Recumbent - Student wanting to get into recumbents

Hey there! I'm looking to get into the riding of recumbents. I'm pretty tight for money though, being in post-secondary full time. Currently, i'm looking for one that would be good for city travel, but could also possibly do some touring, as far as 400kms with camping gear.

Are there any models or brands to look for at a <$1500 CAN pricetag that will provide decent reliability and performance, that will be able to handle a self-sustained touring load, while still being practical for everyday use?

Actionbent doesn't seem bad at all for the price range, and their models look like some of them come with decent/good components, but none of them seem to have midship/front mounts for panniers, or did I miss one that does? I know that good recumbents don't usually come cheap, but $1000 is probably what can be realistically spent, and these have some reliable components at that range.

Sure - plenty of decent recumbents at that price. They won't be the speediest, but they will be quite nice - especially if you're willing to buy a used one in that range. Generally twice the bike for the money.

Re: midship rack

This is not a standard feature on most recumbents, but you can retrofit a midship rack on many bikes. I think the bents that provide midship racks as an OEM option (HP Velotechnik & others) would be out of your price range. A rear rack with panniers and/or a midship rack should provide all the cargo space you need.

Buy a used bent. You'll loads of $$$ and be able to get something with low mileage. As a plus if you don't love it you can sell it for what you paid.

I've bought 2 bents from BROL (http://www.bentrideronline.com/) and one from Craig's List.

For city and touring use you'll be fine with anything, but full on race models which won't fit in your budget.

Some of the Bacchettas should be in your price range. My wife loves her Cafe, and I'm leaning toward one myself.

I've looked at the Bachetta's now, and the Giro 20 seems like it might really fit the profile, although its a bit higher than what I was hoping for pricetag wise, the componentry looks good for the most part, but i've got no personal experience with SRAM. The biggest benefit to this bike in particular is that the one dealer in the city who sells recumbents deals in Bachetta, so its possible to go and try this one out unlike most other ones out there.

The Rans bikes are also available from them, and i'm considering the Rocket, which seems very comparible, just a tad bit lower end and a tiny bit heavier, but it also looks like its got a relatively more upright riding position, which is a plus to me. Not into the whole lying back at sharp angles thing.

Will be going to try both of these out shortly.

Tried to sign up for bentrideronline, but my activation email never came and the webmaster never responded to my inquiry about sent activation email, so no go as of yet. There was a Sun Speedster AX someone was selling on there that would've been nice to inquire about, tough luck though I suppose!

And on the online side, the Rail Metro from Actionbent seems like it would be a comfy touring bent with the FRP upgrade.

Now all thats needed is a rigorous test riding spree, and an early spring!

thanks very much for the input so far!
more input? :)

Javelin/Bachetta: Either one might do for you go to http://www.easyracers.com
check out the Javelin on this site. On the left column is a Javelin page and reviews.

I've looked at the Bachetta's now, and the Giro 20 seems like it might really fit the profile, although its a bit higher than what I was hoping for pricetag wise, the componentry looks good for the most part, but i've got no personal experience with SRAM. The biggest benefit to this bike in particular is that the one dealer in the city who sells recumbents deals in Bachetta, so its possible to go and try this one out unlike most other ones out there.

The dealer being close by was also a factor in my buying a Giro 20. I didn't get the midship racks to save money. (Christmas is coming). I got the rear rack, but discovered that they really aren't built to hold panniers. Two weeks after I got mine, I saw one for sale on eBay. So keep an eye out for used ones.

The dealer being close by was also a factor in my buying a Giro 20. I didn't get the midship racks to save money. (Christmas is coming). I got the rear rack, but discovered that they really aren't built to hold panniers. Two weeks after I got mine, I saw one for sale on eBay. So keep an eye out for used ones.

I've been looking around at used ones, and some of them certainly look good. Have to cover for tuition first though, and i'll probably not be riding one anytime before spring, seeing as the Ice Spikers just went onto my y-frame today in celebration of the thick layer of ice that was slipped upon outside my door :)

How do you find the Giro 20 personally? Probably going to end up with the Desantis Beagle it seems, but the Giro still seems like its my ideal ride.