Accessories?

[stapfam]

Just started a similar thred on Mountain Biking, but We all spend money on our Bikes. Besides the essential upgrades and improvements to the bikes, What little accessories have you bought that have improved your riding, or comfort, or looks of your tandem. I don't mean the NEW set of Wheels either. Just the little Gizmo that has improved your biking enjoyment.

As a starter I will give you mine, and that is the Cap that fits over the spout of my water bottle, to stop the crud that used to collect on the spout being tasted by mistake.

On the opposite note The Worst accessory that I bought was an electric horn that stopped working the first time it rained. Mind you, the pitiful noise it gave as it gave up the ghost was quite hilarious.

Lets all hear your blunders or achievemnts on small accessories.

[zonatandem]

Handrests for the stoker on her handlebars; gives her another hand position. Hers are not the traditional ones that look like pilot's brakes/hoods, but round carbon fiber.
Bottle mounted on the handlebar for both stoker/pilot with a plastic tube protruding from the bottle spout (remove the plastic plug and buy appropriate size/length plastic tubing at local hardware). Allows you to just bend down head and sip without removing water bottle. Minoura puts out a special handlebar clamp to mount bottle cage/bottle or you can construct one from radiator hose clamps.
A braze-on under the boob tube (or on right chainstay) to hold 2 spare spokes . . . just in case.
Another braze-on (or glue-on on) on stoker's adjustable stoker stem to hold a mini-garage door opener.
Cable guides on fork blade to guide computer cable to handle bar (looks better/neater than zipp ties).

Pedal on TWOgether!
Rudy and Kay/Zona tandem
Tucson, AZ/USA

[TandemGeek]

Everything is rather conventional on the entire fleet. Road tandems have water bottle cages, frame pumps, Tool/Tire packs under each saddle, cycling computers, and lighting systems for night rides. For the off-road two-fer just delete the water bottles as we use hydration packs. That's about it. Pretty boring.

[tornadobass]

I'd have to say our rack trunk...it's been really handy for carrying a lot of stuff, but stays out of the way, unlike panniers.

[galen_52657]

I keep my bikes somewhat barren. I don't even have a cycle computer on any of my bikes. Not that I have anything against them...

However, for the tandem there is an accessory that my stoker has requested: a handlebar bag for her bar so she has quick access to food, lip balm, money or other items and a place to stash a warmup jacket or vest on the fly. I have seen a nice bag on Peter White's site, but I think it might be a little too big (wide) and take up almost the whole bar top. So....anybody in BikeForum land have a lead to stoker bags?

[zonatandem]

Galen:
Check out Tandemsltd.com; Susan/Jack Goertz apparently have a custom made stoker bag, in 2 different sizes. Tell 'em R&K said 'hi!
Pedal on TWOgether!
Rudy and Kay/Zonatandem

[bentbaggerlen]

A set of Arkel TT-84 panniers. We keep them loaded all the time so its easy to take off for a weekend trip.

[DocF]

Our best are probably our Old Man Mountain front and rear racks. I'm very impressed with the quality and strength-weight ratio. I also really like the cheap little "ding bell" I use for riding the trails around Greensboro. Since no one else seems to use one, it does alert the pedestrians that they are being overtaken.

Doc

[Michel Gagnon]

It depends what you call "accessories".

I consider that a bike goes with fenders, racks (well, at least one) and lights, so I don't consider them as accessories.

Luxuries include :
- water bottle holders and water bottles : 8 or 9 on the tandem (depending on season), 4 on the single bike;
- cyclometre;
- a second stem, so my handlebar bag sits lower than the handlebars;
- panniers.

[Brian]

We've got a few little things that make riding more pleasant. My wife has a HRM plus a GPS for her (stoker) bars, for our trips into the bush. We both have bells which seem to come in handy once in a while. We found the Cat Cages with 3 mounting positions convenient for squeezing bottles in where they normally wouldn't fit. You can have the opening to one side, which is nice. We got one of those Sigma pumps that turn into a mini floor pump and attach with a built-in rubber band. Mounts anywhere. My bar ends also have plugs in them, so I can store small items, like a $10 note for the coffee shop. Next up is a small basket mounted on her bars so we can bring the dog when we ride to the beach.

