy and built my own. I looked at different designs and scoured the Internet for ideas but never really found anything that struck a chord. That is, until I happened upon the Atomic Zombie web site. Wow, I thought. There were plans for some of the coolest looking rides and the best part was I could build my own. I immediately chose six plans and made the purchase. The one plan that was most appealing was the Warrior Racing Trike. The winters in Northern Utah keep me inside most of the time, so I put on a coat and gloves and spent many cold evenings in the garage building my trike. I began by picking up some square tubing and started haunting the Figure 1: Rolling Frame local second hand stores for the needed parts. As I was trolling the Deseret Industries store in Logan, Utah, I found a brand new, never used rear wheel already setup for disc brakes. I found an older mountain bike with pretty decent components that I could use for the drive train. I knew I needed head tubes that were similar for the front steering on the trike, and it turned out that there were two identical Hello Kitty bikes, which I snagged. My cash outlay was under $30 and I left the store that day with enough parts to get me 80% of the Warrior. Once back home, I started cutting up the bikes and fabricating the frame. The plans are excellent and quite easy to follow, but it took some time to get comfortable working with the steel and welding. It has been quite a few years since I did any serious welding and I had to re-learn a (Continued on page 3) 2

Just checking in to say hi and thanks for the welcome. ~ Steve N., New Hampshire (Continued from page 2) lot.

I turned to the Internet and researched all I could find on both arc welding and wire feed.

A visit to the welding supply store for the most suitable diameter feed wire (0.023 ) and an Argon/CO2 tank, and the results were nothing short of miraculous.

3 Just checking in to say hi and thanks for the welcome. ~ Steve N., New Hampshire (Continued from page 2) lot. I own an arc welder, but I also own a wire feed welder so I tried welding the thin-wall tubing with each and quickly learned that I either lacked the skill or needed help setting up the welders. I turned to the Internet and researched all I could find on both arc welding and wire feed. I concluded that with a little work (shielding gas, weld wire and settings), the MIG welder would be best suited to my skill and the project. A visit to the welding supply store for the most suitable diameter feed wire (0.023 ) and an Argon/CO2 tank, and the results were nothing short of miraculous. I was able to lay down fine looking beads without burn-through and they were very strong. As the building of the frame progressed, there were minor cosmetic improvements made that would enhance the final look of the trike. First, to get a streamlined look, the steering head tubes were welded completely to the wings, and then the outside welds were blended to make a smooth transition from the wing tube and around the head tubes. Figure 2 (left): Steering tube and Figure 3: Nose detail Next, as the plans suggested, I spent time to make the nice rounded nose, again, for the streamlined look. A leftover piece of head tube was used, which fit nicely inside the 1.5 square tubing, and tacked in. Then, the sides were shaped to the radius of the head tube and all the seams welded and cleaned up. (Continued on page 4) 3

Got my bottom brackets thanks! ~ Vern N., Louisiana (Continued from page 3) AZTV By far, the most challenging aspect of building the Warrior trike was finding front wheels.

I found nice hubs with the 20 mm axle through-hole and bought nice rims and spokes and built the front wheels myself. They turned out perfect, and I have one more skill in my pocket.

