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My ho-hum underdog.
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So I read about swing bikes and a rear steer bike in this thread and got to thinkin' If you locked out the front steer and unlocked the rear on a swing bike you'd have rear steer bike... I also thought about a flipped frame (so front wheel drive?) with a chain driven steering like the 1890's Colson. Only the rear steer fork would be chain driven from the handle bars at the "front" of the bike. THAT intrigues me almost enough to build one, maybe at least draw one,,,

GC

still building a "Taco Truck"
 
GuitarlCarl said:
So I read about swing bikes and a rear steer bike in this thread and got to thinkin' If you locked out the front steer and unlocked the rear on a swing bike you'd have rear steer bike... I also thought about a flipped frame (so front wheel drive?) with a chain driven steering like the 1890's Colson. Only the rear steer fork would be chain driven from the handle bars at the "front" of the bike. THAT intrigues me almost enough to build one, maybe at least draw one,,,

GC

still building a "Taco Truck"
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I was thinking along the same lines. See how the vintage stoker-steered tandems were set-up, and reverse that engineering.
 
I dunno about rear steer… ever driven a forklift fast and whipped the steering wheel around hard? Imagine that on 2 wheels. The front gets perpendicular to the direction of travel and stops but the human body keeps going. 😬 I suppoose there could be design elements built in to fix it, rake, trail, turn limiter type stuff, but probably a reason it’s not common on many types of vehicle.

Not meant as a discouragement, just a word of caution. Need no injuries. GL.
 
GuitarlCarl said:
So I read about swing bikes and a rear steer bike in this thread and got to thinkin' If you locked out the front steer and unlocked the rear on a swing bike you'd have rear steer bike... I also thought about a flipped frame (so front wheel drive?) with a chain driven steering like the 1890's Colson. Only the rear steer fork would be chain driven from the handle bars at the "front" of the bike. THAT intrigues me almost enough to build one, maybe at least draw one,,,

GC

still building a "Taco Truck"
Click to expand...
RustySprockets said:
I was thinking along the same lines. See how the vintage stoker-steered tandems were set-up, and reverse that engineering.
Click to expand...
SkyknightJohn said:
I dunno about rear steer… ever driven a forklift fast and whipped the steering wheel around hard? Imagine that on 2 wheels. The front gets perpendicular to the direction of travel and stops but the human body keeps going. 😬 I suppoose there could be design elements built in to fix it, rake, trail, turn limiter type stuff, but probably a reason it’s not common on many types of vehicle.

Not meant as a discouragement, just a word of caution. Need no injuries. GL.
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.... and MattiThundrrr's comments earlier.....

You all are correct. I didn't research this well enough before making such a claim (that came to me in the middle of the nite), however,
1. I reserve the right to FAIL with great aplomb..besides
2. I haven't found half my parts and
3. I must leave for Charleston for a week or so.
please see # 1 above.:headbang:

Ive been looking around for drawings and ideas from which to possibly grab some snippets from. - what a rookie builder!
 
I'll share a couple quick points. The steering tube and the fork tube need to be parallel. Let's say you want to use the seat tube for the steering tube, on many bicycles theses are not parallel. Also the gears used should be the same number of teeth to keep the steering ratio the same. Check out my Harlequin T build for a chain drive steering example.

GC
 
GuitarlCarl said:
I'll share a couple quick points. The steering tube and the fork tube need to be parallel. Let's say you want to use the seat tube for the steering tube, on many bicycles theses are not parallel. Also the gears used should be the same number of teeth to keep the steering ratio the same. Check out my Harlequin T build for a chain drive steering example.

GC
Click to expand...
Thanx, I'll definately check out the HT when I get back from Dr visit. This discussion may be required to be moved to the Class 2 site but here is what I am thinking. Watching the swing bikes makes me think the front steer (and body mass) acts as a counterbalance to the rear swing. I may mock up a negative under axle steering mechanism and keep the pivot point thru the center of the fat rear tire and the hub, This should minimize lean which I think is one of rear steer's bigger obstacles.

I know this contraption is going to put me on the ground, I just don't know where I'm gonna land; on my ear or on my rear, hence the current name On Yourear.
 
I’m on the fence on whether or not to participate in this years build off. I like the classic bike frames, but I don’t really have anything I’m ready to customize. My 60’s Hiawatha is a good candidate, but not sure if I have time to repaint it and build another custom tank. Here are my mountain bike dumpster finds. This 29”Mongoose was waiting for the trash man, only missing the seat and post. I also found a Next bmx and a Mongoose Freestyle bike, in which I removed all the good bits, including some BMX bars. I think I could build a nice big boy BMX from the parts. It has a nice flat black canvas to do some wild paint and graphics. It’s a Wally World bike but I think I can make it better. Very light.
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I'm going to try to jump in with a class 1 build at some point. Super busy with house projects. Plus I injured my hand a few days ago so I won't be doing many projects for a couple of weeks. I'm probably going to spruce up my old Roadmaster rat bike into a late '50s style custom. I think I can manage that with my current limitations.

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I may get into my gravel project but that requires a paint job so I'll consider that later. Looking forward to seeing everyone's builds!
 
Pondo said:
I'm going to try to jump in with a class 1 build at some point. Super busy with house projects. Plus I injured my hand a few days ago so I won't be doing many projects for a couple of weeks. I'm probably going to spruce up my old Roadmaster rat bike into a late '50s style custom. I think I can manage that with my current limitations.

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I may get into my gravel project but that requires a paint job so I'll consider that later. Looking forward to seeing everyone's builds!
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Will be an awesome start when you do! Good luck with the 🤚🏻
 
@Pondo I have an old cheapie '80s BMX telescoping suspension fork that I was thinking about, if only because it can't accommodate a head tube taller than 4". Also have a Sunlite Monark-style springer that I could make work, but I DO have a Girvin on a stalled project, too.
 

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