OK, ordering the bike, now the odds & ends
 

Thanks to all on recommendations. We decided on the DaVinci Joint Venture. Now, I've got some decisions to make;

First, grupo. Shimano (DuraAce I think) or Campy/Sram. On the Davinci, Campy constitutes to four on the front and nine on the back. Shimano uses a three ring front so, I have nine less gears. I'm used to Shimano but had a Chorus set up a few years ago on my Merlin.

Next, wheel. Standard wheel set up with White hubs or a real nice Rolf Vectra Pros for an extra 650?

Brakes, since I'm a slow descender, I think disk (front and back) are the way to go but I may be forced to go with a V on the front if I want the Rolf's. Not sure about that. I've had Rolf's before and they are bullet proof from what I remember. No off roading incidentally.

Again, thanks for all the suggestions.

Stick with the Campy... every DaVinci I have seen uses it. So I think that is the most "tried and true" setup for that drivetrain.

Wheels. I have the standard DaVinci/White wheelset on my old Santana. It is a good, tough, not too heavy wheelset. I liked them, they felt very surefooted in the corners. They are not as fast/light as the Rolfs, but not way off the mark either.

Brakes, rear disc alone works fine. F&R setup will work too... depends on what fork they give you stock also.

Thanks. Wound Up fork.

Dan,
First, congratulations!

I really like the Campy on our DaVinci. I do sometimes blow the 36 to 12 downshift up front, but I can flick my right thumb and upshift 3-4 cogs. I love the RD shifting. I don't know the chainring sizes on the Shimano setup, but I would think the decrease in range might be more significant than the fewer gears. That having been said I switch to the 12-27 just so I could have closer spacing. Wouldn't want to give this up on account of having a triple up front.

Regarding brakes: We're a relatively heavy (340 lbs?) team and the rear disc setup seems to work very well. I would have said I was a slow descender, but your perspective will change dramatically on a tandem (mine did). Darn things are so stable. Others wilth extensive experience will weigh in, but as long as you don't use the disc as a drag brake I would think you'd be fine with just a rear disc.
Wheels: I'm sure the Rolf's are stout. Just keep in mind that you can't (at least I can't) bunny-hop a tandem and they are not as last-second maneuverable. You will hit potholes. The DaVinci wheels have proven to be very stout. I believe they make these wheels in 36 spoke which you might consider if you're not doing loaded touring. I could see getting lighter/more aero wheels just for events so my team's carcasses can go .1 mph faster.

I sense a bit a geek in you Dan? We're running a Garmin 705/305 setup front/rear. Works very well and I can tell if my stoker stops pedaling. Now if I could only read her heartrate.

We've also adapted the Interphone wireless intercom per Tandemgeek's instructions (I think). My high frequency hearing stinks and with this setup we barely have to whisper to communicate. Batteries are internal, but last about 5 hours and work on singles (450 ft. range). Also, I can hear my stoker breathing - keeping her honest as it were.

There can't be too many DaVincis on the road!

My thoughts are campy shifters with Shimano drive train.
Campy shifters are less expensive than Shimano and lighter and can be repaired.
Shimano drive train is less expensive than campy and works well.

I would go with White hubs and if you want to splurge a little Sapim CX-Ray spokes.
It will be more reliable than the Rolfs and probably just as light.
You could use Velocity Fusion or Kinlin XR-270 rims.

I am a fan of the Avid disc brakes but they are tedious to put the wheel on the bike. If you often remove the front wheel to haul your tandem a front disc will be more difficult to put on the bike than with a V brake.

Sheldon

da vinci specs
 

Dan
We bought our Joint Venture last December.
Shortly before we got the bike I had two shimano brifters fail. I was ready for a change and went with Campy. Plus, I like having the 4 rings up front. I am having a bit of a learning curve with the campy front shifting not being indexed but I am smoothing out each time we ride.
Woundup fork.
Bryon suggested a V brake up front and disk in back. That V brake with the booster brace will stop you right now!! V in front and disk in back make a good combination.
We have the standard da vinci wheels with white hubs. Those hubs are a work of art.
We are about a 300 lb team.
We love our DaVinci.
Eric

Had to ditch D/A STI after 10,500 miles. Not repairable.
Campy Ergos are repairable.

I would stick with Campy all around. Sram doesn't come in a triple and only 10 speed rear. With campy you can do multi-shifts in each direction on the rear. The front does take getting used to. You have to completely unload the drivetrain to shift cleanly....which means telling the stoker to stop pedaling. The first few times out I would overshift past a "ring."
In hilly areas, you need the range. We were topped out in the "60."

We have the steel fork with V-brakes. I thought about getting a carbon fork but with the 28mm tires, it's pretty smooth. I might add some gel tape to dampen it more if I think it's needed. Carbon would save weight.

One other thing is paint. Ours has a really cool paint job, pretty similar to:
http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/...w-part-1/84868

Stinkin' DaVincis are breeding like roaches:thumb:

We saw a blue Grand Junction last weekend on A1A near Ft Lauderdale.

So this is possible.

PK

Interesting, as I find exactly the opposite on our Co-Mo.

Can I ask why the disc is more difficult?

PK

I'm from SF Bay Area but I'm originally from South Florida. I visited my dad a couple weeks ago (he lives in Pembroke Pines) and I rented a bike and rode from Ft. Lauderdale A1A up to Delray Beach and back. Hot, hot, hot but it was a great ride! I'd love to ride the tandem to the Keys some time.

PMK wrote: Can I ask why the disc is more difficult?

Just the close tolerances of the pad to the rotor.

Sheldon