Replace Q45 Shock with Metal Bar

[Black Hawk Down]

I'm thinking about replacing my Q45 shock with a metal bar for riding on pavement. I'm wondering if anyone has done this or knows any problems with it. Currently, I ride 2-3 mph slower on the Q45 compared to my V20. Some of that is in the weight and size of the tires. But I think I lose a lot of energy by compressing the shock when peddling up hills. Also, the Q45 sits higher than I like. I'm thinking I can lower the height a little by using a shorter bar than the shock.

Of course the easy solution would be to buy a shock with a lockout option. I've only seen these on air shocks but I haven't been able to make any air shocks work on my bike. They're all too weak and can't hold my weight.

Thanks,
Bill

 

[Ramnob42]

Sounds like there may be an S40 in your future.

 

[Black Hawk Down]

Sounds like there may be an S40 in your future.

I own an S40. Note my signature lines. The S40 would be the ultimate touring bike if the seat back was more like 30 degrees. I rode 11K miles in a tour with it and my butt hurt every day. I modified the seat back of the Q45 to be very low and it is the most comfortable bike I have ever owned, including my V20. But, the Q45 is heavier and with the shock, substantially slower than my other two bikes.

 

[Bo6]

I own an S40. Note my signature lines. The S40 would be the ultimate touring bike if the seat back was more like 30 degrees. I rode 11K miles in a tour with it and my butt hurt every day. I modified the seat back of the Q45 to be very low and it is the most comfortable bike I have ever owned, including my V20. But, the Q45 is heavier and with the shock, substantially slower than my other two bikes.

I have ridden my Q45 for a year and tried to make it a bit faster and by changing wheels and tires. I tried Panaracer slicks , tubles with some lighter Hunt aluminum wheels and it made a noticeable difference. Unfortunately, the Panaracer tires though fast and supple were not flat resistant (several large holes in the casing from road gravel). Went back to the original tires with TPU tubes and the bike was slower but no flats.

Given my experience I suggest the wheels and tire approach may be the best option if you can find some durable slicks in 650b size. I was looking at Rene Herse with the heaver casing but have not tried any. I ended up with a V20 for faster rides which has not seen the road yet (on the trainer for winter). Plan to make some modifications to the V20 seat to get it to ~ 30ish degrees for group rides.

 

[Black Hawk Down]

I have ridden my Q45 for a year and tried to make it a bit faster and by changing wheels and tires. I tried Panaracer slicks , tubles with some lighter Hunt aluminum wheels and it made a noticeable difference. Unfortunately, the Panaracer tires though fast and supple were not flat resistant (several large holes in the casing from road gravel). Went back to the original tires with TPU tubes and the bike was slower but no flats.

Given my experience I suggest the wheels and tire approach may be the best option if you can find some durable slicks in 650b size. I was looking at Rene Herse with the heaver casing but have not tried any. I ended up with a V20 for faster rides which has not seen the road yet (on the trainer for winter). Plan to make some modifications to the V20 seat to get it to ~ 30ish degrees for group rides.

Thanks for the suggestions. My tours go through 3rd world countries with bad or dirt roads at times. I need heavy duty rims and tires. I ride with 26" x 2" Schwalbe Mondial's as they are really the ultimate touring tire. They work well on both the road and dirt. Though it's not a tubeless ready design, I have been riding them tubeless for years and they work great in that configuration. Flats are a thing of the past.

I put a Thor Carrier seat on my V20 (also on S40 and Q45) and it lifts your back up just enough for maximum comfort and visibility without compromising too much on aerodynamics. They're a bit expensive and you have to wait for delivery from Poland, but it's worth it in my opinion. Also the Carrier design supports your shoulders making them more comfortable. Behind the wings of the Carrier seat is room to mount large water bottles. I put two half gallon metal thermoses there for the Texas Summers.

