I'm on a road trip now in my new (buyer, not builder) RV7. After reading some of the posts about bikes in the back, I felt like there must be an easier solution than spending some major $$$ for a Dahon folder.
First of all, I have an ancient, 20" American made folding bike that fits in the back with no modification to the canopy, such as the tip-up mod. After putting that in the back and eyeballing it, measuring it, and shopping some, I found a stock, cheap bike that allows me to carry 2 easily in the back with no mods, not even taking off the pedals of the bikes, (they do have folding pedals, but they add almost 2 inches in width compared to removing the outside, right, pedal).
http://www.citizenbike.com/catalog.asp?product_category_id=1&product_id=10
It's a 16" model, very inexpensive, (>$200 each delivered in 1 day) but has decent ride, 6 speeds, great brakes, light weight, and comes with rack, kickstand, and fenders. The folding latches have safety catches like a car hood, in case the main clamp screw comes loose or something. Of course, I prefer the Montague 26" bikes that I keep in my Skywagon, but these seem to be perfectly suited for the RV. The brakes are actually better on these than the Montagues because there is more leverage with the smaller diameter wheels, plus, they have less dial-out (wobble) as they spin, allowing closer brake adjustment. They don't stick up any higher than the top of the back of the RV seat, either. I have no affiliation with any bike company, just a consumer.
I fold them up, tie them together with the included velcro strap, so they don't start to unfold as I hold them horizontally during ingress/egress. I feel it's easier for me to put them in with the seat/seatpost pulled out. The seatpost is something like a rough powdercoating which helps it hold with less clamping force, and is not oily at all, so they're easy to handle.
So, grab the bike, hold it sideways, put one knee up on the wingwalk, then carefully lay it on the towel over the seatbacks. Reposition yourself a little, then lower it down to the middle of the baggage compartment. A little piece of cardboard will allow you to then slide it over to the side. I put mine wheels down. The 2nd bike goes in the same way, (or you could stand on the opposite side, too), and this one will require pulling the shoulder harnesses to the side, since you can't put the 2nd bike in the middle, it will have to be lowered in to the remaining space. Then find a gap near the front of the compartment to drop the seat/post assemblies in, cover the bikes with the towels, and pull the shoulder harnesses over the tops of the bikes, which will, with harnesses worn, tend to contain them from hitting the canopy in a severe negative-G jolt, and the seatback support post of the plane will contain them from coming forward in a frontal deceleration.
I will cut some cardboard next time, to put along the side and back walls to avoid damage. For this trip, I positioned small, soft duffels of clothes to keep them from the sides We put heavy items in small bags that my wife could hold or put just in front of the seat on the floor. With the control stick removed on her side, she also had room to put a lot more stuff up there for rough air/landing/take offs.
I calculated the CG very near the rear limit with low fuel (0360, Sensenich FP cruise, firewall battery, rear ELT and pitch servo), but it handled fine. Yes, the stick force per G was reduced, but the plane seems to be so nicely designed that it still feels steady, if not incredibly, dynamically so at rear CG. Big crosswind landing seemed to have plenty of rudder force without tending to overcorrect.
Another plus with these little bikes is that they fit easily in a compact rental car if you want to drive to a nice biking area, since much of the USA doesn't have continuous bike trails or wide lanes, and for us, it's more fun to go to a place that's not stressful to bike on.
Water bottle holders look like they could be easily attached to the seatposts, since they stick up so far when installed. The amazing useful load of these planes makes me wonder how much could be put in the right floorboard if the rudder pedals weren't there. Hmmm.....Any thoughts on that?
First of all, I have an ancient, 20" American made folding bike that fits in the back with no modification to the canopy, such as the tip-up mod. After putting that in the back and eyeballing it, measuring it, and shopping some, I found a stock, cheap bike that allows me to carry 2 easily in the back with no mods, not even taking off the pedals of the bikes, (they do have folding pedals, but they add almost 2 inches in width compared to removing the outside, right, pedal).
http://www.citizenbike.com/catalog.asp?product_category_id=1&product_id=10
It's a 16" model, very inexpensive, (>$200 each delivered in 1 day) but has decent ride, 6 speeds, great brakes, light weight, and comes with rack, kickstand, and fenders. The folding latches have safety catches like a car hood, in case the main clamp screw comes loose or something. Of course, I prefer the Montague 26" bikes that I keep in my Skywagon, but these seem to be perfectly suited for the RV. The brakes are actually better on these than the Montagues because there is more leverage with the smaller diameter wheels, plus, they have less dial-out (wobble) as they spin, allowing closer brake adjustment. They don't stick up any higher than the top of the back of the RV seat, either. I have no affiliation with any bike company, just a consumer.
I fold them up, tie them together with the included velcro strap, so they don't start to unfold as I hold them horizontally during ingress/egress. I feel it's easier for me to put them in with the seat/seatpost pulled out. The seatpost is something like a rough powdercoating which helps it hold with less clamping force, and is not oily at all, so they're easy to handle.
So, grab the bike, hold it sideways, put one knee up on the wingwalk, then carefully lay it on the towel over the seatbacks. Reposition yourself a little, then lower it down to the middle of the baggage compartment. A little piece of cardboard will allow you to then slide it over to the side. I put mine wheels down. The 2nd bike goes in the same way, (or you could stand on the opposite side, too), and this one will require pulling the shoulder harnesses to the side, since you can't put the 2nd bike in the middle, it will have to be lowered in to the remaining space. Then find a gap near the front of the compartment to drop the seat/post assemblies in, cover the bikes with the towels, and pull the shoulder harnesses over the tops of the bikes, which will, with harnesses worn, tend to contain them from hitting the canopy in a severe negative-G jolt, and the seatback support post of the plane will contain them from coming forward in a frontal deceleration.
I will cut some cardboard next time, to put along the side and back walls to avoid damage. For this trip, I positioned small, soft duffels of clothes to keep them from the sides We put heavy items in small bags that my wife could hold or put just in front of the seat on the floor. With the control stick removed on her side, she also had room to put a lot more stuff up there for rough air/landing/take offs.
I calculated the CG very near the rear limit with low fuel (0360, Sensenich FP cruise, firewall battery, rear ELT and pitch servo), but it handled fine. Yes, the stick force per G was reduced, but the plane seems to be so nicely designed that it still feels steady, if not incredibly, dynamically so at rear CG. Big crosswind landing seemed to have plenty of rudder force without tending to overcorrect.
Another plus with these little bikes is that they fit easily in a compact rental car if you want to drive to a nice biking area, since much of the USA doesn't have continuous bike trails or wide lanes, and for us, it's more fun to go to a place that's not stressful to bike on.
Water bottle holders look like they could be easily attached to the seatposts, since they stick up so far when installed. The amazing useful load of these planes makes me wonder how much could be put in the right floorboard if the rudder pedals weren't there. Hmmm.....Any thoughts on that?
