With the days getting shorter sometimes im in a bit of a hurry to get in the skies. On this zero wind day the retracta trike is just what i needed to change from foot launch to wheel launch in a hurry....
Truly an inspiration. Currently me and drew are dividing up your stuff since you won't respond we have to assume you're dead. Great last video though you won't be forgotten soon
Except for the few valid cons you pointed out, I think it looks like an awesome trike. Love the idea of feeling like foot launch without having to worry about a leg injury. Thanks for the review!
Your right Berry it's a nice little trike. After two broken ankles on a bad beach landing. This trike got me back in the air with easy, I love it. Aloha Berry.
Hey guys, wheelchair axles are adjustable. The two little balls at the end of the axle need to clear the inside edge of the bushing completely to lock. Use the correct sized, strong, smooth wrenches to avoid burrs. I use a box wrench for the nylock, and an open end for the flats at the other end. Adjust to lengthen axle so it is easy to insert far enough to lock in. You can adjust just how much end play there is, a little play would help you check for full lock after each assembly.
@Dan's Escapades it's true there are more stable and well built trikes out there. This one is very light weight and breaks down for transport easily. I foot launch a majority of the time so I only use the trike on no wind launch days, so the quick set up and tear down is important to me. If I were strictly a trike launch guy I would probably choose a more stable trike that I would just leave connected to my motor, but in my case this trike converts from wheel launch to foot launch quickly and easily so its perfect for what I use it for. Otherwise I would choose a better built and probably heavier duty permanent trike if wheel launch is all I was going to do . Sorry for the long response but I hope this helps ?
Your buddy that sort-of landed after losing a rear wheel also made the mistake of not un-retracting the front wheel before landing. Compare the 90 degree side view in the video to a side photo of a R-trike with a fully extended wheel beam. In the close-up following the crash, the front wheel is still under the seat instead of at the pilot's feet. A deployed front wheel would have given him more forward support, although not completely saving the landing. I use the retract feature only briefly, because I can't trust myself yet to remember to extend before landing.
I don't fly but would love to but I don't get the retract concept. Is the view of the bar that much of a problem if not retracted? Because if not you can still just remove your feet and dangle them in the air. Also that push button wheel assembly I wouldn't trust at all. They could have put pins in just easy and would have been way safer I think. But who am I to say..
I checked his wheels when he was assembling it. They were locked. I had the bearing issue in mine also. So I know his were locked in. However I noticed his delrin inserts are different than mine or yours. Not sure how his wheel came loose. Freak of nature I guess
Oh OK I was unaware it had been checked I thought I may had been overlooked on pre flight.. that makes it even more scary knowing it had been in the locked position for sure :(
Thank you, im sorry I don't understand what your saying though ? Sit in the bracket ? Do I have something set up incorrectly ? Any advice is welcomed thank you
@@BartBerry hey mate, love your vids, love your energy. On my set up the harness seat board sits on the piece of metal that the retractable bar for the front wheel is attached and slides through. I’ll send you a picture.
Hey mate, I took a couple of pictures of how mine is set up is, however could not find a way to send them to you. I may be wrong but my setup is so that the harness seat board sits on the frame where the slide for the front wheels slides through, i noticed that your harness sits about 6 inches off the frame. Anyway Cheers mate and safe flying@@BartBerry
@gregpearsall3344 oh I see, yes the harness does sit on that slide piece while on the ground but when I lift off the front of the trike drops a couple inches and the seat board does leave the frame piece until I land then it rests on it again
My SkyMax RetractaTrike has four velcro straps in the rear frame square in addition to the forward strap that was mentioned. A strap holds the paramotor frame onto each corner of the square.
@@jeffdofing6411 Looking at the manual, its the strap in front that provides the main connection, and velcro straps hold down the bottom as you say. Different paramotors may be slightly different.
Yes the sliding mechanism for the front wheel does not lock in place so it could move if something was hit, but to be honest it's never really felt like it would retract from taking off or taxi.
@@johnherian781 it does have some pivot but kinda limited compared to my other trike. It uses a rubber type bushing that has maybe a 2 inch or so travel to either side, it's enough for correction on take off but you won't be making any sharp turns
The RetractaTrike has no lock or detents on the front assembly. If they did, that would mean one more thing that may stick, bind, or otherwise hinder the pilot from un-retracting before landing, possibly causing a crash. I am trying to design a catch for mine that would be easy enough to operate while flying and not fail to work. For me, the biggest drawback to the retract feature is that the wheel beam slides back when I'm wheeling the trike from the front, especially when pushing it up a ramp into a trailer. I have to remember to reach to the seat back and push there instead of pushing the wheel beam.
I'm not sure I know it won't fit the one I have it is designed for the skymax frame but they make several different ones for different frames, I would guess the nitro would probably on that list.
