Anyone ever use a velomobile? [NA]

[alaskaflyer]

Was in our paper today. The reporter described it thusly: "If a bicycle and a Cessna had a love child..."

 

[mikea]

Won't fit in the plane.

 

[steingar]

Damn good idea when the oil runs out.

 

[Matthew]

I worked with a guy about 20-25 years ago that commuted in one of those things - at least he did for a while. I don't know how hot they get in the summer.

 

[mikea]

I checked. They seem to go for $3500. You could get a 3 year old Huyndai for that.

I also think it could be punted like a football by yer average mega-SUV being driven by a suburban mom talking ont he cellphone over the 3 screaming kids.

 

[rubber314chicken]

how is it weatherproof if the bottom is open. the spray of the wheels will get you just as wet.

 

[mikea]

how is it weatherproof if the bottom is open. the spray of the wheels will get you just as wet.

I thought of that, too.

I once had an early Isuzu (Chevy LUV) that rusted a hole clear through the floorboard under my legs. (Zeibart rustproofed. too. r-i-g-h-t).One very rainy day I drove through a deep puddle on Wacker Drive and had a waterfall coming up right into my face. I discovered that nobody invented windshield wipers for the inside.

 

[kevin47881]

Not me, Richard.

 

[skier]

I'm going for the necropost of the day. Just did a search on here to see if anyone else had built a velomobile and found this thread and one post by @ETres

I've been working on my FAW+ kit (same one Etres mentioned) since June 2018 and according to the manufacturer it should only take ~50 hours to build. Inspite of my desire, this experience makes me think building a plane is probably unrealistic. Maybe a CH-750 quick build, but definitely not something more complex than that.

Anyways, here's a photo of my current build progress

Are there any other members on here that have played with one of these? I feel like I’ve seen a few members from here over on the Bentrider forum.

 

[MauleSkinner]

I looked at them pretty hard a few years back. My biggest problem with commuting by bike is it takes me too long to cool down and stop sweating, so I’ve got to add too much time to the front side of my workday.

maybe if I was in better shape...sort of a chicken vs egg problem.

 

[Sac Arrow]

I checked. They seem to go for $3500. You could get a 3 year old Huyndai for that.

I also think it could be punted like a football by yer average mega-SUV being driven by a suburban mom talking ont he cellphone over the 3 screaming kids.

That is about what I paid for my current road bike. The next one will likely be about twice that.

 

[Sac Arrow]

I thought of that, too.

I once had an early Isuzu (Chevy LUV) that rusted a hole clear through the floorboard under my legs. (Zeibart rustproofed. too. r-i-g-h-t).One very rainy day I drove through a deep puddle on Wacker Drive and had a waterfall coming up right into my face. I discovered that nobody invented windshield wipers for the inside.

Same here. It didn't completely rust through, but it was close. Other than that it was a pretty handy little truck, and fun to drive, with halfway decent 2wd offroad capability. I took it hunting in the Socal high desert frequently.

 

[MuseChaser]

Looks like fun, but I don't know how it'd fit with roads and traffic. Speed limit out my front door is 55mph, then 40 mph a few miles down the road as you get closer to town, then eventually 30mph in town. Velo looks way too wide to ride on shoulders, and too slow to avoid hanging up and angering traffic if ridden in lanes. Neat concept....but utility vastly overstated unless you live in a no-car zone?

 

[FormerHangie]

That makes sense if you live in an area that has lots of cool weather and is fairly flat. Where I live it is hot and humid much of the time and always hilly, and you'd roast trying to pedal that up a hill.

It also has the same disadvantage as a recumbent bicycle, it's low and you can't see as far, and are more likely to not be seen by motorists, as they aren't expecting anything that low to be on the roadway.

 

[CJones]

Might be interesting if you could pair it up with the guts of one of those electric bicycles (which were not nearly as much of a 'thing' when this thread started 12 years ago). They have some off-road e-bikes now that have some fairly beefy battery and gears at least for supplementary power.

