Marauder Reloaded front suspension?

[Locutus]

I'm thinking of building a Marauder Reloaded with front and rear disk brakes and front and rear suspension. Will the steering rod attachment at the front fork prevent me from doing this? Is there an established workaround?
:confused:

[trikeman]

Without seeing the front fork, its pretty hard to answer this. You have some flexibility in where you mount things, as well as how far out you let the arm that you weld to the fork stick out to receive the steering rod.

[robertwb70]

No problem- the steering rod will not be attached to the part of the fork that goes up and down.

and for that matter I don't think it will be going up and down very much -if at all- because the front wheel on LWB bikes is lightly loaded and it takes some weight to compress a suspension fork, but you can alway fit softer springs.

[Bunk]

If you can't weld on the steering ear on the front fork as shown in the plans I guess you could always install a neck into the front fork and weld on an ear. The only difference would be that the steering control rod would ride higher. Not sure if you would have to raise the height of the pilots steering tube higher because of the angle. My guess is that you wouldn't have to.

Kyle

[AtomicZombie]

One thing to note about 20 inch suspension forks - most of them are pure junk and not worth the effort. if you are planing to add a strong motor or a fairing, then yes, dual suspension is going to be needed, but for typical use, the frame itself is your front suspension.

When I was trying to make plans for an off road BMX/Motocross thing, I searched high and low for a decent 20 inch front suspension fork, but only found one. If you willing to drop well over $500 on a quality fork, you can get one that does something! Other than that, those 20 inch kid bike suspension forks are not worth using.

Brad

[Locutus]

How about suspending the entire front assembly in a way similar to how the rear is suspended? That way you could use a similar strut. Steering linkage might be complicated though in this case because it would need to be able to compress as well.

[Bunk]

Pretty much anything can be design but at what cost? You will probably loose the precision in the steering and will be adding a lot of weight. How about making your own "springer" front end like on old motorcycles. Just my 2 cents.

Kyle

[Sparky]

alot of mtn bike guys dont like suspension when they ride on the road- it sucks up pedal power when it bounces. most high-end mtn bikes have suspension lockouts for that reason.

being that the marauder is made for high-speed, smooth pavement racing, suspension wouldnt be first in my mind. i would want all available pedal power going to the back wheel. and as i was told when i though of suspension on my quad, a recumbent seat with some padding makes bumps much easier to take over a wedgie seat.

[Locutus]

The parts I need for my electric Street Fox build are taking more time to acquire than I'd like, so I'm thinking of building a Marauder (v.1) in the mean time, since I already have nearly everything I need to build it in my junk bike pile.

I'm thinking of making a mesh seat for it. Has anyone here done this for a Marauder? How did it work out for you and do you have any tips you can pass along?

I'm also thinking of building the frame with 1/16" wall square tubing instead of 3/32" to save a bit of weight and to use tubing I already have. I weigh about 200 pounds. Will the 1/16 be sufficient?

[John Lewis]

I saw on WISIL site (Lots of interesting stuff there.) an idea for a home made front suspension.

http://www.wisil.recumbents.com/home.asp?URL=wisil/main.asp

I am also tossing up between the Maurauder and the HiRoller as a project while I gather the bits for the Cruiser.

My question is whether even the rear suspension is needed on the Maurauder Reloaded. First I don't have one available and the original Maurauder didn't use one and second. It adds weight and other inefficiencies.

Might be worth it for added comfort though.

John Lewis

[SirJoey]

It adds weight and other inefficiencies.
Might be worth it for added comfort though.I think you're right on all 3 counts, John.

Added weight & inefficiency in the drivetrain,
but definitely a more comfy ride, based on my suspension MTB.

And don't forget about the "Wow" & "Kool" factors! :jester:

My next (planned) project is gonna be a LWB suspension bent,
which I've been planning for well over a year now, coincidentally similar to the M2,
but also similar to my very first bent, a Rans Stratus:

http://img220.imageshack.us/img220/1276/ranslwb1of3.jpg

http://img220.imageshack.us/img220/7255/ranslwb2bd3.jpg

Anyway, my poor ol' achin' back says the suspension
will be well worth the added weight & slight power loss. :)


http://img384.imageshack.us/img384/7131/sirjoeysigmedij1.gif

[John Lewis]

How about this LWB from Lee Cairns on Bicycles network Australia?
A nice LWB with suspension. I think it's Lee's favourite.

http://i228.photobucket.com/albums/ee220/Leigh_caines/B.jpg

John Lewis

[Odd Man Out]

How about this LWB from Lee Cairns on Bicycles network Australia?
John Lewis

Okay John
Give up the URL for the plans please -- Danka

[SirJoey]

How about this LWB from Lee Cairns on Bicycles network Australia?
A nice LWB with suspension. I think it's Lee's favourite.Very nice! I can see why he likes it! :)


http://img384.imageshack.us/img384/7131/sirjoeysigmedij1.gif

[John Lewis]

Okay John
Give up the URL for the plans please -- Danka

I don't think there are any plans. I suspect Lee designed it as he went along.

I'll have to ask him.