Electric Trikke T78 Air Conversion
Posted: Wed Jul 24, 2019 12:10 am
I came across an oddball Trike/Trikke T78 Air "Carving" Scooter at a local fundraiser/garage sale for $40. I managed to talk them down to $25, thinking it might be fun to tinker with. After notching out the forks for the hub motor axle, I realized it was too narrow. I found a larger fork available for more than I paid for the whole scooter. So I decided to rough it together for a proof of concept, before spending anything else on it. I flattened the inside of the fork tubes in a vise with a v-block on the outside. Then spread them out the remainder with some help from a scissor jack. It was still a bit of a wrestling match, but I managed to get an M365 hub motor installed. The battery, controller and complete handle bar assembly were literally just zip-tied in place to confirm it was going to work and be worthwhile. Even in this pathetically rough state, it's kinda awesome. It rolls around like you're on a chariot, and handles phenomenally. Now I'm going to order the larger front fork and install a 10" 350w motor I have. Then I'll have to come up with something that is hopefully more elegant for battery or batteries; possibly even making them swappable. I might end up making it all wheel drive, if I can figure out a way not to have 3 throttle levers. Also, the m365 throttle only fits the slotted bar extrustion, so I will need to work around that since these are solid bars. I'd be really interested in any ideas or tips anyone else has to offer. First thing I have to do is put all these parts back on my girl's m365 before she notices.