4 Got my bottom brackets thanks! ~ Vern N., Louisiana (Continued from page 3) AZTV By far, the most challenging aspect of building the Warrior trike was finding front wheels. Hours were spent searching the Internet trying to find a 20 rim with a 20 mm through-axle hub. I could not find what I was looking for, so I decided to learn how to lace my own wheels. I found nice hubs with the 20 mm axle through-hole and bought nice rims and spokes and built the front wheels myself. They turned out perfect, and I have one more skill in my pocket. The next challenge was to find just the right handlebars. I tried four or five different handlebar configurations, but I didn t like any of them. The bars from the mountain bike were too straight, and the bars from the Hello Kitty bikes didn t have a wide enough straight center section so they interfered with the frame. I even tried modifying a set of handlebars by heating and bending to the shape I needed, but that didn t work out very well. I finished building the steering and temporarily used the straight mountain bike bars, but I knew I would have to come back to the handlebars before I would be satisfied with the result. So, I left it and moved on with building the rest of the trike. My local electronics chain store has lots of polyethylene packing material that is useful for padding on the seat, and if you ask, they are happy to give it away and save the hassle of disposal. I found some pieces about 1.25 thick that were perfect for seat padding. To get a finished look, the foam padding was rounded on the edges and a half yard of vinyl boat seat material was used to fully cover the padding, wrapped around the wood structure and stapled down the centerline of the back of the seat. This line of staples is hidden by the frame tubing. When I was putting the finishing touches on the frame, my wife could see that I would soon complete the project, and she wisely insisted that I have a flag so that I could be seen by cars on the road. To satisfy this request, I picked up some threaded connector nuts and welded them to the upper seat back support, then drilled them to accept the ¼ flag stick. Cable guides and mounting provisions for a rack or pannier mounts were some final details added to the frame. Figure 4: Guides for flag sticks One of the best stores for any bike builder is Recycled Cycles with several locations around the US. I was on business in Seattle, (Continued on page 5) 4

5 I guess your bike building season is coming to a close. I m settling in for a long winter, too. Stay warm. ~ Oliver P., New York Read our blog! (Continued from page 4) WA and one afternoon found and visited the store there. It was like hitting the jackpot in Las Vegas! I found three identical disc brake calipers in excellent shape for all three wheels, SPD compatible clip-less pedals and a bunch of other odds and ends that were so cheap I could not believe it. Everything was coming together nicely; the end was in sight. However, still no suitable handlebars. The style of handlebar I wanted was from the old style cruiser bikes just like I had on the junk yard bike I built as a kid wait, I realized, that bike was still sitting behind the shed at my father s house in Idaho! A quick call and it was all arranged, the bike would arrive with a relative in a few days. Most of the bike was unusable, but the handlebars and headset were perfect. The headset went into the parts bucket for the next build and the handlebars went on the trike. My bike building had come full circle. All that was left was the paint and cabling. The paint for my trike had to be selected carefully to match the other details. The desired was a bright green for the frame and satin black for the steering components, so the search began Figure 5: Powder coated parts for the best paint for the job. I could only find the right frame color online and it was an automotive grade. By the time I priced out the chemicals for preparing the surfaces, the primer, the paint and how much time it was going to take, I started looking hard at powder coating. The local powder coating company was very excited for the opportunity to help me out. They gave me a detailed tour of their facilities and explained all the prep steps that would be completed, the types of coating used and longterm advantages. I was sold, but at what cost? We discussed the details and what color each part would be, picked out colors and finishes and timing for the job. Then they hit me with the total price it was LESS than the cost for paint! I left a pile of parts with them and a few days later picked up the most beautiful bunch of parts I could imagine. For assembly, I used all new cables, new grips on the handlebars and high pressure tires all around. (Continued on page 8) 5

Thanks for your help, Kat. I m better at building bikes than figuring out how to use email! ~ Barry H., California Read our blog!

Head tubes This means you won't have to dig around for a matching set of bottom brackets when you are building a trike or quad and need more than one identical head tube or bottom bracket.

AtomicZombie head tubes are 3.5 inches in length so that they can be used on square tube frames without needing to be trimmed down.

6 Thanks for your help, Kat. I m better at building bikes than figuring out how to use ! ~ Barry H., California Read our blog! Head tubes and bottom brackets Thanks to many requests, we are manufacturing head tubes and bottom brackets for your bike and trike projects. Head tubes This means you won't have to dig around for a matching set of bottom brackets when you are building a trike or quad and need more than one identical head tube or bottom bracket. AtomicZombie head tubes and bottom brackets are "welder friendly", meaning they have a slightly thicker wall so that distortions will be kept to a minimum as you weld your frame tubing to the parts. AtomicZombie head tubes are 3.5 inches in length so that they can be used on square tube frames without needing to be trimmed down. Head tubes will fit standard head tube cups and have a small end taper so that installation of the cups will be easy. With a slightly larger wall thickness than a standard head tube, our parts will hold their shape after being welded to your frame tubing, making it easy to re-install the cups when your project is completed. Bottom brackets Our bottom bracket shells are also weld ready and will fit standard 3-piece bottom bracket hardware. There are also no side holes that need to be filled, so you can complete your bike or trike with minimal cleanup work. (Continued on page 7) 6

