1976 Heald Super Tryke Restored!

 I built a cover for the comet clutch over the last couple days. I got it installed this morning.  It is a little crude but considering the tools I  have for fabrication, It functions well!  I was a little worried that if anyone road the Tryke with long hair, it might get caught in the driven clutch and not only would they get gratuitous hair removal but they would not want to ride the Tryke after that.

After the installation of the clutch guard the build is complete.  This is what it looks like finished!

Finishing Touches

So the Tryke is mostly done. It starts and runs well. It stops when I use the brakes. It is missing some of the niceties, you know, the things that make it easier to want to ride around.  First of all it is starting to cool down outside and with that a choke is needed. I debated where I could located a choke mechanism and finally decided to mount it under the front seat. I did this for a couple of reasons but mostly because I did not want to run another cable through the frame.  I couldn't figure out a good spot on the handlebars for a mechanism either. I fashioned a lever out of the old throttle lever I had removed from the GX390. A trip to my local bike store supplied me with the cable parts to put a good custom cable together and with a bunch of measuring, I have a good functioning choke mechanism.

  Although people may look at me strange when I put my hands between my legs to start the Tryke, It works well just the same.
The second thing I did was install a kill switch up front. This was needed for safety as much as convenience.  Nothing like climbing off the tryke to shut it down and having to chase the Tryke down the road as it takes off without you.  I used one of the old head light holes to mount the switch. The holes were left when I removed the old headlight switches.  It is a momentary micro-switch so it looks fairly natural.

The third thing I did was to get the old fenders sand blasted and powder coated.  The awareness of a need for fenders appeared when I drove through the smallest puddle and the front wheel threw the entire content of the puddle in my face.  The Tryke looks better with them anyway.

The final update was a new key switch. The original three position key switch on the GX390 had a starter position and was not going to work with the new handle bar switches,  I found a ATV switch with a real key. In the "OFF" position if simply grounds out the magneto. In the "ON" position it sends power to all the switches up front and eliminates the grounding of the magneto. No lights, horn, or anything without the key in and in the on position.

The only thing needed now is a safety cage for the comet clutch.  This will take some fabrication and will have to wait for another day!

The Looks Are Important Also

When I first built the Tryke the cables, wires, and brake lines all ran from the handle bars under the center tube on the frame and back to the engine compartment.  I thought this distracted from the simplicity and design of the Super Tryke and so I have run all the wires, brake lines, and throttle cable through the frame. Further, I bought after market handle bar mounted controls and ran those wires through the handle bars and terminated them in the head light housing. This cleaned up the whole trike.

The seat cover had long ago rotted away and left just the sun faded plywood and plastic base to ride on. You usually ended the day with at least one sliver in your keester and a heightened awareness of lingering pain while taking a seat anywhere after.  I cut a new plywood board for the base and took the seat down to have some magic worked. I told them a good diamond stitch to keep it retro and orange thread would complete the look. This is what they gave me back!

The trike did not come with the roll bar and looked a little bare with out something. I found some bars off of an old Honda Odyssey. With a bit of fabrication I was able to turn then into a pretty good set. I sent them to the painter and he put a hammered black powder coat on for me.

Fenders and a few other things will complete the project.

New Engine and Carb

While the Tryke was in it's half built state over the last couple of years, I decided to rebuild the Carb.  It had the old updraft and was very prone to float problems and flooding. In fact, it wasn't uncommon to walk out to a puddle of gas and an empty gas tank. Even worse, a crankcase full of gasoline. This kept me from a couple rides and I decided an upgrade to the power-plant was needed. 

I happened upon a Honda GX390 that needed a rebuild and this became my new engine. Lighter and more powerful than the old 10 hp L-head, the GX390 is rated at 13hp. The only problem with the Honda was the carburetor. This was an old pump motor and the governor controlled  carb was hard to control and actually a little dangerous. The surge to slow action of the governor at idol would engage the clutch and make it impossible to climb off without fear of getting run over. The narrowed ports on the carb also sapped the engine of power. I did not like it...

The solution came as I was looking through my collection of carbs and found and old Mikuni  30 mm carb from a Yamaha Timberwolf. Upon further inspection, this was the same size as the intake port on the head of the Honda.  I did some creative engineering and was able to put together an intake. I modified the throttle cable and gas line.  I let the bowel fill and gave it a crank.  Short story... it is AWESOME!!!!  Smooth idle and way more controlled power!

Refresh and New Powder Coat

It has been six years since I last posted my progress on the Tryke. The truth of the matter is, I never really finished the Tryke. I did repaint it yellow and got it running enough to ride around a bit. I never had the seat re-done and after trying to rebuild the updraft carburetor without much luck, The Tryke sat for a couple years by the side of the house. The paint faded and the metal started to turn brown again. In that amount of time my kids moved on and the prospect of a 50 year old fat guy driving around on a motorized big wheel, well.... you have the picture.

Deb was pressuring me to part ways with the Tryke and I came up with an idea.  The local high school might could use this for a mascot mobile, or even auction it off for the football team during homecoming week.  The Super Tryke had a new purpose!

I pulled it into the garage from it's home on the side of the house.  I tore it down to the bare bones and sent it to the sand blaster. I told them my plans and they gave me a discount.  After the frame was completely clean I took it to my buddy to have it powder coated  and I think it is looking fairly sharp!

That is Burnt Orange which is the high schools color!