 

[ETres]

Looks like you're doing a great job building your FAW+. Did it come with instructions that were very useful? I ask because the instructions I got in 2015 were pathetic. As such, I had to build mine through trial and error. Otherwise, I really enjoyed the process and learned a LOT about working with aluminum. I think I'd like building a plane and have thought off and on about the Sonex Onex, but as time drags on, I doubt I'll ever do it.

As for my finished FAW+, I enjoyed the build process more so than riding it. I haven't ridden it all in over a year (been riding my Cyclete bike).

My FAW+:

 

[MuseChaser]

Just looked

.....(been riding my Cyclete bike).

..

Hadn't heard of those, and checked out the link. Very cool... very enthused... then looked at the price... $1665...woof. Then... I read the fine print and learned that it's the first of THREE $1665 installments for a grand total of $4995, plus the builder will contact you to discuss options like fenders and other additional cost items. WOOOOOFFFFF. I know serious bicyclers spend serious dough, but that's way outta my league. I still enjoy our $250 Diamondbacks.

 

[Zeldman]

People in tourist Alaska love their weird bicycles.

 

[ETres]

Just looked


Hadn't heard of those, and checked out the link. Very cool... very enthused... then looked at the price... $1665...woof. Then... I read the fine print and learned that it's the first of THREE $1665 installments for a grand total of $4995, plus the builder will contact you to discuss options like fenders and other additional cost items. WOOOOOFFFFF. I know serious bicyclers spend serious dough, but that's way outta my league. I still enjoy our $250 Diamondbacks.

I winced hard when I paid that price - it took me a while to make that financial decision - but it's the perfect device for me. The Cyclete allows me to feel like I'm running and cycling at the same time, but without all the back, foot, and knee pain that prevents me from actually cycling and running. As such, it's been worth every penny, and the build-quality and support are top-notch.

 

[skier]

I looked at them pretty hard a few years back. My biggest problem with commuting by bike is it takes me too long to cool down and stop sweating

My biggest problem with commuting by bike is ~30 miles on highway and needing to cross a river. I just thought they looked like fun.

It also has the same disadvantage as a recumbent bicycle, it's low and you can't see as far, and are more likely to not be seen by motorists, as they aren't expecting anything that low to be on the roadway.

I've been riding recumbents now for 4 years. If anything you get noticed more by cars. I'll be riding with someone on a 'normal' bike and a car will pass them within 1 foot of their handlebars. The car will then go completely into the other lane to pass me. It happens on most rides.

Might be interesting if you could pair it up with the guts of one of those electric bicycles (which were not nearly as much of a 'thing' when this thread started 12 years ago). They have some off-road e-bikes now that have some fairly beefy battery and gears at least for supplementary power.

People do that. The eWAW by Katanga is one such example, though you're looking at $12-15k for one of those.

 

[skier]

Looks like you're doing a great job building your FAW+. Did it come with instructions that were very useful? I ask because the instructions I got in 2015 were pathetic. As such, I had to build mine through trial and error. Otherwise, I really enjoyed the process and learned a LOT about working with aluminum. I think I'd like building a plane and have thought off and on about the Sonex Onex, but as time drags on, I doubt I'll ever do it.

As for my finished FAW+, I enjoyed the build process more so than riding it. I haven't ridden it all in over a year (been riding my Cyclete bike).

It came with instructions. Both bad english ones and Dutch ones (I don't read or speak Dutch). I'm lucky in that I have been able to find some build photos online which help when I get stuck. There's also a few other people that have built them on the Bentrider forum that have offered to help if/when I have questions.

Why didn't you like riding it much? I wish I could've gone for one of the fiberglass/carbon machines, but it wasn't in the budget. And I wanted to build something.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

I guess another interesting piece of trivia is that the FAW+ (Flevo Alleweder +) is descended from the Alleweder, which was originally designed by Bart Verhees (during college, I believe). For some of the real experimental aircraft nerds on here that name might ring a bell. Bart Verhees is the one the designed and built the Verhees Delta, which is offered in both a single seat and two seat version:

http://www.verheesengineering.com/

And his original Alleweder