We are manufacturing bicycle parts based on demand, and will try to ensure that we have many items in stock so that you can get your bikes and trikes on the road sooner than later; however, we cannot

7 It s great to be a member of the AZ family. Thanks for the Facebook add. ~ Lou D., UK (Continued from page 6) These parts sell quickly, so if you need to get a few for your project, please visit our store and order your parts as soon as possible. We are manufacturing bicycle parts based on demand, and will try to ensure that we have many items in stock so that you can get your bikes and trikes on the road sooner than later; however, we cannot guarantee that every part will always be in stock. You can still place an order for backordered parts. Huh!? I didn t know that! Sorry, but we cannot do custom orders at this time. AtomicZombie sells bike parts? Cool! Once again, thanks to our community for letting us know how we can help keep your hobby in high gear! Parts orders shipping date Please note that the next round of parts orders will be shipped November 9,2013. Why? (see video below). We expect that backordered parts will be in before this date. However, if for some reason there is a delay, those customers who have backordered parts will receive an confirming when their order will be shipped. Be sure to place your parts order no later than 6 pm Eastern Time on Friday, November 8, 2013 if you want your order to ship on November 9. When your order is ready to be shipped, you will receive an from United States Postal Service (USPS) with the date of shipment and tracking information (USA only). AZTV webisode 7 There and back again an AtomicZombie s tale

8 Lots of great help on the forum. Making new friends and enjoying the experience. ~ Paul H., UK. (Continued from page 5) AZTV Everything went together splendidly and, finally, the big day came. It was ready to ride. It was a beautiful spring day and the temperatures were in the 70s. Off I rode and immediately got into a race with some neighborhood kids on their bikes (I smoked them easily). Around the block, I was stopped by some folks walking along who commented on how cool the trike was and wanted to know if it was easy to ride. I let them sit on it and pedal Figure 6: Blue ribbon Warrior Tadpole Trike around a bit, then the big question came, Could you build two for my husband and me? I suppose about $2,500 each would be reasonable? Even with the custom built wheels and all the details including powder coating (and the welding supplies), I had spent about ¼ of that amount. This machine was a head turner everywhere I went. The Box Elder County Fair happens the third week of August and I decided that I would enter my Warrior Trike in the Adult Crafts section. I won a Blue Ribbon (the judges score card rated it excellent in every category), but more than that were all the positive comments from people who saw the trike on display. Building the Atomic Zombie Warrior Trike was an amazing experience and the loads of positive feedback have exceeded my expectations in every way. If I can give any advice for anyone thinking of building any AZ design, it is this: What are you waiting for? Start building now. I can hardly wait to see (Continued on page 9) 8

, Australia (Continued from page 8) what comes out of my

David s Warrior Tadpole Trike Congrats, David, on your

Hopefully, your story will inspire others to take up this

9 I love being a bike building zombie! Many thanks for all the cool stuff you have online. ~ Bruce Y., Australia (Continued from page 8) what comes out of my workshop this winter. David s Warrior Tadpole Trike Congrats, David, on your excellent build and winning a blue ribbon. Hopefully, your story will inspire others to take up this rewarding hobby. Thanks for sharing your story and pictures. Contribute to the AZ newsletter. We welcome your stories and pictures. Contact koolkat(at)atomiczombie.com. 9

