lichtgrau

Got it. Finally. Thanks a lot.
@PedalingWalrus: Your fork is titanium too, isn't it?



reference source of picture: Alibaba Group
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PedalingWalrus

Yes it is 🙂

act0fgod

Thank you. First time I've seen a truss fork. It looks really cool and some interesting engineering principles behind them.

lichtgrau

Here (Germany) we have a rule of thumb, that a bicycle lock should cost about one tenth of the price of the bike…

…I just think about what kind of lock I would get for more than thousand bucks

PedalingWalrus

It was a choice ... either I spec out a tandem from Co-Motion or I get a custom titanium tandem if I put in some footwork, effort and patience -) ... it took almost a year from specing it out , getting the frame, sending it to be custom painted and then finally completing the build. I think I paid less than for a Co-Motion but I'm afraid to really count it haha

LV2TNDM

Perhaps a fully trained Weimaraner?

LV2TNDM

Congrats on the new custom tandem and nice build! Such a sweet ride!

But I'm curious why you didn't go with Gates timing and main. Seems like it would be such a tidy setup. There's always upgrades!

Regardless, enjoy yourselves.

PS Where are you heading on your trip?

PedalingWalrus

I felt anxiety with flat tires and gates belt and nailing the belt tension after reattachment of the rear wheel. Also, I used to have a belt drive a long time ago and I always felt this 'stretch' during pedal strokes. I'm sure it was nonsense but I just like the feel of a chain engagement during a pedal stroke. Plus I feel a real ease changing and maintaining a chain.

Flying to Barcelona and biking to Genoa. :-)

lichtgrau

For a thousand they look like this and they're definitely untrained...




reference source of picture: Amazon, authentic CARD


@PedalingWalrus: Have a save trip to Europe. Hope everything (packing, unpacking, riding) works just fine.

LV2TNDM

I can understand not wanting to deal with tension issues. However, having a packable tandem with cases, it seems like avoiding the chain and associated mess would be a pretty big bonus. I, too, am a chain-care fanatic but I'd appreciate the lack of same when dealing with packing my tandem for travel. But ultimately, it's something you can switch to any time in the future.

Awesome! My daughter just returned from a Europe trip that included Genoa. Let's hope the heat wave is well over by the time you arrive and ride. Can we assume you'll post some great pics? Have a great and safe tour.

PedalingWalrus

So Yesterday evening I 'reconstituted' the tandem and this morning in the driveway I honed the final details to feel OK about riding it. We hopped on it with the panniers and rode 16 miles to town to do some grocery shopping and then back. There were 2 details I need to make sure I don't mess up at the airport - the cable routing could use better work and more importantly the front and rear pedal cranks were not synchronized. My wife noticed it first and then I thought I felt it during the ride, especially on uphills.

More importantly is the order of execution like for example... attach rear fender first and then mount the rear wheel etc etc...

Tomorrow or Sunday I will pack the tandem for real and then we head to the airport midweek. Cheers.

A couple of observations:
When heavy loaded I feel the rear 'noodling'
The front panniers are a little bit higher than I would mount them but it was not noticeable during the ride.

mikebian 

I find that if I’m not careful to put all the heavy stuff as low as possible, I feel a bit of noodling also. Your paneirs are sitting kind of high. The bottom of mine are below the axle as my rack has a second lower bar to mount them on. It’s a Tubus titanium rack. Forgot the model.

PedalingWalrus

Per request...a photo of packed bike

PedalingWalrus

Knocking worries out of the park one at a time. One worry is I may be over the weight limit

(Do not know what the weight limit is)

addendum...googled it... weight limit is either 32 kg or 25 kg depending on how it is classified.

From Norwegian:
Checked baggage can be altered up until 6 hours before flight departure. Each bag must not exceed 32kg or be lighter than 2kg in weight. Each bag must not exceed 250 x 79 x 112 cm (L x H x W) with a maximum circumference of 300cm. Your total amount of checked bags cannot exceed 64kg.

LV2TNDM

Thanks for the pics. Such a nice setup!

You may want to stop by the LBS and pick up some tubular cardboard packing. I see your brake lever DANGEROUSLY close to the top tube in the above shot. I'd cover ALL the tubes with packaging to preserve that beautiful paint. BTW, did you wax it? Might want to wait for the paint to be fully cured, but wax is a good idea. Anyway, you'll have all sorts of "settling" happen during transit and anything near your frame tubes are a major scratch (and possible dent) hazard. This will add weight to your bike box, but well worth it. If you really wanted to protect those tubes, you might first put cardboard on the tubes, then cover with styrofoam tube/pipe insulation (from the hardware store). Added expense, but little additional weight. But don't just use the foam padding as sharp objects can quickly vibrate through it and hit the frame.

My $0.02