bikebasket

Been in a couple of bike shops down here on the coast and one thing they do have is piles of bike frames out the back. Saw about 4 of these crappy Asama, Monsoon tandem frames, but they look like low riding stuff you'd ride up and down the beach road. But had loads of MTB frames aswell. Reckon i should be able to find 2 that fit each of us.
Surprised to see how many quality full MTB's they had in one shop. Schwinn, Cannondale, Giant. If only i was single i thought..

Seriously thinking of going the tandem frankenstein way. It will be Macgyver style fun cutting up the frames and building it. I can braze, but there must be some great khmer braze or Tig welders here. The sort of job you get better at with experience. And i figure easy enough to buy tubing and parts.
Might be abit wary of them jigging it up/aligning it right though. Tough to give a sheet about some white dude going off touring on his bike when your earning a few bucks a day.

Any tandem frame design plans/angles tips to be had?

Cheers

CliffordK

I'm a drop bar fan myself, but I recently built up a Jamis Coda, and so far am very pleased with it.

My old road bike wiggled and jiggled and had a LOT OF FLEX. I'm not quite sure where all the flex was coming from. I think some from the dropouts. Perhaps flexy wheels... and everywhere else. I could ride it standing loaded, but it took some getting used to.

I haven't had a lot of weight on it, but so far my Jamis feels rock solid. It will need some fine tuning here and there, but I'm pretty pleased with the build. I've traditionally rear-loaded, but the Jamis Coda fork should also support front load panniers.

This is a solid fork, butted 520 steel frame.

Coda_Salem.jpg

saddlesores

great idear!
the craftsmanship in cambodia is top notch.
go for it.

bikebasket

My bathroom light is actually fitted upside down.
You gotta admit those tube repair piston vulcanizers are well cool though.

BBassett

Depends on what kind of "Touring" you are going to do. But yes, it's different, it needs to be able to carry way more weight than you have ever considered before and not have a frame with bolt on rack flexing all over. Have a more upright seating position and be graceful enough to climb a hill, under full weight, and do it real slow. A slow-motion fat ballerina.

I chose an Expedition Touring frame (with full suspension). For all the usual reasons and some specific ones. I also wanted to be able to tour and not sacrifice maximum comfort. on or off the bike. That means more and more weight. Pulling a trailer in addition to 4 panniers and an over-full bar-bag lets me have things such as a pressurized shower, solar oven, three different sleep systems, a kitchen/bathroom sink, a large blue tooth speaker that plays for over 20 hours. I had done my homework and had chosen a 750w center-drive that works with my Rohloff Speed-hub perfectly. I chose full suspension because of the number of hours in the Brooks Flyer saddle. Full suspension is unusual for the standard touring bikes. People will also take an MTB frame and Frankenstein them into what they call a touring bike, but what they really own is a MTB with one or two racks and a bunch of water bottles. When you look at my bike what you are looking at is a Unicorn, I doubt there is another like her anywhere. Everything has been chosen so as to allow extended periods of time away from civilization. This bike may well one day circle the planet. I won't be the one riding her if she does, but she may very well. Steel frame, 26" X 2" wheels, center stand, huge hydraulic brakes (little tiny bit Too big in the back.), FAIV front rack (if you haven't ever seen these... do some research.) that keeps the front panniers suspended, a unicorn on a unicorn. Schmidt Dynamo Hub, Rohloff Speed Hub, and a SONdelux front light all in deep red. There's no reason she can't be strong And pretty. I had read that 26" wheels were best because of their easy in finding replacements anywhere in the world. I am sure that was true decades ago, maybe it still is. I personally chose 26" because with full panniers I am much faster responding on single track than with 27.5s or 29ers. Remember, slow-motion fat ballerina.

bwilli88 

I live here in Cambodia, good luck finding a good touring bike here. While Cannondale, Specialized and Scott along with Giant all have shops here, most of the bikes are either Mt bikes or fancy road bike. There are a few hybrids that could be modded or added to that would work. St 107 is a bunch of hacks who would put something together for you but look out for cheating.

Carbonfiberboy 

Room for your favorite tires and attachments for fenders and panniers. Nothing else, really. You don't even need pannier attachments if you use bikepacking gear.

saddlesores

so tempting....we could have a "st 107 challenge" for anyone
in this part of the world. see who can hack together the
best touring setup for under $200 out of recycled parts.

could jump on an overnight bus, and be there in about 8 hours....

BBassett

I bought my entire bike online. At least 7 countries, 18 or 20 different vendors and this is just the bike. You can get what you want anywhere today if you are willing to take the time and spend the money.

BBassett

So speaketh the man that hath not ridden 50 miles on washboard roads. LOL I have also seen many that didn't think they needed fenders to tour. Even more LOL!

Carbonfiberboy 

Why would I do that? I really advise against it. Cobblestones, though I suppose they don't count. If I were going to ride only cobblestones, I'd want bigger tires than 28mm, but for just a few km. here and there, the 28s were probably optimal.

If one is really going to tour specifically on washboard or ride the Continental Divide trail, an MTB would be a good choice.

cyccommute 

Someone who is out on the edges of stuff carrying should be careful about throwing rocks. Glass houses and all that.