10 Having a great time building my first recumbent and learning a lot thanks to the forum. ~ Bruno B., Italy Freewheel and disc brake adapters for trike & quad projects AZTV Freewheel Adapter Disc Brake Adapter Our Delta Trike Axle Freewheel Adapter (left) fits any Shimano style thread-on freewheel and a standard six bolt bicycle disc brake rotor. Drilled for a 3/4 inch axle and includes a 1/4 inch mounting bolt. Disc brake mounting holes are tapped for standard M5 bolts. This part will fit the following plans directly: StreetFighter Racing Quad, KyotoCruiser Tandem Trike, LodeRunner Cargo Trike, and Aurora Delta Racing Trike. This fits onto any 3/4 inch axle and allows the installation of a standard Shimano style threadon freewheel and bicycle disc brake rotor. With this part, you can add a pedal transmission to any trike or quadcycle using only standard bicycle components. The included locking bolt secures the part to the axle and allows for easy removal at a later time. The six disc rotor mounting holes are also tapped so you can mount your bicycle disc brake rotor using the standard M5 bolts that were supplied with it. The FDAX34 Delta Trike Axle FreeWheel Adapter is a high quality machined part made of aluminum and anodized black. (Continued on page 11) 10

Note: Before purchasing this part for use on these plans, read through them first so you can understand what will need to be changed in order to make them fit properly.

11 I don t think you charge enough for your plans given the amount of detail contained in them. The 6 for $36 special is great. ~ Scott M., Australia (Continued from page 10) This part can fit the following plans with modifications: TimberWolf Suspension Trike, DeltaWolf Racing Trike, DeltaRunner Delta Trike, Gladiator Chopper Trike. Note: Before purchasing this part for use on these plans, read through them first so you can understand what will need to be changed in order to make them fit properly. It helps to own one or more of the above plans in order to see how the part should fit before you attempt any modifications. If you are unsure about modifying our plans to use this part, or would like to know if our parts will fit your own custom design, then visit our forum and we will answer your questions. And, the Delta Trike Axle Disc Brake Adapter (right) fits any industry standard 6 bolt bicycle disc brake rotor. Drilled for a 3/4 inch axle and includes a 1/4 inch mounting bolt. Disc brake mounting holes are tapped for standard M5 bolts. Our Delta Trike Axle Disc Brake Adapter fits onto any 3/4 inch axle and allows for the installation of a standard ISO standard 6 bolt bicycle disc brake rotor. With this part, you can add reliable disc brake stopping power to any trike or quadcycle using only standard bicycle components. The included locking bolt secures the part to the axle and allows for easy removal at a later time. The 6 disc rotor mounting holes are also tapped so you can mount your bicycle disc brake rotor using the standard M5 bolts that are supplied with it. The DBAX34 Delta Trike Disc Brake Adapter is a high quality machined part made of aluminum and anodized black. This part will fit the following plans directly: StreetFighter Recumbent Racing QuadCycle, LodeRunner Single Rider Cargo Trike, and Aurora Delta Racing Trike. This part can fit the following plans with modifications: TimberWolf Suspension Delta Trike, DeltaWolf Recumbent Racing Trike, DeltaRunner Recumbent Delta Trike, Gladiator Phat Ass Chopper Trike. Note: Before purchasing this part for use on these plans, read through them first so you can understand what will need to be changed in order to make them fit properly. It helps to own one or more of the above plans in order to see how the part should fit before you attempt any modifications. If you are unsure about modifying our plans to use this part, or would like to know if our parts will fit your own custom design, then visit our forum and we will answer your questions. See the Plans section on our web site for more information on these and other projects. We want to see pictures of your workshop! Whether it s indoors or outdoors, big or small show us where you build your bike projects. Visit the AZ forum and join us. 11

