The mobile phone was busy taking video and pics. The frame was viewed from all angles. The bike was pedalled up to 20kph. Twice. The tyres were metaphorically kicked… and so the ideas emerged gently into the nurturing silences between the three of us.

Two local lads, each with their own, quite different electrical needs, came to visit. Both were keen to try pedaling – and were pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to overcome the inertia and resistance. It was nice to see their reassurance.

Also nice to realise our chat has saved them time, energy and frustration by helping them steer clear of some pitfalls.

Like making sure your alternator frame design makes it easy to align the turbine with the bike chain. Or exactly centering the sprockets on the front of the alternator hub (because the 5mm off-centre alignment I have is causing immense chain-wobble and vibration at higher speeds).

Thanks to their different needs it looks like they make two very different turbikes. Both intend taking plenty of photos and I hope to visit them often during their work. So both their projects will be documented here in time. Check back here. Or like this Facebook page to stay up to date.

Meanwhile here’s a well-written piece reviewing various pedal power strategies: Pedal powered farms and factories: the forgotten future of the stationary bicycle