610
03-20-05, 09:14 PM
I'm looking for anything you have to say about the Rans Tailwind. It seems like a great bicycle for the money. Any opinions about it in general?
View Full Version : Any thoughts on the Rans Tailwind?
Gary Mc
03-21-05, 07:15 AM
I considered the Rans Tailwind when I first started looking at recumbents. I was comparing it to the Rans Stratus and liked them both. I settled on the Stratus as I wanted the lower gearing as I live among mountains. In retrospect, I wished that I had bought the Tailwind and just changed the chain rings out for something more like 52-42-30.
In some instances you may not like the tiller effect of the steering arm, but that is mainly a problem when climbing at slow speeds. At normal speeds and road conditions you will find the ride rock steady.
I can also tell you that Rans is good company when you have questions or problems.
Regards,
Gary
In some instances you may not like the tiller effect of the steering arm, but that is mainly a problem when climbing at slow speeds. At normal speeds and road conditions you will find the ride rock steady.
I can also tell you that Rans is good company when you have questions or problems.
Regards,
Gary
bnet1
03-21-05, 07:35 AM
In the spring of 2004 I purchased a Tailwind, my first 'bent. I my humble opinion it is a good all round bike. Not excelling in any one particular area but pretty versatile. I commute on it and I also ride with a touring type club. I'm ususally in the middle speed range of riders. It was fairly easy to learn to ride. At speed it is stable, and speeds on the Tailwind don't have the scare factor that they did on the road bike despite the fact that on descents I'm faster than I was on the road bike. The Rocket is probably faster and more nimble but for the riding I do the Tailwind works great. If I were going to upgrade it would brobably be to a V-2. But the Tailwind is a great "jump on and go" bike.
skysensor
03-21-05, 05:45 PM
The Tailwind strikes me as a great all-around bike. However, make sure you check out the Burley LWB bikes for comparison. I think the Burleys may be the current "best buy" for a first recumbent (at least for LWB models).
Mark
Mark
ChiliDog
03-22-05, 07:39 AM
The Tailwind strikes me as a great all-around bike. However, make sure you check out the Burley LWB bikes for comparison. I think the Burleys may be the current "best buy" for a first recumbent (at least for LWB models).
Mark
Except for the Burley seats...they are in no way as comfortable as the RANS seat.
Mark
Except for the Burley seats...they are in no way as comfortable as the RANS seat.
Spuds McDoogle
03-22-05, 07:58 AM
Except for the Burley seats...they are in no way as comfortable as the RANS seat.
The most comfortable seat I have is the one I made from duct tape, foam and a piece of plywood. I found the plywood and foam in a dumpster. CHEAP and easy to make. When ever I hit a big pothole, curb, chip-seal or rocks and gravel my rear end has a soft cushion to bounce on.
Spuds
The most comfortable seat I have is the one I made from duct tape, foam and a piece of plywood. I found the plywood and foam in a dumpster. CHEAP and easy to make. When ever I hit a big pothole, curb, chip-seal or rocks and gravel my rear end has a soft cushion to bounce on.
Spuds
skysensor
03-22-05, 06:41 PM
Have you seen the gel seat pads for Burley on the Calhoun Cycle website? I'm interested in knowing how much they improve seat comfort.
Mark
Mark
stuckonbents
04-02-05, 11:30 PM
In some instances you may not like the tiller effect of the steering arm, but that is mainly a problem when climbing at slow speeds. At normal speeds and road conditions you will find the ride rock steady.
I can also tell you that Rans is good company when you have questions or problems.
Regards,
Gary
What is tiller effect? What would you call "slow speeds" and "normal speeds"?
TIA,
Stuck
I can also tell you that Rans is good company when you have questions or problems.
Regards,
Gary
What is tiller effect? What would you call "slow speeds" and "normal speeds"?
TIA,
Stuck
Gary Mc
04-03-05, 07:55 PM
What is tiller effect? What would you call "slow speeds" and "normal speeds"?
TIA,
Stuck
On a bike like my 2000 Rans Stratus and the Tailwind, you steer the bike by swinging the steering arm back and forth, like a boat tiller. At slow speeds, it was necessary to make frequent steering corrections to maintain balance. I found my Stratus easy enough to control down to about 4 mph. At 3 mph it took frequent corrections and the tiller steering became a chore.
If I still lived in my native state of Michigan, this would be a rare problem. But, I now live in Utah with the best rides being uphill from home. On longer,steeper climbs, I steering just too much added effort.
After working at this for a couple years, I replaced the bike with a recumbent trike, a Greenspeed GTO, where slow speed stability is no issue. Now my fifteen year old son has taken over the Stratus and loves it.
BTW, I enjoyed coming down those same mountain sides more on the Stratus than the trike. It is very steady at speeds of 25+ mph.
Regards,
Gary
TIA,
Stuck
On a bike like my 2000 Rans Stratus and the Tailwind, you steer the bike by swinging the steering arm back and forth, like a boat tiller. At slow speeds, it was necessary to make frequent steering corrections to maintain balance. I found my Stratus easy enough to control down to about 4 mph. At 3 mph it took frequent corrections and the tiller steering became a chore.
If I still lived in my native state of Michigan, this would be a rare problem. But, I now live in Utah with the best rides being uphill from home. On longer,steeper climbs, I steering just too much added effort.
After working at this for a couple years, I replaced the bike with a recumbent trike, a Greenspeed GTO, where slow speed stability is no issue. Now my fifteen year old son has taken over the Stratus and loves it.
BTW, I enjoyed coming down those same mountain sides more on the Stratus than the trike. It is very steady at speeds of 25+ mph.
Regards,
Gary
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