I used three sizes of conduit in my bolt together trailer. 1" tubing at the part of the trailer where the hitch was connecting to the four side rails and the stringers from one side to the other of the bed. 3/4 " for the base of the rails and 1/2" for the truss brace and upper rails. I chose to use and off the shelf hitch from BOB which has worked out so far. It is all an experiment, and it is fun when it works. The hard thing was ingratiating side lighting for a trailer that is that long. I am 16 feet long with bike and trailer, I want to be seen at night and not run over. Trailers are not that tall and I needed lights that could take the abuse of storage, banging around, getting stepped on, kicked, and still work.

Cutting and mitering tubing requires tooling most of us do not have. (I have it) Welding is another area where some of us have tools ( I do not) Brazing is another tool heavy production ( I do have a torch). I create things with a drill and a tubing bender for two reasons, I want other groups, programs, individuals, to have creative solutions that they can achieve with few tools. I want to inspire creativity in others. It is hard work to figure out how to create complex bends in a pipe. I could show you the design all day long and still it is up to the individual to lay out the idea and bend the metal and drill the holes. It is my hope that you will look at designs and find the strengths in them and then realize you can ADD your problem solving, to fit your needs, to that original design.  Look, Play, Create, Enjoy and start again. Look at designs, Play with metal, Create a solution that fits your needs, Enjoy the success that comes from making something, Start a new project for the future.

I love my trailer(s), my folding wheels, my wooden recumbent, my 9 spoked wheel, Pneumaphillic hydraulic brake fluids, Silver smithing jewelry and bicycle frames, creating tests for: axle thread bending, chain wear issues, drive train, bearing loads, rim failures, and so on. Dispelling the myth that bike shops need be be barely making money, teaching non cyclist to be winter cyclist (yes we have snow in Chicago). There is no single area that you need to focus on with creativity, there are thousands of areas to use your brain creatively in the bicycle world. If you can not bend metal, SO WHAT,  find another area in cycling to bend with your mind.  Just have fun!
 

Christopher Wallace
Holistic Cycles/ Bicycle Guild
140 Harrison St
Oak Park, IL. 60304


-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: [TheThinkTank] Bike Trailer
From: Ron Kellis <ron.kellis@velocitycoop.org>
Date: Wed, January 30, 2013 2:06 pm
To: The Think Tank <thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org>

Mr. Sullivan's design is all bolt together. I can't lay my hands on my book this second, but the main tube is bent in one piece. So then your dealing with how much weight will it hold before the frame buckles. It comes down to balancing trade-offs. 

Ron


On Tue, Jan 29, 2013 at 11:41 PM, summitcyclingcenter@yahoo.com <summitcyclingcenter@yahoo.com> wrote:
Mark, I've seen your work on the web.  I have respect for what you have done.  Welding EMT will produce zinc gas; not healthy to breathe.  Welding EMT can be done out of doors safely.  Better to use furniture tubing, if possible.  One can do well with drill & bolt construction.


Sent from my HTC EVO Design™ 4G from Boost Mobile

----- Reply message -----
From: "Mark Rehder" <mark@re-cycles.ca>
To: "The Think Tank" <thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org>
Subject: [TheThinkTank] Bike Trailer
Date: Tue, Jan 29, 2013 17:04


EMT is great, but of course don't try to weld it!  A search through the archives should show my posts on some of the no-weld trailers I've built.  I found that even 3/4" conduit has its limits in terms of flex...

Mark


On 2013-01-29, at 4:55 PM, summitcyclingcenter@yahoo.com wrote:

EMT is inexpensive new and easy to bend.  Possibly can be sourced from scrap yard or demo site.  

Sent from my HTC EVO Design™ 4G from Boost Mobile

----- Reply message -----
From: "Kevin Dwyer" <kevidwyer@gmail.com>
To: "The Think Tank" <thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org>
Subject: [TheThinkTank] Bike Trailer
Date: Mon, Jan 28, 2013 07:23


I'd really like to see an open source cargo trailer developed. Single bed frames would seem to be an ideal base, easy/free to come by and capable of holding over 200lbs. Could be done as a workshop once or twice a year.

