Sinclair C5 with added power and traction
Discussion
I have 2 Sinclair C5s. I love them.
One of them I take away to my Daughters Tetrathlon competitions as we always have to haul 50kilos of water across fields or camp grounds where we park the horse lorry. Often 3x50kilo runs a day due to human and horse shower etc.
The standard C5 didn’t have enough power so I converted to 48v brushless motors, chain drive and lifepo4 batteries on a chunky controller.
The problem with the c5 on grass and with power is the original design was 1 wheel drive for pedalling and the motor so the tyre just spins and you can’t lock the other wheel as there is no diff.
My solution is to cut the axle and run 2 brushless motors with 2 controllers, 2 batteries and 1 throttle.
One of them I take away to my Daughters Tetrathlon competitions as we always have to haul 50kilos of water across fields or camp grounds where we park the horse lorry. Often 3x50kilo runs a day due to human and horse shower etc.
The standard C5 didn’t have enough power so I converted to 48v brushless motors, chain drive and lifepo4 batteries on a chunky controller.
The problem with the c5 on grass and with power is the original design was 1 wheel drive for pedalling and the motor so the tyre just spins and you can’t lock the other wheel as there is no diff.
My solution is to cut the axle and run 2 brushless motors with 2 controllers, 2 batteries and 1 throttle.
This will be the first bearing block made from
3d printed ABS reinforced with Glass Fibre, it is really strong but has to be printed around 240 degrees.
This will have 2 hk2216 needle rollers which match those used by Sinclair. I will also use the original bearing mounts each end as these also hold the motors.
I plan to use twin in board discs as the single drum on the C5 was rubbish.
I cut off an axle in the chop saw. I will use 2 with on flipped the other way up.
The wheels will be made stronger with printed sandwich plates as the wheels bend a bit.
The current one motor setup on full power can smoke the new tyres and wheel spin at 20mph so I have to peg back the power. You don’t want to go very fast in a C5
My old C5 is currently gathering dust in my father's garage and my son keeps threatening to retrieve it and get it back on the road.EdR said:
I'll echo that - utterly awesome!!
Could you possibly fit some spiked tyres on the back, and post the video of you doing wheelies across a campsite?
I was wondering if it would pick up the front wheel.Could you possibly fit some spiked tyres on the back, and post the video of you doing wheelies across a campsite?
One I the C5s I used a front hub motor so, in theory, it could be 3 wheel drive but I prefer to not have the weight
I printed the first ABS GF block, I really should do a prototype in pla just in case but fortune favours the brave and it worked. I had to hammer the bearing in using a socket which is great as it means it works and this ABS amazes me with how strong it is.
I am now printing the opposite side bearing block, another of the same, spacers and a disc brake holder that will act as an alignment tool for me to weld a steel disc to the axle and it can then stay in place for support. I stacked 5 items on to the build plate so this will be an over night 12.5 hr print.
I am now printing the opposite side bearing block, another of the same, spacers and a disc brake holder that will act as an alignment tool for me to weld a steel disc to the axle and it can then stay in place for support. I stacked 5 items on to the build plate so this will be an over night 12.5 hr print.
It needs a good clean under here as it has recently done 2 weeks work lugging stuff around show grounds.
This is the left hand motor roughly mocked up whilst I wait for more bearing blocks to print off. Each one takes 5 hrs as they are very dense.
I have the 2nd motor side nearly done and tomorrow I hope to mount one or both of the inboard disc brakes.
rodericb said:
Will having no differential on those powered wheels mean your wheel at the front will push instead of steer?
No, this is the whole point. The axle isn’t solid. I have split it in 2, the two halves JUST touch each other where they meet in a shared bearing block but have one needle roller each. One motor per side and one disc brake per side The standard C5 was flawed on wet grass as it was a solid axle but only one wheel drive for motor and pedals. The second just spun on a bearing. This is the whole reason for this build
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