Odd bike with reverse bottle dynamo

Mark T said:

Bottle dynamos - all they do is suck power and make a funny noise. Today I
saw a reverse bottle dynamo; one that ADDS power. The working mechanism
sits stealthily over the front wheel - might be good for the peeps worried
about their TT times 😉

The French used roller-drive petrol engines over the front wheel for
years; maybe they still do. The obvious disadvantage was that you were
sitting in the fumes.

On 21 Jan, 20:29, Mark T
<pleasegivegenerously@warmail*turn_up_the_heat_to_reply*.com.invalid>

Quoted message said:

Bottle dynamos - all they do is suck power and make a funny noise. Today I
saw a reverse bottle dynamo; one that ADDS power. The working mechanism
sits stealthily over the front wheel - might be good for the peeps worried
about their TT times 😉

<www.flickr.com/photos/86862441@N00>

I asked about this kind of thing recently and it was suggested that
this is not legal in UK. Where did you see it?
Terry J

"TerryJ" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On 21 Jan, 20:29, Mark T
<pleasegivegenerously@warmail*turn_up_the_heat_to_reply*.com.invalid>

Quoted message said:

Bottle dynamos - all they do is suck power and make a funny noise. Today
I
saw a reverse bottle dynamo; one that ADDS power. The working mechanism
sits stealthily over the front wheel - might be good for the peeps
worried
about their TT times 😉

<www.flickr.com/photos/86862441@N00>

I asked about this kind of thing recently and it was suggested that
this is not legal in UK. Where did you see it?
Terry J

One of my colleagues has one and he rode it to work once. I'm not sure if
he did it legally though.....

Quoted message said:

I asked about this kind of thing recently and it was suggested that
this is not legal in UK. Where did you see it?
Terry J

Manchester, on the same road wot has those car-impaling bollards (speaking
of which, guess what I saw impaled on a bollard last week <evil laugh>😉.
If I ever see it trundling around again I'll ask the rider about it.

In article <[email hidden]>, Mark T
pleasegivegenerously@warmail*turn_up_the_heat_to_reply*.com.invalid
says...

Quoted message said:

Bottle dynamos - all they do is suck power and make a funny noise. Today I
saw a reverse bottle dynamo; one that ADDS power. The working mechanism
sits stealthily over the front wheel - might be good for the peeps worried
about their TT times 😉

<www.flickr.com/photos/86862441@N00>

Not odd at all, just a French moped. Apparently you can still buy them:
http://www.bullnet.co.uk/shops/test/velosole.htm

Rob Morley said:

It's perfectly legal to use in the UK if you register, tax and insure
it, have a valid license and wear a helmet

and it complies with Construction and Use regulations for whatever class
of motor vehicle is appropriate. I've not checked, but I would be
unsurprised if it didn't (I see no lights, indicators, etc, and would
suspect that they're required)

-dan

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Rob Morley said:

It's perfectly legal to use in the UK if you register, tax and insure
it, have a valid license and wear a helmet

and it complies with Construction and Use regulations for whatever class
of motor vehicle is appropriate.

They check that when you register it.

Quoted message said:

I've not checked, but I would be
unsurprised if it didn't (I see no lights, indicators, etc, and would
suspect that they're required)

Lights aren't required if the vehicle isn't used at night, indicators
I'm not sure about - it used to be you could use a bulb horn and hand
signals on a trials bike.

"Rob Morley" <[email hidden]> a écrit:

Quoted message said:

Lights aren't required if the vehicle isn't used at night,
indicators I'm not sure about - it used to be you could
use a bulb horn and hand signals on a trials bike.

It used to be the case that indicators, if fitted, had to be functional, but
weren't compulsory. I remember my brother removing the broken indicators
from his 125cc motorbike prior to an MOT test.

Googling finds:

http://www.motuk.co.uk/mcmanual_150.htm

If direction indicators are fitted they must meet the requirements of this
inspection, but need not be fitted to a machine which:

- cannot exceed 30mph / 50kph, or
- was first used before 1 August 1986, or
- 'off road' machines which are designed to carry only the rider.
- 'off road' machines with side car designed to carry the rider and one
passenger in the side car.

James Thomson

"Zog The Undeniable" <[email hidden]> a écrit:

Quoted message said:

The French used roller-drive petrol engines over the
front wheel for years; maybe they still do.

Indeed.

In the opening shots of "Three Days of the Condor" (from about 1:50 in) you
can see Robert Redford riding a Solex through the streets of Manhattan.

James Thomson

In news:[email hidden],
Rob Morley <[email hidden]> tweaked the Babbage-Engine to tell us:

Quoted message said:

It's perfectly legal to use in the UK if you register, tax and insure
it, have a valid license and wear a helmet. I suppose you could also
use it as a bicycle if you made the engine inoperable.

When I was a Penniless Student Oaf, one of my co-oaves had one of these.
Being half-French, and having brought it with him from Paris, he was unaware
of these requirements, and was deeply miffed when the Old Bill nicked him
from being unregistered, untaxed, uninsured, unhelmeted and riding on the
pavement...

--
Dave Larrington
<http://www.legslarry.beerdrinkers.co.uk>
There ought to be a /La/ against it.

