$15 ATC Speedometer

[ATC King]

The absolute lowest cost and simplest way to add a speedometer to a trike. Nothing to wire and only needs zip tied. Just needs a dab of epoxy for the magnet.

Generic bicycle computer. This one has all the typical functions, speed, distance, time, and some others. It does display temperature, so that's a nice touch. It actually has a decent backlight and the controls are touch, not buttons. There's no need to go crazy expensive with these bicycle computers, they've pretty much been the same for decades, with a few updates for the lower priced units.




Basically, just epoxy the magnet onto the wheel, and tie the sensor to the brake cable. Then route and secure the sensor wire and place the computer where preferred.



The magnet comes in a piece for clamping to bicycle spokes. I used a punch to knock the magnet out from the back side.

I placed the computer to avoid damage, but the wire is long enough to reach the top of the bars, like near the throttle.

I used a wired sensor instead of wireless because wired only uses one battery and the sensor is smaller. Wired tends to cost the least too.

[Dirtcrasher]

Sweet! I can't say I blame anyone for going this route when the OEM stuff is so expensive.

I was pretty late to the party, I think it ws about 2010 when I started watching for Honda OEM gearboxes, cables and heads. But, by watching constantly, and messaging sellers on Ebay as soon as they listed pieces, I scored quite a bit of it. Canada had allot of speedo stuff as far as closed dealers went.

I just never wanted to run much of it, one crash and you ruin a perfect NOS MPH head.

[camy]

nice setup.... I need to decide wich way I go... i have a full hondaline setup brand new in the boxes.... but damn it was expensive 10 years ago.... i canot imagine what they go for at the moment....

[ATC King]

There's been a few people ask about speedometers. Real ones, not the expensive toy ones for just looking at on a shelf.

I already use other devices, like a handheld GPS, which is what that ball mount on the bars is for. I looked around for bicycle computers, found this one checked the boxes and was less than $15. A simple, inexpensive project. Besides waiting on the epoxy to cure, installation time is less than fifteen minutes. Figure on a little more time than that to get everything set though. The tire diameter will need measured and the unit adjusted.

Besides the backlight and temp display, this unit has a maintenance reminder. It's a wrench that shows once a set mileage is passed. This one does have a couple extra features over the most basic computers, but they all pretty much show speed, min/max/average, time, time elapsed, and distance (trip/odo). Everything really needed for longer rides, or just keeping up with maintenance.

It's also a good idea to stay away from the fancy ones that have too much clutter on the screen, which can make them difficult to read at a glance. Do choose one with a larger screen though. The old style bicycle computers are a bit too small for reading at higher speeds.

The battery on a wired unit should last a year or longer, for average riding. Ones with extra features, like a backlight, will drain them faster. The sensor for the wireless units requires it's own battery and the housing is larger, so I stayed away from those. Also, the wireless units can be susceptible to interference. The less they cost, the more likely that may be. There are GPS bicycle computers, but those are going to be more power hungry and many now are rechargeable, but don't expect them to last past a couple days of riding, or do expect them to be dead whenever they're needed on a whim, as with most things rechargeable that sit until needed.


Anyway, here it is, a feature packed, easy to install speedometer for $15. That's less than a mile of string, if anyone is thinking of measuring distance that way.

[ATC King]

nice setup.... I need to decide wich way I go... i have a full hondaline setup brand new in the boxes.... but damn it was expensive 10 years ago.... i canot imagine what they go for at the moment....

If you wipe one of these out, it won't even sting. Breaking one of the others may incur a medical bill, just from the mental trauma.

Besides, who cares to measure distance and speed with such an ancient, analog, mechanical device. All those bits whirling about, little gears turning other little gears, just to rotate numbers. A piece of twisted cable, flexing, spinning, tugging at a needle. Energy forced to stop, turn here, turn there, go, stop and turn again. It's like some type of miniaturized torture device. How anyone could enjoy riding a trike while watching that is beyond me.

[250rAL]

Years ago, I welded up a bracket to hold my GPS just above the headlight. I just used a couple of rubber bands to hold it in the bracket. It worked great but only had about a two hour battery life. It was just a temporary setup and I eventually sold the bracket on eBay. Maybe someone here bought it?