SJX426 

I could start a new thread but this one has the right title! I was able to get the decals for mine through a contact who did a custom set for me. The bike has been stripped and the parts cleaned and lubricated. In some cases, thoroughly. It is now put back together without paint as a trial run and to get my wife to try it out. We have not ridden together on a Tandem so this was a new expereince for us. I did ride a tandem with my sister when she was very young. It was a 20" wheeled take-apart bike we bought in Frankfurt.

Is there interest in my documenting the restoration here?

I had read a lot about how to ride a tandem and was luckey my wife was in the mood to listen. She laughed with joy nearly the whole short ride around the block! The seat was unacceptable to her so we purchased a lady specifc saddle and took another short ride around the block. She was pleased with the difference. I still have some minor adjustments to make, but it worked out well. Learning to swing my leg over the front is a big change! She like to ride in a more upright position so the bike looks like a confused hybrid with my drop bars lower than my saddle.

Ordered some parts today including bar tape so pics will be in order soon. Paint will happen in May.

hamachi

High interest! Please describe your restoration and provide photos.

SJX426 

One is enough!
Purchased 11/16/2013
Nearly stock but year of manufacture unknown. When reviewing BikePedia specs, it looks like it might be a 1994 with some 93 left over parts because the specs bridge both. Sellers pictures:

Additional pictures by the seller can be found here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/1120948...7638854295895/

According to the seller (a flipper), the bike may have been a beach bike. It did not get much use but was exposed to salt water, hence the rust and corrosion.
The aluminum parts do have some corrosion but they also were anodized so the damage is slight. Sanding and polishing will bring unique quality that looks better than new when done.
Equipment:

• Crank set - Sakae SX
• Stems - SR
• Pedals - SR
• Brakes - Suntour XCE with SE on the rear
• RD - Suntour XCE Expert
• FD - Suntour XCE
• Shifters - Suntour accuishift
• Brake levers - Blaze with the right side able to handle two cables.
• Stoker Bottom Bracket - Burley designed sealed bearing
• Captain Bottom Bracket - Burley Designed eccentric with sealed bearings
• Fork - 1 1/8” steerer
• Captain saddle - was Avocet (trashed)
• Stoker Saddle -
• Hubs - Suzue “Sealed” cub and cone 48 hole
• Rims - Sun Chinook
• Spokes - likely 2.0 straight gauge
• Rack - BlackBurn
• Bottle cages (4) - unknown origin and were trashed due to corrosion
• Computer - a CatEye
• Bell - unknown origin made of Aluminum (poor sound)
• Headset - Tange
• Timing Chain –
• Drive Chain
• Freewheel - Suntour Maeda 14/28

Disassembly:All components were removed with the exception of the stoker BB. The frame was washed and dried. All components with the exception of the derailleurs were cleaned 11/18 with the wheels polished on 11/19. Chains are now cleaned and oiled.

Frame:The frame has a lot of rust and wrinkled paint with possible rust underneath. The rust is extensive enough to warrant repaint. Investigation of obtaining decals has resulted in none being found requiring custom decals. Detailed pictures and measurement will be required prior to stripping the frame. Decals have been procurred and are ready for application. See the following link for detailed pictures of the the frame after stripping: https://www.flickr.com/photos/1120948...7638854295965/




Striping was done chemically with a wire brush as a follow up. The fork was dunked in OA then wire brushed as well.

I didn't like the location of the reaction arm of the Arai drum brake as it rubbed on the frame. The picture isn'tin focus but you get the drift:


After striping, the frame was taken to a local welder that does repair on frames. The reaction arm anchor was moved from the location in the pic above to below the chain stay. Here is where I wanted the reaction arm to be located:


Here is the result:


I frequent a local bike coop and found a nearly NOS Arai in the bin with all the other brake calipers that didn't make it to the display case. $5 later it was mine and is in the picure above. The old one is in the first pic.

When I disassembled the frame, about a 1/4 cup of water came out of the captains seat tube. All the tube joints are blind without any holes! I may add some prior to painting. If you visit the link on the frame, you will see the amount of rust on the frame. Not all of it was visable when the paint was still attached. You can also se the amount of pittting.

The weight of the frame was found to be about 13 lbs. 9 oz.

Component final finish:The cranks Have been de-anodized using oven cleaner. Sanding is in process and poishing should improve the appearance in general.

Plans:Repaint will be powder coat in red. This frame doesn't warrant super quality paint and it will be protected very will with PC>

Replacement parts:A replacement saddle for the captain will be acquired for existing stock of extra saddles with a Brooks.
The Bell will need to be replaced with a brass one as it sounds more like a thud than a ring!
Both axles were repacked with grease. The rear hub will need new cones eventually. Looks like the rear axle was replaced with a solid one as I have a skewer that matches the front wheel skewer. May get a hollow one

New handlebar tape will be required was ordered.

New brake cable housings and and shift housings have been replaced. Existing brake cables were reused as well as the shift cables.

The bike was assembled prior to paint this week end. We did a trial run as described above.

A Suntour 7spd freewheel replaced the original and the barcons set for friction shifting.

WPH

So good to see old iron saved and renovated. Good pictures on the flickr link. Is the stoker's end of the boom/gutter tube open?

As for $5 Arai... well I guess you must have been a very worthy being in a previous life. Could sell the old brake to pay for the powdercoat! Are you happy with the reactor arm anchor? It looks bang on to me.

Anyway will be nice to see pictures of the finished bike, total eventual weight, and a picture of a happy tandem couple on the appropriate thread here at BF.

WPH

SJX426 

Yes the stokers end of the boom is open. It is where the FD, RD and Arai cables exit.

