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Pics of our shiny new Tamburello. My wife really digs the color, though I'm not sure if she can get away with calling the bike "buttercup" despite the color name...
http://fortsanders.net/files/active/0/buttercup_tandem_front.jpg
The frame is a medium, so it's a bit small for me as a 6'4" captain, hence the seatpost yanked way out. It fits well enough, and should let us figure out if we really love riding a bicyle-built-for-two.
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Sweet, I like the yellow and black componet combination, she looks great. Go out and enjoy the heck out of her.:D Also there is a lot of seat post there.
Take Care & Ride Together,:)
Bill G
That great amount of handlebar drop would kill me on a long ride. If you suffer from neck, hand or other problems from being bent over too much, I might suggest you purchase a Delta steering tube extension. Other than that, sure looks like a great ride. Like Bill said, the yellow and black sure look good together.
Good looking bike, that is a lot of seatpost exposed. Enjoy and have fun.
John
Good looking bike, that is a lot of seatpost exposed. Enjoy and have fun.
John
Your right that is a lot of seat post, also a pretty long stem for the handle bars.
Just a quick note, if you do not have at least a 4" minimum of seat post down into the seat tube on a tandem or single bike you are taking a chance on doing big damage to the frame and having a crash due to a sudden failer in the seat post or the frame of the tandem or bike. A few years ago I saw a Burrley were the top part of the seat tube had ripped wide open with the rider on the tandem, they only had about 2" to 3" of the seat post down in the seat tube and a pretty big guy was the captain.( Thank God only a few scratchs to the riders)
You may want to double check this and get a longer seat post or possably a bigger tandem frame with a larger captains compartment, looks like your runing a long stem for the captains handle bar as well. Both of these things are syptoms of a frame or captains compartment that may be to small for your height or body size.
Take Care & ride Together :)
Bill G
Thanks for the kind words and suggestions.
The frame is a bit small, it's a medium. We knew this wasn't the perfect size for us, specifically the captain. It fits my stoker perfectly.
The tandem guys at the shop seemed pretty adamant that if we could get this bike to fit me, it would be a great deal for the price, especially for an entry level "trial" tandem. This is also considering Burley no longer makes this level of component setup in their aluminum frames, so as a result we'd be looking at nearly 2.5k for a Tosa, or if we went to co-mo steel, at least 3k for the Primera. The owner of the shop suggested we would even eventaully want to consider co-mo alum frames as well if we eventually look to upgrade. We're looking at this tandem as a trial bike.
I have a new seatpost on the way to replace the stock, it's a 410mm Thomspon, so i should have a good amount of seatpost down in the tube soon. We've only taken her out around the neighborhood on "training" rides so we can both get used to starting, stopping, standing, shifting, communicating, ect.
This is also my first time riding anything with drop bars. I am a daily commuter, and ride upright everyday to and from work. I'm getting used to the feeling, but really haven't noticed any discomfort, except perhaps a little in my hands (so far I'm chaulking this up to my nervous grip on the bars, and getting accustomed to the new positions). The Delta steering tube extension... is this what you speak of:
http://www.performancebike.com/product_images/400/50_1188.jpg
Unfortunately we busted the chain yesterday evening coming up our rather steep driveway. We were in the lowest chainring (already shifted over previous to starting uphill), we were practicing climbing out of the saddle and the chain snapped as soon as we were both standing and applying power. This is with less than 35 total miles on the bike. Are chains on tandems this prone to breakage, or did we just get unlucky? The chain is in two pieces, so I guess after the initial failure, several other links must have snapped. No damage to the bike and it couldn't have happened in a better place...
Wow. If the shop put the saddle that high and there's not enough seatpost in the frame I'd be having a serious talk with the owner and maybe even looking for another shop post haste. I also wouldn't ride until your Thompson 410 is in there. Given that it looks like the seat tube is welded to the top tube (rather than the other way around as on most singles) I wonder if even more than 4" inside the seat tube is necessary. Its a pretty bike for sure, but if it doesn't fit right (and that one is WAY off) IMO its the wrong bike for you. A good shop should have told you this.
Given that it looks like the seat tube is welded to the top tube ....
For Burley (and several other tandem brands, but not all), the seat tubes pierce cut-outs in the the larger diameter internal and top tube.
