Category:Tandems

This category collects the articles of the section "Articles about Tandem Bicycles" of sheldonbrown.com. The list below follows the overview page; entries that link to sheldonbrown.com have not been mirrored yet. All articles in this category are listed automatically at the bottom of the page.

Tandem Brakes — For those who want to stop, as well as go

How to select and adjust your tandem's braking system(s) for safety even at high speeds.

Tandems — For beginner/intermediate tandemists

There is a good deal of technique required to get the most out of riding a tandem. While anybody who can ride a single bicycle can manage a tandem, there are a few tricks and pitfalls that you should know about.

Tandems and Kids — For parents

Life is not easy for the family with young children that is serious about cycling. There are several awkward years, when the children are to big for baby seats or even trailers, but too little to keep up with the adults on their own bikes. The ownership of a suitable tandem can make all the difference, and allow the family to maintain a continuous cycling tradition.

Fat-Tire Tandems — For potential tandem buyers

The mountain bike has revolutionized the solo bicycle market, but what are the implications of mountain-bike technology for the tandem market? Do mountain tandems make sense, and if so, for whom?

Cheap American Tandems — They have a use!

A cheap American tandem with skinny frame tubes and a coaster brake may sometimes be found at a yard sale. With some important equipment upgrades, it can work well for an adult riding with a child stoker or smaller adult.

Adjusting Synch Chains — For home and shop mechanics

The synchronizing chain on a tandem is usually adjusted by an eccentric-mounted bottom bracket at one end or the other. When you service a tandem, or, especially, when you set up a new one, you may notice that the tension on the synchronizing chain varies as the cranks turn. It may be quite tight when the cranks are in one position, and rather droopy after the cranks have rotated a bit. This is not good. Now with more tips on eccentrics and chainwheel selection. (August 8, 1997)

Home Built Tandems — For hard-core tinkerers

This article describes one way of building a tandem by grafting two solos together. The resulting tandem will not have the ride quality nor the reliability of a multi-thousand-dollar tandem from a tandem specialist builder. It will, however, be superior to many "serious" tandems of the 1970's and earlier.

How to Build Up Your Own Tandem Crankset — For soft-core tinkerers

This article describes how to build up a tandem crankset using solo-bike parts. The results can be just as good as with a spacial-order tandem crankset, with a major cost savings.

Idlers — For mid-core tinkerers

A tandem built from solo-bike parts needs an idler sprocket to adjust the cynchronizing chain; a cheap tandem needs a better idler. Here's how to make a an excellent idler from an old freewheel.

Tandem Fiction by Tom Shaddox — Tandem Whimsy

Short fiction and satire by Tom Shaddox, from the The Tandem@Hobbes email list email list.

2 Wheels, 2 Years, & 3 Continents — By Ralph Galen

Former L.A.W. President Ralph Galen loaded his Globetrotter tandem with camping gear where a stoker would normally fit, and spent two years on the road.

Sheldon Brown's Bicycle Glossary — For all cyclists

An encyclopedic listing of bicycle lore, technical data and opinions.

Some Tandem Links: