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7 Trumpets Prepper recorded a video where he shows step by step how he built a custom bicycle generator. This would be a great thing to have, especially if it’s too cloudy for solar power or if you’re running low on fuel.
Here is the video. The tools and parts lists along with special instructions are below the video.
Tools
- Safety Glasses
- Tape Measure
- Work gloves (for hand safety when grinding and cutting the angle iron and metal mounting)
- Angle Grinder or Cutoff Grinder
- Multimeter or DC Meter
- Adjustable Wrench
- Drill
- Wire Strippers
- Vice Grips (if you have problems with mounting on bike)
- String or Seamstress Tape (to measure for belt on wheel and motor)
Parts
- Bike
- DC Voltmeter (with no external power supply needed)
- Electric Tape
- Zip Ties
- Alligator Clips (can be purchased at Harbor Freight Tools)
- 14 Gauge Wire (about 20 feet should do it)
- Blocking Diode (for hot side of wire going to battery bank)
- No Scratch Floor Sticky Pads (so that the metal frame will not scratch the floor)
- 3/4 Wire Loom (about 5 to 6 feet of it for wire protection)
- 1/4 Wire Loom (about 5 to 6 feet of it to protect wire leads going to voltmeter)
- 14 Feet of Angle Iron or Shelving Bracket Iron (for frame build)
- Gates Belt Part #K040745
- Icom Motor Part #f-174504
Special Instructions
Frame Notes:
You can use angle iron or shelving brackets for the structure support on the build. It is easier to use shelving brackets because the holes are pre-drilled and easy to line up for 1/4 bolts and fasteners.
The width of the triangle at the bottom was 15 wide. Overall the triangle is 15 to 16 inches tall and 15 wide so that the bike is elevated and has plenty of clearance.
Bolt Mounts and Inner Spacing for Bike Suspension Notes:
The inner spacing on the bike was 15 inches which gave a gap of 1 inch space to slide the bike in the frame. If you have a wider bike you should add enough space for you to have a 1 inch gap on each side for maintenance.
My grandpa was a missionary in Congo (central Africa) from 1938-1992. He ran printing presses to produce Bibles, etc. in many African languages and used a bicycle generator to provide power to his presses. He eventually graduated to a car wheel driven system but the old bicycle generator produced enough juice to run his big, heavy printing presses for years.
A great tool. Thanks for sharing the idea.