How long have I been on this forum? That's how long it took us to finally decide on a tandem.
Bikes we test rode:
Trek T2000
Co-Mo Supremo
Co-Mo Cappucinno
Co-Mo Speedster
Co-Mo Periscope
Yes, Co-Mo was heavily favored here, why? Because damned if we could find anything else to test ride, and I sure as hell wasn't going to buy anything sight unseen. We desperately wanted to try a Burley, but none to be found and from reading posts here, we may have gotten it by next year if we did get one. Plano Cycling and Fitness practically let us take bikes home for 4-5 days at a time, with only an imprint of my credit card. To test ride all these bikes from Richardson Bike Mart - $600.00. They never had a chance at our business. We never did give a Canondale a ride because the one PCF had was too small. It finally came down to the Speedster and the Cappucinno (sp?). After test riding the Cappucinno I hate the side to side sway of the bike created by the softride beam. The more I rode the Speedster against the Cappy, I really started to hate the softride beam. Thankfully Plano Cycling let us keep taking bikes home to evaluate.
So here it is - we weren't too thrilled with the color at first but after I saw it sitting in my living room overnight it really grew on me. It sparkles in the sun (a Pearl House of Kolor paint). It came with several upgrades Co-Mo offers on that model. Nevermind the cages, have to get my wife some Speedplay Zeros and some shoes.
Can anyone recommend a good computer for a tandem? I've learned to look down and back to check my chainring, can't see the cassette. Is there an option to use the cables with the little bubble in them to let you know what gear you're in? I've heard the Flight Deck computers are not worth the money as far as bang for buck, so I may steer clear of those.
TandemGeek
07-07-05, 04:55 AM
Can anyone recommend a good computer for a tandem? I've learned to look down and back to check my chainring, can't see the cassette. Is there an option to use the cables with the little bubble in them to let you know what gear you're in?
What's your budget?
On gear position indicators, refer to this previous post:
http://www.bikeforums.net/showpost.php?p=282818&postcount=2
Doggus
07-07-05, 05:53 AM
TandemGeek, the make your own option is 'content blocked'.
TandemGeek
07-07-05, 05:59 AM
TandemGeek, the make your own option is 'content blocked'.
Fixed.
George Handy
07-07-05, 07:35 AM
Oh, nice!!! That is a sharp looking machine. What is the name of the HOK color?
Doggus
07-07-05, 07:45 AM
It's the Tangelo Pearl in this image
http://www.co-motion.com/graphics/prl.gif
mtbcyclist
07-07-05, 10:14 AM
Shimano Flite Deck. A bit price but very nice on a tandem because it tells you what gear you are in. On a single if you get mixed up and forget the gear you are in you can see the rear cogs by looking down. On a tandem you can't do that which is where the flite deck comes in.
Purttttyyyy bike man! I am jealous. Hope to have my Burley next week!
Murrays
07-07-05, 11:47 AM
Can anyone recommend a good computer for a tandem? I've learned to look down and back to check my chainring, can't see the cassette. Is there an option to use the cables with the little bubble in them to let you know what gear you're in? I've heard the Flight Deck computers are not worth the money as far as bang for buck, so I may steer clear of those.
We have a wireless Flight Deck on our Speedster and I would highly recommend it. Another benefit of the computer tracking your gears is it can calculate your cadence (virtual cadence so to speak). I’ve found I like to ride with the cadence on the main display and the speed on the smaller display.
Another benefit of the virtual cadence is it displays your cadence while coasting downhill. With that, you can up shift accordingly so you don’t spin out when you do start pedaling.
For the stoker, we have a Cateye Mity. You can buy an extra long wire for the Cateye computers for use on a tandem. This works well for us.
Enjoy your new ride!!
-murray
OC Roadie
07-07-05, 11:57 AM
Nice looking ride, I really like the color. Any reason why you didn't test ride or consider Santana? I've got a Santana Sovereign that about 10 years old. I'm going to start upgrading it pretty soon and maybe get a new factory paint job. Have fun on the new bike :)
Heres mine. Love that co-mo
The Factory Photo
http://www.co-motion.com/graphics/thum/medblutropgrnsmall.gif
Doggus
07-07-05, 12:15 PM
Any reason why you didn't test ride or consider Santana?
I kind of got the feeling from reading here that Santanas are in the upper echelon of paying for a name. No real added value in the bike. That may or may not be true but it kind of swayed me from the brand anyhow. Plus the only LBS to sell the [used] Santanas was the one that charges to test ride so I refused to be locked into buying a bike from them simply to get a test ride on one.
We test rode so many bikes (some not listed because it was only around the block at the LBS) that I got pretty good at determining right off the bat whether the bike felt good and handled well. The Speedster was heads and tails above the rest we rode and....we got tired of test riding...time to ride for real. This one really handles well straights and cornering. Very solid bike. Plus they offered $500 duckies off if we would just buy that one, otherwise if we ordered our favorite color etc. the LBS would have charged us their full price (not MSRP) and we would have the added cost of a paint job.
acrafton
07-07-05, 02:24 PM
I too live in the DFW area and am headed to Plano Cycle this weekend. I am interested in the Periscope which was on your list but you did not buy - can you tell me what made you decide against it?
