Stick69

My wife and I are considering a tandem to ride a couple of hours on Sunday afternoons (and perhaps off into retirement if I don’t screw this up). Neither of us have been serious bikers before but I just started commuting by bike (Trek 7.2 FX) and thought a tandem might be a good way to keep us together on Sunday rides on the local MUP. We were planning on buying a new bike with a budget of around 2000 USD mainly because I didn’t think I could become knowledgeable enough about the subject to make a good used purchase. But I stumbled across a bike that may be a good option and so I am bringing this question to you. Which bike are we likely to be happier with (and therefore ride more and progress with) in the short to mid term? This of course assumes the 90s custom actually fits us.

The bike in question is a 90s steel custom tandem built locally. It has 27 x 1 ¼ wheels with 48 spokes and new tires. The bike will take up to 28mm tires. Front Derailleur is Shimano Deore XT (3 ring) and rear Derailleur is Shimano Deore DX (six speed). New brooks saddles, Arai drag brake, new child’s stoker kit. Pedalss have straps. Saddle bag with usual stuff. Bike is in good condition; it may have been in the same family since built.

I don’t expect you to predict if the bike will fit us but for those who like lots of information I am 6’ 2” and 215 lbs. The front cockpit is called large and has drop handle bars on an adjustable neck (fore/aft) with eight groves. My wife is 5’ 7” 135. The rear cockpit is called medium and has a straight bar on a neck that telescopes up at an angle. This may actually work out well as I would be fine with saddle and hands at about the same height and my wife could be in a little more upright position.

I won’t spoil the thread with my own thoughts at this point but moneywise a new bike could easily creep up to 3000 USD just by going up one model and adding our choice of saddles, bars, and pedals, plus accessories. The owner is asking 1000 USD for the 90s custom tandem.

The most likely case is we will ride on paved local MUPs and may travel to ride rail to trail routes. Unlikely we will road race or tour. I thank you in advance for any thoughts you might provide.

PS: I am mechanically inclined although not always motivated to use said skills to maximum advantage.

DKMcK 

Size wise the bike should be in the ballpark for you and your stoker. Obviously, there are so many variables and a try it on is required. If the bike is local, try it out. With 27" wheels and 6 speed, it sounds like early 90's, maybe even 80's. You did not mention the builder. That seems like a steep price for that old of a bike.

B. Carfree

It sounds like a winner for you. It's a small amount of money for you to find out if you enjoy riding a tandem together. Hint: very few couples really enjoy the first few trips. It's got a learning curve and requires a bit of patience. It's worth the effort, but there is some effort for most teams.

Stick69

Thanks for the replies.

My wife and I went to Davis, California today and rented a Raleigh Companion. The bike is not the ideal size for me but we had a great time. We rode about six miles, a few blocks of stop signs through town but mostly bike path and through the University Campus. They use a lot of roundabouts on their bike paths which was interesting. We had a great experience for our first time on a tandem. The stoker would have ridden farther but the captain’s arms were getting a little tired and I didn’t want to have an accident.

Alcanbrad

A potential disadvantage may be replacement parts like 6 speed free-wheels and shifters. Not daily maintenance items and depending on wear it may or may not ever be an issue, but something to think about.

Other than that, should be a lot of fun.

Stick69

I understand from talking to a bicycle mechanic that six speed freewheels are available but not in high quality. Not sure exactly what that means. I seriously doubt we would put more than 1000 miles a year on the bike so if the gears are in OK shape they should last us a while. If I buy it I may by a replacement freewheel while they are available.

B. Carfree

I wouldn't worry about stocking up on freewheels. There's a substantial number of bikes on the road that still use them and they are readily available at the sort of bike shops that sell bikes in the $300-1500 range. They can be ordered by any shop and arrive in a few days. No, you won't be able to design your own gearing with them and they aren't as nice as what we had thirty-five years ago, but they work just fine.

Stick69

LBS has a couple of used tandems for sale.

Santana looks kind of like this one:



They also have a Co-motion for sale that looks like this one:



Hope to go back when the weather improves and try them out.

Stick69

We are leaning toward purchasing the KHS Milano in Medium (23-21) if we can confirm it will fit us. We are having a difficult time finding one in the wild to confirm fit. The dimension I am most concerned about is fitting my 5' 7" stoker on a 21-inch seat tube. Her current bike (an Ariel) has a 73 degree seat tube angle (same as the Milano) and her seat height (measured along the seat tube from the crank center) is 26 inches. I blew up the photo of the Milano and it appears the stoker seat post will go down until the fitting at the top of the seat post contacts the seat tube leaving about two inches up to the top of the piston (effectively the seat post stickup) and another three inches for the clamp and saddle. This comes out to 26 inches (21 plus 2 plus 3) leaving little margin for error. Also with an inseam of 31 inches her standover may be a bit snug.

If anyone has a medium Milano I would appreciate confirmation of these dimensions. Or if you are a similar size stoker on a similar size bike and can confirm the fit I would appreciate it greatly.

I am currently riding a 22.5 Trek 7.2 FX and I have an inseam of 35 inches. If I did my trig correctly the standover for me on the Milano would be about 33 inches which is the same as my current bike. I can spread my feet wide enough while standing over my current bike to clear the pedals so I think this dimension is OK.

Overall it looks like this bike will just work for us but I would appreciate any feedback whether reassurance or skepticism. The other option in the Milano is 20-16 which seems a bit small for us.

fxsvelo

How about a used KHS Tandemania Roma, aluminum frame, 23/21, Ultegra 9 speed? I have a friend who's selling one.

I can't PM you until I hit 50 posts, (so this gets me one closer).

Stick69

How close is the bike to us geographically?

qspencer

I agree the smaller frame would be too small for you. The primary concern is top tube length, which determines reach to the handlebars. I'm close to your size and all of my bikes have top tube measurements close to the length KHS specifies on their web site. If you went with the shorter one, you would feel like the handlebars were too close, even if you put a really long stem on it. You can always swap out the suspension seatpost if you need to get the rear saddle a little lower, although the shock is nice to have. If you're concerned about standover height, I think some Cannondale frames have a steeper slope in the top tube, allowing more standover height in the rear for a shorter stoker. However, a new Cannondale is probably out of your budget (they start at $3300), and you could spend a long time searching for the right deal on a used one. The KHS is one of the few options I'm aware of that can be bought new in your price range.

fxsvelo

It's in Oakland. 94618 zip code. She's trying to sell it on the local club list before posting to Craigslist.

This is the bike:
2003 KHS Tandemania Roma - BikePedia

I think the current asking price is $900.

This not being able to PM is a pain.