Originally Posted by
thumpism
The DuoSport was a nice '80s bike, much better than the older Peugeots and Gitanes that were what was usually found in that price range. I had a Gitane and would much rather have had the Schwinn with its longer rear cockpit. Read up on the bike's specs and check it over carefully to be sure of what you're getting, and just because a bike and its components are old does not mean they do not work. If the bike is cheap enough it might be worth buying to see if you two even like tandeming. Good luck!
well i have been riding Schwinn DuoSports for perhaps 10 years.
Verdict: Great Bicycle!
Very Durable, easy to work on and fun to ride. the 27" wheels and tires are better for us and cheap to find. the first one i bought was a clunker and had to learn bicycle mechanics to bring it back to life. worth every hour of work, everything was taken apart and greased. i replaced the junk wheels on the bike and installed cheap aluminum wheels, no problem.
found another one in better condition and bought it too. this one needs some over hauling, but i enjoy riding more than wrenching, as my time is now limited than before.
if money is no object then used high end tandems are easy to be had on Craigslist. we may eventually get one, but i have a feeling that they will probably be no better than the Duo Sport. these old tandems may have been hand assembled by Schwinn in their chicago factory. the tubing says Paramount tubing if mem serves, so they didn't scrimp on that either.
i got a couple bicycle repair books and just spent days lubing and replacing things. glad i did as now i can handle a boat load more of repair work than before. some days i ask my handicapped friend who rides tandem with me if we need a newer higher end machine. he has a 'what's the point' attitude about that.
in the end, you can learn tandem mechanics and find out if tandem riding is for you on the cheap. normally i would not ride tandem, but for a handicapped person, this makes a World of difference, riding a bicycle they could never do by them selves.
i have tried other tandems, funny though, this Old Schwinn beats out the 'higher end' bikes...it just feels right. we use drop bars for handlebars, the old components are quite beefy and don't wanna break. my newer bicycles, well all i gotta say is: 'where's the beef'.