Originally Posted by pmmpete

Aiden, you asked "What was your reason for going from the Stratus to the Orca?" The Rans Stratus was my wife's bike, but I used it more than she did. I liked the recumbent position in general, but didn't like the long wheelbase configuration or the long handlebars of the Stratus. The bike felt cumbersome, ungainly, and awkward to steer, like I was steering a barge. And the steering felt twitchy. I felt like I had to focus on keeping the handlebars motionless. By comparison, the Orca handles like an upright bike. It's nimble and responsive, and you lean it like an upright bike, but doesn't feel at all twitchy or unstable.

You said "The Rans seat is known to be comfy, how did it feel going to the Orca seat?" A webbing seat is certainly different from a hard shell seat, but both are comfortable for me. A more reclined seat puts less pressure on the bottom of your buttocks and more pressure on the back of your buttocks, which took me a while to get used to. I find that it helps to move around on the seat a bit and lift my weight off my butt occasionaly, rather that sitting in the same position for hours. I thought that a hard shell seat would make my back sweaty, but it doesn't - the foam pad breaths very well. Different people like different kinds of car seats, desk chairs, and bike seats, and they like to adjust their seats differently. I suggest that you give the Orca a test drive if you can to see how you like the seat. I didn't have to modify the seat of my Orca at all, but if you felt like the seat didn't have a big enough bulge in the small of your back, or a deep enough cup for your buttocks, you could glue some closed cell foam to the seat and sculpture it to the shape you want. In New Zealand, whitewater kayak stores will have appropriate foam for this kind of outfitting.

You asked, "Is there constant strain on the neck?" Any seat which leans you back will put more stress on your neck than an upright seat. Most recumbent riders just get used to it, and it appears to me that only a minority of recumbent riders add headrests to their bikes. I added a headrest to my bike shortly after I bought it, and am glad that I did.

You asked "If you were not going to be doing any touring would you still stick with the Orca?" I like the overall configuration and handling of the Orca. I like the rear suspension, which takes a lot of the shock out of bumps in the road. And I aways carry at least one pannier, so I like the rear rack. But if you didn't find the ride of your V-Rex harsh, and you didn't mount a rear rack on your V-Rex, perhaps you don't need some of the features which distinguish the Orca from recumbents which are designed more for speed and less for loaded touring on rough roads.