 

[Bo6]

Thanks for the suggestions. My tours go through 3rd world countries with bad or dirt roads at times. I need heavy duty rims and tires. I ride with 26" x 2" Schwalbe Mondial's as they are really the ultimate touring tire. They work well on both the road and dirt. Though it's not a tubeless ready design, I have been riding them tubeless for years and they work great in that configuration. Flats are a thing of the past.

I put a Thor Carrier seat on my V20 (also on S40 and Q45) and it lifts your back up just enough for maximum comfort and visibility without compromising too much on aerodynamics. They're a bit expensive and you have to wait for delivery from Poland, but it's worth it in my opinion. Also the Carrier design supports your shoulders making them more comfortable. Behind the wings of the Carrier seat is room to mount large water bottles. I put two half gallon metal thermoses there for the Texas Summers.

Tubeless sealant got me home several times even with tire casing failures, so I am a believer.

I have thought about the Thor seat but instead made a mold of the Cruzbike seat and with make a 2-piece carbon seat. Then either add spacers or my preferred option of making an adjustable seat back.

 

[Black Hawk Down]

I have thought about the Thor seat but instead made a mold of the Cruzbike seat and with make a 2-piece carbon seat. Then either add spacers or my preferred option of making an adjustable seat back.

That is definitely too much work for me. With the Q45, you shouldn't need spacers for the seat back position. It's adjustable already.

 

[woodguy]

I'm thinking about replacing my Q45 shock with a metal bar for riding on pavement. I'm wondering if anyone has done this or knows any problems with it. Currently, I ride 2-3 mph slower on the Q45 compared to my V20. Some of that is in the weight and size of the tires. But I think I lose a lot of energy by compressing the shock when peddling up hills. Also, the Q45 sits higher than I like. I'm thinking I can lower the height a little by using a shorter bar than the shock.

Of course the easy solution would be to buy a shock with a lockout option. I've only seen these on air shocks but I haven't been able to make any air shocks work on my bike. They're all too weak and can't hold my weight.

Thanks,
Bill

When my original spring shock got weak, I bought an air shock & had the same problem you did. While I was waiting for a replacement stronger spring shock, I put a solid wood block in its place(didn’t use metal cuz I’m the woodguy). Gave a rougher ride, but worked okay. can’t compare speed to other bikes since I only have the Q45.

 

[Black Hawk Down]

When my original spring shock got weak, I bought an air shock & had the same problem you did. While I was waiting for a replacement stronger spring shock, I put a solid wood block in its place(didn’t use metal cuz I’m the woodguy). Gave a rougher ride, but worked okay. can’t compare speed to other bikes since I only have the Q45.

Thanks for that feedback. I'm not a wood guy but would use wood if it were the best choice. I fear all the rain I'll be experiencing in central and south America will soften and eventually rot the wood. An aluminum bar should do the trick. Once I run the experiement, I'll post back here with the results. My data point so far is on my daily (very hilly) ride, I average about 12-13 mph on my V20. On my Q45, the same route, I averaged 9-10 mph. A substantial difference. I don't have data for the S40, but I recall it not being significantly lower than the V20 average speed and it has the same wheels and tires as my Q45. Only real difference is the weight and the shock.

I have the bike home but I caught a cold, so I'm down for a couple of days.

 

[2whluge]

Having ridden SWB recumbents for decades, I wouldn’t have a bike that I couldn’t adjust seat angle. My old Volae had the most comfy carbon seat that was adjustable in a minute if I needed to on a tour. I wish the Q45 had that option,

That said, the Q45 is the evolutionary kin to those great early bents. If you find a good shock, let us all know. I have the same issue.

 

[Black Hawk Down]

Having ridden SWB recumbents for decades, I wouldn’t have a bike that I couldn’t adjust seat angle. My old Volae had the most comfy carbon seat that was adjustable in a minute if I needed to on a tour. I wish the Q45 had that option,

That said, the Q45 is the evolutionary kin to those great early bents. If you find a good shock, let us all know. I have the same issue.

