It plows… the little truck

DIY motor winch: I. Sorokin design from moped engine

The magazine “Modelist-Konstruktor” has already described motor winches more than once — fascinating soil-cultivation mechanisms that have been gaining increasing popularity among amateur designers in recent years. And indeed, the merits of this excellent device are indisputable. The point is that a winch (by the way, one of the oldest mechanisms in the history of Read more…

Motorcycle for trailblazers

Snowmobile on pneumatics from a Minsk motorcycle

Readers of the magazine “Modelist-Konstruktor” are offered a simple wheel-and-ski snowmobile designed for travel along snow-covered country roads and even open snowfields. The snowmobile is three-point, with two rear driving pneumatics and one steerable ski at the front. Compared with other machines of this type, the snowmobile’s design is extremely simple, which makes it possible Read more…

Pneumatic sailboat

Inflatable boat Nyrk-4 with a windsurfer sail

For all their advantages, an inflatable boat of any design has the same common drawbacks: short oars, a tortoise-like pace, and poor maneuverability. We managed to get rid of all of them at once by adapting our boat “Nyrk-4” for sailing: with a sail it became both faster and more responsive. And the additional equipment Read more…

“Marlin” weighs anchor

Marlin personal watercraft: design, handling, specifications

Readers of our magazine are already familiar with the best examples of technical creativity by S.P. KOROVIN, a designer from Kumertau (Bashkortostan). In “Photo Panorama” (see “Modelist-Konstruktor” No. 1’2000), his most famous designs were presented: the “Visit” aircraft, a children’s car, the seven-seat “Orbita-1500” car, and a jet ski (personal watercraft). Later, readers appreciated another Read more…

Kick scooter… for adults

Adult scooter: Orlik conversion, 30 mm ground clearance

How far can a person travel by pushing off the ground just once? If it is one step — on average less than a metre. If you build up speed and push harder, you can jump about four or five metres. So imagine our surprise when a modest, no longer young man walked into the Read more…

“Butterfly”

“Moth” micromotorcycle from a scooter, D-5 engine

This name was given to a micromotorcycle built on the basis of a children’s scooter. The authors of the “Moth” are Zhenya Gavrilov, Sasha Golev, Seryozha Golubenkov, and the head of the micromobility club Boris Pavlovich Chernov. The club operates at the Young Technicians Club in the Moscow-region town of Pavlovsky Posad. The “Moth” was Read more…

“Buran” is not afraid of frost

Snowmobile «Kompromiss»: heated cab for Buran motornart

How a snowmobile (motornart) differs from a motorcycle is clear to anyone familiar with these vehicles: mainly, the former is tracked and intended for travel on snow, while the latter is wheeled and for ground travel. In terms of comfort they are alike — both are open, although motorcycles are used mostly in warm weather Read more…

Without damaging the bottom bracket

Bicycle bottom bracket repair: groove cuts for 204 balls

The bottom bracket of a road bicycle — and indeed of any other bicycle — is probably its most heavily loaded mechanism. Therefore, in bottom brackets with external tapered bearings, bearing cages often fail under heavy overloads, and the ball races on the cones of the bottom bracket spindle are frequently damaged as well. Intensive Read more…

Snow motorcycle

Homemade motonarty: Voskhod-3M engine snowmobile build guide

In “Modelist-Konstruktor” magazine No. 11’1991 I came across a description of motonarty — a tracked snowmobile built by the Matveychuk brothers from Zavodoukovsk, Tyumen Oblast, and named by them “Mysl-2” (“Thought-2”). I liked the machine. For me, a rural resident, it looked like an indispensable means of transport in winter, and as a home builder Read more…

The third wheel of the “Tourist”

Sidecar for Tula-Tourist scooter: fiberglass body & frame

Enthusiasts build sidecars for all kinds of motorcycles and motor scooters! For Izh and Voskhod, for old Zündapps and brand-new Vyatka-Elektron. Owners of Tula-200 motor scooters are also happy to add a third wheel to their machine — especially since the engine power of the modern Tula-Tourist makes it quite feasible. Unlike many such trailers, Read more…