Push bike speedos ?

Hi,

I was toying with the idea of trying out a push-bike speedo on the GPZ,
but I have since heard that it is common knowledge that these can be
used on a motorbike. So I have just borrowed the 'Act' unit from my old
push-bike to try it...

For those not aware, you mount a pickup head on the forks and a magnet
on the wheel, so it passes in close proximity to the head as the wheel
revolves. You then calibrate it by measuring the diameter of the wheel
which you then feed into the computer. The 'Act' unit has speed to one
decimal place, maximum speed,
time of day/date, ETA, odometer, average speed of trip etc...

One problem I noticed was that the computer tends to go to 'sleep', it
shows a fixed speed at times, which does not vary for several seconds.
I have also heard that other similar units do the same. I was also
unable to work out what the maximum speed it is capable of displaying,
but I suspect it will likely be 99.9mph.

Having tried it and satisfied myself that they work, I will now restore
it back to the push-bike. So does anyone have any recommendations for
one of these units?

I looking for a nice big clear display, one that does not fall asleep,
a real time clock and of course it must be robust/waterproof.

--

--

Regards,
Harry (M1BYT) (L)
http://www.ukradioamateur.org

In article <mesnews.93e77d44.52c780f4.445.8412@tiscali.co.uk> , Harry
Bloomfield says...

> I was toying with the idea of trying out a push-bike speedo on the GPZ,
> but I have since heard that it is common knowledge that these can be
> used on a motorbike.

Us off-roaders have been using them for donkey's years!

> Having tried it and satisfied myself that they work, I will now restore
> it back to the push-bike. So does anyone have any recommendations for
> one of these units?
>
> I looking for a nice big clear display, one that does not fall asleep,
> a real time clock and of course it must be robust/waterproof.

The TrailTech Panoram should do you nicely. http://www.trailtech.net/
for details, http://www.off-
road.com/dirtbike/jun2001/jun01etPanoramComp.html for a review.

--
Preston.

http://www.muddystuff.co.uk
Off-road motorcycle classifieds

'02 MV Senna '96 Tiger '00 XR400 '78 Fantic 250
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/uk_tiger_rides

Harry Bloomfield wrote:

> Hi,
>
> I was toying with the idea of trying out a push-bike speedo on the GPZ,
> but I have since heard that it is common knowledge that these can be
> used on a motorbike. So I have just borrowed the 'Act' unit from my old
> push-bike to try it...
>
I had one for the Monster. Never ent to sleep, read more than 99.9
Damned if I can remember the brand though. I could have a look if you want

--
Catman MIB#14 SKoGA#6 TEAR#4 BOTAFOF#38 Apostle#21 COSOC#3
Tyger, Tyger Burning Bright (Remove rust to reply)
Alfa 116 Giulietta 3.0l (Really) Sprint 1.7
Triumph Speed Triple: Black with extra black bits
www.cuore-sportivo.co.uk

"Harry Bloomfield" <harry.m1bytNOSPAM@tiscali.co.uk> wrote in message
news:mesnews.93e77d44.52c780f4.445.8412@tiscali.co .uk...

> Having tried it and satisfied myself that they work, I will now restore
> it back to the push-bike. So does anyone have any recommendations for
> one of these units?
>
> I looking for a nice big clear display, one that does not fall asleep,
> a real time clock and of course it must be robust/waterproof.

Sigma Sport (http://www.sigmasport.com) have wide range of bicycle-computers
(fx. the "BC800") - that work just as well on motorcycles. They do not 'fall
asleep' and are capable of measuring speeds up to 300 km/h.

Two important tips are:

1) Do NOT try to use the wireless versions on a motorcycle; it will not
work! (Presumably something with the electromagnetic pulses from the
ignition-system?!)

2) Do NOT place the magnet too far away from from the centre of the wheel.
If you place the magnet too close to the rim, it will (at quite normal
speeds) pass the sensor so quickly that the sensor will not register the
magnet - and this will result in false readings.