Kevin Dwyer
The Bicycle Collective
SLC, UT

On Sun, Jan 27, 2013 at 5:54 PM, Eric Montgomery <emontgo1017@gmail.com> wrote:
On Jan 27, 2013 1:50 PM, <christopher@holisticcycles.com> wrote:
I am using a tadpole trike with two wheels in front with disk brakes on each front wheel. I am lucky to be in Chicago land of some of the flattest earth on the planet. With lighter trailers I can use an upright bike with wide slicks and low pressure to get as much rubber to the ground. I do not go fast with over 400 pounds, a upright piano is about 500 pounds, I just take it easy. If you go slow and do not worry about your pace it is much easier to stop. If you get moving fast you are in trouble in so many ways. It would be nice to design brakes for the trailer to use it in places like St. Louis where down hills are part of life. I could figure out a system to have four wheels on the trailer with rim or disk brakes. 

My biggest problem was tongue weight and making the trailer balanced. 

PS plastic wheels can not take the side loads that metal spoked wheels can.

Christopher Wallace
Holistic Cycles
140 Harrison St
Oak Park, IL. 60304


-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: [TheThinkTank] Insurance for youth welding programs
through bikes
From: John Brown <johnsbrown@gmail.com>
Date: Sat, January 26, 2013 7:42 am
To: The Think Tank <thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org>

What kind of additional braking do you add to haul 350-1200lbs on a trailer?

On Fri, Jan 25, 2013 at 9:16 AM, <christopher@holisticcycles.com> wrote:
I build trailers without welding at all, some handle up to 1200 pound. I weld other trailers because I can. My thoughts are this, if I am teaching kids to think about designing, engineering, constructing things; I want them to be able to do it in the future with the tools they or their parents may all ready have at home or tool they can buy inexpensively. Some kids may have a welder at home, More kids will have a drill. I built my trailers with a drill and a conduit bender. I normally haul 350 to 400 pounds of gear with it. It can be made small to haul groceries or large to carry a sofa. 

We are currently making one to carry 12 bikes and the gear to teach a mobile bicycle safety course at schools. 

Christopher Wallace
Holistic Cycles
140 Harrison St
Oak Park, IL. 60304


-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: [TheThinkTank] Insurance for youth welding programs
through bikes
From: Nozomi Ikuta <nozomi@affordablebikesrecyclery.com>
Date: Wed, January 23, 2013 8:28 pm
To: The Think Tank <thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org>

That was my thought exactly -- this is where our thoughts headed when we thought about welding. Cargo trailers, that is!

On Wed, Jan 23, 2013 at 5:20 PM, <christopher@holisticcycles.com> wrote:
what about building trailers

Christopher Wallace
Holistic Cycles
140 Harrison St
Oak Park, IL. 60304


-------- Original Message --------
Subject: [TheThinkTank] Insurance for youth welding programs through
bikes
From: "Bronwyn Potthoff" <bpotthoff@gwi.net>
Date: Fri, January 18, 2013 8:55 am
To: <thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org>

Hello,
We’ve been unsuccessfully trying to secure insurance to initiate a welding/fabrication program through the Community Bicycle Center. Ideally, we’re helping youth develop technical job skills through creating low-rider and chopper bicycles --- but the point of the program is not about bikes, it’s about learning the welding and fabrication skills necessary to create a tricked-out ride.
 
The major obstacle we hear from insurance companies is that we’re creating a high-risk “Frankenstein” product (or “functional art”) that is extremely hard to insure. As soon as we chop a bike, the manufacturer’s warranty is null and void (for good reason!) The actual welding with kids is not a huge issue – it’s what happens if a weld breaks or a kid injures him/herself going off jump with a bike that is not build to handle such stressors. Waivers and disclaimers will only go so far and are not bullet-proof. Because we’re a commercial entity, it’s obviously not covered under any homeowner’s insurance policy (which would be what covers you if you’re helping your nine year-old neighbor weld a sick mutant bike). Also, vocational school insurance functions differently – I checked that too.
 
I may end up having to change the program so that our “product” is not a bike, but something less risky such as a static sculpture. Regardless, does anybody have any experience with securing insurance for commercial (aka nonprofit) welding work with kids during which a “product” gets fabricated? [Keep in mind, all programs are free AND the product created is also free --- no bill of sale is involved] I’ve touched base with other programs around the country that do similar work, but have not heard back.
 
Thanks!! If it makes more sense to talk through this via phone, my number is 207 282 9700.
 
Bronwyn Potthoff, Resource Development/Community Relations Director
Community Bicycle Center
(mailing) P.O. Box 783
(shop) 284 Hill Street
Biddeford, Maine 04005
t: 207.282.9700     www.communitybike.net
     Facebook Round
Providing Opportunities for Youth to Grow
 
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