I may just sell the Arai. I don't know what to do with it unless it would be used for spares. Both have nearly new like shoes in them. The reactor arm anchor is great in that it makes wheel removal much easier! The old position made alignment of the wheel more difficult as the arm does not like to bend and alignment was difficult. Why it wasn't built that way to begin with is a mystery to me.

Will post more later. I will update the pictures with current state. I was able to get the canti's adjusted correctly last night and wrapped the stoker bars. Next step is to replace the housing for the FD and drag, then I can wrap the captains bars. The rear tire is mounted backwards and both wheels need truing. I did a little of that on Sunday to be able to adjust the brakes. The RD hanger needs to be checked for alignment as I am concerned that it may be off.


Got a quote for PC in red for $230.

merlinextraligh

My assumption is they thought it was a bit more secure, in that the braking force would be pushing the arm into the mount, and frame, rather than pulling the anchor away from the frame.

Having changed a bunch of rear flats on a Burley Duet, I definitely see the merit in your change.

SJX426 

I thought of that reasoning but .... being a mechanical engineer, I understand the forces involved and can differentiate between what looks good and what will work and still be safe. It’s all in the weld integrity and the mechanical properties of the anchor piece. In this case, I perfer function over perceived safety.

SJX426 

Update:
Assembled the raw frame last weekend and refined adjustments. Still needs some cleaning and new brake pads but here it is as it sits in the garage:

@wrk101 thought you might be interested!

WPH

You could just clear-coat that frame. But a really bright deep red would be grand too.

The older handlebars had deep drops - I went with a more modern profile so the tops are at the right height but the drops weren't too far away.

Also, are the Suntour cantis of the Peterson self-energizing design? What is the diameter of the Tange headset? Our Trek uses 1&1/4 which is hard to find at a reasonable price.

Does your stoker keep her feet up at stops?

SJX426 

I am into C&V and am very comfortable with the deeper drops. I also wanted to keep it close to original but that may change.

There is a lot of pitting on the frame that needs to be hidden. This is the second bike I have assembled with comments about clear coating! It really is a cool look.

Yes the rear cantis are the Pederson SE design. They need new pads but even after 20 years and a little sand paper they work!

I believe the HS is 1 1/8th, but would have to check now that you bring up the 1 1/4 size.

No she does not keep her feet up. We communicate every move and it has worked out well for the mile or two we have ridden so far. She will not abide rat traps so pedals are in order. This may be an opportunity to reintroduce them.

WPH

This is now a double zombie thread...

SJX426 - was the frame ever painted? Do you still own the bike? Does it get much use? I would love a Duet, but they cannot be had in any condition in Australia.

SJX426 

LOL! No it is not painted yet! I hope to do in the next year. I am moving so there will be more space and opportunity to paint it and two other frames.

Yes and no, not much use. My stoker has some physical conditions that limit when she can ride.

I have always wanted to visit Australia, had a girl friend from there many years ago. Loved the accent, from my point of view.

Artmo 

I was also looking for the OP's pics, but can't see them. What are Zombie Threads and what's the significance of dates? Thnks

sch

Zombie thread is a resurrected thread from years before, in this case OP was 2008, re-vivified in 2014 and then again in 2017.
As a result any photos posted are long gone, and not unusually the OP is long gone as well. People move on. Pix go away
because of rule changes by the pix host site (was free, now $) or because the OP took them down after a year or so.
There are some members who seem to specialize in revivifying old threads, and then suck in new posts from people who
fail to check the OP date.

WPH

Yeah, all that.

Shame the pictures of the green Burley are no longer available - I remember them from 2010 or so, the colour was spectacular, it was a nice rebuild.

BurleyDuet

Not a pro at posting content. But here goes. You should see a PNG file that shows the "Nucular Green" tandem. Also, you should see a PDF showing the original posting dated 13Jun2012. Why I saved this material I have no idea. Hopefully, it's useful to someone! Cheers!

FirstSarnt

I will re-vivify this thread yet again. I picked up a very early Burley Duet (SN 0132, so I figure it's a 1989 or 1990 model) for next to nothing and I am doing a resto mod on it. It has spent most of its life outside in the weather, but since that weather was in San Diego - it was even originally sold here - it's in pretty good shape for a neglected bike approaching 30 years old.

The components seemed to have suffered the worst damage from weather and abuse, so I'm tossing and upgrading the derailleurs and cables, freewheel, chains, and headset. I'm upgrading the brakes to linear pull, and since I'm installing flat road handlebars bars I'm getting new brake levers and indexed shifters. I'm saving the 48 spoke Suzue hubs and 27" Weinmann rims since they're still intact and replacing those items alone would likely cost more than the finished bike will be worth. I did have to pry off the stuck-to-the-rim 27 x 1" gumwalls that were likely original, and I will be mounting 27 x 32mm Schwalbe Marathons, a grippy, comfortable, rugged tire that I use on my touring bike.

The original brake system used the Dia Compe 287 dual cable lever on the right for both cantilevers and the left for the Arai drag brake, but I'm going to use the brake levers more conventianally and use a friction shift lever on the handlebar for the drag brake. I already got a quick release for the Arai and new bottom bracket bearings from Mel Kornbluh at Tandems East. The Avocet saddles are still in good shape and are beng retained, as are the SR Laprade seatposts. The cranksets also appear to be in remarkably good shape, though the pedals are being replaced with moderns platforms. I'm tossing around the idea of painting the crank spiders black to match the brakes, levers, shifters, and derailleurs. I'ms still undecided on retaining the original quill stem or replacing it with a Profile Design stem adaptor (1" to 1-1/8") and modern stem with some rise.

More to follow as it proceeds...



As found


Prepping the frame


Primed and ready for color


First color coat

WPH

You know I love it!