Feel free to drop by the danish motorcycle newsgroup
(news://dk.fritid.motorcykel) for more info. Lots of people there have
mounted Sigma bicycle-computers (especially the BC800); quite a few of them
have homepages on the subject - and most of them are capable of
communicating reasonably in english/american..! :-)

/Claus - tried the BC800 - and didn't know about warning #2 until I had
expoyed the magnet to the rim... :-(

"Intet Navn" <noone@nowhere.undeliverable> wrote in message
news:4082ce0b$0$239$edfadb0f@dread16.news.tele.dk. ..
>
[snip]
> 2) Do NOT place the magnet too far away from from the centre of the
wheel.
> If you place the magnet too close to the rim, it will (at quite normal
> speeds) pass the sensor so quickly that the sensor will not register the
> magnet - and this will result in false readings.
>
8<

Are you absolutely sure about this?

--
Mike
FJ1200 (Porky Torquey)
GTS1000 (Two rear ends)

mb wrote:
>
> "Intet Navn" <noone@nowhere.undeliverable> wrote in message
> news:4082ce0b$0$239$edfadb0f@dread16.news.tele.dk. ..
>>
> [snip]
>> 2) Do NOT place the magnet too far away from from the centre of the
> wheel.
>> If you place the magnet too close to the rim, it will (at quite normal
>> speeds) pass the sensor so quickly that the sensor will not register the
>> magnet - and this will result in false readings.
>>
>
> Are you absolutely sure about this?
>

It'll depend on the type of switch. If it's a reed switch it'll
have a fairly slow turn-on (for electronics). At 25 mph the magnet
at the rim may only spend 1ms in range[1], less if it's at the extreem
end of the switch range[2]. Reed switches generally have a switching
speed of 0.2 - 5ms.

A hall effect switch will be ok, with sub 1us switching.

[1] 1cm magnet going passed in 1ms = 1meter on 0.1 seconds =
10m/s = 20mph rim speed, around 25mph at the edge of the tyre.

[2] field strength drops off as the cube of the distance.
--
ZX7RR.

Simian wrote:

> [2] field strength drops off as the cube of the distance.

Are you sure?

Square seems more likely.

--
Roger.

It happens that Old Fart at Play formulated :
> Are you sure?
>
> Square seems more likely.

Inverse square law!

--

--

Regards,
Harry (M1BYT) (L)
http://www.ukradioamateur.org

Harry Bloomfield says...
> Hi,
>
> I was toying with the idea of trying out a push-bike speedo on the GPZ,
<snip>
> Having tried it and satisfied myself that they work, I will now restore
> it back to the push-bike. So does anyone have any recommendations for
> one of these units?
>
> I looking for a nice big clear display, one that does not fall asleep,
> a real time clock and of course it must be robust/waterproof.

I have a Sigma Sport BC700 fitted to my CB250RS, and had a BC800 on my
KR-1. Both would do what you're looking for and are easy to read at
speed.

--
Lozzo : The Speedyspic
YZF1000R (Big boy's Power-Valve)
BOTAFOT#57/70a, BOTAFOF#57, MIB#22, TCP#7,
ANORAK#9, DIAABTCOD#14, UKRMT5BB, IBW#013, MIRTTH#15a/16,
BotToS#8, GP#2, SBS#10, SH#3, DFV#14, BONY#9.
Url for ukrm newbies : http://www.ukrm.net/faq/ukrmscbt.html
http://www.glfuk.com/ for MJK Leathers in the UK.
Artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity.

Lozzo <lozzo@speedyspic.co.uk> wrote:
> Harry Bloomfield says...
>> Hi,
>>
>> I was toying with the idea of trying out a push-bike speedo on the GPZ,
> <snip>
>> Having tried it and satisfied myself that they work, I will now restore
>> it back to the push-bike. So does anyone have any recommendations for
>> one of these units?
>>
>> I looking for a nice big clear display, one that does not fall asleep,
>> a real time clock and of course it must be robust/waterproof.
>
> I have a Sigma Sport BC700 fitted to my CB250RS, and had a BC800 on my
> KR-1. Both would do what you're looking for and are easy to read at
> speed.