12 Hello Brad and Kat. I sure enjoy building bikes. Thanks for the inspiration. ~ George P., Scotland Hub flange discs for your bike projects All hub flange discs are sold as a set of four identical discs. Our laser cut Hub Flange Discs will make it easier for you to build your own delta trike wheels and save you time on your project. This Hub Flange Disc is made with 24 spoke holes so that you can build wheels directly onto any 3/4" axle using rims with 48 spokes. The Hub Flange Discs are made of steel and are approximately 1/8 inch thick as required by the plans. Spoke holes are 7/64" in diameter so that standard bicycles spokes can be used. AtomicZombie Hub Flange Discs come in several varieties with various spoke hole counts and axle hole diameters. Each of our DIY plans offer a recommended axle size and spoke count, but you can certainly change this to suit your design needs or parts availability. For instance, the Aurora Trike can be built using rims with 36 spokes rather than 48 spokes, or the DeltaWolf can be made using a 3/4 inch axle rather than a 5/8 inch axle. Please make sure that you order the correct Hub Flange Disc size for your project. To keep costs to a minimum, our Hub Flange Discs are laser cut from flat sheet metal. Each disc will have a small imperfection on the outer edge and inner edge where the laser started cutting out the disc. There is also a mill scale on the surface of the metal that will need to be removed using sandpaper or a sanding disc. Neither of these imperfections will compromise the strength of the disc, and once they are built onto your hubs and painted, the imperfections will be unnoticeable. (Continued on page 13) 12 AZTV webisode There and back again an AtomicZombie s tale

13 So many great designs to choose from! ~ Bobby K., Australia Read our blog! (Continued from page 12) The surfaces of the Hub Flange Discs are coated with a mill scale at the factory to help protect the metal from oxidation. This coating easily be removed using a sanding disc to prepare the part for painting. The laser cut edges are also somewhat sharp, so they need to be smoothed off using the sanding disc by running it lightly around the edge once. Once the mill scale has been removed from the Hub Flange Discs, the spoke holes will need to be beveled slightly to remove the sharp edges around the holes. This is done so that the spoke exiting the flange is not cut by the sharp edges of the hole. To bevel the spoke holes, use a 3/16 inch drill bit and push lightly into the hole until a small bevel is made. The beveled spoke holes are shown here after running pressing lightly with the 3/16 inch drill bit to remove the sharp edges. The Hub Flange Disc is now ready to be welded to your delta trike axle. Remember, our Hub Flange Discs are sold as a set of four matching discs, and there are several versions available, so please choose the correct number of spoke holes and axle diameter for your project. These discs are manufactured to keep costs to a minimum, so you will need to bevel the spoke holes and prep the surface for painting, an operation that will only take a few minutes per disc. All of our DIY Delta Trike Plans make use of these Hub Flange Discs, which allow you to lace a rim directly to the rear axle. By integrating the flanges directly onto the axles, you ll save some money instead of needing to have complex and expensive machined hub parts made. Our trike plans also include instructions on how to make these parts from scratch, as well as a drawing that can be sent to a machine shop in case you want to make your own hub flanges. Our goal is to offer parts that save you both time and money when building your own DIY bike or trike project. For more details and to order, visit the AtomicZombie store. We want to see pictures of your workshop! Whether it s indoors or outdoors, big or small show us where you build your bike projects. Go to the AZ forum and join us. 13

14 So, I bought my first welder. Thanks to the friends I ve been making on the forum, I ll be building my first recumbent soon. ~ Walter J., Oregon From the Builders Gallery Free Tutorial PDFs We are converting many of our free online tutorials into PDF format so that you can print them. Since converting is a time consuming process, it will take at least a few weeks to get most of them online. Some are already converted and available for download. 14

15 AtomicZombie is the best community on the Web. ~ Steven H., Montana From the Builders Gallery Submit pictures of your own homebuilt bike projects to the Builders Gallery. 15

NO LATHE TRIKE HUBS. All content copyright AtomicZombie Extreme Machines. All rights reserved. 1

NO LATHE TRIKE HUBS. All content copyright AtomicZombie Extreme Machines. All rights reserved. 1 NO LATHE TRIKE HUBS First of all, thanks all of those who visit the Atomic Zombie forum and help others with advice and offer their great tips and tricks. There have been two alternative ideas posted in