Adult and child tandem

grantus

I'm looking for some advice on what would be a good start for an adult and child tandem.

Don't know anything about them so would appreciate some pointers as to what is recommended by others, etc. and prices or if second hand is a good option.

Thanks

redvee

SJSC sell them under his own name of Thorn in a variety of combinations.

pete.whelan

Junior back tandems can be found fairly easily, as families grow up they get moved on, so 2nd hand prices can be quite good. Try the CTC forum for Sale and Wanted sections

NervexProf

grantus wrote:

I'm looking for some advice on what would be a good start for an adult and child tandem.

Don't know anything about them so would appreciate some pointers as to what is recommended by others, etc. and prices or if second hand is a good option.

Thanks[/quote

No better place to seek guidance than here:

http://www.tandem-club.org.uk/_sboard.htm

scapaslow

I've been looking into this recently as well.

I hired a standard sized tandem on holiday and with the aid of a smaller seatpost my 8yr old (who is small for his age) just managed to turn the cranks and we cycled nearly 30 miles.

It was so much better than one of those tag on trailers and surprisingly was pretty good at going up hills. It really travels on the downhills and the flat and was great fun.

I know you can purchase "kiddycranks" which allow smaller children to go a standard tandem. So this might be an another option to a childback which you will grow out of.

I think Dawes do a "duet" which is a childback tandem for around £600. I'm not sure of the quality though.

Another expensive option is where the child pedals in recumbent fashion on the front with the parent behind.

I'm probably going to go for a second hand decent quality tandem and get the kiddycranks if need be. I can't find many tandems for sale up here in Scotland though.

Maybe you could hire one for a try?

Gav2000

I've just bought a Viking Saratoga tandem for £360 (new) which I can ride with my (tall) 7 year old daughter. The frame is 19" front and 17" back, I needed 19" for myself, the seatpost is fully down for my daughter, it could do to be a bit lower but she loves it. For £360 the Viking is a good bike as well, it has an eccentric bottom bracket for front chain adjustment and an aluminium frame that results in a reasonable weight bike.

Gav.

geoff_ss

scapaslow wrote:

I've been looking into this recently as well.

I hired a standard sized tandem on holiday and with the aid of a smaller seatpost my 8yr old (who is small for his age) just managed to turn the cranks and we cycled nearly 30 miles.

It was so much better than one of those tag on trailers and surprisingly was pretty good at going up hills. It really travels on the downhills and the flat and was great fun.

I know you can purchase "kiddycranks" which allow smaller children to go a standard tandem. So this might be an another option to a childback which you will grow out of.

I think Dawes do a "duet" which is a childback tandem for around £600. I'm not sure of the quality though.

Another expensive option is where the child pedals in recumbent fashion on the front with the parent behind.

I'm probably going to go for a second hand decent quality tandem and get the kiddycranks if need be. I can't find many tandems for sale up here in Scotland though.

Maybe you could hire one for a try?

Dawes tandems are generally very good value. They're not the very best but certainly good. I would think with the tendency for frames to have much shorter seat tubes than before it would be easier to accommodate a small stoker on an almost standard machine. The strongest pair in our local tandem group ride a very tatty Dawes tandem to great effect and outclimb couples on tandems costing up to £10k

Geoff

MoCycleBiker

I rode a Tandem with my daughter from the age of twelve but a tandem for a small child can be tricky to find and with the clamp on cranks the child is sitting rather high for climbing on and off.

I have a semi recumbent tandem now (from Performer) and my wife rides in front. These tandems have some popularity with people with small children as the child is in front and visible at all times plus there is no dificulty in adjusting the boom (cutting if necessary) to get the necessary crank position. Also there is a separate freewheel in the stoker drive so the front stoker can rest while the captain (in rear) keeps pedaling.