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Post by smokinguitarplayer on Mar 29, 2016 3:27:05 GMT
PROBLEM: MY Eco Exo ... without a rider the frame is about 4 inches clear of the ground at the very rearmost point of the frame. There is even less clearance at the shock. ... with me in the thing, another 1/2 inch is lost. I already "upgraded" the the later shock designed for the heavier bike and have it cranked all the way. ... I need more clearance for sure. So i bought another one of these swingarm links on Ebay. I'm thinking I shorten it ... which would have the effect of "pushing" (pulling?) the rear wheel/swingarm downard ...raising the chassis ... any thoughts ? am I way off? .. Any ideas how much to cut out lengthwise? Suggestions appreciated guys ..thanks ..
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Post by mawdo81 on Mar 29, 2016 8:36:54 GMT
Can you not adjust ride Height by adjusting the shock?
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Post by smokinguitarplayer on Mar 29, 2016 14:05:11 GMT
See my comment at the previous post. Shock is already adjusted "all the way" to highest (and also stiffest) setting. Any ideas appreciated.
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Post by edvb on Mar 29, 2016 18:20:20 GMT
Fred I do not think it is a good idea to cut the link and shorten it. Your shock spring is too soft. I had to get the Hagon shock with a much stiffer spring that cured the problem for me. You need to find a stiffer spring or go the route I did and get a new Hagon shock and spring. You can see how much clearance I have. Edward IMG_3628 by evanbelkom, on Flickr IMG_3625 by evanbelkom, on Flickr
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Post by smokinguitarplayer on Mar 30, 2016 0:52:01 GMT
Ed...I'm trying to avoid that cost !! haha ...anyway ... can you tell me what the distance is on yours from the floor to the bottom of the frame /rear end .. the lower rear corner ... ?
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Post by edvb on Mar 30, 2016 14:03:15 GMT
Fred
I have exactly 5" from the bottom of the rear floor pan rivet.
While researching this I found one article in the Burgman forum that talked about repairing that link. It was advised to never modify or weld the piece and always replace it. I think it was heat treated after welding or something like that and not to weld on it. I cannot find it as it was a couple years ago when I was building mine.
You might want to call Hagon and ask if you can just buy the spring. That would be cheaper and have the same result. You could also have someone make a new spring locally.
IMHO, this is the way to go to insure you have a safe and roadworthy machine.
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Post by davej98002 on Mar 30, 2016 21:25:57 GMT
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Post by erik on Mar 31, 2016 19:05:17 GMT
Basically your shock flanges are not correct right? why not make a modular one...
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Post by roger32849 on Mar 31, 2016 22:21:35 GMT
Fred, first of all congratulations for getting your Eco-Exo-R inspected and on the road. You need to post a picture of the newly inspected and road legal completed trike.
As for your trike clearance, it is actually about where mine is give or take a few fractions of an inch. The shock Ed has is an excellent brand. However, Hagon shocks are on the expensive side, but it is exactly what you need. I can predict what will happen if you shorten that link. You will bottom out the shock when you hit a bump and blow the seals out of it. You need a shock that will accept your total vehicle loaded weight and still allow for clearance and not bottom out. At my heaviest weight of 240 pounds (17 St.) I never hit bottom on my rear shock. Right now, I weigh considerably less and have no problem clearing normal road hazards, bumps, speed bumps, small chuck holes and or the odd squirrel or two. Have I scraped, yes I have, was it damaging? No.. just very minor encounters. I never hit the shock on anything. It would almost be better to install a companion shock rather than cut the link. (But that is whole different engineering kettle of fish)
Personally, call Hagon and see what they can do for you. Drop Edward's name maybe they can build you one from his spec sheet.
Roger Worcester, Massachusetts
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Post by smokinguitarplayer on Apr 9, 2016 20:15:37 GMT
WELL ... HERE IT IS. It's official. My Eco-Exo R is inspected and road-legal. I took the advice of my "helper" on this project and just took it to the motorcycle inspection shop. Handed the guy my Suzuki Burgman registration and insurance. He asked me if it was stock and I said " no, I converted it to a trike." ... He said " wow ..that's pretty cool" .. he did the usual , tire tread depth, checked all the lights / horn / etc. working . Checked the brakes etc. etc. ... passed and put the sticker on and I'm legal and driving happily around. Of course, it's been cold and today it s snowing but spring is here and I'm on the road 2 months ahead of schedule. I'll be posting all the pictures as well as a video or 2 sometime soon. Build time more or less 11 months.
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Post by smokinguitarplayer on Apr 10, 2016 3:11:49 GMT
ok .. ON the issue of the rear shock / the link etc. My helper is a REAL engineer with tons of experience working for Penske racing both here and a few years in North Carolina. I'm in real good hands ... he's suggesting we build a link of adjustable length so we can alter the ride heighth.
Ed ..if you're reading this , you say you have 5 inches at the rear of the pan ...is that with you in it?
I'll keep everybody posted ... thanks all for all the help
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Post by edvb on Apr 12, 2016 2:56:53 GMT
No. It drops about a 1/2" so I have 4 1/2" clearance with me in it. Good luck on the link.
Edward
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Post by smokinguitarplayer on Apr 12, 2016 14:38:51 GMT
Ed...thanks for the info .
Let me recap...maybe you have suggestion .. one more time "around" .
Mine sits 4.5" without anybody in it ... goes down maybe 1/2 inch with me in it ....that's 4inches of ground clearance.... .with shock set at highest / stiffest setting. Also , I have the "newer" shock which does raise it higher and works much better than the original shock. That being said, I would love to be able to set the shock at least a little softer so my butt doesn't get banged as hard.
So, my problem is not the shock bottoming out. My problem is ground clearance.
I'm thinking that if I shorten that link, it will "press" the transaxle (rear wheel) down , causing the frame etc. to be higher. Than I can "lower" the setting on the shock to get some actual shock action.
We've been thinking about cutting the link, welding on "arms" with holes so we have a selection. My concerns are with all that cutting / drilliing, and welding for that matter, will cause the link to not be strong enough.
If anyone has suggestions ... I'm all ears ...The trike is plenty driveable as it is but I am concerned about bottoming out and/or hitting things like raised manhole covers etc. Thanks all
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Post by erik on Apr 12, 2016 18:01:14 GMT
For a spring to work perfekt it needs to be in the lowest setting (full travel) the only way to achieve this is a custom calculated spring to be mounted, tested and swapped if needed. Hyperpro engeneers did this to my tR1ke shocks. It corners like a go-cart but feels comfortable when normal driving. This is the full advantage of progressive wound springs. This service+ warranty is about 100 euro per spring so why would you risk your life on it... You, like I am no shock expert.
Stop messing around use professionals.
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Post by edvb on Apr 12, 2016 18:40:42 GMT
Fred
To get a quality ride you need a shock and spring calculated for your weight and shock travel. I bit the bullet and got the shock I needed. It works perfectly. So do the custom front ones from Works Performance.
There just is not that much shock travel to work with and getting the proper spring weight, shock dampening and other factors just requires getting the proper shocks for your trike.
Sure you can make new links but I have a feeling at the end you will not be happy with the current shock and spring you are trying to use. From what you told us about your average weight you are over the limit of the capacity of the shock and trying to compensate by adding spring preload and now shortening the link.
Erik hit it on the head and if your friend has all the knowledge you say he has he should of come to the same conclusion Erik and I have.
I also think 4"-4.5" of clearance with the driver as about right. Roger was able to get his shock to work but he probably was at the limit. I have been there and done that and ended up with a very comfortable riding machine. For me this proves everything I discussed above.
Edward
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