Vintage Bike Puts Tractor Parts To Use

Vintage Bike Puts Tractor Parts To Use New Zealander Kenny Paton enjoys building unique machines from scrap materials “I’ve always had a passion for vintage machinery and small engines ” he says After seeing a similar attempt online Paton grew interested in building a vintage bicycle known as a penny farthing “I watched a video of a man pedaling a large penny farthing with a tractor tire up front and two smaller wheels at the back I figured I could do better with a front wheel steer and an engine in the rear ” When further research showed that most designs used a moped engine he decided to build one with tractor parts “I called it the PennyFarming ” he says “Think tractor up top and motorcycle down below One of my followers online thought up the name and it stuck ” Paton’s idea gained ground when he spotted a neighbor’s tractor tire lying in the grass “I started telling him my idea and he offered me the tire Then he ran into his shed to get a smaller tractor tread tire and an old seat ” The next step was developing a plan “I made a rough design on SketchUp to make sure what I had in mind actually looked good ” he says “Then I set up the tires in my shed and began figuring out the building process ” Paton built the front wheel with a Suzuki TF185 hub lightweight scrap steel spokes from an old motorcycle shipping crate and oil drum steel for the rim “Once I tacked it all together the tire only had 20 mm runout which I’m adamant is an improvement on the tractor rim it would have come off ” He then mounted the rear tire to a 16-in space-saver rim and cut away the center to mount it on the rear Suzuki rim “I made a cardboard frame template then cut it from the oil drum steel I used a ride-on mower bonnet up front cut some square steel tube for the front forks and mounted it to the Suzuki headset ” Paton wanted to keep the tractor theme so he made a steering wheel from reinforced steel “I noticed that a bicycle is still somewhat controllable with a wheel but I don’t know if physics translates from bicycle to a tractor motorcycle Here’s hoping it holds up ” The next step was reinforcing a steel engine mount for the 60-year-old 8-hp Kohler engine He bolted the tractor seat on top and fitted a fuel tank from an old Villiers stationary engine in front “I designed a two-stage drive system to move the PennyFarming up to a max speed of 25km/h 15 mph ” Paton says “Off the engine it has a belt to a pulley then down to the wheel through chain and sprockets It uses a sloppy belt with a tensioner-style clutch The Suzuki rear brake is actuated from the left foot peg lever ” He rigged a throttle lever on the steering shaft that turns with the wheel and ensures it stays within reach Paton’s final step was developing retractable wheels that stabilize the bike when starting or stopping and keep it upright in the shed “I built these using levers pulleys and heavy-duty weed eater line he says “There’s still some tweaking to do but they are functioning well enough ” At publication PennyFarming is nearing its first test run “I have no doubts it’ll move but I’m curious as to what physics have to say about steering a large tractor tire while it’s acting as a gyro ” says Paton “If all goes to plan I’ll be able to ride it in shows and parades though it may need a trailer behind it for stabilizing; I don’t want it falling over on kids ”  He believes “You don’t need money fancy tools or new materials to create something great! All you need is your idea and the persistence to keep going Remember it isn’t stupid if it works ” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Kenny Paton patonmachines@gmail com; Facebook: Paton Machines; Instagram: patonmachines; YouTube: @PatonMachines

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.