Django/ Hepcat?

[Stratrider]

Why so little discussion on the Django/Hepcat? These bikes look sweet! What's the word on
these swb's?

Jim Reilly Reading, PA

 

[Bentbiker]

great, quality frames. Nice fast bikes. Seat back is a little short IMO. the new django color is
kind of funky looking. Burley has had some issues with seat slippage, which they may have a
solution for.

stratrider wrote:
> Why so little discussion on the Django/Hepcat? These bikes look sweet! What's the word on
> these swb's?
>
> Jim Reilly Reading, PA

 

[Derek Swift]

> Why so little discussion on the Django/Hepcat? These bikes look sweet! What's the word on
> these swb's?

I would buy the Django and upgrade the components as you see fit. The color is no issue because it
can be ordered in any color Burley has(see Burley's website for more info).

The Hepcat is nice but not that much nicer in price. I have a Canto which is a convertible wheelbase
(admittedly, I like the SWB for most applications). I could have bought the Taiko. But I upgraded
the components instead and considering tax and everything, I saved $200.

Derek

 

[Seth Jayson]

I tried these when shopping my first bike, and wasn't a big fan, at least not at the price
and weight.

Seat felt squishy, while pedaling. i didn't anticipate wanting leather touching me while riding
in the summer. Handling didn't feel crisp as I liked. Felt too tillery to me, and I like a bit
o' tiller.

The rear suspended burleys felt like a boat on a smooth set of waves: boing boing boing boing. And I
weight almost zilch.

Finish and workmanship seemed about the prettiest I've seen, though.

But different spokes for different folks.

sj

 

[Thankschub]

Derek Swift <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> > Why so little discussion on the Django/Hepcat? These bikes look sweet! What's the word on these
> > swb's?
>
> I would buy the Django and upgrade the components as you see fit. The color is no issue because it
> can be ordered in any color Burley has(see Burley's website for more info).
>
> The Hepcat is nice but not that much nicer in price. I have a Canto which is a convertible
> wheelbase (admittedly, I like the SWB for most applications). I could have bought the Taiko. But I
> upgraded the components instead and considering tax and everything, I saved $200.
>
> Derek
I have been riding a Django for a year and highly recommend. Steve

 

[Mike S]

I agree with Seth. I found that they offerred nothing more than, and in some ways less than, my
V-Rex. The frame is different looking but I didn't feel the bike was as fine tuned as the V-Rex.
Shifting was a little clunky, handling not as nice, and the seat not as comfortable. And although
the seat was adjustable I thought there would be problems with it being unsupported in a more
extreme riding posture. I concluded that the V-Rex and the Giro offerred more. YMMV.

 

[La]

The seat is designed to absorb shock. There is an option to apply expensive but effective aluminum
supports, they work very well. I've been very happy with my HepCat and bought my wife one. They are
pricey, but they are very well designed and constructed. I have no complaints. My neighbor also has
one. He keeps it pretty stripped down and races it. I add all kinds of extras and take long rides.
If it were to be ripped off I'd buy another one.

Lon HepCat

 

[David Bogie]

I think this is the same range of reactions and opinions that you would get asking about 90% of the
recumbents in the mass marektplace, if you can call our niche such a thing. Some of us like the
Burley bikes, others do not. I enjoyed test riding the Limbo and Django but ended up with a Tour
Easy. The three people I know who have owned Burley recumbents had nothing but problems. Not the
incidental little weirdnesses that we all expect in new bikes; no, disastrous and potentially REALLY
seriously bad frame, swing arm, and seat failures. Could have just been a bad batch.

david, Boise ID

LA <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> The seat is designed to absorb shock. There is an option to apply expensive but effective aluminum
> supports, they work very well. I've been very happy with my HepCat and bought my wife one. They
> are pricey, but they are very well designed and constructed. I have no complaints. My neighbor
> also has one. He keeps it pretty stripped down and races it. I add all kinds of extras and take
> long rides. If it were to be ripped off I'd buy another one.
>
> Lon HepCat

 

[Gene Cosloy]

