Wooden balance bikes ... Done!

[Vince Lok]

Hi guys, here's a link to some pics!

http://picasaweb.google.com/Vincerama2/TheGirlsOnTheirNewBikes?feat=directlink

1/2 hardwood plywood, 1/4-20 bolts for everything except screws, which were mostly #10 and a few #14s.

It took a LONG TIME, since I had to make two of them, my workshop is a disaster area (it really slows you down when your shop is messy!) and of course, I only had a few half day weekend days and a many after-kids-go-to-sleep hours to work on it. I think if I had 3 sold workshop days I could have done it a lot faster...well especially now that I have two of them under my belt.

My brother has hinted that his son needs one, but he's only 6 months old, so I have a full 2 years or so to make one for him!

Vince

[Jim Rimmer]

Nice bikes, beautiful kids, and great smiles. It doesn't get any better.

[Eric DeSilva]

Interesting--nicely done. Was it your design, or did you start with some plans? How did you make the seats? And, if you don't mind one more question... How does the steering assembly work? How many degrees of rotation do you get?

[Jack Camillo]

Hey, great job! They look really nice. I bet your kids are the talk of the neighborhood on those machines.

[Tony Bilello]

Nice work.
I'm sure the kids love them, and their dad

[Carl Miller]

What a neat idea! Too bad my kids (and my grand kids) are beyond that age. It would be worth it just to see those beautiful happy grins.

[Phil Thien]

I'll take an adult-sized motorized model, please.

Those are nifty!

[Dave Rathert]

Those are awesome. On my to do list for sure. I guess I've got about a year and a half. I found a simple set of plans after some google-ing around. If you have detailed plans or a link to where I could purchase some, I'd love to see them.

-D

[Zach England]

I never learned how to ride a bike. Maybe I should make myself one of those (sized for a 6 foot, 200 LBS man).

[Vince Lok]

I found a set of plans on the net. Google "Crumley" and "wooden bike".

He has semi-detailed plans with a template. I used his template for the body and then figured everything else myself.

His used non-plywood for the forks, which is probably easier, but not as strong. I pored over the pics and went to a toy store to look how the fork and head were connected (it's simple, just a rod running down a channel).

I also found some stuff on the net, but Mr. Crumley's page was the most useful.
His pics:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/crumleydotorg/sets/72157594247855415/
His comments:
http://crumleydotorg.
chattablogs.com/archives/038834.html


There was an instruction video for how to put the forks onto another brand of bike, but it looks like the video is no longer there.

I also scrutinized this:
http://www.weebike.com/servlet/the-5/LikeaBike-SPOKY/Detail

Which has some pics that you can gleam some info from.

I think when I have a bit of time, I'll also post some instructions/plans as well (with props to Mr Crumley for his template).

My wife wanted "cushy" seats, so I found some 'pleather" at a fabric store, along with some foam and stapled (upholstered, I guess) a seat, then I screwed this seat onto an identical seat which was connected to the seat post.

My biggest challenge was drilling straight holes for the front axle and vertically through the front of the frame to fit the rod that holds the frame to the forks.

My forks aren't exactly perfectly square, I should ahve used my tablesaw, but I had just purchased a barrel-grip Bosch 1591 jigsaw and it is such a beautiful saw that I used it for everything. I love that saw!

The steering angles are a bit limited at the moment, which is supposed to be good for beginners, after they get the hang of it, I'll likely cut away some more wood in the forks (in the hole that the frame sits in) as that is what limits the steering.

I used Epiphany clear spar varnish for it's UV protection (hey, it's a bike!) and the finish is not the best but ... it's a bike for toddlers!

I had bought "connector rods" but I cut corners and used 1/4-20 bolts/lock nuts for everything.

Oh yeah, I build a jig which is basically a triangle with a 4 degree angle (based on what my table saw said was 4 degrees) so that I could drill holes in the frame that, when the bike was put together, actually allowed any bolts that went through the frame (also the rear axle) to be straight (ie perpendicular to the centerline of the bike).

I tried to make all my angled cuts at the same time without adjusting my table saw blade because it didn't matter what angle I chose as long as it was consistent. Well, OK actually the angle had to be around 4 degrees as any smaller and the rear wheel would not fit between the frame and any wider makes the bike too wide for little kids. Finding 4 degrees as a good angle was hard.

Again, I'll try and post a post-build article somewhere so that others may do the same and improve on the design and techniques.

Vince

PS. Sorry for the long post!

[Vince Lok]

Oh yeah, I should mention that you can make a coaster/balance bike out of any existing normal bike...just take the pedals and crank arms off it! But then it's not as cool as a homemade one.

Vince

[Ron Crosby]

Hey, those bikes are cool that you made. :)

[Kyle Kaldor]

Very cool bikes. I might have to make one for my daughter soon. What is the purpose of the bolts on the forks that are below the front axle?

[Shawn Christ]

Agreed, very cool Vince. I have two young boys and a soft spot in my heart for these "for-the-kids" projects. The smile on your girls' faces says it all... well done!

And I've gotta say I got a chuckle out of your comment on photo 12 - if you're fat I don't even want to leave the house anymore!