How old is this Burley Duet? (potential first tandem)
 

I am considering purchasing this tandem as a first tandem. My wife is blind so tandem is the obvious choice; we rented a Trek cruiser one day last summer and had a blast, though the bike was disappointing (chain fell off the first one, the second one would skip a gear or two).

Burley Duet Tandem
3 sprockets in front, 6 sprockets in rear
Dia Comp drum brake in rear
Touring rims 48 spoke
Wheels 17 x 1 1/4
Shock absorption seat in rear
Includes car carrier
Carrier fits into a 1 1/2" car hitch

http://images.craigslist.org/3k73mf3...48f9c21f26.jpg

It's listed at $600 for bike and hitch carrier (which I can't use since my car has no hitch). I know Burley is a good brand (even though they don't make tandems any more). My concern is that if something breaks, I will have a hard time getting it fixed (I have no personal experience with bike repair but am willing to tinker a little bit) due to its age. I have no idea how old it is.

Can anyone comment on what I should be on the lookout for if I am considering this bike?

Thanks!

Looks like Bar end shifters? good if you want upgrade the rear cluster-probably freewheel- Can you test ride it? If you go ahead with it, definitely check both axles and bearings. My 90's Samba just broke a rear axle, (team weight 450) but took us by surprise.

The wheels will be 27", not 17". They look like Suntour bar end levers (Suntour freewheels have been out of production for many yearss) and they are less than perfectly compatible with replacement freewheels (some have no problems getting replacements to index, some do). Bike is 1980's vintage, given the equipment.

The wheels, particularly the rear wheel, are probably the most expensive assembly that might need replacing. Someone else here may know what the clear width between the rear dropouts is, but I'd guess that it is less than the "modern" standard of 145 mm. If/when you get around to doing something with the rear wheel, your choices may be a bit limited, and might nudge you toward changing from the rear hub brake. 27" tires can still be found, so you don't have to immediately go out and have some wheels built up with 700c rims.
For maybe another $100-150 or so you might be able to have a hitch receiver added to your car, to make it easier to transport the bike to more places to ride.
Perhaps start with $500 for the bike alone, $550 for bike and carrier, and see what the seller thinks of that.
Have you been looking at tandems much? How does this one stack up to others you have seen in the area?
If, for some reason, you want to move away from the Suntour bar-ends, you'll find a ready market for them on eBay.

it looks identical to my burley duet, and i paid the same about 2 yrs ago. mine is a 1990 model. nothing has broken, and my local shop didn't gasp at its vintage!

Shop's fault, not the bike.

The "manufacturer" only made the frame and fork, (and it's replacable). Everything else was made by component part companies that are still in business, (with the exception of Suntour), and parts can be a mix and match affair to some degree. So, no big worries there.

Someone mentioned the rear wheel and frame width. Don't worry about it. If the 6 speed is OK for you, (which I suspect it will be for some time to come), then there's no need to replace it. If and when it's not OK, that appears to be a steel frame which can be "cold set" to the current day specification of 145mm. Take a magnet with you. If it sticks to the frame, it's steel.

Someone mentioned indexing. If indexing was even used on 6 speed freewheels, I wasn't aware of it, nor was it necessary. So again, no worries.

BUT, after all is said and done, I'm still not paying $600 for a bike that far out of date. $600 to $800 is a price for a used, current day entry level tandem like a KHS, Fuji, or Raleigh that has an aluminum frame, 8 or 9 speed cassette, indexed shifting, etc, etc. (Here's a KHS). If you tried to change that bike over to match that, you'd have to change a large portion of the bike. Plus, most modern day, entry level tandem frames are stiffer and more efficient than this one will be.

Bottom line: Still a good bike, but I'd want to be into the deal closer to $400, and tell him to keep his hitch rack, (which you can't use anyway!), to sell to someone else. If you can't carry it inside the vehicle, you probably want a roof rack anyway.

Good luck.

We own a Duet we bougth it used about 12 years ago. Ours is an early 90's. We kept it as a rainy day bike. At the time we bought it we were a 320 lbs team. The stock wheels were no good. I cold reset the rear spacing and changed it from 135 to 145. Changed rear wheel/cassette to 9 spd. Changed bar end shifters to dura ace and changed front wheel as well. The only expense I had was the rear wheel as the rest came out of my parts bin. Depending on your team weight and ridding style you may be able to get several years of enjoyment out of this bike. But I agree with the above posters. If the bike fitted us and had no mechanical/rust issues I would offer $400 for the bike. The rack/hitch can be left out if you don't need it.

Suntour made a 6 speed indexed system in the late '80s. I have one on an old MTB. I imagine they made barend and downtube 6 speed index shifters as well.

Ebay is your friend to find NOS and barely used Suntour freewheels, in 5-7 speed variations. Prices are from cheap to moderately expensive, but there always seems to be a good supply. I've had great luck with the Suntour freewheels. Other then needing a less then superior 2 or 4 notch removal tool, I find them to be very reliable.

If you have to replace the a Suntour freewheel and maintain your current 6 speed indexing system, you need to first determine if it is an "Ultra" (narrow spaced cogs to replace a 5 speed freewheel) or a "standard" spaced freewheel. Generally speaking for single bikes, "Ultras" were used on 120mm spaced dropouts and "standards" on 126mm spaced dropouts. I'm not certain what the equivalent is on an older tandem.

I hope this is helpful. Best of luck on your decision. What a great way to let your wife enjoy the thrill of bike riding!