As for the fit, I've seen worse. BTW, who was the dealer?
For Burley (and several other tandem brands, but not all), the seat tubes pierce cut-outs in the the larger diameter internal and top tube.
Ah. That will help support the seat post a lot. I still think I'd wait for the 410 to show up.
Sweet, I like the yellow and black componet combination, she looks great. Go out and enjoy the heck out of her.:D Also there is a lot of seat post there.
Take Care & Ride Together,:)
Bill G
Just make certain that enough post is left in the frame. My pilot has the same problem and he is on a large Dale.
Buttercup seems very apt but just compared it with a colour chart and the nearest I can come up with is Custard. Buttercup is better- As long as it does not change to %£"**&^ buttercup.
Edit--- The chain should not have broken this soon- unless something Stupid was done and it does not sound as though it was. May be able to get it on Warranty- but see if you can upgrade to a better quality chain.
is this what you speak of:
http://www.performancebike.com/product_images/400/50_1188.jpg
Exactly.
Unfortunately we busted the chain yesterday evening coming up our rather steep driveway. We were in the lowest chainring (already shifted over previous to starting uphill), we were practicing climbing out of the saddle and the chain snapped as soon as we were both standing and applying power. This is with less than 35 total miles on the bike. Are chains on tandems this prone to breakage, or did we just get unlucky? The chain is in two pieces, so I guess after the initial failure, several other links must have snapped. No damage to the bike and it couldn't have happened in a better place...
Very unusual. What brand chain? We have about 2,000 miles on our first chain, and it's still going strong with no measurable "stretch." I would classify us as moderatly strong riders (average about 17-20 MPH) on most rides. Sometimes stand up, but usually the gearing takes care of hills or mountain passes. Team weight, about 285-290 lbs.
Just curious...which chain?
It was the drivetrain side chain that snapped, we pretty much shredded it. Currently our combined team weight is probably 340-350lbs (we don't own one of those evil bathroom scale machines). From what I'm reading and being told, we just have to go a bit easier on the tandem and not mash down power while standing on steep inclines. Our driveway is short, but fairly steep, so I think we just put down too much power trying to mash up it, rather than gearing all the way down and spinning. These are the kinds of lessons we need to learn, glad we learned this on in the driveway. Picked up an SRAM 9-speed chain with powerlink (and spare powerlink) yesterday. I'll probably pick up a spare chain the next time I'm in, just to have one around (and probably keep it in the trunk bag).
The shop is Chain Reaction Bikes in Maryville Tn. They have been great to us. The folks there are very friendly, knowledgable, and the owner (Tim?) seems to be a real tandem nut!
The longer seatpost is now installed, at 410mm it's a beast, and I got a LOT of post down in the tube now. I also measured my handlebar drop, as it seems like several people commented on it looking excessive. The picture angle may exaggerate it. Using a stright level and stright edge, it looks like the measure down to the top of the bars is only 7cm. According to Zinn, this should be in the range of handlebar drop for a rider my of my height.
We're going to start putting longer miles on the bike starting next week, so I'll be sure to report if I'm having any comfort issues, but so far on our handful of neighborhood test rides (only 7 miles each time) it's felt pretty comfortable.
Many thanks to everyone for their suggestions and feedback.
Thanks for the kind words and suggestions.
This is also my first time riding anything with drop bars. I am a daily commuter, and ride upright everyday to and from work. I'm getting used to the feeling, but really haven't noticed any discomfort, except perhaps a little in my hands (so far I'm chaulking this up to my nervous grip on the bars, and getting accustomed to the new positions). The Delta steering tube extension... is this what you speak of:
http://www.performancebike.com/product_images/400/50_1188.jpg
FWIW: We have exactly the same extension on our Cannondale RT and it works just fine. A classic case of 'fit and forget' so to speak. Your back will probably be grateful :p
From what I'm reading and being told, we just have to go a bit easier on the tandem and not mash down power while standing on steep inclines. Our driveway is short, but fairly steep, so I think we just put down too much power trying to mash up it, rather than gearing all the way down and spinning.
This is just my opinion, but as we say in the South, "That dog won't hunt". Power alone will not break a chain; even a cheap one. Chain's break because:
1. You shift under a massive load while climbing... which can also fold cassettes.
2. It's a shimano chain where someone tried to re-use a one-time-use only rivet, i.e., they broke the chain using a chain rivet tool and pressed the original rivet back in vs. removing the rivet and using a new one.
