Bike cover (or light duty bag) for Q45

dule0911

dule0911

Active Member
Just got my Q45 5 days ago, first 50km in and loving it! Still a lot to learn, especially on traffic light starts to eliminate the wobble. But looking forward to comuting in it, I have an issue with choosing the right bike cover.

Long story short: I need a cover to bring the Q45 in the office. Preferably one that will fit the whole bike. Any experience with this? Doesn't need to be with the Q45, any experience on what works with a cruzbike will do :)

Bikes are not allowed in the building were I work, but I will be stubborn and bring in the bike with the cover on. Too expensive and rare to see it get stolen, since the only other option is to lock it to a pole outside the building. I don't accept the option to not ride it to work :)
Velosock makes some indoor covers which might work. I contacted them, they don't make recumbent covers, and are unsure if the cruzbike will fit in it (the wheels) because of the front drive. Lenght wise, it should fit. Only issue, I would need to buy two to cover to top portion of the bike aswell. The cover should be lightweight and easily foldable for transportation (comuting), water resistance is a plus but not a must.

Any ideas appriciated :)

Greetings from Serbia for the whole community, you guys are great, plenty of usefull info here!
 
benphyr

benphyr

Guru-me-not
Wow that is a tough question.

Close situation: I commute to work also but we have an outside bike rack that is right outside our office. I put a nylon tarp over it (maybe 2m by 3m?). Two of the corners are tied to the bike rack at the bottom and the front wheel goes in the rack. The rest of the tarp pulls up and over the bike and then the rear two corners tuck into the frame where the shock is. This keeps the seat cushion dry most of the time. But that won't completely solve your challenge. You would need something bigger.

I hope this helps some - I'll try to remember to take a camera and take a picture at work.
 
super slim

super slim

Zen MBB Master
How about making a BIG box, with the bottom open, out of Corflute, to slide over the bike, so it will just look like a box!
 
dule0911

dule0911

Active Member
Not really transportable (on the bike) in that format, I don't have space in the building basement were I could keep that kind of thing while I'm not at work - my office is on the top floor of the building. Getting the box down and up again at the end of the day would be a pain, especially since the guard would have to look after my bike in that period :) Also, so some maneuverability/flexibility in the elevator is also appreciated, the elevator is not much bigger then the bike (in height, length wise it doesn't fit).

@benphyr
I've been trying for a year, since we moved to the new space, to try and get some sort of parking for bicycles but with no luck. The building owner is a dumb guy so he doesn't even provide a dedicated bike rack/parking, although only max 5 people at once commute with a bike to work, so it wouldn't be a huge expense. Because of it, locked my mtb to the carpark light poles, so locked it with three different type locks and hoped for the best - it didn't get stolen. But around here the mtb is cheaper and more common in case it gets stolen, in contrast to the cruzbike. That's why I'm not even thinking about locking it anywhere, even if we had a dedicated bike parking.
The tarp is a great solution for the bike rack. In my case, I would need to carry it with me while comuting, and putting the complete bike in it every morning would be a bit challenging and time consuming. But anyway, thanks for the suggestion!
 
dule0911

dule0911

Active Member
@1happyreader
Thanks for the suggestion. That cover might work for the top, for the wheels I will still need something else. Wheels need to be covered because they have issues with the floors & elevator getting dirty. Maybe combine that with some elastic cover for the wheels like the velosock, will think about it.

@benphyr
210 pounds, 6 ft 3 in. Yeah, I'm on the upper limit for the stock components, but I fit. The seat could be bigger since the pad wiggles a bit under load, but will see how it goes on longer rides. Maybe add more velcro or something, but that's a different topic :)
 
billyk

billyk

Guru
Couple of ideas:
- The Q folds! Take the rear wheel off and it folds pretty small. (Lock the wheel to your light pole). This only works if you don't have fenders.
- Get a chainguard ring to keep the teeth from tearing your bag. It's also friendlier when wheeling the bike amid people to not face the world with pointy greasy teeth.
- It might be simpler to get a really good lock or two (including to attach the wheels). They even have them that will sms you if somebody messes with it. And a very rare bike can be less attractive to thieves if they think they can't sell it.
 
dule0911

dule0911

Active Member
Taking the wheel off daily is a bit of a hassle for me to be honest, and also I'm planing to put some fenders on for bad weather. Already got a chainguard ring with the Q45.
All true about the third point!
Unfortunatelly a friend of mine got like 4-5 bikes stolen in a span of 2 years (all were locked) so I'm a bit terified from the whole prospect of locking it.
But if nothing else works, I will have to ramp up on security and hope for the best. Already have a good U-lock and a couple of diferent sized/lock-type cable locks. Will probably add some abus chain to that lot and a disc brake alarm that will emit a noise if somebody messes with it. About the sms - good idea, I think that I've seen ones with gps also.

Anyway, I ordered one velosock indoor cover to try it out, if it doesn't work I will use it on my DF while in storage. Will let you guys know once it arrives how and if it fits the cruzbike. According to some measurements I made, with the drive wheel turned all the way to one side it should fit over the wheels.
 
benphyr

benphyr

Guru-me-not
I don't know how the minor dimension changes from the QX100 to the Q45 will affect the folding, however try this: New quick fold procedure for transporting Q559 V3.0 in small car You may be able to fold even with fenders. lock might have to go through near the shock and might not really be that secure with this model, however usually thieves are not interested in anything that looks like junk which it might do when you fold it all up. I would leave the drive wheel on and take the rear wheel with me. It is super easy to swap on and off.

Alternatively, do you have assigned parking spots? Then you could get a scrap van and park it in that space permanently as a garage for biking workers. :D
 
dule0911

dule0911

Active Member
The van idea is not bad, if I find one which is really rusty I will park it just to make them create a bike rack. Since it will bug them as it degrades the look of the building, and they will not be able to tow it because that parking spot is assigned to me anyway :)

The quick fold procedure is usefull, thanks.
 
benphyr

benphyr

Guru-me-not
What about putting a shed with a rack inside it in your parking spot. That would be a weather protection, much harder to steal, place to store your bike, lock, helmet, and even spare tube and several tools...
 
dule0911

dule0911

Active Member
I don't think they will allow me to drill anything in the ground (to fix the rack) since the company that I work for is not the owner, it rents the space. Already thought about it.
 
benphyr

benphyr

Guru-me-not
A small shed with a chunk of bike rack bolted to it would be pretty difficult to move as a unit. Maybe an old bus shelter...
 
super slim

super slim

Zen MBB Master
benphyr said:
What about putting a shed with a rack inside it in your parking spot. That would be a weather protection, much harder to steal, place to store your bike, lock, helmet, and even spare tube and several tools...
Click to expand...
Shed + bike rack + concrete sleepers bolted to the shed base OR an old 4T 1.8m wide truck enclosed tray with a rear roller shutter door + concrete sleepers
 
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