Tandem Cycling - Bling from EuroBIke

For those of you with way more cash than sense (I race a Colnago C40 HP so put myself in this category), Litespeed has possibly re-introduced their Ti tandem. Check out the pictures at cyclingnews.com under their EuroBike coverage. Very aero tubeset, Zipp wheels.... drive train looks to be a cobbled set-up of single bike stuff but you tandem drivetrain experts can correct that supposition. The bottom tube, whatever you folks call it, looks very small compared to the down tube; most other tandem builders use their largest tube there. Any reasons?????

Litespeed never discontinued the sale of their Tandems, they just stopped building them on speculation and made them part of the custom bike program. Coincidentally, is where you'll also find the below photo of this Time Trial tandem which was appears to be based on the design and tubing used for Litespeed's BLADE TT / Tri-Geek bike (hint, hint, note that the name 'BLADE' appears on the top tube).

http://www.litespeed.com/images/double.jpg

As for the boob tube (aka, boom, keel, or bottom tube), if it was photographed from above or below, it would probably appear to be quite large. It is most some other massive 6Al/4V tube that they had available or just custom drawn to be significantly wider than it it thick, noting that Litespeed is quite adept at developing very application specific tubing shapes.
http://www.litespeed.com/images/2005/tubes.jpg

Thanks dude. You're probably right about the boom, but tell me it doesn't look strange from the side!

...but tell me it doesn't look strange from the side!

OK. It doesn't look strange from the side...

Well, no more strange than one of Griffen's custom MMC tandems which also has a very flat/fat boob tube or perhaps even one of Ventana's now discontinued El Testigo Experto frames with its massive down and boom tubes.

http://www.griffenbike.com/Bikes/images/r_tandem_on.jpg
http://www.go-ride.com/frames/ventana/testigo.jpg

Seriously, there is more than one way to skin a cat and more than one way to design a tandem frame, despite what some builders and consumer might suggest. Big fat and round, ovalized, carbon, steel, magnesium, metal matrix composite (MMC), curved chainstays, oversized chainstays, internal tubes, up tubes, yada, yada, yada...

Yes, but I'd have thought the wide flat tube belonged at the top not bottom. That's how some of the newer racing singles appear. The best example of that I can recall is the new Aegis TT bike. Like you say, there's a million ways to build a mousetrap.

p.s.- I like that Griffen... one of my buddies has their TT bike.

'bout 20 years ago, flattened out top tubes were used by a couple builders, similar to ovalized boob tubes.
There is really not that much new in bicycle design; just application of new materials/technologies.

'bout 20 years ago, flattened out top tubes were used by a couple builders, similar to ovalized boob tubes.

Actually, the ones who did that are still in business are still using ovalized top tubes on their non-S&S equipped tandems.

http://www.thetandemlink.com/LGood/BikeImages/lugshot.jpg http://www.tandemmag.com/roadtest/erickson97/cross.jpg

I think I have seen that bike....

Mega-sized?!

http://www.litespeed.com/images/double.jpg


DAMN that is THE SEXIEST tandem I have ever set eyes on... and being TT riding inclined..... *drools like a rabid dog*

Unfortunately the Hotta design didn't work that well for single TT bikes, so a tandem approach doesn't appeal to me. I rode my buddy's Hotta for a few miles and woulnd't want to descned much on it. I hadn't noticed the use of HED aero brake levers for this cute Ti tandem... I woundln't even use them on a single. Bad idea- not really brakes, per se, more like speed modulators.