Thanks
Adam
Doggus
07-07-05, 02:43 PM
I too live in the DFW area and am headed to Plano Cycle this weekend. I am interested in the Periscope which was on your list but you did not buy - can you tell me what made you decide against it?
The only reason we even considered the periscope is the pipsqueak you see in one of the photos. The seats are highly adjustable to accomodate all sizes of riders. My main stoker (wife) is 5'11" (nearly 6'). With my wife on the bike the seat tube was fully extended and I just did not like the look of the bike. More of an aesthetics issue for me, I prefer the traditional look of tandems. Although, I will pick functionality over aesthetics but in this case the periscope just handled 'weird' with my wife aboard. We really didn't put many miles on it to really evaluate it, mostly to appease the little one. The bike we got is a nice compromise between my two stokers: it fits the wife perfectly, and the little one fits if we change out the seat tube so there is no shock absorbing post and lower the seat all the way down. Since the little one provides only entertainment value (as opposed to pedal power) it doesn't really need to fit her like a glove. I'm not as concerned for her comfort level on the bike as opposed to us elderly 30 somthings. She rides it with a cushy kids seat and has 0 complaints. All I hear now is, 'Dad can we ride the tandem?'. :D
Too bad we're headed out this weekend or I'd invite you to come evaluate a tandem on a 15 mile loop we ride near Lake Lavon just behind our home. If you want to evaluate a bike similar to ours, test ride the purple Supremo they have hanging on the wall. We put many miles on that one and it rides identical to our Speedster. They are the same frame with higher end components and race wheels. We'll be back in two weeks though!
wsurfn
07-07-05, 05:01 PM
Doggus:
Looks good! Just need a Longhorn on it ;)
cedo
07-08-05, 12:49 PM
Doggus, is this another photo of you? :p
Doggus
07-08-05, 01:17 PM
Doggus, is this another photo of you? :p
Well now....if that was me, I wouldn't be posting this (http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?p=1342079#post1342079) now would I? :D
Doggus:
Looks good! Just need a Longhorn on it ;)
Damn, I didn't realize this was UT colors. ANyone wanna buy a tandem cheap? My personality would be a better fit at A&M. ;)
woodcycl
07-08-05, 02:45 PM
Wow, I LOVE the color ... no need to grow on me if it were mine! Way to go! Great looking Tandem. ;)
aggie_grad
07-08-05, 05:54 PM
It really is a nice tandem but the color is a turnoff for me, but I am biased. I don't own anything orange in my house. We're a family of Aggies. I actually refused to look at a cannondale tandem recently because it was only in orange.
I will be coming up to northeast Texas next weekend to ride the Tour De Paris on my tandem (blue). Any chance you are riding there also. I ride in Northeast Texas regularly due to free babysitting with grandparents. I will be on the lookout for your sharp "T-sip" colored tandem on the road.
Aggie_grad
Doggus
07-08-05, 09:22 PM
Unfortunately we're going out of town for a couple of weeks so the tandem will have to sit idle for a while.
Litespeed
07-10-05, 06:19 PM
We love our Co-Motion, had it a year and a half now. This is when we first got it, but my husband takes real good care of it and it actually stays in the house (in the dining room--has it's own place at the table)
Nachoman
07-10-05, 11:09 PM
Nice wheels!
I love the color too.
I ride the periscope with wife and/or kids.
Zonker
07-11-05, 02:30 PM
IWe test rode so many bikes (some not listed because it was only around the block at the LBS) that I got pretty good at determining right off the bat whether the bike felt good and handled well. The Speedster was heads and tails above the rest we rode and....we got tired of test riding...time to ride for real. This one really handles well straights and cornering. Very solid bike. Plus they offered $500 duckies off if we would just buy that one, otherwise if we ordered our favorite color etc. the LBS would have charged us their full price (not MSRP) and we would have the added cost of a paint job.
I felt the same way about the ride of the Speedster...it felt more like a single bike than anything else we tried. I would have left the dealership with the flat green (juniper?) bike we tested, but the SO wasn't thrilled about the color. We've ordered a champagne to lemon-lime metallic fade Speedster. I really liked the independent coasting on the Da Vinci In2uiton we tried, but the bike itself didn't seem as solid as the Speedster. I was also put off a bit by the 26" wheels...a 700C Double Venture would have been nice to compare against the Speedster. Now the wait is on!!!! :eek:
va_cyclist
07-11-05, 02:33 PM
I like the color. When I was a kid I always wanted an orange bike, no idea why, just thought it would be cool.
Sk8erByker
07-11-05, 10:23 PM
It really is a nice tandem but the color is a turnoff for me, but I am biased. I don't own anything orange in my house. We're a family of Aggies. I actually refused to look at a cannondale tandem recently because it was only in orange.
I will be coming up to northeast Texas next weekend to ride the Tour De Paris on my tandem (blue). Any chance you are riding there also. I ride in Northeast Texas regularly due to free babysitting with grandparents. I will be on the lookout for your sharp "T-sip" colored tandem on the road.
