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Carrera vs Equator

Old 06-08-19, 12:35 PM
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mccreadym
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Carrera vs Equator

So after waiting several years, my wife and I have decided to take the plunge.

I have taken a liking to the Co-Motion offerings. First, it was the Speedster. However, I also had some interest in the Carrera.

We had the chance to ride a Carrera this week at a local shop (they did not have a Speedster in stock at the moment), and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I am also curious about the Rohloff SpeedHub, and see that Equator line comes with it.

Riding will mostly be doing trails 20-60 miles, although it would be fun to do a Century at some point too.

Both bikes are quality products.

The Carrera felt very nice, not sure how much the carbon fork and aluminum tires contributed to that or not. Any thoughts about the Speedhub vs. the Ultegra w/ DI2 for tandems?

What would you go for?

Thanks!

Matt
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Old 06-08-19, 08:14 PM
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jim_pridx
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Since I've never ridden an Equator, I can't possibly give you any advice as to which bike to go for. I am really loving our new Carrera, though, even though we've swapped out the wheels and drive train to be a bit more in line with our travel tandem. The first thing I noticed about the Carrera, though, was that it had sort of a twitchy, racing bike sort of feel in the front end on our first ride, and from the reviews I had read about the bike, that's exactly what I had hoped and expected for it to feel like. I would suspect that the Speedster is very similar in that regard. The Carrera is also quite rigid and very stable on steep descents, so it feels safe and secure at high speeds. Since the bike is still pretty new to us, I'm still not sure that my wife is totally sold on it, but for me it's the type of steel-framed tandem I've been looking for without spending a small fortune on a carbon fiber frame and components to match. All in all, though, I think it's a great bike that pretty much covers the full gamut in terms of tandem road bikes.
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Old 06-09-19, 03:51 PM
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Here is a nice discussion on the Equator from crazyguyonabike.com (2 pages): Mike & Bern Tour New York: First trip on the new tandem: Belt driven - no derailleurs
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Old 06-09-19, 04:22 PM
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Originally Posted by ReedCycle
Here is a nice discussion on the Equator from crazyguyonabike.com (2 pages): Mike & Bern Tour New York: First trip on the new tandem: Belt driven - no derailleurs
Wow! That makes me wonder if I should've gone the belt-driven route. Lots of advantages there!
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Old 06-10-19, 03:57 PM
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Originally Posted by mccreadym
Riding will mostly be doing trails 20-60 miles, although it would be fun to do a Century at some point too.

The Carrera felt very nice, not sure how much the carbon fork and aluminum tires contributed to that or not. Any thoughts about the Speedhub vs. the Ultegra w/ DI2 for tandems?

What would you go for?
Matt
It depends on what you mean by "trails". If you're riding on flat gravel in dry weather, the Speedhub has more drawbacks (weight, price, bigger gear jumps) than advantages (low maintenance, reliability). The Speedhub is more useful for touring in rough terrain and wet weather.

If you like to Century rides at a fast pace, then Di2 is the way to go. It's lighter than Speedhub with far more precise shifting.
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Old 06-10-19, 07:31 PM
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Originally Posted by ReedCycle
Here is a nice discussion on the Equator from crazyguyonabike.com (2 pages): Mike & Bern Tour New York: First trip on the new tandem: Belt driven - no derailleurs
Now that they finished the trip Mike has provided a review of how the bike performed as this was their first tour with the Equator, it is on the last page of the journal. They have many tours on their previous tandem so I really value his insight. Wife and I are currently shopping for an Equator as our next tandem.
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Old 06-11-19, 11:09 PM
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Originally Posted by mtseymour
It depends on what you mean by "trails". If you're riding on flat gravel in dry weather, the Speedhub has more drawbacks (weight, price, bigger gear jumps) than advantages (low maintenance, reliability). The Speedhub is more useful for touring in rough terrain and wet weather.

If you like to Century rides at a fast pace, then Di2 is the way to go. It's lighter than Speedhub with far more precise shifting.
Interesting on the differences between the two shifting mechanisms. By trails I mean paved one's, it is unlikely I would even use the bike on a gravel road or trail, so I would probablt not be utilizing the full advantages of it.

Originally Posted by dbuhler
Now that they finished the trip Mike has provided a review of how the bike performed as this was their first tour with the Equator, it is on the last page of the journal. They have many tours on their previous tandem so I really value his insight. Wife and I are currently shopping for an Equator as our next tandem.
Good to know on the background of the rider.

Originally Posted by jim_pridx
Wow! That makes me wonder if I should've gone the belt-driven route. Lots of advantages there!
Well... here is where I muddy the waters.

In discussion with the local dealer, Co-Motion can put a Rolhoff Speed hub on the Carrera. In fact this is actually cheaper than getting the Di2 package. Now this does mean that the upgraded aluminum wheels which come with Carrera would be replaced. However I have also been thinking about the pathfinder package (Schmidt SON dynamo hub, superb Schmidt Edelux II headlight, and Sinewave Cycles Reactor USB to) and I believe this would also negate the aluminum wheels.

So I guess now I looking at getting a Carrera either way, it comes down to Rolhoff Speedhub vs Ultegra w/Di2.

I have not been to keen on how the Rolhoff shifts gears, however I see there are other options such as the Rohbox or E-14 (presumably expensive).

Thanks,
Matt
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Old 06-11-19, 11:10 PM
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Originally Posted by jim_pridx
Since I've never ridden an Equator, I can't possibly give you any advice as to which bike to go for. I am really loving our new Carrera, though, even though we've swapped out the wheels and drive train to be a bit more in line with our travel tandem. The first thing I noticed about the Carrera, though, was that it had sort of a twitchy, racing bike sort of feel in the front end on our first ride, and from the reviews I had read about the bike, that's exactly what I had hoped and expected for it to feel like. I would suspect that the Speedster is very similar in that regard. The Carrera is also quite rigid and very stable on steep descents, so it feels safe and secure at high speeds. Since the bike is still pretty new to us, I'm still not sure that my wife is totally sold on it, but for me it's the type of steel-framed tandem I've been looking for without spending a small fortune on a carbon fiber frame and components to match. All in all, though, I think it's a great bike that pretty much covers the full gamut in terms of tandem road bikes.
Thanks for the review of the Carrera, definately favoring it, especially since Co-Motion can modify the options for it!
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Old 06-12-19, 02:03 PM
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My wife and I did test ride an Equator with Rohloff and all Gates drivetrain a couple of years ago. We both liked the way it rode and the elimination of chains appealed to me. But the one thing that prevented us from buying it was the noise made by the Rohloff hub in some gears, ratios that we would frequently use. My stoker is especially sensitive to any noise from the bike as she knows that it should be silent unless something isn’t working properly. Comotion said that the noise would get quieter with use but never completely go away. We may be more sensitive to this than most teams, but just something to be aware of if you’re considering the Rohloff hub.
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