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Should have kept theses two but a guy wanted them worse than me

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Happy New Year !

Yep, It’s been a rather cold one this week, even by the low standards of winter! Be sure to buy 93 Octane gas for your old trikes, they start and run better in the cold when you do! It certainly works for mine!

Time for me to hook up the wagon, grab the  ol’ McCulloch 610 (Chainsaw), and cut some firewood! BTW, using 93 octane in your fuel mix helps chainsaws run better as well!

Also, I am still looking for a front fender for my 3 wheeler, message me if you have one for a 1983-1986 Honda ATC 185s or 200s. 

(posted January 3, 2018)

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Lesser Known Three wheelers Highlight #6:  Agway/Cenex/Manco  “Rustler/Quester” 305/308/310 (june 28, 2017) 

     This American Made 3 wheeler sold under multiple names and labels, but it was basically the same product. Built by Go Kart Manufacturer Manco Industries, it was designed as a more affordable alternative to the Honda ATC and the other big name japanese 3 wheelers. the construction was rather basic, a tube steel frame, with a fiberglass body.  The Manco Questers have orange lettering, with a distinct “Manco” logo and the model designation on the CVT cover, as well as on the rear fender. The Agway/Cenex Rustler has white lettering (Red on the white models) with a similar stripe design, as well as the model number on the side in big bold numbers. the only difference is the “Agway” wording or the “Cenex” logo, otherwise, they are  identical. All had a nifty storage compartment, behind the seat, and a rear rack and 12 v light kit was optional on the 308 and 310 models across the board. all 310 models had a standard 12V battery. 

     Power was provided via a 5 Hp (305), 8 Hp I/C, (308), or 10Hp Briggs and Stratton “Magnetron” L-Head (Flat Head) Single Engine, with a Hoffco CVT Torque Converter clutch and a chain final drive. Starting was with a Recoil rope on the 305/308, and electric on the 310. Brakes were a dual  6″ band  type, hand or foot operated. Suspension was possible by 3 Carlisle 22x11x8 standard knob type tires, with white steel rims, no shocks , swingarms, or telecopic forks at all, the front fork was made of tube steel like the frame, and it was solid.  

There was not much to these beasts, but for a simple, affordable trike, it did well. 

Info/Images credit: www.3wheelerworld.com

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Sorry I have been gone awhile

Kinda forgot to check in , hopefully I can get back to being a little more active on this blog. Still riding on 3 of course, wouldn’t have it any other way! 

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Follower’s Rides: Going Icefishing!  (onthelakeagain)

A wonderful pic of an ATC200E Big Red, submitted by follower onthelakeagain, doing what it does best, Pulling! 

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Follower’s Rides!: Go Big Or Go Home! (Rollerman1)

Thanks to rollerman1 for submitting his beautiful pair of Big Reds! 

From Rollerman1 Himself: 

“My 83 and 85 Big Reds.

Had 125M years ago, would like to find another. “ 

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50 Followers!

Thank you, here is a video from the Straitpipes (Feb, 2, 2017)

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Mod’s ride: Icy day! Covered in ice.

The ice was pretty bad today, we got hit by freezing rain. I still uncovered it and cut some figure eights on the icy roads. Was using it to haul firewood before the other day, hence the wagon in the pic. (Fri, Jan 13, 2017)

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Mod’s Ride: Engine rebuild in the future.

Well, another step will be soon undertaken on my Three Wheeler (Re)Build, over this winter, I plan on taking it apart and rebuilding the engine, she will be nice and fresh come the spring. Fortunately, It doesn’t seem like I will need to do any porting or machining, so I should be able to keep it under $150. 

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Abandoned Trike

A  Honda ATC 200 partially stripped and lost to the weeds. 

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Followers Rides:  Nab0911′s  excellent pair of 1985Honda ATC 200s Three Wheelers!

These 2 1985 ATC200s come from courtesy of  Nab0911, They are in great shape!  Thank you for your submission!

 we would love to hear more about this nice pair! 

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 Three Wheeler Spotlight #1 1970 Honda US(ATC)90

With this new feature, we would like to shine the spotlight on models many of us would be more familiar with, but deserve Attention anyway! Some of these may even be ones you may not be Familiar with, like the Suzuki ALT125, or the Kawasaki KLT 200. 

For our first ever Spotlight special, It is most appropriate to pay Homage to the one that started it all, the Humble Honda ATC90. 

If it wasn’t for a stroke of genius at Honda, our beloved sport of ATVing would have never come to pass! so, lets hear it for Honda and their wonderful little machine!  

