Cargo Bikes

@pascalo in work at the moment, but the Douze is parked up downstairs in our underground bike park so will take some pictures tonight and give you some details & measurements etc. I never fitted them because we got the bike ready-to-ride from London Green Cycles. Will either post on here or give you a WeTransfer link.

I think you're down under, so you'll have something for you to look at Saturday morning! :)

@pascalo Have created a PDF for you. Hope it helps?! It's 20MB so you will need to download via WeTransfer:
https://we.tl/AlhTOhchIZ
Ta!
Tim

Now it all makes sense. thanks so much!

Awesome. Figured out a few things now. Set up done. Even put a fizik arione on there.

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Cool! Glad it all made sense in the end.

Wish I could change the saddle. I hate the stock one, but my wife likes it. In the interest of not changing loads of components after spending a small fortune on a bike my bum has to suffer...

Cool! Glad it all made sense in the end.

Wish I could change the saddle. I hate the stock one, but my wife likes it. In the interest of not changing loads of components after spending a small fortune on a bike my bum has to suffer...

Well, I can't even hack an Arione on my road bike anymore, because of numb gooch. But the upright position on the douze actually makes it work. So, parts bin well used I'd say.

This thing is changing my life. This is what a today looked like for me ...

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Wholesome use of a cargo bike!

Looking to buy a bullitt with canopy for kid carriage

My question to you guys is, about locks. What tips do you have for locking these things up? Have you taken any extra measures to ensure you're able to leave these bikes unattended for a long amount of time? Considering they are so long, has anybody found issues with locking on pavement/bike stands?

I saw larryvsharry have an optional extra of ABUS BORDO + DETECTO 8077 ALARM, has anyone gone to the extent of using the alarm?

Can't say for a Bullit, but for the Douze I carry two D-locks, one large orange Kryptonite and one mini, either Abus or Kryptonite . Mini goes on the front wheel just to render it unusable, and on the rear I chuck in the large D-Lock in the Sheldon Brown manner, so locking the wheel through the rear triangle. Works well with a normal Sheffield stand. I also carry a cable which I'll fix through the front wheel if needed.

That said, Adelaide and London are deffo not on par when it comes to bike theft, and things that I see here would be gone in 10 secs in London for sure.

a lot of cargoes have these https://www.dutchbikebits.com/axa-defender-wheel-lock for easy lockout of the rear wheel. that and a kryto/hiplok chain will sort you out

Yeah frame locks are great

Pretty low but not much lower than with 700 X 35.

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I guess weight isn't really an issue with a cargo bike that already weighs loads so maybe you wouldn't even notice a beefy chain that much? Might give you more options for where you can lock up. We actually don't lock the Bullitts we use ever but that's in Leeds, we only leave them unattended for a few minutes at a time in busy areas and they do occasionally go missing so I wouldn't reccomend it!

@mdle We have a Douze and at almost 4K fully loaded I just don't want to risk losing it, especially as we are highly reliant on it for our daily routine of dropping off nipper/commuting.

Lock wise we have an Abus Bordo X Granite that goes through the front sub-frame and front wheel (expensive to replace due to dyno hub) and then a motorcycle chain for the rear wheel/frame enabling us to secure the bike to something immovable. The chain sits behind the seat base when in use and we use a bungee cord to help hold the seat in it's folded position when not in use as the lock is slightly in the way. I put old mtb inner tubes over the chain links and also store it inside a cut-off leg from a wet suit, this seems to keep the noise down, otherwise it'll rattle like a bastard...

Locking to stands is fine, although if bike stands are rammed, it's hard to fit a cargo bike in at times, plus I get concerned over other cyclist gouging the windows on the canopy with their handlebars etc. The motorcycle chain is a Thatcham rated English Chains lock which was my wife's motorbike lock from a few years ago. It's pretty light for a motorcycle chain, but the extra length allows us to use lamposts to secure the bike to and lets us put helmet straps through it if we're at a park and don't want to carry stuff around with us.

The bike was locked up outside for a whole year in the Chiswick area where I worked until they finally finished the secure bike parking in my work. Nothing happened to the bike during this time, but was never happy with it being outside like that in all weathers and I worked quite a few late nights so bike was left from 08:30 to about 03:00 at times.

Be aware that those Abus Bordo locks are not as big/user friendly as they look and you'll struggle to get it around both wheel, frame and immovable object.

Finally, it's really worth test riding cargo bikes. They are all very different in style/the way the ride and none of them cheap... but they will always leave you with a big grin on your face :)

Great info, thanks all.
Two or three locks it is then. Particularly pleased to know you were able to lock yours outside for so long. I'll be storing ours in our underground carpark inside a locked bike store room but the local youths are notorious for getting into carparks and have nicked a couple of poorly Locked bikes in the past.
Admittedly I haven't tried the bullitt yet, just a Bakfiets (which was incredibly relaxed). Will test the bullitt this week but pretty sure it's the one or me due to the canopy and fold down seat suiting need so well.

I guess the advantage is that the cargo bike parts are more obscure, so less likely to get stolen hopefully. And the whole bike is unwieldy and hard to carry away, so if the wheel is locked to frame I doubt anyone would portage it away.

Good luck test riding the Bullitt. Have a look at my previous posts regarding Bullitt vs. Douze. Worth adding a Douze to the mix, but they don't look as sexy as a Bullitt and colours are limited to black or white! :( personally having ridden both the Douze is functionally superior and is a bike my wife is more than happy to ride which was a critical requirement.

those Abus Bordo locks are not as big/user friendly as they look

Indeed.
They are quite popular here in Berlin - and whenever I ride a friends bike that has one of these I am reminded how 'annoying' they are. Maybe you get used to them but I don't see the advantage over D-locks.

Have a look at my previous posts regarding Bullitt vs. Douze. Worth adding a Douze to the mix, but they don't look as sexy as a Bullitt

..I disagree, they look very sexy to me!
Maybe a bit more feminine..
: ]

By the way what's the consensus in this thread on Omnium cargo bikes?
I've never really tried one, how is it having the load above the front wheel?

Yeah I think I prefer the d locks too, was a lot more intrigued by the disc brake mounted alarm, but having watched a few vids on YouTube if can’t see how they would work on a Bullitt or similar, they’re way too light, wind would set the alarms off

Cheers, yeah have read your comments, and I am intrigued by the Douze especially for the cable steering but just so sold on the lower seat setup for daughter and dog.
Shall try and arrange some test rides at London green anyway just in case

having ridden both the Douze is functionally superior.

Bold statement to make: depends on the function surely? Many hundreds of Bullitts ridden by messengers around the world. Can't say I've seen a lot of Douzes around.

what's the consensus in this thread on Omnium cargo bikes?

Occupy a different niche to most of the other cargo bikes. Better turning circle, handle more like a regular bicycle, lighter and quicker thanks to the short wheelbase. Don't handle big loads as well as the others. If you're always going to be loaded up I'd look at something different.