The first group of molds that I will make is for the tail cone. There are 5 separate molds involved. The tail cone mold will consist of three separate pieces: left lower section, right lower section, and the third part is the curved upper surface of the tail cone. I also added two access panels … Continue reading Building molds for the tail cone →

As I was shaping and finishing the rear section of the velomobile plug, I ended up with 2 different and distinct designs left and right, mostly caused by my being over-zealous with the hot wire foam cutter on the left side. After thinking and musing about it I decided the right side was a more … Continue reading The plug is completed! →

I ordered a rear suspension kit from Katanga, to install on the Zephyr. The suspension was designed as an upgrade/retrofit for the WAW. It moves the rear axle rearward by about 2 inches, using a virtual pivot design. The kit arrived mostly assembled, and the small bolts were taped in the hole for shipping. The … Continue reading Designing for the rear suspension →

I cut up a couple vinyl sign riders, to create some quick measurement guides for checking the symmetry on my plug: https://flic.kr/p/2hY6AUK The upper guide is 48 centimeters between the left and right points, and at top middle there is a small point. The small point lines up on the centerline so I can check … Continue reading Symmetry and other fun stuff! →

I'm creating my own velomobile for varied reasons, whether for customizing the fit or trying to wring out any aerodynamic improvements I can. Most decisions have a trade-off though; I may gain some aerodynamic advantage by making a change, but that may mean I give up something else. Some of the aerodynamic tweaks that I'm … Continue reading Trade-offs →

Our Thanksgiving travel plans were canceled at the last minute, due to some family health concerns. So we were home for the long weekend, which gave me lots of time to continue working on the plug! The hot wire cutter is still working well, I've only had to replace the stainless steel wire one time … Continue reading The curves are showing up! →

I know that I could do my velomobile design work on a 3D program, and cut out templates for each 2" slice of my design, but I want to do it "old school" - glue a bunch of pieces of foam together, and then sculpt the design from a huge foam block! So I cut … Continue reading Working on the foam Plug →

To build the plug for this creation I've decided to use polystyrene insulation board, commonly found in home improvement stores. This is different than the polyisocyanurate foam I have worked with in the past. Using this material will bring up a couple things that are new to me. First is that auto body filler (ABF) … Continue reading Starting to Design my velomobile →

I didn't think I'd be doing this.... I was just having fun figuring out composites work, making myself some truly custom pieces. Yet here we are 😉 https://vimeo.com/368685335 So, a fair question is: Why? Well I certainly know it's going to require a lot of work and time. And as someone asked, "you own 2 … Continue reading Designing my own Velomobile! →

I like to ride with an action camera on my velomobile rides. It's nice to be able to put together a video of a particularly fun ride or event. But it's also nice to have video evidence in case a vehicle driver does something stupid or dangerous. My first camera was an early edition GoPro … Continue reading Creating a Camera/Fly6 pylon →