I have used the Sigma BC800 and BC600 on motorcycles, they will work in
excess of 100 mph (personal experience), up to 300kph (186 mph) according
to Sigma. They do not fall asleep, have a clock, plus numerous other
neat features (max speed, average speed, etc.).

I prefer to simply expoxy (araldite?) the magnet to the brake disc
carrier, and zip-tie the pickup to the fork tubes. I do not use the
magnet supplied by Sigma, but a very high strength rare-earth magnet
from a Sonicare toothbrush head. Using a stronger magnet than the one
that is supplied in the kit allows you more latitude in mounting the
reed switch sensor.

You will probably need to extend the cable from the pickup to the
speedometer head, so unless you are handy doing wiring splices, springing
for the optional extended length cable intended for mounting the pickup
near the rear wheel of a bicycle would be a good idea.

--
Mark '01 SV650S '99 EX250-F13 '81 CM400T

"mb" <exilePANTIES@zeelandnet.nl> wrote in message
news:c5ula8$5ro6u$1@ID-214351.news.uni-berlin.de...

> Are you absolutely sure about this?

Yes - I am absolutely positive about this!

Thinking I was very clever indeed, I mounted the sensor on the fork
(partially hidden under the front fender) and glued the magnet to the rim as
close to the perimeter as possible so that it passed within a few milimeters
of the sensor. Everything looked great - but it did not work as intended.

This problem could probably be remedied by exchanging the standard magnet
for a stronger one and/or replacing the sensor (which is after all only a
simple switch) with the Hall-effect switch mentioned in Simian's reply.

You will however be fine with both the existing sensor and magnet if you
keep them closer to the hub - fx. mounted on the brakedisc (ie. the
'carrier' as indicated in another post!); and placing them closer to the hub
will not not affect the precision negatively (should you wonder about it, as
I did!)

I'll be more than happy to mail you a picture of the magnet still glued 'in
situ' - where it will probably stay until the paint falls off... :-/

/Claus (who gave up on "The Sigma Project" after buying a GPS...)

	#1
Harry Bloomfield	Push bike speedos ? Hi, I was toying with the idea of trying out a push-bike speedo on the GPZ, but I have since heard that it is common knowledge that these can be used on a motorbike. So I have just borrowed the 'Act' unit from my old push-bike to try it... For those not aware, you mount a pickup head on the forks and a magnet on the wheel, so it passes in close proximity to the head as the wheel revolves. You then calibrate it by measuring the diameter of the wheel which you then feed into the computer. The 'Act' unit has speed to one decimal place, maximum speed, time of day/date, ETA, odometer, average speed of trip etc... One problem I noticed was that the computer tends to go to 'sleep', it shows a fixed speed at times, which does not vary for several seconds. I have also heard that other similar units do the same. I was also unable to work out what the maximum speed it is capable of displaying, but I suspect it will likely be 99.9mph. Having tried it and satisfied myself that they work, I will now restore it back to the push-bike. So does anyone have any recommendations for one of these units? I looking for a nice big clear display, one that does not fall asleep, a real time clock and of course it must be robust/waterproof. -- -- Regards, Harry (M1BYT) (L) http://www.ukradioamateur.org

	#2
Preston Kemp	Re: Push bike speedos ? In article <mesnews.93e77d44.52c780f4.445.8412@tiscali.co.uk> , Harry Bloomfield says... > I was toying with the idea of trying out a push-bike speedo on the GPZ, > but I have since heard that it is common knowledge that these can be > used on a motorbike. Us off-roaders have been using them for donkey's years! > Having tried it and satisfied myself that they work, I will now restore > it back to the push-bike. So does anyone have any recommendations for > one of these units? > > I looking for a nice big clear display, one that does not fall asleep, > a real time clock and of course it must be robust/waterproof. The TrailTech Panoram should do you nicely. http://www.trailtech.net/ for details, http://www.off- road.com/dirtbike/jun2001/jun01etPanoramComp.html for a review. -- Preston. http://www.muddystuff.co.uk Off-road motorcycle classifieds '02 MV Senna '96 Tiger '00 XR400 '78 Fantic 250 http://groups.yahoo.com/group/uk_tiger_rides

