Tandems of the forum

Good shout, though it seems they won't deliver to mainland Europe.
We're clearing up the details with JD Tandems at the moment. They've been really helpful so far - even sent us a picture of a display-model setup to our measurements. Assembly and delivery should only take about two weeks, once we place the order.

Haha, the seller told me a guy from Odense had contacted him and I instantly though “I bet it’s mistermikkel!”. I knew you were in the market, but I figured only I knew it was a kiddieback version since it was listed so poorly.

I think it was a stock model, but yes, those couplers and that igh is £££ 💸

I’ve ridden it today with both of the kids. It’s magnificent!
Youngest is 105cm and can just reach the pedals, oldest is 116cm and fits perfectly with plenty of space to grow. I think it’ll fit up to around 155cm.

I'm pretty sure I'm the most active tandem buyer in Odense at the moment :D
I was pretty sold on the purple paint job, but googled the model and found out it was a kiddieback, which pretty much put me off it.
Very good to hear that your test rides with the kids was a succes!

The GF and I rode a tandem in the pouring rain over the weekend and quite thoroughly forgot we were soaked through, because it is that much fun.

Tried 1905, turns out they don't deal with Ridgeback anymore.

Bought this last summer, and have been changing some parts during the year. We're planning a weekend trip to a local island with 30-40 km of cycling each day, so we took it for spin today to get a feel for the new bars, stem, seat posts and stoker saddle.

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That looks very well put together.
Nice touch with the hammered mudguards!

Thanks, it's great, really feels like a quality frame. Made from True Temper in the US, and it fits both of us very well.
The only sort of downside is the 1 1/2'' threaded headset, as it seems Chris King is the only one making that size nowadays, and they are quite expensive - but maybe it's worth, the current headset is indexed to a point where I can actually feel it when we're riding.

Bummer about the headset, but everything else sounds great.
Might be a good reason to get a King Headset - espcially if you're going to keep the bike.

that's really nice, I'd love to have the space for something similar.

That’s really nice. I agree on the hammered mudguards, it makes it look sweeeeet.

I used to own one of those, it was a really nice bike, but I had some issues with the canti spacing and the headset you mention. Plenty of bottle cage mounts though.
Unfortunately I couldn’t keep it as the front didn’t fit me, so the captain bought it.

I remember the headset being 11/4 though? I could be wrong, but better to double check on me before you order CK.

only sort of downside is the 1 1/2'' threaded headset, as it seems Chris King is the only one making that size nowadays, and they are quite expensive

Look on the bright side, at least CK 1¼" (pretty sure that's what it will be, not 1.5") is cheaper than NOS Record OR or XTR in that size :)

Thanks, I think it has turned out pretty good.

that's really nice, I'd love to have the space for something similar.

Yeah, I'd love to have the space for it as well haha, storring it in a 2 bedroom apartment on second floor can be a challenge sometimes.

That’s really nice. I agree on the hammered mudguards, it makes it
look sweeeeet.

I used to own one of those, it was a really nice bike, but I had some
issues with the canti spacing and the headset you mention. Plenty of
bottle cage mounts though. Unfortunately I couldn’t keep it as the
front didn’t fit me, so the captain bought it.

I remember the headset being 11/4 though? I could be wrong, but better
to double check on me before you order CK.

The canti posts do sit closer than on my Macho Man, and the Deore v-brakes barely fit, but I noticed the other day, that I could probably switch the unevenly sized conical washers around to move the pads out a little.

Look on the bright side, at least CK 1¼" (pretty sure that's what it will be, not 1.5") is cheaper than NOS Record OR or XTR in that size :)

You and Simba are right, I remember it's the EC37 cup size, so that's a 1 1/4'', thanks.

Bicyclist.cc have a NOS Deore XT 1 1/4 for £60.

First time in months, quick scoot down the road and back. Had replaced the stem at the back. Needs a solid steel seatpost at the front, the looong captain one flexes too much at that crazy length.

Hoping we have another ride along the Thames Path by the weekend before the stoker/passenger goes to Nepal for a month.

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Bike still looks like a right hoot!
Solid steel post is probably not going to do much else than add weight. You'd be better off with an internally ovalized/butted steel tube. Or something like those titanium jobbies they use on bromptons if the diameter fits.

That is ace.

Nothing more to say.

titanium

Obviously he's not going to use Ti, but as a matter of simple mechanics it's a ludicrous suggestion since it's about half as stiff as steel.

Increasing wall thickness of the steel tube is a game of diminishing returns, but since the starting point is probably around 0.1 times the OD, the initial gain from adding 50-100% is going to be significant.

@MisterMikkel pretty sure that as tester says, the steel seatpost will still make a massive improvement over the hollow alu. It’s 25.4 by the way. I remember seeing one on bankrupt bike parts for an affordable sum.

Once I feel a bit more confident with the welder, I’d plan on tacking a small angled support to the seatpost that can be clamped to the frame - non-permanent but just enough added support to reduce flex.

That, or just get something that clamps to both the frame and to the seatpost for maximum non-permanence. I was thinking maybe something like those kiddy-ride clamp bar things?

Don’t wanna damage the frame, but also don’t wanna damage my ass.

Thanks!

I am currently building up a tandem frame am looking for some info on tandem wheels. More specifcally, when is a wheel fit for use in a tandem? Does it really need lots of spokes, box section rims, high profile rims, high spoke tension, beefy spoke flanges, etc.? Or will some/many non-tandem specific wheels do just fine?

So far I have noticed that quite a few standard road bike wheels are rated up to 110 kg (like my own Campagnolo Zonda wheels). These have taken an enormous amount of abuse so far, including a serious crash and some very rocky trails and are still perfectly true. This got my wondering about the way wheel rating works. Are they actually tested over 110 kg? Or are they just tested up to 110 kg, because hardly anyone is over 110?

when is a wheel fit for use in a tandem?

When it gets you to the end of your ride without failing. Are you a 120kg crew riding a 10 mile TT or a 200kg pair taking luggage on a round the world tour? Depending on the service conditions, tandem wheel spoke counts run from 16 to 48

We wrote off the rear of a set of standard deore/mavic 319 36h wheelset on one two-week tour (cracking at the eyelets); got it warrantied and then did the same again the subsequent year. Got 2 tours out of some beefier 40h (48h? I can't remember) 719s (and one of those tours was 6 hard weeks) but the rear is now cracking again, although things didn't noticeably deteriorate on their last (third) outing to the alps for a few weeks (only noticed once we were out there). Will probably rebuild onto something new for our next trip (a Sputnik maybe, as that's what our dynamo front hub is built onto)

Looking for a child back tandem for 5'10" captain and 5 year old stoker.

Anyone selling or know of someone that is?