R100RT wrote:Very nice work, and project coverage.

Thanks! Having seen your own project documentation, I consider that high praise. I have browsed a LOT of these stories. I try to emulate the ones I have learned the most from, thus I tend to explain as much as I can, even when I screw up. It may help someone else. Heck, I might need to refer back to it to see what the heck I was thinking when I did *that*…

Plus, I like to write almost as much as I like to talk.

R100RT wrote:Will your front wheel (I assume that’s the one you’re showing?) have disc brakes on it?

The front wheel is from a Honda Passport. I will be using the stock drum brakes. On a VW trike, especially one with a small front wheel, the front brake is little more than a handy way to keep the trike from rolling around at a red light. Between the light weight on the front and the relatively small bit of contact patch with the pavement, the front brake does not contribute significantly to the overall braking performance. It is easily overwhelmed by the relative bulk of the rest of the vehicle.

The old wheel has a really badly rusted section on the rim, so I wanted to replace the wheel for safety reasons. Since the “new” wheel has a functional brake, I have decided to use it. Besides, there is some question as to whether or not a trike with no front brake is actually legal in Texas. There are plenty of them out there, but there is conflicting information about it in the Texas Transportation Code. One bit says that rear brakes are all that is needed if they meet braking performance standards, which are fairly clearly defined. However, another bit says that brakes are required on all wheels of motorcycles, and since trikes in Texas are registered as motorcycles, many inspectors require brakes on all wheels.

R100RT wrote:…I’m considering stripping everying, and going with powder coating.

I personally like the look and feel of powder coating. I am very lucky that a friend works in a facility that powder coats some of their own products. So long as the color limitations (black, gray or baby poop brown) is not a problem and I’m willing to wait an undetermined amount of time for them to get around to it, I can generally get almost anything powder coated in exchange for beer. Since black is the only real choice with that, I decided that paint would be better for the wheel. Hopefully, I wont destroy the finish lacing the wheel.