Al's Blog-o-Sphere

Whether I’m out riding or not, I’m thinking about it and how to do it better. In pursuit of self-sufficient power for extended overnight tours, I’ve been playing around again with generating power while on the road.

I came across a post somewhere on the internets about charging 5v USB devices off of an old style generator like used to be used for headlights on bikes. Technically, they are dynamos, but I know you’ve seen one once. I have a couple kicking around in the garage from long ago.

Bottle dynamo rescued from garage

So, I cleaned one up and began thinking about building the circuitry needed to produce a 5v USB charging source.

Meanwhile, I came across a all-in-one solution, only money required.

It was a Pyle PBDNC10 and I found it on Amazon.

Well, in the interest of simplicity and cutting haywire, I decided to order it. It was only $35 and was basically a bigger “bottle” generator with all the circuitry built in. Just plug a USB cord into it and ride. Continue Reading…

One thing I wanted to be able to do, just in case I want, is to be able to hook up my trailer to the new Catrike Expedition. I have used it many times with the Terratrike, but the attachment system will need to be different.

The Quick release skewer for the trailer

The trailer, a TW-Bents two-wheeled trailer, has a yoke that attaches at both sides of the bike, a system I like and one of the reasons I chose that trailer. It attaches to the ends of a special quick-release skewer that you use in the back wheel.

Unfortunately, the Catrike doesn’t have a quick-release on the back wheel, because of the internal geared hub.

The problem would be solved by simply buying and installing some bolt-on attachments from the company that made the trailer, but that company is out of business.  So I had to solve the problem on my own. Continue Reading…

Maybe you are starting to think that I am obsessed with bicycle lights. Well, I am interested in the subject, but not to the point of obsession, it’s just that as I add to the stable of bikes I own, I keep needing to outfit them with lights for my safety and I keep looking for new, better models.

The technology keeps getting better and manufacturers keep coming up with different models that suit different needs. I’ve found lights for one bike that I wouldn’t use on another bike. Others are good all-round.

Read my other posts about bike lights.

It’s really tough to measure brightness, but lights are getting brighter in general, but the race to the top for brightest is dying down. A couple of companies now make lights that are in the overkill range and there is no longer any reason to keep on getting brighter. DiNotte even sells one model with a disclaimer you must accept saying that you won’t use it at night. But many consumer level lights in the $30-50 range are now bright enough to be considered “daytime-bright.” In other words, bright enough to be of use as a warning to motorists even during the daytime.

My latest purchase in a bike tail light is the Serfas Thunderbolt. I’ve been watching this light for over a year now and finally decided to buy one after reading some good comments about it’s brightness. I liked the way it attaches to the bike and decided it would be one of the few possibilities to fit the bar on the back of the seat on my Tour Easy.

It’s another USB rechargeable Li-Ion powered light. It is encased in some kind of silicone plastic and is supposed to be waterproof. It attaches to any tube or bar on a bike that you can wrap the two silicone bands around, making it very versatile. It’s one of the few I’ve seen that is equally at home on a recumbent and a diamond-frame bike.

Continue Reading…

I really don’t get some people. They can’t leave enough alone. They get an elegant, functional piece of equipment and have to turn it into …ummm… schmutz. I really don’t have a word for it.

Why do people buy a low-end Terra Trike and then have to add every bit of bling and gadgetry that they can imagine? Why do they feel the need to turn their trike into a clown-car? Why do they heap $1000 worth of accessories on an $800 trike?

Is it a need for attention? Do they need to compensate for their poor riding/driving skills to make other drivers notice them on the road? I don’t know. Most of them wouldn’t be caught dead off the multi-use path anyway. Who needs flags and lights when the only people that will see the are joggers and dog walkers?

Anyway, here are some photos of examples I have seen recently that need to be singled out for ridicule.

I don’t know if this is something for sale, or someone’s creation, but what the heck? A rollbar? No, just no.

Continue Reading…