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Catrike - A Different Kind Of Trike10/21/2008 If I could only use two words to describe the trikes made by Big Cat HPV I would say "elegant simplicity". The clean flowing bends in the lightweight heat-treated aircraft grade aluminum tubing, top-notch TIG welds and colorful palette of powder coated paint jobs just make the Catrikes look fast! All Catrikes are made in the USA using state-of-the-art production processes. No matter which model you are looking at, the Catrike frame is a marvelous piece of engineering. The frame itself looks more like a modern art sculpture than a form of transportation. At the same time, the lack of bolts is the almost subliminal attribute that makes this trike feel "simple".
With no bolts holding the frame together, and with the integrated seat, you very quickly realize that this is one solid trike. There is nothing that can come loose or twist. Some may find it difficult to appreciate the complex bends of tubing that make up the Catrike frame. The seat frame tubing itself can have 4-6 bends on each side along 3 axis and must be precisely mirrored to the other side of the frame. Big Cat has invested a lot in their own CNC benders that precisely create the shapes needed for each model. Big Cat's Owner, Paulo, has spent many hours and days training with SolidWorks engineering software to master the engineering software they now use to design and refine their trikes.
Boom
Seat
Steering
Much design and trial and error has obviously gone into the camber and caster angles of each Catrike model. Practically all brake steer has been eliminated from the Catrike steering geometry. This means that even if you only use one brake the trike will still stop straight. I personally like to have some brake steer, but eliminating it does make stopping behavior more intuitive for inexperienced riders. The straight-line tendency of the Catrike is fairly strong. If you let go of the handlebars the trike is going to go straight. This also makes the steering a little heavy, meaning that the steering will fight you somewhat at high speeds. Again, this is very intuitive and many riders prefer this.
Chainline
Wheels
Brakes
Shifters and derailleurs
Gearing
Pedals
Tires
Extras
Performance
Warranty and Support
Choosing your Cat Here are some of the basic specs showing some of the main differences of the different Catrike models. To compare full specs see our Catrike comparison page.
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