[email protected] (David Bogie) wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> I think this is the same range of reactions and opinions that you would get asking about 90% of
> the recumbents in the mass marektplace, if you can call our niche such a thing. Some of us like
> the Burley bikes, others do not. I enjoyed test riding the Limbo and Django but ended up with a
> Tour Easy. The three people I know who have owned Burley recumbents had nothing but problems. Not
> the incidental little weirdnesses that we all expect in new bikes; no, disastrous and potentially
> REALLY seriously bad frame, swing arm, and seat failures. Could have just been a bad batch.
>
>
> david, Boise ID
>
>
>
>
> LA <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> > The seat is designed to absorb shock. There is an option to apply expensive but effective
> > aluminum supports, they work very well. I've been very happy with my HepCat and bought my wife
> > one. They are pricey, but they are very well designed and constructed. I have no complaints. My
> > neighbor also has one. He keeps it pretty stripped down and races it. I add all kinds of extras
> > and take long rides. If it were to be ripped off I'd buy another one.
> >
> > Lon HepCat
I own a Burley Taiko which, while technically a LWB recumbent, has the capability to be converted
into a SWB with similar handling characteristics of the Hepcat/Django. My experience has been
wonderful. I judge a bike primarily and foremost on the way it handles, rides and how comfortable is
it for extended rides. While the leather seat took a little while to get accustomed to, I'm now a
fan. It is firm not squishy like the Rans seat. (Have you ever wondered why all serious racing DF
bikes sport firm leather seats and most recumbent riders don't seem to be concerned about the amount
of energy lost through body motion in a soft seat?) The rear stays of the Taiko are assigned to act
as a passive suspension. Initially I thought this was just marketing hype but quickly became
convinced after extende rides on rough roads with 110psi in the tires. I've since added the rear
speed struts which stiffens up the back of the seat considerably but really does not interfere with
the passive suspension at all.

This bike has the best finish of any recumbent I've seen and most of the components work flawlessly.
Seat slippage was initially a problem but now solved with Burley's 2003 aluminum seat sliders.
Shimano brake pads were replaced with Koolstops almost immediately. Shimano pads eat aluminum rims
for breakfast.

I'm looking forward to converting to SWB in the Spring and might even try a more efficient tire than
the stock fat primos. I would buy this bike again. Is it perfect, no. Every bike becomes a
compromise between what you are personally looking for and what the manufacturer is emphasising. I
have owned a Lightning Phantom and currently own a BikeE NX a road and hybrid. So far this is my
favorite bike. Even this very cold N.E. winter where I have had to log too many hours on a fluid
trainer rather than the road, I prefered the Burley.

Gene Cosloy

 

[Seth Jayson]

While the
> leather seat took a little while to get accustomed to, I'm now a fan. It is firm not squishy like
> the Rans seat. (Have you ever wondered why all serious racing DF bikes sport firm leather seats
> and most recumbent riders don't seem to be concerned about the amount of energy lost through body
> motion in a soft seat?)

You're not trying to claim that a soft seat perpendicular to the lines of force when pedaling a
'bent (more or less parallel to the frame) is somehow going to sap power, are you? I think a lot of
folks with a better tuned vocabulary of physics will find fault with that analysis.

God only knows why DF seats are so hard sometimes, but the major loss of pedal power in a 'bent is
not going to be out the bottom of the seat. If there's a loss of power, it's going to be into the
squish of the seat's BACK. Mesh can absorb some of your push, as can, unfortunately, the very flexy
back of those unstayed Burley seats.

Sj

 

[Rod Dabe]

Hello Gene I too own a Taiko and am just tickled with it. I converted it to SWB after riding about
2000 miles last year. I'm loving it even more in SWB. I have been considering switching the brake
pads to KoolStops. Which ones did you go with?

Rod Dabe

 

[Gene Cosloy]

[email protected] (Rod Dabe) wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> Hello Gene I too own a Taiko and am just tickled with it. I converted it to SWB after riding about
> 2000 miles last year. I'm loving it even more in SWB. I have been considering switching the brake
> pads to KoolStops. Which ones did you go with?
>
> Rod Dabe

Hi Rod,

After sanding down the rough surface left by the Shimano pads using wet/dry in dry form only grits
of 200-320-400-600 in that order. I mounted Koolstops thinline (red). After a while I switched to
Koolstop BMX (salmon). The BMX pads are designed to follow the curve of a 20" rim better than the
standard pad which is probably a compromise for diameters between 26" to 700C. I even mounted BMX
style on the rear and they seem to work fine. Front still squeals a bit though. The important point
is that both are very friendly to the rim surface!

As a response to Seth: Yes I agree that the flexing of the mesh back can rob energy expended.
Fortunately the Burley speed struts mitigate this loss while avoiding the all too often
correspondingly harsh ride that bikes with integrated seat stays terminating at the drop outs often
introduce. My experience with this has been with Lightning, Vision and Bachetta, all of which ride
too harshly for my taste. As for your analysis regarding the different postions of the seat to BB
in DF's and recumbents respectively, you're probably right. As a final note, Burley for 2003
updated the seat mesh to a product which feels firmer than the previous mesh. One advantage of the
Burley seat bottom over the Rans type you will have to admit: in a rainstorm the Burley seat
doesn't become a sponge.

