Below is from an email with teammates back in November 2020 detailing the objectives for Woody. As an explanation here, Woody is the 3rd gen bike we will have made.

Betsy - A quad bike made by welding two 24" beach cruisers together, adding a bench seat, and awning, and steering linkage. Betsy was exhibited at Bay Area Maker Faire 2014. Betsy had two passengers only, and a single Magic Pie front wheel motor

Trixie - A three wheeled bike with scratch built frame with four passenger capability. The Magic Pie motor was taken from Betsy for front wheel drive. Trixie was a Delta trike ( one wheel in front, two in back)

And of course as I read some of the objectives have changed. Especially Amazon audio, it used to be my go to but now have Apple Music subscription!

From 2020 .......

• o Pros
  •  Very small
  •  Good range
  •  Decent storage
  •  Audio was awesome, under seat placement worked well
  •  No middle tube allowed child to tag along
• o Cons – in order of severity
  •  Design was brutal on wheels and tires
  •  Design was marginally stable due to narrow track and negative camber
  •  Severe steering shimmy above 15mph
  •  Coaster brakes not reliable, and require passenger intervention
  •  Single speed w high gear only
  •  Seat was uncomfortable and did not hold rider in place
  •  Only 2 passengers
• o Non Issues
  •  Folding was not used
  •  Convertible not used much
•  Trixie
  • o Pros
    •  Four passengers
    •  Very stable, great handling
    •  No steering shimmy
    •  Tires lasted much longer
    •  Jack shaft was reliable
    •  Disc brake on front improvement over Betsy
    •  Tons of storage
  • o Cons – in order of severity
    •  Single speed w low gear only
    •  Design caused stress point at fork tube, cracking
    •  Coaster brakes not reliable, and require passenger intervention
    •  Range suffered due to older battery and increased load
    •  Seat was uncomfortable and did not hold rider in place (still!)
    •  Many rattles and squeaks on cobblestones
    •  Headlights and taillights never implemented well
    •  Audio did not work well with newer iPhones
    •  Audio cables were problematic, no Bluetooth
  • 
  • o Non Issues
    •  More storage than needed

•  Brakes
  •  Rad Mini offers 4-wheel disc brakes
  •  All brakes controlled by driver
•  Gears
  •  Rad Mini has 7 speeds
  •  Passenger will select their own gearing
•  Lights
  •  Rad mini has headlights, taillights, AND brake light!
  •  Lights powered from bike battery
•  Safety
  •  Add arm rest which folds down on sides
•  Comfort
  •  Rad mini has suspension fork
  •  Adding springs to seat frame
  •  Seats will be like director’s chair, i.e. hammock. Conforming to rider
  • o This will help with both comfort and safety
•  Integration / implementation
  •  All required systems designed prior to beginning construction
    • o i.e., not figure out where to put lights later
  •  Eliminate / Reduce sources of rattling
  •  Where possible, make cables go inside frame
  •  Where possible, add cable guides to frame
  •  Reduce / Eliminate zip ties as a construction element
•  Audio
  •  Audio system will be driven by Echo Dot using WiFi hotspot
  •  Alexa allows Amazon music, pandora, etc by voice command
  •  Audio amps will be powered by bike battery
  •  Will add charging ports for phones
•  Range
  •  Dual batteries from Rad Mini should be better
  • o 2 x 14Ah vs single 10Ah original Betsy battery
  • o Trixie aux battery added 20Ah
  • o Trixie never ran out of juice with new battery
  •  Optional 3rd battery
• o Things to not break
  •  Must look like a “bicycle”
  •  Must have handing as good as Trixie
  •  Must have decent storage
  •  Must have good audio
• o Elements under Consideration – in order of likelihood
  
  •  Center front Charlie basket
  •  On board charger
  •  Backup power system for lights
  •  Rear tow hitch
  •  Tie downs for skateboards, etc.
  •  Front basket converts to child seat
  •  4 passenger option
  •  Solar Charge assist
•  Woody Design Elements / Aesthetics
  • o Will have mahogany/maple wooden
  •  fenders
    •  Not sure if multi-layer or thin and fiber glassed.
  •  running boards (chain guard)
  •  Awning
    •  Will be luan ply and clear pine to save weight
• o Storage
  •  Design
  •  May be wooden boxes
  •  May be painted boxes similar to Retro lunch box from Sinclair
  •  May be fabric?
  •  May be wicker? Not likely
  •  Definitely not steel
  •  Quantity
  •  At least 1 under seat type storage
  •  Need a “glove box” accessible while riding
• o Frame
  •  Small square tubing as much as possible
• o Paint
•  Black with Red and White highlights
•  see Black Phantom pic below
•  Much of white can be done with tape
•  Using black will:
• o Complement
•  Brake Cables, Electrical wires
•  Handlebars and brakes
•  Forks, wheels, tires
• o Deemphasize frame and make wood and upholstery pop
• o Help hide features such as speakers, etc.
• o Allow us to easily add design flair with vinyl
•  Jennie has a Cricut
•  Candy Apple
•  Red looks OK
•  Copper clashes with wood
•  Could not find good looking image of a CA green woody
•  Antique White with black and red highlights
• Figure 1 Rad Mini, Keep in GREEN, Remove in RED