Front wheel wobble at speed

[Yellow Saddle]

It’s a recumbent.

I can't think why a recumbent shouldn't suffer shimmy. I don't have even a rough frame construction of one in my head, but if the front wheel (via the fork of course) is attached to a sort of beam or truss that's not a space-frame, it will also shimmy.

 

[matticus]

I can't think why a recumbent shouldn't suffer shimmy. I don't have even a rough frame construction of one in my head, but if the front wheel (via the fork of course) is attached to a sort of beam or truss that's not a space-frame, it will also shimmy.

Yes, and there must be some sort of equivalent of the "knee-on-the-top-tube" trick.

 

[bobcolover]

Yes, and there must be some sort of equivalent of the "knee-on-the-top-tube" trick.

intereresting to try and work out how...

 

[Ming the Merciless]

I can't think why a recumbent shouldn't suffer shimmy. I don't have even a rough frame construction of one in my head, but if the front wheel (via the fork of course) is attached to a sort of beam or truss that's not a space-frame, it will also shimmy.

No one said certain recumbent designs can’t suffer shimmy. What you can’t do is put a knee against a tube tube.

 

[matticus]

What you can’t do is put a knee against a tube tube.

Isn't that a song? Don't mess with my tube tube!!

 

[Yellow Saddle]

No one said certain recumbent designs can’t suffer shimmy. What you can’t do is put a knee against a tube tube.

I misread your post.

 

[Yellow Saddle]

Steering dampers on bicycles don't work as a remedy against shimmy. All that will do is make you feel like you cannot cycle in a straight line as every steering action will feel like an over-reaction. On an upright, it feels like the back wheel is fish-tailing or that the tyre is flat and moves side-to-side. I don't speak for recumbents but I doubvt there's a solution other than a vast increase in frame stiffness in the right places. A shimmy moves the front wheel out of plane with the rear wheel through twisting flex in the frame.

 

[kingrollo]

Buy a cruzbike.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Buy a cruzbike.

Stops any shimmy through crashing 😆

 

[a.twiddler]

Buy a cruzbike.

Doesn't solve the balance issues though. A cruztrike? I think they exist, but not seen one. I could imagine one of those being a real challenge what with mastering the pedal steer and the waywardness of an upright-derived three wheeler all in one machine. But then again, some riders master a two wheeled cruzbike quite easily, so why not? Perhaps the very direct drive train more than compensates for other shortcomings.