Regards, Gene

 

[John W]

> I own a Burley Taiko which, while technically a LWB recumbent, has the capability to be converted
> into a SWB with similar handling characteristics of the Hepcat/Django. My experience has been
> wonderful. I judge a bike primarily and foremost on the way it handles, rides and how comfortable
> is it for extended rides. While the leather seat took a little while to get accustomed to, I'm now
> a fan. It is firm not squishy like the Rans seat. (Have you ever wondered why all serious racing
> DF bikes sport firm leather seats and most recumbent riders don't seem to be concerned about the
> amount of energy lost through body motion in a soft seat?)

How can you even compare a DF seat to a 'bent seat? The reason DF seats are so small and hard is to
reduce chaffing, it has nothing to do with power. The reason we ride bents is because of their
comfortable seats. The bottom of a 'bent seat has nothing to do with power, its the back of the seat
is where your power comes from. This is where power is lost on Burley's from the flexing seat back
because of the lack of struts.

>The rear stays of the Taiko are assigned to act as a passive suspension. Initially I thought this
>was just marketing hype but quickly became convinced after extende rides on rough roads with
>110psi in the tires. I've since added the rear speed struts which stiffens up the back of the seat
>considerably but really does not interfere with the passive suspension at all.

Why should Burley charge extra for seat struts when they come standard with all the other 'bents.
Lack of struts has been a cause of seat failures on Burley's.

 

[Seth Jayson]

One advantage of the Burley seat bottom
> over the Rans type you will have to admit: in a rainstorm the Burley seat doesn't become a sponge.

You kidding!? There's nothing more refreshing than a few gallons of water sloshing up the old, well
never mind... Yeah, after a rainstorm, that seat can be a bit of an enema bag...

And the stiffness of those triangulated RANS frames is a lot more that the single-stick Burley's. I
happened to prefer that. But that'd be a matter of taste. At least at my light weight. I don't think
I'd put my Dad (who's shopping for a 'bent, and much bigger than I am) on any of the mono-sticks
I've tried out.

sj

 

[John D. Knezevi]

stratrider wrote:
> Why so little discussion on the Django/Hepcat? These bikes look sweet! What's the word on
> these swb's?
>
> Jim Reilly Reading, PA
I've had a Burley Django since April of 2002. It's been a great bike. I've found it to be a stable
ride with nimble handling. Good braking. And for me, at least, very comfortable. Aside from
numerous short rides, I've ridden it on 3 centuries, including 1 double century over 2 days, and
enjoyed every mile. Well, almost every mile. Cars, dogs, and weather somtimes detract from the
riding experience. I would buy another. The only thing I don't care for is a feature common to
most swb recumbents, different size wheels on the front and back. Means I have to carry two spare
inner tubes.

I've replaced a couple of things. First was the pedals. The original pedals were standard flat caged
pedals. I replaced them with a pair of Shimano pedals, SPD on one side and flat on the other. I
think model number PDM324. The next thing was the rear derailleur. While executing an emergency dog
avoidance maneuver I went down, cracking the SRAM 5.0 derailleur that came with the Django. I was
able to get a good price on an SRAM 9.0 from my lbs, so I upgraded to that. The dog that caused me
to spill was so freaked out by the fall that it ran away.

How's it climb? Well, I'm not a good person to ask. I've never been a good climber, on any bike. But
I get to the top eventually. The Django has been able to climb anything I've wanted to go up. I've
done several significant climbs in Oregon and Washington. The most significant was from the base of
Mt. Hood to Timberline Lodge, a non-stop 4500' elevation gain. I regualarly ride the Django around
the hills of south central New York. We don't have big mountains here, but there are a lot of steep
climbs with vertical gains in the 300 to 500 foot range. I don't ride with a cyclocomputer, so I
can't compare speeds. I quit using a cyclocomputer when I rode a df. I found I was always looking at
my speed. Almost like watching the clock. Now I just ride, and don't worry how fast I'm going. I'll
get there when I get there.

For hydration I attach a Camelback Unbottle 70 to the back of the seat with a couple of clips and a
velcro strap.

I bought the bike at Coventry Cycle Works in Portland, Oregon. They have a large selection of bents
to choose from. RANS, Burley, Easy Racer, Haluzak, Vision, and I think Bacchetta. The staff was
really great to deal with. Knowledgable about bents and friendly. Good people to deal with. I have
no affiliation with Coventry other than being a satisfied custormer.

John Knezevich