I dusted off my Trail King from a couple of years of dust, and decided to take it for a ride in Coyote Canyon, 15 miles from my home. The weather looked "iffy", but was going to be in the 60s all day. I had gone through the mini to make sure where I was to be riding, the mini would not break down. Help is a long ways away.
The engine is not original to the bike, being replaced with a CHI-COM copy of a Honda 6.5 HP engine. All the original drive parts including the automatic clutch brake main drive made by Maximatic are original. This device is fantastic in how it works. As RPM increases it starts to dive the belt as any of today's torque converter do, but it has a feature others do not. The "clutch" always senses torque being applied and will adjust to the most efficient RPM to the oil filled drive gear box. When torques has stopped, it works against the engine, and breaks the engine to slow the bike down. A very strange feeling, but once you know how it works, the bikes brakes are hardly ever used! This really comes into play going down hill.
This bike was used in the 50s for Uranium Prospecting up at Yellowstone, Idaho.
I built a tuned exhaust and installed a spark arresting muffler that still allows power when needed but the engine noise in really reduced. A nice low rubble.
Installed is a High-Rise air intake manifold using a foam filter to allow crossing of shallow streams and mud puddles.
The two speed gear box is really handy, with low-speed being very strong on steep inclines or declines.
The platform behind the seat is designed to hold 500 pounds! The original rear tire was 6-plys and inflated to 50 PSI if needed.
The bike has a custom-made 2ND seat, this allows a rider to have a decent ride with foot pegs added for them.
I modified the exhaust so all the "pick-up bed" could be used.
I put a high current alternator on the engine and an AC to DC converter/ battery charger to run the LED headlight and charge a cell phone if needed.
A mud flap was installed to keep the dust/mud from being flung onto the rear deck, which it did at first.
A large, easy to reach Kill-Switch was installed. Off-road at 10-15 MPH, range is 25 miles. On dirt roads, at speed about 35 miles. Top speed is twenty-five, governed.
I drove to the canyon and decided to drive up the two-mile-long dirt road to check all things running were A.O.K. They were. I picked up the first trail head at the one-mile marker. This trail runs on the North rim of the canyon, and is an easy ride with only a few rock/boulder areas to transit.
I always carry: Water, tools, repair parts, first aid kit, tire repair and one extra gallon of gasoline.
End of Part 1 of 6
The engine is not original to the bike, being replaced with a CHI-COM copy of a Honda 6.5 HP engine. All the original drive parts including the automatic clutch brake main drive made by Maximatic are original. This device is fantastic in how it works. As RPM increases it starts to dive the belt as any of today's torque converter do, but it has a feature others do not. The "clutch" always senses torque being applied and will adjust to the most efficient RPM to the oil filled drive gear box. When torques has stopped, it works against the engine, and breaks the engine to slow the bike down. A very strange feeling, but once you know how it works, the bikes brakes are hardly ever used! This really comes into play going down hill.
This bike was used in the 50s for Uranium Prospecting up at Yellowstone, Idaho.
I built a tuned exhaust and installed a spark arresting muffler that still allows power when needed but the engine noise in really reduced. A nice low rubble.
Installed is a High-Rise air intake manifold using a foam filter to allow crossing of shallow streams and mud puddles.
The two speed gear box is really handy, with low-speed being very strong on steep inclines or declines.
The platform behind the seat is designed to hold 500 pounds! The original rear tire was 6-plys and inflated to 50 PSI if needed.
The bike has a custom-made 2ND seat, this allows a rider to have a decent ride with foot pegs added for them.
I modified the exhaust so all the "pick-up bed" could be used.
I put a high current alternator on the engine and an AC to DC converter/ battery charger to run the LED headlight and charge a cell phone if needed.
A mud flap was installed to keep the dust/mud from being flung onto the rear deck, which it did at first.
A large, easy to reach Kill-Switch was installed. Off-road at 10-15 MPH, range is 25 miles. On dirt roads, at speed about 35 miles. Top speed is twenty-five, governed.
I drove to the canyon and decided to drive up the two-mile-long dirt road to check all things running were A.O.K. They were. I picked up the first trail head at the one-mile marker. This trail runs on the North rim of the canyon, and is an easy ride with only a few rock/boulder areas to transit.
I always carry: Water, tools, repair parts, first aid kit, tire repair and one extra gallon of gasoline.
End of Part 1 of 6
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