Check Out The Mark Eckert Markolounger Homebuilt Recumbent
Mark Eckert has done a fine job on his
The original TE plans may be a little more for the "purist," while Marks plans might be considered a little more for the "keep it simple" crowd. O.K. folks, this is a story about two things: 1. What happens when you decide that riding a "road" bike is good training for BMX racing, but can't stand the thought of setting your rear on something that was never intended for a human rear, and 2. Too much time watching discovery channels' "American Chopper!" I am Mark Eckert, an old-school BMX (Bicycle Moto-cross) racer from the 80's. I have joined a ton of other "old schoolers" in returning to racing, and need to lose a "few" pounds. For this, the thought of a recumbent bike excited me, until I saw the price tags. Ouch!
So, like every other middle-aged male does, I decide I could make something as good as the big names but for a lot less! One small problem though, I can't weld, braze, or join anything unless it involves super-glue, and I don't have access to the tools for building a frame. But lo and behold! Harbor Freight Tools has a 90 amp MIG welder on sale for $119! I'll teach myself!
So, armed with reruns of "theme bike building" from TV, and my new toy, I rummaged around and found an old-school Sears BMX bike in the attic I had picked up at a flea market for $20, and an abandoned mountain bike the neighbors had set out with the trash. That's it! I would build a "BMX" theme bike!
Here's how it works.
Use the front end of the BMX frame and fork and wheel, and add the MTB rear triangle to ease construction. I'll simply connect the two halves using some 1" EMT conduit from Home Depot (Roughly $1/ft.).
After looking at plans for the TE clone I had downloaded from the net, I knew how to make the front end I needed. But I wanted to allow the cranks to clear the front wheel during turns, so I measured the cut up BMX frame on the garage floor with the cranks in place, and decided the downtube for the bottom bracket needed to be 14" from the head tube. This also, I later discovered, would allow the perfect trail dimension to make it rideable hands-free! Bonus! The first pictures show how I modified the TE clone plans to use my old front end and only need to add two sections of 1" tube to prepare it to attach to the rear triangle, which I would simply tilt forward to allow the chain to clear the chainstays.
So after a couple hours and a spool of wire, I had made tubing joints that wouldn't break when I tried everything I knew to break them, and trust me, I am good at breaking things! (My wife will attest to this!!) So here we go.
Here's the "secret formula" for building what I call the "Markolounger" LWB BMX theme recumbent. Follow along with the pictures and don't forget to wear your safety gear when you cut or weld anything! (The bike was not 100% finished at the time of pics, I was too anxious to ride it!)
1. To attach all the front tubing, I chose 1" EMT as it simply slid over the BMX frame tubing snugly and simply needed to be welded tight. 2. Leave the rear triangle intact. Just tilt it forward to set the old seat post perpendicular to floor. It makes a great seat back support. (And a handy place to drop in a flag to let others see you!!) 3. "Squish" the EMT in a vice (Or with a hammer) to the same width as the tubing the rear triangle uses for the seat tube before attaching it to the rear triangle to give more vertical welding area. This makes for a strong weld joint with little notching of the EMT needed. Use string to align everything and clamp it tight before welding. Gotta keep it fairly straight! 4. The seat is simply an extra bar stool seat we had in the garage for bench-racing. I would (sniff-sniff) cannibalize it to use the seat part as it IS comfortable, and the price is right! I welded two pieces of 1" square tubing to the top tube at the rear of it to make a platform for the seat to ride on. By bolting the seat over the top tube now using two short pieces of angle iron (read-old bed frame) it is "sandwiched" to the bike and can be slid fore and aft by simply loosening the 4 bolts that hold it on. These seats can be found at school surplus sales and office furniture stores for as little as $20. The fiberglass seat I have allows me to push off the pedals like a leg press and climb hills like a goat!
5. Here's where the real problem comes in. You actually have to buy something expensive to make the bike work. The item: a MTB chain idler from any local bike shop. The cost: a wallet-breaking $25! It bolts to the frame using a small bracket welded on the bottom tube. The high-tech handlebars are made from welding a piece of left-over conduit to the old BMX stem, turned around backwards. I added MTB bars to the top of the mess to steer it. It does have a tiller effect, but it was cheap! I added a cup holder and a bell for the "complete" look.
So here's the stuff you need to make your own "Markolounger" or whatever you wanna call yours.
My total cost on this bike was under $75 easy as the welder has paid for itself already doing fix-its for the neighbors! This bike rides smoothly, with little flex and good manners. It climbs well and carves high-speed corners with very little input. AND I CAN RIDE IT HANDS-FREE!
A special thank-you to my patient wife, Teri, for watching me learn the ropes of MIG welding and not making too much fun of me!! Have I improved upon the time-tested TE design? I'm not so sure about all that, but I do know that I have made it a little easier to construct. I believe this bike can be built in a few hours on a Saturday and a few more on Sunday and be ready to enjoy for years to come! Plus it's a custom design by me! My BMX buddies are jealous now as I tell them on race day that I rode 50 miles this week and nothing hurts! (As they whine about their diamond-frame woes like sore you-know-what’s!) This bike is fun to ride and turns heads everywhere. And if I can make it, you can too!!! Feel free to use my ideas to make your own "Markolounger, or email me at bmx4fitness@yahoo.com and I'll see about making you one!
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