Team Fab

https://www.bicycling.com/bikes-gear...ndem-bicycles/

chris ss

decent article - - but's what's up with the opening:
"they're inherently silly"
????
What kind of goofus attitude is that to take?

Leisesturm

Agree, decent overview but I'm curious as to the o.p.'s apparent doubt. Best Tandems? Yes, I think so. Santana's and Co-Motion's are not the 'best' tandems for 90% of the people that buy them.

merlinextraligh

And the basis for that statement is? Assuming rational people, and perfect information, the bike an individual buys is by definition the best bike for them.

Now admittedly information is not perfect; there are costs in obtaining information (even if that cost is time), and people do not always behave rationally. Thus I can easily believe that some people end up with bikes that are not the best bikes for them, i would also believe that the majority (way more than 10% at least) actually make good decisions on their bike purchases, based upon their own criteria.

Leisesturm

True, I guess I was extrapolating a possible reason for the o.p.'s seeming skepticism i.e. no mention of Santana or Co-motion in the top 10 list.

merlinextraligh

There are two Co-motions in the list, but no Santana's. My bet is that it's largely a result of what manufacturer's would work with them financially.

You can click through to buy those bikes. Pretty sure Bicycling is making some money on that.

I don't think the article is, or is even really intended to be an objective rating of all tandems.

It does highlight some nice bikes in a number of segments, and the fact that people are talking about tandems is a good thing.

chris ss

+1.
If a mfr feels their sales pipeline is strong enuf (in their own view), they might well just choose not to 'give away margin' to the magazine, in exchange for the extra exposure.

FWIW, in my experience, how to tell if a sales pipeline is full enuf:
If you come in one day and find that pretty much the worst thing you can imagine has in fact happened, and you and your boss both say "oh well" (as opposed to "oh s***"), then the pipeline was probably full enuf.

Alcanbrad

I read the article with my standard skepticism for anything bicycling magazine prints, ever since that article from the early 90's that suggested replacing steel QR skewers with Titanium to improve your climbing (full disclosure, I am subscriber).

That said, I thought is was a pretty good article for someone that has an interest in tandems but knows nothing about them. It paints a picture of the landscape. What was missing, was links to more independent information that one could explore further before looking at specific manufacturers.

colotandem

Also, it's misleading to think you can get a Calfee for $8k. That would just be the frame...

Any way you slice it, I think it is good to have tandems being talked about. The more people on tandems, the better - as far as I'm concerned.

JanMM

They do mention that a $430 Schwinn tandem might be suitable for some folks. "For cruising around town with the whole family."

noglider 

Agreed, it's as bad as their other articles, which are pretty shallow. But also agreed that talk about tandems is better than none, even here.

I paid only around $300 or $350 for my tandem, and I'm not anywhere close to replacing it, so a cheap tandem is a viable idea. Of course, that was used and a very special low price, but I wouldn't look down my nose at that Schwinn or a Raleigh Companion. They work.

124Spider

I don't think it was a bad article, and I understood (and appreciated) the "inherently silly" line.

If you're thinking about tandems, it's a useful list of where you might look. The only significant knock I would put on the article (given it's fundamental shallowness) is the failure to mention places where you can have one made to your exact specifications for less than a few of those tandems cost.

paulf99223

It's a list of 8 somewhat random unrelated tandems. Consider it a survey of the market but not a ranking or comparison. There's much better info and knowledgeable opinions in this forum.

noglider 

Very true, and succinctly put. I guess if you're not net savvy you might start with that article and then proceed with research.