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Upgraded the tandem again


JerrySTL

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Good to hear you are still getting a lot of use from the tandem.  I think the couples who can pull it off also stick with it.  I see several tandem riders regularly, and over the year, I start to recognize them and their various unique bikes.  There are quite a few varieties of them out there - from "normal" to pretty interesting recumbent types.

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Also, while I doubt 8sp cassettes nor 26" tires are going to disappear completely in the next few years, you may want to start looking for bargain closeouts and buy a nice stockpile. Chains too?  I have seen, in the past few years, selection and availability of 26" tires (and wheels) go WAY DOWN. 

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1 minute ago, Razors Edge said:

Good to hear you are still getting a lot of use from the tandem.  I think the couples who can pull it off also stick with it.  I see several tandem riders regularly, and over the year, I start to recognize them and their various unique bikes.  There are quite a few varieties of them out there - from "normal" to pretty interesting recumbent types.

The strangest tandem that I've seen was a recumbent in the front and somewhat regular bike in the back. I found a photo of one. There's once couple who ride a tandem around her that cost about $15K. 

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2 minutes ago, Razors Edge said:

Also, while I doubt 8sp cassettes nor 26" tires are going to disappear completely in the next few years, you may want to start looking for bargain closeouts and buy a nice stockpile. Chains too?  I have seen, in the past few years, selection and availability of 26" tires (and wheels) go WAY DOWN. 

I think the tire and tube shortage issues might have something to do with the pandemic bicycling boom. No problem finding chains (need 2 single-speed chains for the front) but the 8-speed shifter was difficult to locate.

Speaking of which, they are Schwalbe Big Apple tires. They are made in China and were shipped from Holland to me through Amazon. Seems that they may have been most of the way around the world.

If you have a tandem, you definitely want to carry a rear derailleur and brake cable. They are about 3500 mm long and a lot of bike shops don't carry them.

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8 minutes ago, JerrySTL said:

The strangest tandem that I've seen was a recumbent in the front and somewhat regular bike in the back.

I definitely see some of those style.  Not sure of the brands, but those do catch your eye.

I'd also think that most new tandems are crazy expensive as they are almost "custom" these days with such a small market share.

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1 hour ago, JerrySTL said:

If you have a tandem, you definitely want to carry a rear derailleur and brake cable. They are about 3500 mm long and a lot of bike shops don't carry them.

Hmm... now I'm worried.  I suppose I should check my cables.  Just today...  the rear derailleur (9 speed) caused the chain to skip a few teeth from time to time in some of the smaller cogs.  I was thinking I need to adjust the cable.

Now I need to look closer... maybe my old cable is starting to fail.    Of course I don't have cables.  :(

1 hour ago, Razors Edge said:

I think the couples who can pull it off also stick with it.

Yeah... WoBG and I have been riding our tandem since 2004.  :party:

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1 hour ago, JerrySTL said:

The strangest tandem that I've seen was a recumbent in the front and somewhat regular bike in the back. I found a photo of one. There's once couple who ride a tandem around her that cost about $15K. 

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Ok it looks like the Back rider shifts the gears and worked the brakes but who steers? Does that mean the stoker has the front seat?

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6 hours ago, JerrySTL said:

WoJSTL and I are going to ride our ages in kilometer which is about 42 miles if you want to do the math.

 

Of course we want to do the math!  :desk:

Let's see... 42 miles rounds up to about 68 kilometers, and there are two of you (of course!) riding the tandem.

If you are riding your ages and we assume you're each the same age, then:

Let x = your age = WoJSTL's age

x + x = 68

2x = 68

x = 68/2, or

you and WoJSTL are both about 34. 

Am I close?

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3 minutes ago, Rattlecan said:

Yup. 65 pounds of Chicago electroforged goodness. The tubing is so thick, I didn't even need rivnuts to install the bottle cages. I was able to just drill and tap.

It was cool we had a bike store here that finally closed maybe 10 years ago and up to the end it was like stepping into the 50s. Huge store full of Schwinns i think, run by an old couple. I was quite surprised when I found it while looking for a tube. 

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5 minutes ago, JerrySTL said:

We recently rode with a guy on a Twinn like yous. He was riding solo on it as his wife didn't feel like riding that day.  About the only similarities with mine were the name and number of seats and wheels.

Mine originally had a 5 speed derailleur drive train with a drum brake on the rear and caliper on the front. I converted it to a Shimano Nexus 8 speed with roller brakes front and rear.

I replaced the original 571mm rims with 559s so the caliper brake was not going to work. The bike actually works very well, and has a reasonably good ratio range as long as you don't head for the big hills. 

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Just now, JerrySTL said:

We recently rode with a guy on a Twinn like yours. He was riding solo on it as his wife didn't feel like riding that day.  About the only similarities with mine were the name and number of seats and wheels.

That is SO CRAZY.  A re-post from some Cafe hiccup???

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17 minutes ago, Dottles said:

I think tandems are cool.  My wife and I think about it but we seem to be enjoying our solos as is.  We do so much together already that the idea of also being attached on a bike doesn't come with some resistance.

As they say, whichever direction your marriage is headed, a tandem will get you there faster.

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