Well, it’s a bright warm and beautiful day here in Detroit for the first time in months which can only mean one thing, MY FREE MOTION ROLLERS ARE FINALLY DONE!!!
just in time for me to start riding outside again they are 100% operational.
For those that were intereseted here are some pictures
Super low profile
I’ve spent about 30 seconds on them so far but they work great. the only things I still need to do is add some glides on the side of the rollers to keep them from getting too off center (I have the glides and just need to get some more double sided tape) and I think that I might play with the tension on the bungees to get a little less movement.
Over all the project was serious fun and turned out great. the only thing that took them so long was the fabricating of the frame by a friend of mine who was less than timley in getting them done, but you really can’t complain about free and he did a really nice job. If i were ever to do another set I’d do things a litte differently but I have to say that the over all product really look like i planned every step.
I plan on writing a full project report and a parts list on my blog, but seeing as it is now spring and not many are looking to build their own set for another four months it may not be up there for a while
They look great! I have an old pair that I was going to use in my project, but I’m sure they would not have been 1/2 as nice. Let me know when you post the directions.
I never quite got the hang of it when the rollers were fixed, but using these has been a breeze from the start, even for an artistically challenged person like myself
but IR rollers have additional rolling guards that keep you from jumping forward (or back) and off the rollers. i hit the guard in front of my rear wheel all the time when i stand and sprint.
wow, there is something about the raw simplicity of yours that i like. i probably wouldn’t have used the pressboard wood myself, the glues in that stuff are not so good.
did you make the roller frame yourself, or how did you get the metal tabs to add the skateboard wheels?
I’ve not done a hard sprint yet, just got out of the saddle and made like I was climbing a bit. I’ll let you know tonight if I manage to launch myself off or not. If I do need a front bumper I have a plan.
wow, there is something about the raw simplicity of yours that i like.
Thanks for the compliment
i probably wouldn’t have used the pressboard wood myself, the glues in that stuff are not so good.
I know, but this one has been lying around in my workshop for a long time already and I figured that the worst of the bad stuff would have gassed out by now. The point was that I wasn’t sure what improvement (if any) the “free motion” set up would provide for the ride quality of the rollers, and I didn’t want to spend a lot of money to find out, so I used what I had available.
did you make the roller frame yourself, or how did you get the metal tabs to add the skateboard wheels?
The frame already had those tabs to stand on. I just removed the plastic guards that were on them, and then all I had to do was to drill holes through them to attach the wheels. As you see, i really kept it simple, because frankly I didn’t expect very much of an effect, but I was really surprised how much easier the rollers are to ride on now.
I hope this isn’t a dumb question, but what are those? I understand rollers and have some but I don’t get what the bunges do and why you would want the rollers to be free to move forward and back. Someone on the thread said they find them easier to ride, why would that be?
Someone on the thread said they find them easier to ride, why would that be?
great question. they are a lot easier to ride. one of the main reasons is a bit tricky to explain and understand. it has to do with the conservation of energy or momentum.
when riding on the road, whenever you stand on your bike and move your body forward or backward relative to the bike, since your body is a lot heavier than your just your bike alone, the bike’s speed (and this would be the bike’s speed, but not the rider’s body speed) changes nearly instantly in reaction to body movements.
those super rapid changes in bike speed would tend to shoot the bike off the back (or front) of regular rollers.
you begin to see and understand this really well when you watch a rider on insideride rollers riding, standing, sprinting and accelerating. during such biking, when you watch the rider, you quickly notice that whenever the rider shoves his body forward, his bike (and the movable insideride rollers) *immediately *and visibly move back in response. and the same thing happens when the rider shoves his body back to sit back on the saddle.
i.e., “for every action, there is an opposite and equal reaction” – mr. newton