I'm supprised that you need to adjust the seat angle after getting it set right for you. Once I have the right angle, I can't think of a reason to change it.

The best shock I could find (and the only one that worked for me) was this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B096P36VGT/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I would have liked to have a light weight air shock with a lockout, but none of the ones I found handled my weight. They all bottomed out.

 

[DrDave39]

I'm thinking about replacing my Q45 shock with a metal bar for riding on pavement. I'm wondering if anyone has done this or knows any problems with it. Currently, I ride 2-3 mph slower on the Q45 compared to my V20. Some of that is in the weight and size of the tires. But I think I lose a lot of energy by compressing the shock when peddling up hills. Also, the Q45 sits higher than I like. I'm thinking I can lower the height a little by using a shorter bar than the shock.

Of course the easy solution would be to buy a shock with a lockout option. I've only seen these on air shocks but I haven't been able to make any air shocks work on my bike. They're all too weak and can't hold my weight.

Thanks,
Bill

I got this from Amazon, it holds air well and is plenty firm at my 215 or so pounds (it has both a positive and negative air chamber and took a bit of fiddling with pressures to get it dialed in). Also a good 2 pounds lighter!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H9679NL?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_3

 

[Black Hawk Down]

I purchased that exact shock and it didn't work at all for me. It just bottomed out even when I exceeded the maximum air pressure specified.

 

[DrDave39]

I purchased that exact shock and it didn't work at all for me. It just bottomed out even when I exceeded the maximum air pressure specified.

Bummer. It must have been defective. Mine has held pressure fine.

 

[Black Hawk Down]

Bummer. It must have been defective. Mine has held pressure fine.

I returned it to Amazon and got another one. It did the same. I gave up on that brand. I tried some others but they didn't work either. The coil spring shock works great. It's just more heavy and has no lockout.

 

[2whluge]

I'm supprised that you need to adjust the seat angle after getting it set right for you. Once I have the right angle, I can't think of a reason to change it.

The best shock I could find (and the only one that worked for me) was this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B096P36VGT/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I would have liked to have a light weight air shock with a lockout, but none of the ones I found handled my weight. They all bottomed out.

Think day 3 of RAGBRAI. Been sitting in the same position for 250 miles. One spot on my neck/back/butt is sore. I think I will stop and have a beer and twiddle with the seat. Ahhh…much better.

 

[Black Hawk Down]

Never did RAGBRAI, but I ride 50 miles daily on my Q45. I did lower the seat back so that it's almost as low as my V20. I also have the Thor Carrier seat. It's super comfortable. I have no discomfort over long miles. I've only gone 70 miles max at one time. I think it will stay comfortable regardless of the miles. My S40 is a different story. I can't make it comfortable due to recumbutt. I rode it on an 11K mile tour and suffered every day. My Q45 will be going on a ~17K mile tour starting in May. Guess I'll see if the comfort lasts.

 

[Black Hawk Down]

At the start of this thread, I mentioned that I was planning to replace the shock with a metal bar to see if the shock is slowing me down. I changed the plan. I tightened the shock to make it more stiff and it seems better. I'll stick with the shock for now.

 

[kizarmynot]

At the start of this thread, I mentioned that I was planning to replace the shock with a metal bar to see if the shock is slowing me down. I changed the plan. I tightened the shock to make it more stiff and it seems better. I'll stick with the shock for now.

I'm interested in how you went about tightening the shock. I tried doing it a while back - it was fine on a trainer but as soon as I took it outside on the road it made significant noise, so I had to return it to its original setting.

 

[kizarmynot]

When my original spring shock got weak, I bought an air shock & had the same problem you did. While I was waiting for a replacement stronger spring shock, I put a solid wood block in its place(didn’t use metal cuz I’m the woodguy). Gave a rougher ride, but worked okay. can’t compare speed to other bikes since I only have the Q45.

What type of wood did you use?