As for fenders, use them if you like. Some of us see little utility to them. I don't "need" fenders most of the time and for those few occasions where they might be marginally handy, they aren't worth carrying around. If I have to ride in the rain, I'm going to get wet from water coming from above. A little bit more water coming from below isn't going to make that much difference.

BBassett

I disagree. I personally don't think an MTB should ever be forced into service carrying gear that it was never designed to. Lots of MTBs can't even wear a good pair of fenders let alone a real rack. Just so you know, you don't pick wash-board roads to ride on, they pick you to see what both you, And your bike, are made of.

fietsbob

Older MTB from the era before suspension forks do work well, but not those with dual suspension

but with that unique expensive German bike , you can seek out washboard dirt roads..


the pro spring classics love sending the race over cobbled roads ... Ghent - Wevelgem loves the Kimmelburg a steep cobbled hill so much,
that after putting over 100+km in the riders legs out to the coast & back, they loop over that hill twice..





....

BBassett

"Someone who is out on the edges of stuff carrying should be careful about throwing rocks. Glass houses and all that." - I don't have the slightest idea what you are "trying" to say here. I have used the reference of Glass Houses and throwing rocks, but "Someone one the edge carrying things, not throwing rocks?" It must be a second language thing. As far as not using fenders goes, that just shows me that you haven't ever ridden for weeks or months at a time, actually living on a bike. Fenders aren't just about staying dry, fenders help keep you clean and dryer. People that tour and don't plan on a shower happening at the end of the day understand what fenders are for. But your aversion to carrying the weight of fenders explains more than anything else. (As for hotels, use them if you like. Some of us see little utility to them.) Lots of people race from hotel to hotel and do a cute little high 5 for being a tough guy. I'd rather ride slower to somewhere beautiful and deserted take a shower, if possible, then enjoy the evening and get ready for the next morning. I might have felt like you do at one time.... ahhhhhhhhh, nope, never.

saddlesores

that ain't water....

Carbonfiberboy 

Steel and carbon!

alan s 

I think if you want to ride a motorcycle, just get a motorcycle. Camped next to a nice guy in Switzerland doing just that. The previous day he had ridden 400 km over the Alps from Italy, and was camping alongside bike tourists. Modding a bike to that degree doesn’t make sense, unless you lost your license.

BBassett

I see more and more converted MTBs riding greater distances. There's a certain appeal of having a bedroll, rain skin, and water storage and nothing more and taking off cross country. But new or old a MTB frame usually isn't going to have great frame mounts to bolt on a high-quality rack that will last under the weight for more than a few hundred miles of gravel and single track. I am not talking about racing (doesn't interest me), or riding roads from hotel to hotel. I don't believe that was what bike touring was started for. The word Touring can be misleading to so many. Does it mean riding all day? Is there a certain distance necessary, or number of days? Is bike camping a heavy form of touring? What I will say is MTBs are designed to kick around a technical course for "a while" and then be thrown in the back of a truck and driven home. They are not designed to be ridden down the Panamerican trail.

BBassett

LOL, you are so confused. Happy riding, make sure you use the crosswalks!

BBassett

Of course it doesn't make sense to you or those like you. I don't want to cover huge distances daily, you simply miss too much. And I couldn't possibly care less about racing somewhere. It is specifically so that I CAN lose the license that I have chosen my bike and modify it in ways that let me fully enjoy the day, the ride, the meal, the shower, and sleeping nice and warm and dry where ever I choose to stop. Doesn't make sense. LOL No I don't suspect it does. In fact how could it when you can't even understand how an ebike rides. You sound more like a moped kinda guy. That's cool....... ish.

fietsbob

earliest were 'Repack' geometry. long chain stays slack angles , adopted from cruiser bikes..

fun down hill not good climbers, then came NORBA designs, brought the wheel back under you with shorter chainstays

so climbed better and changed the seat and head tube angles steeper..

Ive been using an old first generation stump jumper for decades.. its my winter studded tire bike .. Parked in the basement now..

alan s 

What’s there to understand? Hit the throttle and go. Pedal if you desire, fake or real. Recharge when you run out of juice.

BBassett

LOL! Yup, I guess you're a pro now! Got it all figured out.

cyccommute 

Born English speaker. I don't speak any other language other than science which is far more for foreign to most people than Sanskrit.

Not everyone wants to...nor needs to...carry around everything and the kitchen sink. If you want to nitpick someone else's bicycle choice, be prepared to have your nits picked.

As for "wash board roads", bikepacking gear would be a far better choice than most pannier systems. That's why bikepacking gear was invented.

It helps to know your audience. See my signature line. I'm no stranger to riding for weeks at a time. I'm not a racer from hotel to hotel either. I'm also not an ultra-light tourer but I'm don't need to carry everything I own when I tour.

Nor is the "weight" of the fenders the problem. It's their utility and the hassle of using them that I abhor. They don't do that good a job of keeping the rider clean nor dry and they are often, in my experience, just in the way. Toe overlap and getting fenders jammed full of mud are far worse problems in my opinion than getting a bit of road grim on me while riding.

And, just so you'll know, my last tour included 500+ miles of dirt roads and dirt tow paths. I'm also quite familiar with roads that have worse than washboards.