Mark T said:

Bottle dynamos - all they do is suck power and make a funny noise. Today I
saw a reverse bottle dynamo; one that ADDS power. The working mechanism
sits stealthily over the front wheel - might be good for the peeps worried
about their TT times 😉

<www.flickr.com/photos/86862441@N00>

Looks rather like a Velo Solex, French manufactured. I remember them
being popular in Dublin in the late 1950s and early 60s.

The V.S. had pedal power too. The clutch was a sort of lever + ratchet
arrangement allowing the drive wheel to drop onto the front tyre.

I was a child and didn't know much about engine sizes at the time, but
I'd guess the engine was about 30 c.c. Probably not as much as 50 c.c.

I one I saw operating hadn't the power, as we say here, to pull the skin
off a rice pudding. Had to be supplemented with pedal power on even
modest gradients.

The drive wheel looked to me to be like a small (2.5" diameter) grinding
wheel.

Best regards,

Jon C.

P.S. After that, the NSU Quickly was popular, and a Puch something. Then
came the Honda 50 and that was that. j.c.

In article <[email hidden]>, Jonathan Campbell
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Looks rather like a Velo Solex, French manufactured. I remember them
being popular in Dublin in the late 1950s and early 60s.

The V.S. had pedal power too. The clutch was a sort of lever + ratchet
arrangement allowing the drive wheel to drop onto the front tyre.

I was a child and didn't know much about engine sizes at the time, but
I'd guess the engine was about 30 c.c. Probably not as much as 50 c.c.

They are 50cc.

Quoted message said:

I one I saw operating hadn't the power, as we say here, to pull the skin
off a rice pudding. Had to be supplemented with pedal power on even
modest gradients.

The current model quotes 580W, which is about three quarters of a horse.

Quoted message said:

The drive wheel looked to me to be like a small (2.5" diameter) grinding
wheel.

Best regards,

Jon C.

P.S. After that, the NSU Quickly was popular, and a Puch something.

Puch Maxi. You forgot the Raleigh Wisp. :-)

Quoted message said:

Then came the Honda 50 and that was that.

Oh the fun I had on one of those (actually the 70cc variant) - stick it
in gear, rev it, wonder why you're going nowhere, remember to lift your
foot off the gear lever, pop a wheely ... :-)

Jonathan Campbell said:

Mark T said:

Bottle dynamos - all they do is suck power and make a funny noise.
Today I saw a reverse bottle dynamo; one that ADDS power. The working
mechanism sits stealthily over the front wheel - might be good for the
peeps worried about their TT times 😉

<www.flickr.com/photos/86862441@N00>

Looks rather like a Velo Solex, French manufactured.

It 's a Hongdu - a Chinese copy of the Velosolex.

Quoted message said:

I remember them
being popular in Dublin in the late 1950s and early 60s.

The V.S. had pedal power too. The clutch was a sort of lever + ratchet
arrangement allowing the drive wheel to drop onto the front tyre.

Early VSX's had no clutch at all, later ones had a centrifugal clutch.
There's a lever to raise & lower the engine but if you use it as a
clutch you'll end up with a hole it the tyre.

Quoted message said:

I was a child and didn't know much about engine sizes at the time, but
I'd guess the engine was about 30 c.c.

45cc in the 50s ... later increased to 49cc.

Quoted message said:

Probably not as much as 50 c.c.

I one I saw operating hadn't the power, as we say here, to pull the skin
off a rice pudding. Had to be supplemented with pedal power on even
modest gradients.

Probably in need of a decoke - they were designed to be very slow - but
should be able to climb hills

Quoted message said:

The drive wheel looked to me to be like a small (2.5" diameter) grinding
wheel.

That's about it - carborundum-coated

Quoted message said:

Best regards,

Jon C.

P.S. After that, the NSU Quickly was popular, and a Puch something.

Maxi

--
Andrew

In article <[email hidden]>, Naqerj
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Jonathan Campbell wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I'd guess the engine was about 30 c.c.

45cc in the 50s ... later increased to 49cc.

Apparently the 49cc engine was introduced in 1953

Rob Morley said:

In article <[email hidden]>, Naqerj
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Jonathan Campbell wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I'd guess the engine was about 30 c.c.

45cc in the 50s ... later increased to 49cc.

Apparently the 49cc engine was introduced in 1953

In France... but not in the UK - VSX had given up on the UK market by then.

--
Andrew

In article <[email hidden]>, Naqerj
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Rob Morley said:

In article <[email hidden]>, Naqerj
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Jonathan Campbell wrote:

Quoted message said:

> I'd guess the engine was about 30 c.c.
45cc in the 50s ... later increased to 49cc.

Apparently the 49cc engine was introduced in 1953

In France... but not in the UK - VSX had given up on the UK market by then.

I didn't know they ever had a UK market.

Rob Morley said:

In article <[email hidden]>, Naqerj
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Rob Morley said:

In article <[email hidden]>, Naqerj
[email hidden] says...
> Jonathan Campbell wrote:
>> I'd guess the engine was about 30 c.c.
> 45cc in the 50s ... later increased to 49cc.
>
Apparently the 49cc engine was introduced in 1953

In France... but not in the UK - VSX had given up on the UK market by then.

I didn't know they ever had a UK market.

http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~pattle/nacc/arc0244.htm reveals all.

--
Andrew