towable bike for kids

Transit V6 · May 3, 2009

thought i'd put some pics of this little project ive just done for my daughter Sophie

we do a lot of cycling and i've had a trailer she sits in for the past 4 years, she's just about outgrown it so i decided to make a towable bike - so she can help out with the pedaling on the hills :laughing:

found this bike abandoned - looked an ideal donor so we took it! then cut it up a bit

extended the front bar so it attaches to my bike

the copupling is a ford transit steering linkage

then off to the shop - let sophie pick what ever colour she wanted - she chose purple :whistle:

all done

got all the gears still working but i took off all the brakes - gonna add a mudguard and some bar ends (i'd hate to trap her fingers)
it works really well but i should have left more of a gap above the tyre as if you go over a steep drop it rubs on the frame :ashamed:

would probly be ok further up the seat post but i think i'll mod it a bit

gavuk · May 4, 2009

Nice job ,bet she won't help much with the pedalling though :clapping:

.....she looks well pleased :laughing:

Robotstar5 · May 4, 2009

When I saw the title and first pic I thought you were going to tow her behind the transit

nice solution, I'm surprised she didn't make you paint your bike to match her bit!

Hitch · May 4, 2009

Nice job, i bet she was well pleased with it! A bit of rolled tube would look smart and help the clearance.

badersbus · May 4, 2009

Good stuff .... it,s just great getting the kids involved . She is gonna remember her dad building this crazy bike for her for the rest of her life.
Question though... who took the first bite from the FAB lolly . you or her ?? LOL
Nice one mate
Kirk

Transit V6 · May 4, 2009

i would have liked some rolled tube but i used what i had - the whole project cost me £2.85 and that was for the tin of paint

while we was choosing the paint she was considering yellow and i thought sod that ive got some of that at work :laughing:

budget builds :whistle:

Hitch · May 4, 2009

To right!
And the most important bit, to your daughter it will be the best one in the world!

My daughter, shes 3, she loves coming out into the garage. Once shes out there, i dont get anything done though! But shes got a whole host of wooden toys, and knows what most of my tools are! :laughing:

How are you going to mod it? Just change the angle, or add another crank in the rhs?

twowheels · May 4, 2009

Nice job
Its great what you can do with an old scap bike and a bit of enthusiasm. Bicycles are like pets at christmas, come the new year they get abandoned and left at the back of the garage(not the pets). My project cost me more than a few quid but started off from a skip bike and a bit of tubing.

Transit V6 · May 4, 2009

Hitch said:
How are you going to mod it? Just change the angle, or add another crank in the rhs?

not really sure yet - if i put the clamp right at the top of the seat i think it would be ok but ............ my mate came round and i got him to ride my bike and i had a go on the trailerd one - just for a laugh and to see how it felt but the seat post spun in the frame

it's fine for sophie but i dont like the idea of it now as its a weak point - say i didnt tighten the seat up fully and we hit a bump :mad:

i think i'll add a piece of box in and crank it down so it clamps direct to the bit of frame behind the seat post - i still want it on quick release aswell - i have ideas in my head (dont we all) but its hard to describe what i mean

i'll post up some pics when i do it

also one more thing i've realised is she needs a crash helmit - i'm not one of these safetly concoius parents who wraps their kids in cotton wool, but after using this i realise that this combo is faster than her ability to protect herself in a fall - if you know what i mean ?? on her own little bike in the 2nd picture she would never reach speeds this one will - so where as i dont feel its necassary on that bike i do on this!

Transit V6 · May 4, 2009

twowheels said:
My project cost me more than a few quid but started off from a skip bike and a bit of tubing.

nice work mate :cool:

Finalreminder · May 5, 2009

Very good. £2.85 is impressive.
I've seen similar contraptions on my travels. I bet they cost a fair amount of money

Rick · May 5, 2009

Transit V6 said:
thought i'd put some pics of this little project ive just done for my daughter Sophie

we do a lot of cycling and i've had a trailer she sits in for the past 4 years, she's just about outgrown it so i decided to make a towable bike - so she can help out with the pedaling on the hills

found this bike abandoned - looked an ideal donor so we took it! then cut it up a bit

extended the front bar so it attaches to my bike

the copupling is a ford transit steering linkage

then off to the shop - let sophie pick what ever colour she wanted - she chose purple

all done

got all the gears still working but i took off all the brakes - gonna add a mudguard and some bar ends (i'd hate to trap her fingers)
it works really well but i should have left more of a gap above the tyre as if you go over a steep drop it rubs on the frame would probly be ok further up the seat post but i think i'll mod it a bit

Small world!

I recognise where that is from the last pic!

Won't put the address but its in ramwarsh isn't it

Transit V6 · May 5, 2009

Rick said:
Small world!

I recognise where that is from the last pic!

Won't put the address but its in ramwarsh isn't it

it is indeed :clapping:

where abouts you from then? i can't believe you live on the same estate - i've got to be the only one on here who knows what a migwelder is :laughing:

gaz_moose · May 5, 2009

cant you just have a look at how the expensive ones attach to the bicycle in front? do halfords not sell them?

chunkolini · May 8, 2009

Nice one, we had one of these and did hundreds of miles on it, a factory made one, before i could weld. it nearly killed me as the boy got too big for it. In a fit of rage I made an attachment for our tandem to raise the bottom bracket, cant find a photo of it in operation, but here is one of the family on tour. Note Chunkoletta on recumbent as well.

We were doing around 30-50 miles a day like this, turned a few heads, one guy was watching us from up a step ladder, carriedd on turning as went past and fell off the ladder.
Getting kids on bikes is a great thing to do.

Note, there are some cheap trailer bikes called Tagalongs, some are ok some are potential killers, they have a cheapo plastic bush for steering that wears in no time, and alows the bike to tip over sideways and either tip the kid off or pull the parent bike over with it. If it pivots around a plastic sleeve on the seat post dont buy it unless you are going to fit a bearing/bush or joint like Transit did, you need something that can pivot up and down and steer but wont flex. We made another one using the bottom bracket of a push bike and a steerer tube.

Chunko'.

Transit V6 · Jun 28, 2013

4 years on she's out growing the 1st one so i've started a new one on a 24" wheel - i've modded the linkage so it doesnt rotate the seat like the last one did (only occasionally but it was a bit annoying)

the snooper · Jun 28, 2013

good to see an update like this one and kids remember that their parents actually bothered with them, not just left them to play by themselves

Transit V6 · Jun 29, 2013

finished it off today :mrgreen:

all done

and loaded up

grandads_shed · Jun 29, 2013

looks good m8 ,, :clapping:

just a question ,, how do the rear paniers behave when loaded ?? if you tip the bike to one side, do they not make the stability of the bike a bit unstable caused by the linkage ???

Transit V6 · Jun 29, 2013

grandads_shed said:
looks good m8 ,,
just a question ,, how do the rear paniers behave when loaded ?? if you tip the bike to one side, do they not make the stability of the bike a bit unstable caused by the linkage ???

i dont know about the panniers but its definitely not as stable when sophie is on it, before this i had a little trailer i used to sit her in and that was perfectly stable. these take a bit of getting used to but once your used to it they are fine. i built this as i plan to to a coast to coast ride on it :whistle:

towable bike for kids

Member

artful-bodger

Casanunda

Moderator

Member

Member

Moderator

Member

Member

Member

Professional amateur

Member

Member

Member

celebrity artiste

Member

getting older by the day

Member

Member

Member