[Big H]

My favourite accessory MUST be my Flightdeck. It show cadence as well as what gear I am in. My other favourite is a Rav-X multitool I got for Christmas that includes a very nifty chainbreaker. My most favourite is the Quick Stick Tyre Tool. It is a tyre lever that extends, hooks around the rim and the axle. This gives you leverage to very quickly remove or seat a tyre. It works on very much the same way as the tool they use at a tyre shop to remove or seat a car tyre.

Keep those wheels spinning!!!!(nm)

Big H

[Mhendricks]

It depends what you call "accessories".

I consider that a bike goes with fenders, racks (well, at least one) and lights, so I don't consider them as accessories.

We're looking for a good set of lights for our tandem so that we can ride on the paved trails. Because my wife can't be in too much direct sunlight, when summer comes we're going to be riding at night. Looking for something that's going to light up the trail or roadway. Thanks.

[Brian]

What's your lighting budget?

[Mhendricks]

What's your lighting budget?

I would say I'm not prepared to pay over $75.

[Brian]

Yikes. We have a Sigma, I think it's about US$50. Does a decent job. 2 lamp heads and a big battery that goes in the bottle cage. You might also want to try http://www.mtbr.com/reviews/ to see what other people think. I don't know the model off the top of my head.


Updated! It's a Sigma Mirage X. Here's the link to reviews, and if you're handy, tips on upgrading it. Best price I could find is $50 at Pricepoint.com.

http://www.mtbr.com/reviews/Lights/product_88908.shtml

[TandemGeek]

Our current primary lighting system is a little out of your budget (Light & Motion ARC HID Li-Ion); however, I'll offer a few comments about lighting in general:

1. Head lights serve three purposes:
-- They help others to see you coming.
-- They illuminate the road ahead so you can see hazards.
-- They can be used to illuminate your bike if you need to make repairs.

2. Batteries can go dead -- even the most expensive ones -- and they never do it when you're at the beginning or the end of your ride. Always have a spare light or extra batteries if you must have a headlight to safely make your way home, even if it's just a maglight with a maglight holder. Also, if you use a light with throw-away batteries, replacing them sooner rather than later is usually a good idea. Finally, if you do a lot of night riding, you might want to consider spending a little more money for a light with a rechargable battery as it may prove to be less expensive in long run once you factor in the several sets of batteries that will be used over the life of the light.

3. Check your local laws regarding reflectors and to find out if a rear reflector is required (Note: In Georgia it is, even if you have a tail light). Even if it's not, it's a good idea to have one on your bike even if you use a battery powered tail light... remember, batteries go dead. Also, if you use a tail light with LEDs, make sure the tail light is properly aligned so that the LEDs are pointed towards the driver's position of vehicles coming up behind you. LEDs are somewhat directional and if they aren't properly aligned they arent' as effective. Best to check alignment by turning on the light and then walking back 50' - 100' behind the bike to "see" if they are as bright as they should be.

4. If you do an extensive amount of riding at dusk or at night in places where there is a lot of cross traffic to contend with consider getting tires with reflective sidewalls or -- gag -- putting those in-wheel reflectors back on or add some of that really bright helmet reflector tape to your frame.

5. Strongly consider using a helmet-mounted light. Yes, most road cyclists seem to treat lighting as a bike accessory and affix them to their handlebars; however, lights attached to handlebars only illuminate whatever's perpendicular to the handlebars which means you can't "look into" corners to see where you're going until you're already through the corner. Moreover, if something catches your eye off to the side of the road you can't usually see it because you're lights are fixed to your handlebars. If you use a helmet mounted light, wherever you look you have light, on and off the bike as most batteries for helmet mounted lights are carried in your cycling jersey pocket instead of being attached to the bike.

Just some things to think about.