Bikeforums.net is a forum about nothing but bikes. Our community can help you find information about hard-to-find and localized information like bicycle tours, specialties like where in your area to have your recumbent bike serviced, or what are the best bicycle tires and seats for the activities you use your bike for.hr2510
08-22-07, 09:19 AM
I ordered the Kent Tandem and it took about 5 days to arrive. I expected this to be a "BICYCLE KIT" and it met my expectations 100%. I removed every component from the frame one by one and inspected/lubed/re-assembled back on the frame and adjusted. The ONLY thing that had even a trace of grease on it was one of the bolts for the stoker handlebar clamp(Seriously). Every bearing was dry. The rear wheel was missing 5 balls on the gear side.I mic'ed the balls on all the bearings and all were within .0001 in. or less difference.
Both tires had maybe 10 pounds of air in them. I let what little air out and pulled the tires to inspect the wheels and spokes. The spoke strip on the rear wheel was pushed over and not covering the spokes in two spots so there was a sure flat if I would have just put air in it without checking. The front tire was OK. The front wheel was within .080 in. of true both horizontal and vertical. The rear wheel was out approx .600 in. horizontal and .080 in. vertical. It wouldn't even roll without the tire hitting the frame. I trued both wheels to +/- .020 in.("close enough" for a bicycle) along with setting a little backlash on the spokes in the process.
As with everything else on the bike, The brakes and both derailers weren't even close to being adjusted correctly. The return springs on the rear brakes were in different holes. When adjusting the derailers I noticed the rear derailer was bent. I called the toll free # for Kent customer service and told the lady the problem. With no questions asked, she took my name and address and said she would get another derailer in the mail that day and I didn't need to send the bad one back.
A close look at the frame and no cracks,bends or dents were found. The welds are not as pretty as they could be but they didn't look bad at all and showed signs of good penetration at the weld edges. While waiting for the new deraileur I peeled off about 10 pounds of stickers and installed some aftermarket fenders,a Topeak rear cargo rack, two bells (The stoker has to have fun too),rear view mirrors and naturally some streamers on the handlebars.
The replacement rear derailer arrived in three days. I'm VERY happy with their customer service. After assembling the tandem "KIT" and adjusting the seats and handlebars we took it out for a "Maiden Voyage" of 31 miles. The bike rode really well. The frame was MUCH STIFFER than our Columbia tandem. Shifts were smooth, quick, precise and quiet. No "Auto shift" from frame flex on take off or climbs. The brakes worked nicely and took very little finger pressure to stop on the small hills we encountered. I think the supplied Velo seat will have to be replaced for me but my Wife seemed to like her seat OK so far. We managed to hit our fair share of bumps and pot holes along with going down some rough gravel roads so I was wondering how things were holding up.
After we got home I looked everything over and all was as it should be. I didn't use the dial indicator again but "eyeballed" the wheels judging with the brake pads and spinning the wheels and they seemed to hold true.
We really like the bike. It does just what it was designed for (cruising around the neighborhoods) and does it well. It's just what we hoped for and expected and we think it's well worth the $248.00 shipped. We had a BLAST riding "twogether" through the neighborhoods of three small towns Sunday. If someone is looking for a cruiser tandem and can assemble the "KIT" themselves then I would recommend the Kent. If you are not comfortable doing the work then I suggest talking with a LBS, Give them the list I posted here in this review of the things I HAD TO DO to assemble the bike for an example and get a estimate. It might cost more than it's worth if you have to go that route. http://i19.tinypic.com/4pe7jps.jpg
http://i13.tinypic.com/67eveqe.jpg
http://i15.tinypic.com/5znfn7k.jpg
Both tires had maybe 10 pounds of air in them. I let what little air out and pulled the tires to inspect the wheels and spokes. The spoke strip on the rear wheel was pushed over and not covering the spokes in two spots so there was a sure flat if I would have just put air in it without checking. The front tire was OK. The front wheel was within .080 in. of true both horizontal and vertical. The rear wheel was out approx .600 in. horizontal and .080 in. vertical. It wouldn't even roll without the tire hitting the frame. I trued both wheels to +/- .020 in.("close enough" for a bicycle) along with setting a little backlash on the spokes in the process.
As with everything else on the bike, The brakes and both derailers weren't even close to being adjusted correctly. The return springs on the rear brakes were in different holes. When adjusting the derailers I noticed the rear derailer was bent. I called the toll free # for Kent customer service and told the lady the problem. With no questions asked, she took my name and address and said she would get another derailer in the mail that day and I didn't need to send the bad one back.
A close look at the frame and no cracks,bends or dents were found. The welds are not as pretty as they could be but they didn't look bad at all and showed signs of good penetration at the weld edges. While waiting for the new deraileur I peeled off about 10 pounds of stickers and installed some aftermarket fenders,a Topeak rear cargo rack, two bells (The stoker has to have fun too),rear view mirrors and naturally some streamers on the handlebars.
The replacement rear derailer arrived in three days. I'm VERY happy with their customer service. After assembling the tandem "KIT" and adjusting the seats and handlebars we took it out for a "Maiden Voyage" of 31 miles. The bike rode really well. The frame was MUCH STIFFER than our Columbia tandem. Shifts were smooth, quick, precise and quiet. No "Auto shift" from frame flex on take off or climbs. The brakes worked nicely and took very little finger pressure to stop on the small hills we encountered. I think the supplied Velo seat will have to be replaced for me but my Wife seemed to like her seat OK so far. We managed to hit our fair share of bumps and pot holes along with going down some rough gravel roads so I was wondering how things were holding up.
After we got home I looked everything over and all was as it should be. I didn't use the dial indicator again but "eyeballed" the wheels judging with the brake pads and spinning the wheels and they seemed to hold true.
We really like the bike. It does just what it was designed for (cruising around the neighborhoods) and does it well. It's just what we hoped for and expected and we think it's well worth the $248.00 shipped. We had a BLAST riding "twogether" through the neighborhoods of three small towns Sunday. If someone is looking for a cruiser tandem and can assemble the "KIT" themselves then I would recommend the Kent. If you are not comfortable doing the work then I suggest talking with a LBS, Give them the list I posted here in this review of the things I HAD TO DO to assemble the bike for an example and get a estimate. It might cost more than it's worth if you have to go that route. http://i19.tinypic.com/4pe7jps.jpg
http://i13.tinypic.com/67eveqe.jpg
http://i15.tinypic.com/5znfn7k.jpg