Aggie_grad
We'll also be at the TDP on our tandem. It's a great event! It's fast & flat! Last year was our 1st, but not or last. We'll be on our yellow/orange/red Co-Motion Big Al (okay, the orange is actually where the red & yellow blends together...not really painted orange:))
shnapper
07-12-05, 09:16 PM
Very nice brand choice, I also like the color with the black components.
Our bike is similar with slightly different options. I chose the rear disc brake for power, also to avoid heating up the rim during hi-speed braking.
As far as computers go, I have to say you can't go wrong with the flight deck for a tandem due the the features already mentioned above. I cannot vouch for simplicity of initial set up of the flight deck. I purchased our tandem from Mark @ precision tandems and he had already programmed and mounted it all before shipping. (edit: Our flight deck IS NOT wireless, I prefer the wired and we all know why)
We have had Zero problems with our co-motion after 1 year and 1,300 miles. You will love the frame for it's lateral stiffness, yet smooth riding properties. The handliing is very sweet, I literally throw our bike over trying to drag my knee as I would on my motorcycle and she just rails the turn while my wife screams SLOW DOWN AHAHHHHAHAA! I don't recommend turning in a psychotic fashion as I do unless you know your stoker is willing to leeeeeeeeaannnnnn it out with you. I only mentioned it to let you know co-motion tandems really do handle like a single as stated on there website.
Enjoy the ride, she sure is purdy...........
:D
Zonker
07-14-05, 09:27 AM
[As far as computers go, I have to say you can't go wrong with the flight deck for a tandem due the the features already mentioned above. I cannot vouch for simplicity of initial set up of the flight deck. I purchased our tandem from Mark @ precision tandems and he had already programmed and mounted it all before shipping. (edit: Our flight deck IS NOT wireless, I prefer the wired and we all know why)
[/QUOTE]
Ok, I profess to *not* knowing why you would prefer wired. I have a wireless Flite Deck on my road bike, and it has worked flawlessly...is there an issue with tandems?
phil.
07-14-05, 03:25 PM
Some ppl don't prefer the fact that there's alignment issues and another battery in the system. Wireless systems can also be interfer with heart rate moniters.
I really like our computer setup on our tandem: I've got a flightdeck up front and a cateye Astrale 8 for the stoker.
Fightdeck: I installed it myself b/c the bike shop I bought the tandem forgot to order it in time for me to get it when I picked up the tandem and the LBS wasn't sure if it'd work w/ a tandem and would charge me to install since they do take more time to setup than normal. I ordered online and installed myself w/ no problems. I didn't think the setup was hard, just follow the directions. You have to unwrap the handlebar tape to the hoods to install the sensors, other than that I thought it was easy. Yeah it was annoying entering the teeth count on the cassette, but worth it to know virtual cadence.
Astrale 8: It's designed for a single bike and has cadance (everything non wirless). I bought it for about $25 online and already had one on my single so I thought it was a good choice for the stoker. The wires were too short to run to the rear wheel for speed, so I ended up running it to the front wheel, and it was easier to run cadance off my cranks than the stoker's so I did that there. Pickup wouldn't work on the crank b/c of the wide Q factor w/ triples and tandems in general, but I just installed the magnet on the front chainring spider and no problem.
I wanted my wife to have cadance just so she could know how fast we were spinning and perhaps she know when to expect a shift based on cadance.
Like another user mentioned, I just run my flightdeck showing cadance in big and speed in small. Knowing what gear you are in is really nice: I can look at a hill coming up, see what gear we are in and if we have enough speed to not need to downshift the front or not. My wife really appreciates smooth shifting on hills. Virtual cadance is nice when coasting and not spinning my wife's legs off trying to find the gear. Or I can leave it in the same gear and then know exactly when I can start pedaling after we slow down a bit.
I like the color of your tandem, definetely unique looking. The first thing I thought of when I saw it was "duke's of hazard" and "general lee".
Doggus
08-01-05, 11:23 AM
The first thing I thought of when I saw it was "duke's of hazard" and "general lee".
I'm seriously thinking about finding a decal as was used on the top of the General Lee and naming our bike as you mentioned. Thanks! :D
P.S. but I'm afraid some dumba55 will mistake us for racists. Maybe not such a good idea to put the confederate colors on our bike...damn. It was a good idea though.
mslrep
08-02-05, 11:04 PM
Hey Doggus - awesome color on your Co-Mo. Just picked mine up this weekend (Primera) and love it. Were the stoker bars you got optional?
Best, Dave
Michel Gagnon
08-03-05, 06:43 AM
In my case, we were asked to choose between a selection of bars available at the bike shop.
We went for drop bars on both seats because that's what my daughter and I wanted, but if she had preferred stoker bars or straight bars, that's what would have been installed.
Doggus
08-03-05, 08:37 AM
Hey Doggus - awesome color on your Co-Mo. Just picked mine up this weekend (Primera) and love it. Were the stoker bars you got optional?
Best, Dave
I asked the stoker if she preferred to get drop bars and she decided to stick with this set. I assume they would have swapped out for us. You gotta pic of your new ride?