Our Story Begins in the winter of 1967, the folks at American Honda, Honda Motors North American Division was scrambling, Motorcycles just don’t sell when its snowing outside, and Honda did not have a snowmobile or anything to sell during the winter, so they made a request to Honda,ltd. of Japan if  they could create something to sell during the cold spell. Honda’s R&D department got to work, Osamu Takeuchi was selected as the engineer for the job. It was not easy, as many different ideas were noted, 3,4,5,even 6 wheeled configurations were thought out, but 3 was chosen due to the best maneuverability for the terrain. The motorcycle tires and CT70 70cc engine gave way to 22 inch low pressure stock, the idea of which was inspired by the American Amphi-Cat 6x6, and an 89cc 4-Stroke taken from a Honda Super Cub motorcycle . The engine gained a low-range, adding four more gears, to make 8 (4 in high range, 4 in low range for pulling), and a Mower type pull starter. The thumb type throttle was designed as it gave better control than a motorcycle twist type, and easier to use than a snowmobiles. The brakes were a drum mounted to the rear. No front brakes were to be had. Optional headlight was a 6v setup, run off the flywheel, and the ignition used breaker points.  

No suspension was to be found, as the bumps are handled by the Ohtsu 22-11-8 tires with a very low 2 psi requirement. The frame is similar to a Honda CT70 Trail Bike, a pressed steel affair with the engine hanging by  “Hangars” , and the air box is off to the side.   The Handlebars have a swivel-lock feature, and the tires and body panels come off with almost no tools, making it easy to stow in a car.  the US 90, later the ATC90, also came in five colors: red, blue, Yellow, green, or orange, 

Honda would go on to sell millions of Three and later Four wheelers, (after Suzuki made the first quad in  1982), and inspired many imitators. 

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Mods Ride: 

Update, Fenders Painted and installed! Still needing a new seat, decals, and Mud flaps

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Lesser known three wheelers Highlight #5, Sperry Rand TriCart 

  Time to shift gears a little (no pun intended), Cause this time,  we shine the light on a trike that’s a little different from the usual flavor of trike seen around here.  

  This little Number comes to us from a Company called Sperry-Rand, a company that was best known for computer equipment, as well as farm implements, most notably tractors, under its New Holland brand. In the late 1960s, it formed a new division, known as “SPD”, or “Special Products division”, dedicated to recreational vehicles, like snowmobiles and amphibious vehicles, which were extremely popular at the time. 

  well, we all know about how in 1967,  Honda wanted a machine to sell in the winter, and began development on its now legendary ATC90, but Honda was not the only one who was thinking about such a machine. at the same time , John Plessinger, then in college came up with a design for an All terrain vehicle using wide low pressure tires that would run well in snow and anywhere else. His design caught the interest of Sperry Rand, who was looking for something new to market and saw much potential in Plessinger’s machine. Plessinger sold the plans to Sperry-Rand, who would have Plessinger oversee their production and sale. they were strong sellers, selling over 200,000 in a few years, but by 1974, Honda’s Superior marketing helped to spell the end for the odd machine. The TriCart even spawned a host of imitators, from the A.P.E Dunecycle, to the MTD Mud Bug and even the Montgomery Wards Terrain Cycle, all these versions similar in layout to the TriCart. Sperry rand also had a version of the TriCart for the little ones as well, the TriCub, using a 5 Hp Briggs engine. 

  Unlike the Honda ATC series and its ilk, this machine was rather low slung, meaning you sat in it, like a car or Go-Kart, instead of on it, like a motorcycle. The Body is a large, one piece affair in fiberglass with a somewhat triangular shape. The Engine sat in the back, like that of a gokart. The engine and clutch setup are of Snowmobile origin, a JLO Rockwell 2-Stroke Single of 230CC, and rated at 11 HP (11.15 PS). The Cart breather through a Tillotson HL Carburetor.  The Clutch was a Salisbury CVT Torque Converter setup, and the final drive was a Standard #35 go kart chain, with a solid rear axle and no suspension. Top speed was rated at 45 MPH (72 KPH) 

Steering this thing was an unusual D-shaped handlebar unit. mounted directly above the front wheel. A Snowmobile type Hand throttle pours on the gas, but no Brake lever to be found! To stop, you pushed forward on the entire handlebar assembly, which operated a cable attached to a Caliper-Type Disc brake setup in the rear. To assist in steering, the footrests were mounted on the front wheel as well.  The tires are  a 16x 11x 6″ Up front, and an unusually wide 16 x 14.50x 6″ in the rear.  

It is interesting, that despite being sold at the same time as Honda’s ATC 90, one would go on to be a legend (and a lawsuit magnet!) and the other, quickly forgotten in the sands of time. If anyone has any stories of this quirky little machine, please share it with us!

Sources 

http://www.6x6world.com/forums/content/section/161-sperry-rand-wedge-tricart.html

http://atvscene.com/invented-3-wheeled-atv/

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Yay! 20 followers!

Here’s a picture of an  Honda ATC 250R grabbing air

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Submit your trike stories!

got anything to share about your three wheeling experiences? post it here, we would love to hear it! projects, ride experiences, events, your trike, etc. 

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Mods Ride:  IGot fenders for my three wheeler!

well, the rear fenders anyways. Still looking for the front set. I am also in the process of painting my ATC 185s, will post after pics when its done