Low-Speed Stabilizers, Mk I-a Alpha

A few days ago, I started on this alpha idea for the stabilizers, but I forgot to post about it.

I have a couple of very similar kick scooters, with various little defects. One given to me and I think the other was maybe $5 at Deseret Industries thrift store, a couple of years ago.

They come apart very similarly, into a pile of components that's pretty much the same:

One has easy quick-release-skewer type assembly for all of it, and one uses allen-head bolts and Jesus-clips, which I happen to have the tool for this size, making removal much easier (and safer).

The part that I wanted out of it is the entire steering tube and "fork", with wheel, which also includes the pivot point for folding.

I don't need the handlebar tube, as that's not how it'll be raised/lowered. It'll be self-steering as casters, turn around backwards from the way the scooter uses it.

The pic above shows a wheel from each one, but since they're slightly different sizes I'll put a pair of the same wheels onto the two different forks, most likely. That's about where and how they'll look, just wide enough to hold the bike up by itself, but not quite as wide as the bike is. Just outside the cargo pod rails, under the seat, is how they'll fold up:

That puts them about the same distance as my feet on the pedals, as seen below:

I haven't worked out the lowering/raising mechanism nor the actual pivot axle, but the above pics are the bike standing on it's own with them holding it up, just temporarily bolted to the cargo pod rail (too weak to actually do the job on the road; will probably use dropouts instead), and sitting so the edge of the top of the steering tube is catching on the bottom edge of the cargo pod rail, thus supporting the bike.

With a stiff axle pivot, and a latching mechanism, these should work fine as an alpha test to see if it is worth pursuing further.

The battery fairy does wheels, too:

They're not super-soft, but they are slightly compressible urethane casters with good bearings, and fairly light with plastic hubs. Also are larger diameter (about 4-5"), and over an inch and a half wide. That should roll much better on pavement than the kick scooter wheels, should the idea prove out good enough to continue development.

If I use these for the stabilizer wheels, then I would probably make a stub axle bolted into a single tube that simply pivots on a titanium wheelchair bolt from the dropouts, for each side. Then the two tubes would be welded in an "H" with the bar very low down, and one of the tubes much longer than the other, so I can reach down and use it as a lever to lower and engage the wheels or raise them.

The wheel pivot for caster I am still considering, but probably a second axle with bearing that joins the wheel section of tube with the pivot section of tube, inside the tube diameter.

I might even be able to bolt it all together instead of welding, using pieces of old aluminum crutches, of which I have a few in poor shape (for crutches, but not for materials).