legal at last

[Sasquatch Jim]

  After a month and a half of emails, snail mails, phone calls, personal visits, and all the dead ends, my Rokon at last wears a license plate and safety sticker.
Photo is in front of ,my favorite coffee house in Hawi up on the cold frozen northern tip of the big island in the dead of winter during the coldest days of the year.
Phelonius himself in the saddle with portable wheelchair in the hack. I have been in shakedown mode all day going back to my garage to make small adjustments to things that need it. The sidecar wheel rim is full of water to help ballast the hack. You sidecar pilots will understand about that. When I first took it out it pulled strongly to the right and looking down I could see that the front wheel was not pointed in the same direction as the bike frame. I put more air into the tires, ( they are now slightly more than 10 psi ), and began making alignment adjustments to the rear wheel. It is better now but still pulls a little to the right. I will try adjusting the front wheel next. There is no adjustment for the sidecar wheel, nor any lean in lean out adjustment on the machine. I have to hope that front and back wheel adjustments are enough. I have had it up to 34 MPH now on level and it is twitchy because of short wheelbase and very light weight. As the engine breaks in it might go faster but I don't care. Every thing is 35 MPH speed limit around here anyway. Any cop who tickets me will look foolish in court as the machine is not capable of speeding. It is not nearly as relaxing as my 750 Honda with sidecar because of the quick steering and light weight. After I become accustomed to riding it I will try some of the rugged jeep trails. That will be in another report.

 

[Sasquatch Jim]

 Less than 300 pounds with sidecar.  Calcium chloride is EXTREMELY corrosive and should not be put in aluminum wheels.  I have seen what it does to steel wheels when I worked on earthmoving equipment.
 When I get the spare fuel tank mounted, it and the water in the hack wheel will be enough. As it stands the water and the wheelchair are almost enough.
 BTW, with no water in the wheels the machine floats and can cross rivers and lakes.

[John A]

Hope the water don't freeze, looks purty cold, being it is winter!

[bmc5733946]

Great pic Phelonious!!!  Really good to see you riding it at last!

Brian

[ohiorider]

Congrats!  I was looking for the Willie version, but for some reason, this seemed to be more appropriate!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRKNw477onU

You are one driven individual, and I give you so much credit for being how you are!

Bob

[canuguzzi]

Is the chair color matched or vice versa? It looks that way on the screen but I can't tell for sure.

[BigDave in PA]

I filled my garden tractor tires with the pink rv anti freeze. Just an idea.

[Sasquatch Jim]

 Just how much antifreeze do you think I need in Hawaii?  The bitterest cold day this winter might get down to 54 degrees at night and back to the seventies in daylight.
 Okay, the obligatory hottie pic.

 

[bigbikerrick]

Thats a badass looking rig ,Jim! I was expecting to see it with the big "tractor" type tires you see on most Rokons, but those look much more civilized.But, Im curious.... Where does the "hottie" fit in that rig?
I am looking forward to the full road test....and off road test.
                                                       

Rick.

[Sasquatch Jim]

  It's wearing the high speed road race tires to be street legal.  The John Deere tires are not legal on the street.
  The hottie is one that I had to evict  from my house for becoming  too much nuisance.  She was a cutie though.

[BigDave in PA]

I forgot you were in Hawaii. If you fill them with water I'd mix some rust inhibitor in with it. It looks like a fun rig. I'm sure you'll have a blast with it.

[normzone]

I remember you telling me that if I judged people by their armor, I'd disrepect you on sight. But you get credits for overcoming. Also, temperature and all that...

Canned Heat, now I'll have that in my dreams, thank you very much.

[Muzz]

Great to see you managed to get through all the bureaucratic bulldust and are now on the road.

Looking forward to the off-road reports. (and of course the accompanying hotties.)

[jbell]

Across the river and through the woods to grandmother's house we go..............

[dl.allen]

right on1!

You should post that over at ADV rider site!  They would love an offroad adventure story on that.  Something like mount a small generator and blender in the side car and ride some jungle trails and fire up some margaritas

[Sasquatch Jim]

  Actually it has been to the coffee mill we go.  Sundays they have live music there.
 Winter is so bitter cold here I don't even turn on the fan most days.





 

[lucian]

Looks like good fun. I hope being legal isn't habit forming.