Anyone know anything about tandem bicycles?

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I am in the market for one, but cannot afford the starting price of $2000 for the high end bikes. Tandems start at around $250 with shipping on e-bay, but I wonder if they are just cheap junk. Anyone know about the lower end tandems? This one has caught my attention, but I can't tell much about it from the ad.http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160130818002&ssPageName=ADME:B:WNARL:US:12
 
Well the link did not work, but the bike has about everything I want except chain guards and fenders. I guess they are no longer popular.
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Short answer: Quality tandems are very expensive. If you can't afford one, it is better & safer to stick with 2 traditional bikes.

You're right about Sheldon Brown's site. He has been my go-to guy for years for hard to find info, and obsolete parts. He sells brand new equipment for old bikes that you will find NOWHERE else........well, maybe eBay, but that's it.
 
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Your link does not bring up any auction. I see the one I was interested in was closed early due to an error in the listing.




The link works for me. I see a "beach cruiser tandem bike 26" comfort road bicycle."

For that price you will get the cheapest components and a low quality frame. Decent bicycles simply aren't inexpensive these days. Before you buy some bike on ebay, go to a bike shop and look around what is available.

I'm sure a decent entry level tandem costs considerably more than a decent entry level road bike (>$400). Figure a few grand. Try finding a used tandem!
 
Quote:


Short answer: Quality tandems are very expensive. If you can't afford one, it is better & safer to stick with 2 traditional bikes.

You're right about Sheldon Brown's site. He has been my go-to guy for years for hard to find info, and obsolete parts. He sells brand new equipment for old bikes that you will find NOWHERE else........well, maybe eBay, but that's it.




Here is a site that I read to learn about modern tandems. http://www.blayleys.com/index.htm

Back in the 60's, ( I was a kid back them) my aunt and uncle had a tandem. Very simple with no gears, and only a coaster brake. Well, maybe it had a front brake too, I don't recall. My cousins and I rode that bike all over Osceola, Indiana that summer with no problems. I see there are a few of those relics on e-bay. My wife and I both have bicycles, but she has a serious fear of gravel roads, which we have a plenty in our area. I grew up riding on gravel roads since we live on gravel roads, I had no choice. We now walk for exercise, but I would like to tandem bike. I just don't think riding separate bicycles will work out. We did it years ago for a short time, but since her accident at age 17, she has not been able to enjoy bicycling. I think with a tandem that could be changed as she very much enjoyed traveling the country on the back of our Gold Wing Aspencade motorcycle back in the 80's, before children came along. We have a local Schwinn bicycle shop here, but everything in there is very high end. ($$$$$$$) You can get a very nice bike for $500 to $2000 in that store. My son bought a brand X bike for less than $125.00 with a suspension, derailer gears and front and rear brakes. It served him very well for several years, even though it would be called "cheap junk" by the high end users and salesmen. I don't need a high end tandem just for my wife and I to pedal up and down our county roads. However, if you can give me more specifics about the safety comment, I will certainly listen. Thanks.
 
My safety cooment is in reference to the quality of materials & the attention to detail in the welds on the frames of cheap Chinese tandem bikes. I would never, never, not ever trust a tandem bicycle frame that came from a Chinese factory. OTOH, in my experience, frames from Taiwan, sold in the USA by recognizeable name brands bike makers, are generally of acceptable quality & workmanship.
 
Thanks very much for the reply. The bike I was looking at on e-bay is made by Kent, and I believe they use frames made in China. I'll pass on that one and keep on looking.
 
Follow-up information. Went to the local Schwinn bike shop last night. A good quality tandem can be bought new for $650-$850. And this is with a suspension front fork, suspension seat posts, and an aluminum frame. The $850 model, a Schwinn that is only available occationally, has disc brakes. I had no idea disc brakes were available on any bicycle! One more point: when I asked him to compare good frames to chinese made frames, he said every bike frame in this shop except one was made in China. This is a Schwinn dealer that sells at least one other brand, but no cheap stuff. As Gomer said, "surprise surprise surprise!"
 
When you say "Chinese made", you have to differentiate between the "mainland" bikes and the Taiwan made bikes.
Taiwan makes some excellent frames. Schwinn, Specialized and Giant (which owns the factory) all have used many of these frames.
I had an 87 Schwinn Sierra and that frame was obviously made on the same assembly line as my 86 RockHopper. Weld quality on the Schwinn was rougher. Probably a "Monday" bike.
Not to say ALL Taiwan frames are excellent. I'm sure there is some junk out there too.
 
All of the Specialized and Giant bikes I have and have ridden have held up well. You get what you pay for.

To the OP:

Disc brakes are almost becoming the norm for offroad and on road touring bikes (like the tandem). This allows for better braking in nasty conditions as the braking surface is not in direct contact with the trail/road surface. Disc brakes also allow for the use of disc specific rims and tubeless tires/rims as they remove the braking surface normally required for rim brakes. Too much info, I know.

Don't cheap out on the frame material. You can always upgrade components but that is usually more expensive than just getting a better spec'd bike to begin with. I got to see ALOT of different tandem set-ups last week. They run from your basic steel frames to your high end carbon fiber. Some were one piece and others were able to be broken down / folded for ease of transportation. If you get one, and plan to tour with it and/or patricipate in out of town events, you will have to transport it. That means a specialized rack system. Good luck!
 
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