DubT

Less than 2 X 13.5 pound bikes and less than the Honda Goldwing Trike that we sold to buy the tandem. The tandem is more fun and a whole lot healthier.

dubbelop

And now a picture of the complete bike as made in the French Vosges last July. All the aforementioned goodies are on the bike and total weight including pedals (Shimano PD-M540) and Schwalbe Hans Dampf 57-559 tyres is now 20.7 kgs. Didn't expect the weight to come down anyway since - for example - the brakes and fork weigh more than the original parts. They are therefore much, much stronger and reliable. Especially the Hope V4 brakes are bloody awesome!

merlinextraligh

We started this thread in 2008, with a 50lb Burley Duet. Took us 7 1/2 years to cut the weight in half..

2frmMI

And the price per saved pound is...? Just a little dig there. We went through essentially the same weight-loss program 2 yrs ago, and so I think I know in rough numbers. Nice clean bike, by the way! Looks faaaast.

merlinextraligh

^ it adds up quick. When we first decided to buy a Calfee, I figured in the $10,000 range. I was quickly disabused of that notion.

But we'll use it for years, and typically put 4,000-5,000 miles a year on our tandem so it will be amortized over a large base.

And I made rather expensive choices, Tetra as oppossed to Dragonfly saves $2100. Ultegra instead of Dura Ace would have probably save a grand.

Cheaper seatposts, stems, and handlebars would save several hundred. Cheaper but still nice wheels could have saved $1500.

But in for a penny in for a pound.

akexpress 

^ this reminds of a couple of years ago when our friends decided to buy a Calfee and he got a quote from them. He was very excited when it came back around 8k. The excitement was tempered somewhat when I told him you realize that is just for the frame. They proceeded ahead and now say it was one of the best investments in enjoyment they have ever make. We would have to agree.

budhaslug

Or you could go my route: Buy your Calfee frame second hand from twocicle ($3500), do crazy deal shopping for light but affordable parts ($3500 budget) and end up with a 25.2 lb tandem for $7k. Definitely a great investment on our part, and 2 years later, the only problem has been a faulty seatpost head that creaked and was replaced free of charge with a new/improved model by the manufacturer (Aerozine).

Ritterview

That is sweet!

Trsnrtr

Sweet.

TooMany

As I was advised to do a while back, I am now posting the new bike. Like Merlin, we also started off with a 47 lb Burley Duet. 20+ pounds is a lot to cut off a bike. Although its probably mostly that its new and we like it. Honestly, the best thing is that it fits both of us so much better.


Major points:
Landshark, Ultegra Di2, R785 Hydraulic Discs, All mountain 29er carbon wheels. 25.35 pounds according to my scale - though the bike shop had it at 24.9 lb without the computers on it.

merlinextraligh

^ Do you know what the frame alone weighs? It would appear that it has to be noticeably lighter than a Calfee Dragonfly.

Team Fab

I think your "heavy" ;-) aero wheels may be the difference.

TCW2

2007 Trek T2000 with some bling. It was under 30lbs. But then I added BB7 disc to rear and now it's 30.2 lbs. Not bad for under $3K.

merlinextraligh

I'm guessing our wheels weight about 1650 grams. (based on published weight of ENVE 65's, and adding some for the extra spokes, and heavier aerocomp spokes). So that could explain 1/2lb to a pound depending on what those wheels weigh.

Comparing the rest of the build, we save a few hundred grams with Dura Ace versus Ultegra, and the Speedplay pedals. Other than brakes, the rest looks like a wash.

And the Landshark has to add at least a pound with front and rear disc and the disc fork.

Netting that all out, I'm guessing the Landshark frame has to be about a pound lighter for it come out at the same weight with a dual disc setup

Team Fab

I don't think a pound is possible. Cyfac and Calfee are pretty much the same so I don't think that much is possible for Landshark to drop. Must be somewhere else. If they are that much lighter they should start selling like hotcakes over the calfees.

merlinextraligh

Possible I'm overestimating the weight penalty of the disc brakes. But other than our wheels, there's not a lot of extra weight on our bike.

One other factor in the frame weight for ours would be that it's a large/small, and we did go with the extra stiffness option which I believe uses a larger top tube.

TooMany

I don't know the weight of the frame. John Slawta said that he was excited to build this bike because this was the first time he used nanotube resin on a tandem frame, and it was supposed to be 25% lighter by volume and slightly stronger. The size is roughly a medium/small in calfee terms. The top tube in particular looks skinnier than most calfees that I have seen. There are only two bits of metal in the frame: the eccentric and the derailleur hanger. The stoker bottom bracket is a PF30.

The wheels are roughly the same weight as the deeper ENVEs. Although I haven't weighed them separately, I estimate that they are 1600 grams. The rims are chinese-made all-mountain 29er carbon rims (425 grams each +/-), 30 mm outside/26 mm inside width, Sapim CX-Rays, brass nipples and DT Swiss 350 centerlock.

The fork is a Whiskey Parts No. 9 road fork, which I think is competitive with the ENVE on weight.

I think that you are overestimating the weight penalty for discs. The levers are 18 g heavier each. ST-9070 and R785 system. Add in disc calipers, pads and 180 mm rotors for a total of 496 g, subtract off the Dura Ace road calipers (297 grams), and you're left with 235 grams. And this is ignoring that hydraulic line is typically a bit lighter than cable and housing.

That's what I got. Can you tell that I geeked out a bit spec'ing this bike?


(Apparently there is even a gif emoji for this very "problem")

merlinextraligh

Interesting. I assumed, without any real basis, that hydraulic lines and fluid would be heavier than cables

Bad1

What kind of tire pressure are you using on your all mtn. 29er rims? I'd be a little cautious of using high pressure for road purposes. Possibility of a tire blowing off.

TooMany

90/95 psi front and rear. The wide rim really bulbs out tires quite nice. 28 mm Conti GP4000s measure 33 mm across with a caliper and the 25 mm version measures 29 mm mounted up. The wearing contact patch looks about the same as similarly sized tire on a single with a more narrow rim.

engineerbob

Burley Duet: 45# (including rack, fenders, bottle cages, and pump). Riding it builds character.

chojn1

What doesn't kill you ...

waynesulak

If you have not already done so, I suggest checking the max pressure rating on your rims. I have been surprised by the added stress wider tires put on rims.

TooMany

The shop where I bought the wheels (they refer to them as their house brand) said they will do 120 psi. I have no intention of ever getting them that high - as I said above, the contact patch is about right at 90/95. They are hooked carbon rims, in contrast to most others these days that are hookless and designed for lower pressure (mountain bike tires).

Team Fab

as we do not see many landsharks, could you post some follow up reports. Handling, braking,etc....