My Practical Production-Made Streamliner
http://lightningbikes.com/f40.htm

by Wally Kiehler

Speed can be additive.

Last year I saw a used Lightning F40 for sale on the internet.  These bikes are very rare.  They have been around for over 15 years and there have been only 200 made.  Having owned and raced 4 very different recumbents since 1992, I was feeling the "need for speed".

The 4 other 'bents that I've owned are the Linear LWB/USS, Lightning P38, Rans Velocity Squared (V2), & the Bacchetta Strada.

Last December I drove from Detroit to Cincinnati and purchased it after a 2 hour test ride. Having previously owned a P38 and riding it exclusively for 5 years -- I knew that I liked the upright seat position.  In recent years I have tested the popular "low racers" but was uncomfortable with the extreme laid back seat position.  I felt that I had to strain my neck to hold my head up so that I could see where I was going.  And the head rests that I tested would bounce my head with every bump in the road.  Another observation with the low racers is that I did not feel safe riding in automobile traffic because my head was below the car window and I did not feel that the driver could always see me.

Before I talk about the performance of this bike let me speak a little about how it's built. 

The F40 is basically a P38 made into a streamliner.  The fiberglass front nose cone fairing has aluminum tubing supports.  These supports attach to the front of the bottom bracket with hose clamps.  When changing a P38 into an F40, the bottom bracket has to be sent to Lightning so that a "fairing mount tube" (that supports the weight of the nose cone) can be welded onto the bottom bracket.  Lightning will do the welding and repainting of the bottom bracket.

The tail fairing is made and welded from light weight aluminum tubing.  There are 4 clamps for attachment to the mesh seat and 2 plastic brackets for attachment to the rear drop outs.

What connects the front nose cone to the rear tail fairing is the stretchy spandex material.  It attaches to the nose cone with heavy duty velcro and is sewn perfectly to fit around the rear tail fairing.  The spandex totally enclosed the rider on the top, sides, and bottom except for his exposed neck & head.  There are only 3 openings in this spandex:  rider's head, rear wheel, & front wheel.  Heavy duty zippers are strategically placed around the rider to allow him to enter and exit the vehicle in less than one minute.  Since the bottom of the F40 is totally enclosed 2 "slits" are made just below the rider's feet for when the vehicle has to come to a stop or when starting from a stop.  I have learned how to pace myself when coming to a red light so that I do not have to unclip my pedals and put my feet down.

My F40 is an older 1991 P38.  It's serial number is #166.  That means it was the 166th P38 made.  The second owner of this 'bent purchased the F40 fairing and front shock 4 years ago.  I am the third owner.  The components are almost entirely original.  21 speeds.  Bar-end shifters.  16" (349) front wheel.  700cc rear wheel.  They still work fine.  Eventually when things wear out I will replace them with newer technology.

There is one problem that I had to correct.  This P38 came with a 24/46/50 crankset and a 7 speed 12/32 cassette.  With the F40 fairing I would "run out of gears" very easily at around 25mph.  I have never experienced this problem before with any of my prior 'bents.  I changed the crankset to 32/46/56 and now have plenty of gears to take me as fast as I can pedal "in the flats".  With a strong tail wind or a slight downhill, I will still "run out of gears" and am planning on changing to a 11/32 cassette.  This gearing is what the newer F40's run and should be sufficient for me.

Performance wise I've never experienced any 'bent like this before.  Before I used to average 16-17mph on my normal local ride on my unfaired recumbents.  Now I average 21-22mph.  That's about a 30% increase in average speed.  Also this year I have only been passed twice on the road.  Both were stronger MHPVA club members riding their faired low racers.

Friends that know me know that I have purchased and sold 'bents for years and only own one bent at a time.  So what I own has to be used for everyday riding, touring, and HPRa racing.  This F40 gives me the best of all worlds.  I can ride safely in traffic (and be easily seen).  I can store lots of cargo inside the tailbox.  And I can race with the streamliners in the HPRa Racing Series.  And if crosswinds become too dangerous, I can remove the spandex and store it in the cargo box.  This 'bent really fits my needs.

And yes.  Speed is addictive.