anyone make their own tandem?

[climbinrocks]

later this spring (after i get this pain in the ass thesis out of the way) i'm gonna build up a tandem out of two single frames....

sheldon's site has some great info on this....and links to some other's sites...just wondering if anyone had any firsthand experience worth sharing....???

[Giant_CFR3]

I've made a couple.

There are several things to consider wen building the frame,

Cut each tube a little longer than the exact length, then round the edge with a round file. That way the tube meeting the other tube cups it. It's stronger and easier on the welder.

Keep an eye on the front seat tube, when some of my tandems were welded, there was filler in the seat tube, that limited the amount of length the seat post could go down. Talk to your welder about this.

Use beefy tubing to connect bb-bb. I used a cut section of downtube from another bike.

Have fun. I've done it several times and I have no regrets. They're plenty strong and ride fine.

[climbinrocks]

thanks

what kind of welding did you do?

i'm gonna go with some old 4130 single frames and chop them up to make it work....any advice on the type of join to use?

[bassplayinbiker]

I had my chromo frames welded with a seteline (sp?) torch.

[Brian]

I had my chromo frames welded with a seteline (sp?) torch.

Oxy-acetylene. Gas welding is probably not the first choice for a tandem, a wire feed welder would do a better job. I guess it depends on loads and abuse.