Dear Matt. I used to ride tandems with blind people out here in the American west, and your email caught my eye. The tandems we used varied allot in in design and value, and we learned some good lessons from this.
You mentioned the original parts are in poor condition, and wonder what to do. There are two things to consider. The first is the tandems experience an enormous amount of stress when they support and move the weight of two adults, and cheap or old bicycle parts often failed. I can't count the number of popped inner tubes, broken spokes, and cracked wheel axels we experienced, but far to many.
The second issue is that I do not think you will find these 1960's bike parts. American Tandem builders gave up on drum brakes a least a decade ago, and other parts have gone out of style and are on longer made. The good news is the the general quality of bike parts and wheels has gone up a great deal the last few years, and these new parts will give you a safer and more satisfying bike in the end. Good luck
Tom Harriman
San Francisco, Ca
>From: Matthew Day <matthew.day@db.com>
>To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
>Subject: [CR]Armstrong Tandem Project Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2006 16:39:51 +0000
>
>Hello there, I have recently joined the CR bike list as I'm looking to
>obtain some advice regarding the renovation of an old Tandem. The make is
>Armstrong, which I believe was an old Birmingham make, and the model is a
>1960 (?) Reynolds 531, Short wheelbase, with drum brakes, cyclo 3 speed
>gears, and lovely ¾ drop handle bars. However the condition of the bike is
>very poor ; Iâm in a quandary whether to completely renovate as original
>(
>including the rusty drum brakes! ), or upgrade using the frame as the
>basis for a modern tandem . I know what my heart says , but it will all
>depend on the support available for such a project . I hope someone can
>start me on the road to understanding a bit more about the options
>available, including hopefully some experience/ knowledge of the Armstrong
>Marque . Many thanks in advance ,
>
>Matt Day
>Clapham
>London
>
>
>---
>
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