Milan for bigger folks?

We have laid up some heavy sections out of the Milan GT moulds.  We had three reasons for doing this.  To use up some old material that we can't use for anything else,  train a new staff member in hand laminating and perhaps build a new velomobile.

Of the first four or five potential customers who visited me looking at the Milan GT two certainly didn't fit and a third was too close to call.   The need is for a bit more clearance for bigger feet, even 1-2 cm would be a big gain, accomodating a longer femur lenght and more knee space can be acommllished by moving the door opening forward 5 cm.  Adding 2.5 cm extra width at each shoulder will be a big plus for some.  Just from looking at the shape it can be blended into the existing bulges and still look very nice.  Is adding 5 cm in total width at the shoulders enough?

We are not sure if this will happen as building a new velomobile is a very big project.  In any case it's going on the back burner for a while.  Still an interesting undertaking to contemplate.

Taking Orders and Prices

Finally at the point where we can take orders for the Milan GT and Milan SL.  It has taken far longer than I thought it would but I think well worth the delay.  For something as simple as a bike it has proven to be quite complex.

The base price for the Milan GT and Milan SL is $8,500  This includes carbon wheel wells, carbon rear fender, carbon ribs in the floor and sides of the shell, left and right mirrors with carbon fairing and reflective stripe, rear tail light. 

Upgrade to carbon/Kevlar laminate  $1,500

Lighting package( two headlights, running/signal lights, brake light)  $800

Storage compartment in front of wheel wells  $100 each

Upgrade to 90 mm drums $100

Side stick (tank steering)  $100

Hood   $450

More details to follow!!

Milan SL

 Front storage compartments for the Milan SL

 

The picture shows the front storage compartments for the Milan SL installed in the bottom half of the velomobile.  I find them quite handy to contain loose items you don't need too often.  Each one is about 8-10 liters in size.  It is best to install them when the shell in at this stage as it is hard to reach once the top is on especially if you do not cut footholes. 

 

Jig for bolting the rear swing arm into the Milan SL.  I was working on this on the weekend and didn't have anyone to help squeeze the parts together when tightening the bolts so I made a jig.  The rather beefy rear swing arm has two plastic shims on each side that need to fit tightly between the plastic blocks that clamp the pivot tube in place.  Having two shims on each side allows for some adjustment sideways of the swing arm for the wheel and the fender. Here's a better picture of the swing arm with the spacers visible. 

 

This is the third Milan SL being built.  It will be our demo and the one I try to make fit me.  We are now able to start building the Milan GT and Milan SL for customers.

Details and options

I have finally come up with a way to hold wires to the shell that is simple, easy to do, and very light.  The secret is in the one layer of carbon fiber used to make the fixture.  The other trick is sticking the tube to the shell with silicone.  The advantage of using silicone is that you can remove  it if necessary and we always have a few tubes of it in the shop.  The disadvantage is that it takes at least overnight to set enough to stay in place.   Here's a picture of it in the 1/4" diameter

Now I just have to finish the wiring in my velo so it is rideable any time.  It is still missing the connections for the headlights and brake light with only the signal/running lights working. 

Plastic drain for the rain gutter.  The piece of tubing used as a drain for the rain gutter is now easily made.  I just had to make some jigs to form the end of the tube rather than doing it free hand.  I'll use the channel for the wires to hold it to the side of the velo.

Mirror fairing with the light in the front of it seems to be working out nicely.  I had to come up with a slightly different clip to mount the mirror.  The mirror mounts so it is almost touching the shell rather than on a stalk. I suspect that it will now be possible to mount it on most velos. 

 

The Milan GT and Milan SL both come with suspension on all three wheels.  I do have the plug for making the rear fender for the SL without rear suspension in the shop.  I will move it out into storage where it can rest until some one really wants this version.  I will take some convincing to do so!!!!  The front suspension is the normal strut from Velomobiel.nl but with the stiffer spring in it.  The rear suspension is a double sided swing arm with two suspension struts, one on each side. 

Last Weekends Ride

On the spur of the moment I decided to go for a ride on the flatter island, Vancouver Island.  It was just about 1/2 an hour before the ferry left the island when I decided.  By the time I pumped up the tires found my repair kit and got going I had only 20 minutes left.  Just a little ways down the road I realized I forgot to take my battery from the charger.  By the time I turned around and got the battery I thought I won't make the ferry.  If I made the ferry I would ride on the other side if not just ride on the island.  I pushed pretty hard and had just enough time to make the ferry to get off the island.  This has to be my fastest trip ever to the ferry.  Maybe the reason is the small visor I made to try out.

As it turns out I didn't have it quite right as I still got a bit chilled going down hills at speed.  The back edge needs to be about an inch higher to deflect the onrushing air onto my helmet rather than my forehead.  The good part is that after coming off the first hill I was able to hold over 50 kph for quite a while.  This is about 2-3 kph more than before along this section.   I had the unusual situation of traffic not passing me as I was close to the speed limit.  Needless to say this didn't last.  It ended up being an excellent ride with the fastest two hour average ever at just over 35 kph.   I am lucky to get around a 25 kph average on Quadra Island.  It must have something to do with hills!!!

Ribs

No, this isn't about the kind you can eat.  In the photo below you can see the stiffening rib installed in the side of the Milan. 

 

This adds much needed stiffness to the long flat side of the Milan.  While the panel was strong enough without the rib it seemed to act like a sounding board for vibrations from the road.  To further reduce this I have rebuilt the rear fender.  Here you can see the first half.

 

What different about this one is that it considerably stiffer by the addition of an extra layer.  The extra layer is the material Bio-Mid which is made from sawdust from western Canada.  The material looks much like regular fiberglass but has a density similar to Kevlar.  It adds thickness to the laminate without a lot of weight.  Having this layer between two layers of carbon optimizes the carbon's properties.  



On the Road at Last

This is the first picture taken of the blue Milan GT on the road.  It is still missing a few bits but ride able.  The first thing I noticed that's different about it is the weight.  It looks like the Milan GT in carbon/Kevlar laminate will finish out in the low 60 pound range.  While I was hoping for under 60 with some more development this may still be possible.  The second thing I noticed is that it is noisier than the glass version.  Right now I am working at reducing the noise and think I may have it in hand.  My local short test loop has some very poorly surfaced roads so if I can make it acceptable on these it won't be a problem elsewhere.  The problem may be with a high tech thin laminate without excess resin in it transmits vibrations more.  Having a high resin content makes for thicker laminate and the resin itself is less prone to transmitting noise or vibration than the carbon or Kevlar material.  Some localized stiffening seems to help a lot.   Tomorrow morning ride will tell if it good enough. 

 

The first seat that I have infused.  It does have a couple of foam ribs on the back making infusion an easier overall process than our usual method with vacuum.  The disadvantage is than we end up using a bit more resin and have more materials that need to be throw any.  The big plus is the potential weight saving.  While this seat is a bit light for my liking I will test it some to see how it stands up.  The weight I would be happy with is under 500g.  This one weighs in at 414g without the holes in it but I would like to add a bit more carbon in a couple of spots.