Modular Bikes: Modular Bike

Hi

This post is part of a cleaning out process for my website, it had existed as a separate tab on my web page, but I will be replacing that tab with a 3d printing blog soon, one that may even earn me money. My friend Ann Thompson of Thinking Eye has been coaching me on all these changes which include opening an Instagram account here .

So how did the modular bike end up? Well - Ok I guess! The best version of it I made is presented here and although it looked quite good and was capable, it was made of steel and was always a bit heavy. An aluminium version might have done better, but it was beyond my motivation, funds and welding abilities to make one. The builds resulted in a chapter in my book, and I remember a nice afternoon and a visit to the pub with Adrian Gotts and Struan Little after a working bee building one of the versions, and a visit with our recumbent cycling mob to Fringe Inventions where it was exhibited for a while. My nieces and nephew still remember racing at an ozhpv challenge at Broadford on it.

"Modular: constructed with standardized unit or dimensions allowed flexibility and variety in use; modular furniture: modular homes"
A few years ago, I built an adaptable tandem bike from two abandoned Malvern Star folding bikes. It was made with an "insert" between the halves of a folding bike. The bike was good, but I started thinking of the possibilities of something better or different. My modular bikes are the end result. The bikes are designed from the ground up to be assembled as tandems, recumbents &: load carrying bikes and the aim is to make these specialist bicycles affordable by using a cost-effective modular construction.

The design was patented and featured in the Jan. 2005 issue of Velovision (you can find the patent here, search for 'modular bicycle' to find the patent documents. Pick the top entry you find).

This construction includes standard frame units with extras, like a suspended rear triangle, steering link, rack, trailer and recumbent seat & boom. The frame has attachment points at the ends for holding another frame or extras, a tube that acts as a static handlebar mount, and tubes that can support pulleys for a front-wheel drive mechanism. The seatpost doubles as a mount for the recumbent seat, as do the bottle mount bosses on the top tubes.

I have taken care to ensure that the extra features on the bike don’t look scrappy when unused – for example a plastic plate can fit over the front attachment points. So far there have been 3 designs of the modular bike and I have designed a set of models of the bike which you can make for yourself at home. "