3. It's some other type of chain and the person who pressed the rivet in didn't know what they were doing.
4. The chain was damaged at some point, e.g., chain-suck, dropped into the bottom bracket spindle, etc..) and the damaged links were not replaced.
5. It had a loose fitting reuseable link and something causes the chain to become momentarily slack with the link sitting in the slack area.
That it came apart in two places sounds really odd, unless the second break occured at a reuseable link after the chain broke apart.
The shop is Chain Reaction Bikes in Maryville Tn. They have been great to us. The folks there are very friendly, knowledgable, and the owner (Tim?) seems to be a real tandem nut!.
That would be Tim P., who occasionally lurks here. I'm pretty sure he's just their tandem guy, a sideline to his real job as a general contractor and builder. And, yes, he's definitely a big time enthusiast... as well as being one of our very close friends. Given that Tim and his lovely stoker/spouse Sharon go by the nickname "Team Inseam", he is intimately familiar with bike fitting issues and tall riders so I would not be too concerned; again, this is your "first" tandem.
Keep us posted on your progress.
Would you buy a pair of shoes (at an amazing deal) that are 2 sizes too small for yourself?
If you did, you would have to make some drastic adjustments to the shoes if you wanted to wear them . . . cut off the toebox upper part of the shoe maybe, or remove the heel part and use them as slip-ons and then they would 'fit'?
Looks like that Burley is a mite small for pilot! Nice to get taller seatpost and the Delta stem riser, but that is a bit like making the shoes fit.
Looks like if stoker got rid of the suspension seatpost, she would have fit on the next size up in Burley's tandem lineup. And if deemed she needed some sort of suspension then a sprung saddle for her would have worked instead of the height-robbing suspension seatpost.
However, now you've got the bike you'll ride it, proper fit or not. You'll gain experience/know-how and will be less easily swayed by 'a good deal' from LBS.
Hey, we all live and learn . . . (been there, done that!).
Would you buy a pair of shoes (at an amazing deal) that are 2 sizes too small for yourself?
If you did, you would have to make some drastic adjustments to the shoes if you wanted to wear them . . . cut off the toebox upper part of the shoe maybe, or remove the heel part and use them as slip-ons and then they would 'fit'?
Looks like that Burley is a mite small for pilot! Nice to get taller seatpost and the Delta stem riser, but that is a bit like making the shoes fit.
Looks like if stoker got rid of the suspension seatpost, she would have fit on the next size up in Burley's tandem lineup. And if deemed she needed some sort of suspension then a sprung saddle for her would have worked instead of the height-robbing suspension seatpost.
However, now you've got the bike you'll ride it, proper fit or not. You'll gain experience/know-how and will be less easily swayed by 'a good deal' from LBS.
Hey, we all live and learn . . . (been there, done that!).
Would you buy a pair of shoes (at an amazing deal) that are 2 sizes too small for yourself?
If you did, you would have to make some drastic adjustments to the shoes if you wanted to wear them . . . cut off the toebox upper part of the shoe maybe, or remove the heel part and use them as slip-ons and then they would 'fit'?
Looks like that Burley is a mite small for pilot! Nice to get taller seatpost and the Delta stem riser, but that is a bit like making the shoes fit.
Looks like if stoker got rid of the suspension seatpost, she would have fit on the next size up in Burley's tandem lineup. And if deemed she needed some sort of suspension then a sprung saddle for her would have worked instead of the height-robbing suspension seatpost.
However, now you've got the bike you'll ride it, proper fit or not. You'll gain experience/know-how and will be less easily swayed by 'a good deal' from LBS.
Hey, we all live and learn . . . (been there, done that!).
Well said, I agree 100% with you, that tandem looks a little small for the captain. I don't care for it when shops let customers buy tandems or bikes that are too small or too big even if the customer knows it going into the deal and is ok with it. I think its the wrong thing for a shop to do even if the shop can get the fit close or make it work. I have seen this happen more than a few times over the years where someone will get a bike or tandem that is too small or too big for them from a bike shop, and the shop lets it happen. A lot of the time its a good deal or a floor model that drives the sale in that direction.
Just my two cents, Take care everyone :)
Bill G
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