RUMCars Forum
General Category => Sales & Auctions => Topic started by: Triporteur on November 14, 2008, 07:05:10 AM
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1956 Cyclemaster Harding - The Most absurd 3-Wheeler ever made?
(http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f92/groovydubber/Harding_Model_C_1copy.jpg)
(http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f92/groovydubber/5407aj.jpg)
For the full story, you can visit the website http://BuyVintage.co.uk
and scroll down to page 45.
Or click on the link below
http://buyvintage1.wordpress.com/page-45-1927-radco-250cc/
It's also now on ebay:
Item number: 270302328916
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=270302328916
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I believe the trikes were made for less-abled people and those who couldn't balance on a bicycle. There used to be a guy in Eastbourne with one in the 1980s. He pedalled miles on his.
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Tricycles in general were of course aimed at folks who had difficulties with only two wheels, and R.A. Harding were well known for their 3-wheel disabled vehicles and bath chairs.
But TWS (two wheel steering) tricycles were different. They were a novelty design.
Kendrick TWS trikes have three full size wheels and are much more stable. Though some people obviously owned Hardings and used them, like your chap in Eastbourne (unless his was actually a Kendrick?), the smaller front wheels on the Harding make it unstable. Having said that, it's totally eccentric so naturally I love it.
My point is that it is totally unsuitable to be motorized. Unlike other motorized three-wheelers, such as the microcars owned by most forum members, it has a narrow track, high centre of gravity, nothing in front of the driver to cushion any impact, no suspension, it's lightweight and the steering is not responsive enough for motorized speed. Tricycles of conventional design with engines at the rear suffer from some of the above, but the better control of the steering makes them much safer at speed.
Next time you're passing, give me a call and you're welcome to road-test both the Kendrick and the Harding and see what you think
1930's Kendrick pictured below for comparison
(http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f92/groovydubber/kendrick1copy-1.jpg)
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Harding now sold, and off to Thailand with a few others
(http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f92/groovydubber/off_to_thailand.jpg)
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Artura strikes again....
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Artura strikes again....
Not in my shed mate !!!
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He is welcome to them! Except for the Piatti scooter, I love those and would really like to own one. Do you have a Piatti Ferdi?
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Hi Bob,
sorry i don't have a Piatti. I try to resist temptation to get what all i like, but im still pleased to have my Peels the Schmitts and the Comtesse. Would like to grap a Scootacar anyway. :)
Regards Ferdi
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Yeh, me too! Not many of those left to grab!
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Here you go...http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/VERY-RARE-PIATTI-SCOOTER-FOR-RESTORATION_W0QQitemZ330285877023QQihZ014QQcategoryZ9939QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
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Thanks Mr Blob. The bidding will proberbly go through the roof but will keep an eye on it. If the Peel Trident is the Jetsons car this has to be the Jetsons scooter!
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I quite like the Harding, but it does have a narrow track. My girlfriend has a late 70s / early 80s Pasley trike (single front). Bikefix in Holborn make gorgeous and very fast sporting trikes with 2 front wheels. 2 front is always a better layout for stability and handling
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Hasn't met the reserve yet and besides I thought you were skint Bob! :o
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looking again more closely at the pics of these trikes I notice that the frames are like a "T" with the front wheels either end of the top cross-bar. The trikes only have small diagonal stiffening tubes, so I reckon therewill be quite a bit of flex. I noticed similar on the prototype of my drum car, which felt horrible all but the smoothest and flattest surfaces. It only did about 2 mph! The mark 2 (as seen at RUM Open Day and on you tube) has a well triangulated frame which is much more rigid, but this is possible because it needs no clearance space for foot pedalling. Trike frame design is surprisingly tricky to get right.
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Blob I am scint but had a money saving result today, found a new sand blaster who is sand blasting my Nobel chassis, suspension hoops, cross spring with end castings etc all for £30! I recon thats cheap as chips! Can give you the number if interested [in Essex]
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Cheap as chips! I hope you have something left at the end of it. :-\
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I hope there is enough of it left to sprinkle some salt and vinigar on! If there is nothing under all the rust I will have to send the boys round to see the scallywag I bought it from!
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He is welcome to them! Except for the Piatti scooter, I love those and would really like to own one.
I do have a Piatti. The scooter is very unusal indeed, but also very useless on the road. The tiny 7-inch wheels combined with the short wheelbase make it funny but dangerous to drive. A belgian scooter collector told me that the scooter was banned from the road after tree dead accidents in the first weeks. Therefore all the beligian piattis you find have just very few kilometers on the clock.
Here picture of my piatti (Cyclemaster Modell 1956), as you can see, some mecanical attention is always needed to keep this scooter on the road
If anyone has a spare exaust for a piatti, please let me know...
(http://gallery.vespafanclub.ch/albums/userpics/piatti_zoe_1.jpg)
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Hi Piatti. Lovely looking scooter and the Piatti is nice too! I see that maintenance is child's play! I cant help you with the exhaust but was hoping you could help me with something, the aluminium strip with the red plastic insert on your Piatti front bumper, do you know where I can get that profile from? I need a couple of long lengths of it for a car. I didn't know Piattis were that bad on the road! I still want one though. Regards, Bob