"Simon Brooke" wrote in message
. uk...
writes:

There are a few simple tests that he didn't do, one of which is to
wheel the bicycle along a walking speed holding on to the saddle
only.
Most bicyclists have done this and those who were interested will
note
that it works by gyroscopic force and not working at all with no
wheel rotation.

Uhhhmmmm...

I habitually wheel bicycles with one hand on the saddle. I've always
assumed that this worked in exactly the same way as riding a bike -
i.e. lean to steer. Although I agree that in principle a rotating
wheel has a gyroscopic effect at whatever speed it's rotating (and a
fast spinning wheel a considerable one) I don't believe that there's
much gyroscopic effect at this speed.

Indeed, this seems to me to be borne out by the fact that one of my
bikes which has a noticable tendency to pull left[1] can be wheeled
quite
happily one hand on the saddle - but only if tilted slightly right.

However I haven't done the maths and am just going on perceptions. Has
anyone done the maths for this?

The greater mass of the wheel, handlebars etc. forward of the steering
axis compared to the rear of the steering axis is the reason for the low
speed steering when wheeling and leaning a bicycle. This is the case
when the bicycle is stationary also. Gyro forces do not become dominant
until much greater speeds.

Phil Holman