	#3
Catman	Re: Push bike speedos ? Harry Bloomfield wrote: > Hi, > > I was toying with the idea of trying out a push-bike speedo on the GPZ, > but I have since heard that it is common knowledge that these can be > used on a motorbike. So I have just borrowed the 'Act' unit from my old > push-bike to try it... > I had one for the Monster. Never ent to sleep, read more than 99.9 Damned if I can remember the brand though. I could have a look if you want -- Catman MIB#14 SKoGA#6 TEAR#4 BOTAFOF#38 Apostle#21 COSOC#3 Tyger, Tyger Burning Bright (Remove rust to reply) Alfa 116 Giulietta 3.0l (Really) Sprint 1.7 Triumph Speed Triple: Black with extra black bits www.cuore-sportivo.co.uk

	#4
Intet Navn	Re: Push bike speedos ? "Harry Bloomfield" <harry.m1bytNOSPAM@tiscali.co.uk> wrote in message news:mesnews.93e77d44.52c780f4.445.8412@tiscali.co .uk... > Having tried it and satisfied myself that they work, I will now restore > it back to the push-bike. So does anyone have any recommendations for > one of these units? > > I looking for a nice big clear display, one that does not fall asleep, > a real time clock and of course it must be robust/waterproof. Sigma Sport (http://www.sigmasport.com) have wide range of bicycle-computers (fx. the "BC800") - that work just as well on motorcycles. They do not 'fall asleep' and are capable of measuring speeds up to 300 km/h. Two important tips are: 1) Do NOT try to use the wireless versions on a motorcycle; it will not work! (Presumably something with the electromagnetic pulses from the ignition-system?!) 2) Do NOT place the magnet too far away from from the centre of the wheel. If you place the magnet too close to the rim, it will (at quite normal speeds) pass the sensor so quickly that the sensor will not register the magnet - and this will result in false readings. Feel free to drop by the danish motorcycle newsgroup (news://dk.fritid.motorcykel) for more info. Lots of people there have mounted Sigma bicycle-computers (especially the BC800); quite a few of them have homepages on the subject - and most of them are capable of communicating reasonably in english/american..! :-) /Claus - tried the BC800 - and didn't know about warning #2 until I had expoyed the magnet to the rim... :-(

	#5
mb	Re: Push bike speedos ? "Intet Navn" <noone@nowhere.undeliverable> wrote in message news:4082ce0b$0$239$edfadb0f@dread16.news.tele.dk. .. > [snip] > 2) Do NOT place the magnet too far away from from the centre of the wheel. > If you place the magnet too close to the rim, it will (at quite normal > speeds) pass the sensor so quickly that the sensor will not register the > magnet - and this will result in false readings. > 8< Are you absolutely sure about this? -- Mike FJ1200 (Porky Torquey) GTS1000 (Two rear ends)

	#6
Simian	Re: Push bike speedos ? mb wrote: > > "Intet Navn" <noone@nowhere.undeliverable> wrote in message > news:4082ce0b$0$239$edfadb0f@dread16.news.tele.dk. .. >> > [snip] >> 2) Do NOT place the magnet too far away from from the centre of the > wheel. >> If you place the magnet too close to the rim, it will (at quite normal >> speeds) pass the sensor so quickly that the sensor will not register the >> magnet - and this will result in false readings. >> > > Are you absolutely sure about this? > It'll depend on the type of switch. If it's a reed switch it'll have a fairly slow turn-on (for electronics). At 25 mph the magnet at the rim may only spend 1ms in range[1], less if it's at the extreem end of the switch range[2]. Reed switches generally have a switching speed of 0.2 - 5ms. A hall effect switch will be ok, with sub 1us switching. [1] 1cm magnet going passed in 1ms = 1meter on 0.1 seconds = 10m/s = 20mph rim speed, around 25mph at the edge of the tyre. [2] field strength drops off as the cube of the distance. -- ZX7RR.

	#7
Old Fart at Play	Re: Push bike speedos ? Simian wrote: > [2] field strength drops off as the cube of the distance. Are you sure? Square seems more likely. -- Roger.

