PedalingWalrus

We finally have our tandem! Yay! We rode for 10 miles and then brought the bike for final adjustments . Also had fenders installed and lights and few minor details. Today we picked it up and had a training ride #2...10 miles. Tomorrow we’ll go for 30. We are working on communications and all seems well.

act0fgod

Looks cool. Breaking it in right away with some rain. How does the front fork separate?

PedalingWalrus

Thru axle

jnbrown

Where are the riders?

Nice bike - Enjoy

PedalingWalrus

We hope friends will photograph us during tomorrow’s ride 😁👍

Leisesturm

That fork looks kind of flimsy to me.

mikebian 

That is a beautiful bike! Titanium? Who’s the builder and what’s the story behind that fork?

Enjoy it!

lichtgrau

Wow, congratulations, what a nice bike was my first thought. And... "they really mean it" was the second when I saw the frame (hidden titanium, what an understatement ) and all the nice components you picked for your project. I wish you many good and safe rides with this new baby and... when you sometimes plan to travel to Berlin, Germany: Make sure to stop by at our place.

Congrats to your decision for the Rohloff... for us this was one of the best decisions we took when we were building up our tandem. (And of course I'm also somewhat proud that you decided for this little masterpiece of German engineering as well as for the SON-hub dynamo or the tubus rear rack or the Busch-Mueller front light...)

Looking closer to the details of your setup I have a few thoughts and questions. I just write some of them down and it's of course completely up to you if you want to comment.
At first, as was said before, the fork looks really impressive. This design was obviously choosen to carry some load and also some extra load on the front rack? Riding a tandem I was always glad not to have too heavy things influencing my steering since it is different from a single bike anyway. I'm excited to hear about your experience after the first packed tours.

And did you think about a drivetrain with both chains on one side? Choosing the Rohloff this can easily be done. Concerning the flux of force and the big variety of cranks for me it was a good choice to implement that version. Plus my stoker likes it that she has to take care for "chain tatoos" only on one side.
But I like the FSA-cranks on your bike as well and once a matching tandem-crank has been found, the variety of standard cranks is not an argument any longer. Since I (involuntarily) experimented a little bit with crank lengths in the beginning, I was glad that a new attempt didn't cost me a fortune.

Good that you decided for spring loaded saddles, especially for your stoker this is -to my mind- the least you can do. The poor guy/lady in the back is just blind for the thousands of little bumps on your way and you just can't comment on every of them...
We finally ended with the "Thudbuster long travel" and the suffering had a happy ending.

So, again, have many good rides, every single mile on our vehicles is a mile you ride and spend together with a good partner... there are definitely worse things that can be done with our valuable time.

PedalingWalrus

Thanks everyone. Our first loaded tour is in 2 weeks and we will report how we are doing. This is a ‘new frontier’ for us...neither of us previously rode a tandem ... the experience is exciting although sometimes entertaining as I am left handed and she is right handed and there are different preferences on which side to stop or start 🙂 etc... fun

The choice of various engineering decisions was a pre - design dialog with Carver Bikes. For example the truss fork was was my to get more rugged yet springy titanium fork ... the chain on both sides ... I have no clue what the benefits are of either/or ... hope to gain more knowledge as we embark on this new way of travel experience.

PedalingWalrus

Coincidentally because of our physique , and how our single bike fit is , the result is that the stoker actually has some front view...this was welcome as some of the initial ‘tandem stereotypical comments’ from our biking friends are slightly annoying and repetitive. 👍

Now I need to practice taking the bike apart and packing it before we fly it for our first vacation tour in 2 weeks.

PedalingWalrus

The choice of Rohloff had a few conclusive points... for example on a tandem where the stoker is lighter than the captain the balance is not as rear heavy ... this could be just academic bet nevertheless...

It will take some getting used to...I still prefer the feel of a regular derailleur but time will tell

PedalingWalrus

act0fgod

Sorry, I'm asking how the fork can be removed through the head tube of the frame when you are packing it up. It looks like the rack attaches to the steerer of the fork above the frame. It looks like there is some mechanism to loosen the rack part of the fork that is above the head tube of the frame but I wouldn't think it could flex enough to open completely around the head tube of the frame.

Maybe I'm missing something very simple.

PedalingWalrus

Good question. I wish I knew the answer. I plan on using the tri-all hard case and I do not plan on taking the fork apart. The bike with S&S couplers breaks in 3 sections. I only plan on taking the wheels off , fenders, disc rotors and maybe handlebars and maybe the rear rack.

I will know more by next weekend when I plan to pack the bike.

mikebian 

Which TriAll case did you get? The challenge with those cases is how much they weigh empty. I have a Kent Eriksen titanium tandem with only one set of couplers that I usually pack in an Evoc soft case. That has been working great for me when flying with it but I want to ship it somewhere and I’m looking for a hard case solution (cardboard is my fallback). It’s not really possible to try the different cases out so finding the best one is difficult.

PedalingWalrus

Tri-All 3 Sports Velo Safe 2

lichtgrau

The effect of the gear hub for your weight balance is really... somewhat academic. Especially on loaded tours with most of your stuff on the rear racks your team will get a good balance. Probably better than mine, since our weight difference is small. But even then: I think tandems are quite forgiving on static loads. They just have a good, long wheelbase.

According to your picture your stoker has also a good standover (some space above the top tube). Captains situation here looks more challenging.
Hope that's okay with you since usually you have to leave the saddle when stopping...

PedalingWalrus

So far so good ;-)

Paul J

I'm also left-handed and we both mount the bike from different sides of the bike. We've used what is called the "proper method" over the years to counter this. I get on the tandem first and hold the bike stationary while she then mounts from whichever side she pleases. She then stays clipped in and I hold the bike at any stops and she just stays on her seat and in her pedals. This works for us it can be tough when we are fully loaded and have the weight too high on the bike. We've tried to keep the trunk bag on top of the rear rack pretty light and have the weight lower in the rear panniers. Love you bike and hope you have a wonderful tour!

PedalingWalrus

I packed the bike today 😃 and here is the reality: I had to remove the fenders, front rack, handlebars, pedals and seatposts. Now I need to put it back together to complete the practice and repeat to finally pack for the trip.

lichtgrau

I'm still curious about the fork and how it could be removed...

mikebian 

Can you post a pic of the bike in the case?

PedalingWalrus

Yeah. I don't have padding on the bike parts right now but I can photograph it when I get home. I plan to reassemble by Friday and then by Sunday disassemble again and put in the case (this time with padding) to be ready for the flight on Thursday.

PedalingWalrus

Sorry if I'm giving you totally lame answers ... I'm not a very skilled bike mechanic ... but there is a normal head tube screw in the middle just like on any other bikes. I always assumed removing or loosening the handlebars and then unscrewing the top head tube screw would cause the fork to just 'drop out'

OneIsAllYouNeed

It looks like the fork uses the typical arrangement for Jones' (and many other makes) truss forks . The steerer is a separate piece from the remainder of the fork. There are split clamps on the fork crown and above the headset. To remove fork: loosen both sets of split clamps; slide steerer out the top; pull fork forward.