I purchased a used CoMotion Speedster a year ago to see if my wife and I would enjoy tandem riding. The bike fit was acceptable but not ideal fit for us. We decided that we really enjoyed tandeming and purchased a new bike that fit and has S&S couplers.

So now the question is should I hang on to the old tandem to use when the #1 Bike is in for repairs, foul weather riding, etc? I also thought it would be good to have a second tandem around because some friends have expressed interest in tandeming and I would be able to loan them this bike. It will be a little bit of a hassle to store 2 tandems.

I paid $2300.00 for the bike, other than replacing tires and a seat I have not had to put any money into it.

I am interested in other peoples experience in similar situation, were you happy you had the second bike or would you have been better off selling the bike while its value was still close to what you pair for it originally?

For perspective I have 3 road bikes and 3 mtn bikes that do get used.

That is a pretty individual choice...but I would say 'keep it' at least for one season and see if it gets used. You have a history of using you older single bikes and you have friends that may use the CoMo so odds are it will continue to give you value. If after a year or so, it does not get used, then I would sell it. The bike will not loose much value in just one year so I don't see much down side to keeping it short term.

Bill J.

+1 Then I would add this. Let people know that you are considering selling it in the future. Maybe even ride it on a few shorter group rides, letting people know why you are selling. When we were ready to sell our "test" tandem, we had a list of potential buyers and were able to move it quickly.

You definitely want to hold on to the old tandem for a while. Agree with everything that's been posted so I won't restate.

Good advise, I will follow it.

We kept our old (very old) tandem around for about a year after buying the new one. I had planned to keep it for friend/family use...but it never got ridden. Then I decided to turn it into a "beach" bike, as the sand in the new tandem was getting unbearable. This project went unstarted, and eventually the Mrs. told me I could buy a new single if I got rid of it.

+2
We have discussed the same when we replace our "starter" bike. I must admit that the idea of selling any bike is hard for me. My bike garage is like "Hotel California" you can check out any time you like but you can never leave.

I've read and reread this topic several times.

Some of you that have followed my adventures of fitting my stoker to our Speedster know the efforts I've tried.

While she loves the Speedster, and hates change, I convinced her to let us buy another Tandem.

I already know that after I some spend some time fitting her to the most recent bike we bought, a decision will be made to sell one of the two road tandems we now have. Keeping a third tandem (one mountain and two road) is not practicle for us, as we have minimal space to store them and for the most part, others couples are not of the high opinion of this forum in regards to enjoying a tandem. The standard comment to us is that would END our relationship.

So here is a what if or what is question.

With our current Co-Motion Speedster, I have it built as follows.

Flat MTB bars front and rear, with bar ends and downtube shifters.

I have several options to reconfiguire the setup. Which would be most practicle for a perspective buyer.

I can leave it as is with the flat bars, bar ends and downtube shifters.
or
I can leave it as is with the flat bars, bar ends and reinstall twist shifters (Sram or Grip Shift) as I first built it
or
I can set it back to drop bars front and bullhorn rear bars, going with Ultegra STI and travel agents for the brakes.

It has Avid linear pull "V" brakes and mountain type levers currently installed. Overall stopping is very controlled and confident. Not sure it will be as good with STI.

I'm merely asking to gain opinions, I know how we prefered the setup, and other than the need for 1" longer stoker top tube, our setup was comfy, smooth, and fun. Without drops it was't quite racerish, but the bars and bar ends offered many hand holds. Is this what others might prefer also.

Thanks everyone, this sight and the experienced posters are helping us enjoy life even more.

Sounds like I'm kissing butt, but I am serious.

Thanks Again
PK

I hope I understood your question...

If you have the time, the skill, and the parts... I would set it as:

"I can set it back to drop bars front and bullhorn rear bars, going with Ultegra STI and travel agents for the brakes"

My thinking is that that is the most sought after / common setup.

Buddy, I am in the same boat. My old school Trek T-100 I think has been hanging inmy garage for a bout 8 yrs now....my wife and I road it for years until the kids came..Oldest is now 10. I wanted to sell it many times over for the $ to buy a new bike for me. NOPE Keep it she says. I hope to ride it one or two times a year with my kids once they get big enough to reach. Kinda a waste but no real market . it was $1,500 over 10 yrs ago. I also have a mt bike, road bike, tri bike........

Time, skill, and parts are not a problem. Your input and opinion is great and giving me an idea of how to configuire it for resale.

Thanks
PK

Okay, I'm going to disagree with everyone here. Flame away! I say sell it now and you can probably get all of your money back. If you keep it several more years, it'll depreciate to the point that you won't be able to sell it for what you want for it or what you feel it'll be worth. Yes, I can be a scrooge from time to time...

How many miles do you ride the tandem in a year? Do you do week long rides when you would need a tandem? When we had one tandem and were training for a week long ride we suddenly needed repairs. Between getting the parts and the busy LBS it was a photo finish to get the tandem fixed in time for the ride. A couple of other considerations would be storage and how much of an investment do you want in tandem bicycles.

Sell it. It appears that is what you want "us" to validate, given your comments about its less than perfect fit, and the problem with storage. You guys are not going to ride it, face it. Somewhere out in the Craigs List/EBAY world is a barren couple with no tandem to call their own. Share your tandem joy with them.

If I buy a bike and it isn't a keeper, I sell it after 1 year. Otherwise I buy a road bike every 3 years, keep the previous bike as a backup/rain bike, the one before that is on the trainer or loaned to cycling guests, the one before that gets sold. Three road bikes....

a cycling Polygamist

"That is a pretty individual choice...but I would say 'keep it' at least for one season and see if it gets used. You have a history of using you older single bikes and you have friends that may use the CoMo so odds are it will continue to give you value. If after a year or so, it does not get used, then I would sell it. The bike will not loose much value in just one year so I don't see much down side to keeping it short term."

This advise from specbill works best for me. I am also going to lead some tandem rides with a local club and offer it to people that are interested in tandeming but would like to borrow a tandem ride before buying their own .