	#8
Harry Bloomfield	Re: Push bike speedos ? It happens that Old Fart at Play formulated : > Are you sure? > > Square seems more likely. Inverse square law! -- -- Regards, Harry (M1BYT) (L) http://www.ukradioamateur.org

	#9
Lozzo	Re: Push bike speedos ? Harry Bloomfield says... > Hi, > > I was toying with the idea of trying out a push-bike speedo on the GPZ, <snip> > Having tried it and satisfied myself that they work, I will now restore > it back to the push-bike. So does anyone have any recommendations for > one of these units? > > I looking for a nice big clear display, one that does not fall asleep, > a real time clock and of course it must be robust/waterproof. I have a Sigma Sport BC700 fitted to my CB250RS, and had a BC800 on my KR-1. Both would do what you're looking for and are easy to read at speed. -- Lozzo : The Speedyspic YZF1000R (Big boy's Power-Valve) BOTAFOT#57/70a, BOTAFOF#57, MIB#22, TCP#7, ANORAK#9, DIAABTCOD#14, UKRMT5BB, IBW#013, MIRTTH#15a/16, BotToS#8, GP#2, SBS#10, SH#3, DFV#14, BONY#9. Url for ukrm newbies : http://www.ukrm.net/faq/ukrmscbt.html http://www.glfuk.com/ for MJK Leathers in the UK. Artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity.

	#10
Mark Olson	Re: Push bike speedos ? Lozzo <lozzo@speedyspic.co.uk> wrote: > Harry Bloomfield says... >> Hi, >> >> I was toying with the idea of trying out a push-bike speedo on the GPZ, > <snip> >> Having tried it and satisfied myself that they work, I will now restore >> it back to the push-bike. So does anyone have any recommendations for >> one of these units? >> >> I looking for a nice big clear display, one that does not fall asleep, >> a real time clock and of course it must be robust/waterproof. > > I have a Sigma Sport BC700 fitted to my CB250RS, and had a BC800 on my > KR-1. Both would do what you're looking for and are easy to read at > speed. I have used the Sigma BC800 and BC600 on motorcycles, they will work in excess of 100 mph (personal experience), up to 300kph (186 mph) according to Sigma. They do not fall asleep, have a clock, plus numerous other neat features (max speed, average speed, etc.). I prefer to simply expoxy (araldite?) the magnet to the brake disc carrier, and zip-tie the pickup to the fork tubes. I do not use the magnet supplied by Sigma, but a very high strength rare-earth magnet from a Sonicare toothbrush head. Using a stronger magnet than the one that is supplied in the kit allows you more latitude in mounting the reed switch sensor. You will probably need to extend the cable from the pickup to the speedometer head, so unless you are handy doing wiring splices, springing for the optional extended length cable intended for mounting the pickup near the rear wheel of a bicycle would be a good idea. -- Mark '01 SV650S '99 EX250-F13 '81 CM400T

	#11
Intet Navn	Re: Push bike speedos ? "mb" <exilePANTIES@zeelandnet.nl> wrote in message news:c5ula8$5ro6u$1@ID-214351.news.uni-berlin.de... > Are you absolutely sure about this? Yes - I am absolutely positive about this! Thinking I was very clever indeed, I mounted the sensor on the fork (partially hidden under the front fender) and glued the magnet to the rim as close to the perimeter as possible so that it passed within a few milimeters of the sensor. Everything looked great - but it did not work as intended. This problem could probably be remedied by exchanging the standard magnet for a stronger one and/or replacing the sensor (which is after all only a simple switch) with the Hall-effect switch mentioned in Simian's reply. You will however be fine with both the existing sensor and magnet if you keep them closer to the hub - fx. mounted on the brakedisc (ie. the 'carrier' as indicated in another post!); and placing them closer to the hub will not not affect the precision negatively (should you wonder about it, as I did!) I'll be more than happy to mail you a picture of the magnet still glued 'in situ' - where it will probably stay until the paint falls off... :-/ /Claus (who gave up on "The Sigma Project" after buying a GPS...)