J
Jeremy Parker
Guest
I've long thought about getting a riding-along-the-prom grade tandem
for such things as chauffeuring politicians and bureaucrats around
the bike facilities being done to^H^H for us.
So I sent off for the Tandem offer in the Times.
The bike arrived Wed 19th. It was supposed to go back, to be
exchanged for another one, Fri 21st, but owing to some failure in
communication will now not be picked up until this Wed., 24th.
The problem is that the bracket for the front disc brake is
mislocated. Someone has obviously tried to bodge things to fit by
adding a bunch of washers under the lower mounting bolt to cant the
calipers forward to be roughly at the disc. Unfortunately the
bracket is too far inboard, so the disc can only go inside the
calipers thanks to one of the brake pads mysteriously having gone
missing. There isn't any braking action at all.
I will see how a second bike is. Who knows, it may be just a one-off
problem.
Assuming the second bike doesn't have a problem, it might actually be
worth it. Goodness knows what the frame is made of - the bike weighs
about 46 lb. I would guess it's welded, including that bracket, but
who knows. The frame looks reasonably true, although I haven't given
it a detailed check. The bike is made in Viet Nam. Things must have
changed since those old Peugots hauling ammo down the Ho Chi Minh
Trail
The only parts I recegnise are the rims - Weinmann, and the rear
derailleur Shimano SIS Megarange. It isn't a megarange block. The
largest cog is 28 teeth and the smallest, of 7, is about 14 or 13.
Seat posts, stems and handlebars are steel, pedal cranks Al, 170 mm.
Two questions:
1. I seem to recall that mail-order bikes must come pre-adjusted.
Is that right? Anway, somebody certainly operned up the box, and
somebody certainly did things to the front brake, and then, unless
there was some terrible mistake, somebody presumably decided that
this bike was fit for sale. The back brake and gears are well
adjusted.
2. How much standardisation is there among disc brakes? Is there
just one kind of mounting bracket, good for any kind of brakes, or
man? I seem to be beyond the Sheldon Brown horizon here.
Watch for further bulletins
Jeremy Parker
for such things as chauffeuring politicians and bureaucrats around
the bike facilities being done to^H^H for us.
So I sent off for the Tandem offer in the Times.
The bike arrived Wed 19th. It was supposed to go back, to be
exchanged for another one, Fri 21st, but owing to some failure in
communication will now not be picked up until this Wed., 24th.
The problem is that the bracket for the front disc brake is
mislocated. Someone has obviously tried to bodge things to fit by
adding a bunch of washers under the lower mounting bolt to cant the
calipers forward to be roughly at the disc. Unfortunately the
bracket is too far inboard, so the disc can only go inside the
calipers thanks to one of the brake pads mysteriously having gone
missing. There isn't any braking action at all.
I will see how a second bike is. Who knows, it may be just a one-off
problem.
Assuming the second bike doesn't have a problem, it might actually be
worth it. Goodness knows what the frame is made of - the bike weighs
about 46 lb. I would guess it's welded, including that bracket, but
who knows. The frame looks reasonably true, although I haven't given
it a detailed check. The bike is made in Viet Nam. Things must have
changed since those old Peugots hauling ammo down the Ho Chi Minh
Trail
The only parts I recegnise are the rims - Weinmann, and the rear
derailleur Shimano SIS Megarange. It isn't a megarange block. The
largest cog is 28 teeth and the smallest, of 7, is about 14 or 13.
Seat posts, stems and handlebars are steel, pedal cranks Al, 170 mm.
Two questions:
1. I seem to recall that mail-order bikes must come pre-adjusted.
Is that right? Anway, somebody certainly operned up the box, and
somebody certainly did things to the front brake, and then, unless
there was some terrible mistake, somebody presumably decided that
this bike was fit for sale. The back brake and gears are well
adjusted.
2. How much standardisation is there among disc brakes? Is there
just one kind of mounting bracket, good for any kind of brakes, or
man? I seem to be beyond the Sheldon Brown horizon here.
Watch for further bulletins
Jeremy Parker