New to Bents

DIscuss anything relating to non-standard cycles and their equipment.
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[XAP]Bob
Posts: 19793
Joined: 26 Sep 2008, 4:12pm

Re: New to Bents

Post by [XAP]Bob »

Gee wrote:Cheers everyone, when people talk about spinning a light gear. What does 5hat mean in real terms. I tend to think of anywhere over 90rpm is spinning coming from df. Is that still the same #ort of range?



My average cadence is north of 90rpm, drops to the 70s when I've run out gears at the bottom end, but..

Note -- everyone's biomechanics are slightly different, there is no way MickF and I could possibly ride a conventional tandem, my preferred cadence is 50% higher than his!

On a DF people stand on the pedals and heave the bike from side to side pulling madly on the bars.... don't do that.
Just keep the legs turning over at a comfortable (probably fairly high) cadence and adjust the gearing to suit.

Whilst you *can* push harder on a bent (since you have a seat to brace against) your knees won't thank you for it.
A shortcut has to be a challenge, otherwise it would just be the way. No situation is so dire that panic cannot make it worse.
There are two kinds of people in this world: those can extrapolate from incomplete data.
Stradageek
Posts: 1657
Joined: 17 Jan 2011, 1:07pm

Re: New to Bents

Post by Stradageek »

Gee wrote:Cheers everyone, when people talk about spinning a light gear. What does 5hat mean in real terms. I tend to think of anywhere over 90rpm is spinning coming from df. Is that still the same #ort of range?

Hi again Gee,

I'm afraid I've never measured my cadence but for me it means that you cycle (and especially climb hills) in a lower gear than you would on a DF. A recumbent's transmission is longer than a DF's so there is always a bit of scope for frame/boom flex when pushing hard. Spinning faster largely eliminates these losses. The difference for me is that whereas on a DF my cadence would slow when going from flat to uphill on a recumbent it stays the same or even increases.

And no, I haven't actually ridden a Giro20 but Bacchetta have a solid reputation throughout the range. Once you have your recumbent legs and a bit more experience, you'll know what, if anything, to buy next and/or add to the stable. I've only ever traded in one recumbent (my first KS2 kit bike) all the other I've kept (4 and counting). The bonus being that recumbents hold their value, so resale would not be an issue.

Enjoy,

Cheers Stradageek
hercule
Posts: 1156
Joined: 5 Feb 2011, 5:18pm

Re: New to Bents

Post by hercule »

Once you get more familiar you might want to investigate shorter cranks... not much of a power loss on a recumbent IMHO as you can’t really muscle your way up hills. My average cadence went from 90 to just over 100 rpm when I moved over to 150mm cranks, now all my bents have them (if you get into recumbents then you will have more than one! :lol: )
Gee
Posts: 102
Joined: 24 Mar 2021, 10:11pm

Re: New to Bents

Post by Gee »

hercule wrote:Once you get more familiar you might want to investigate shorter cranks... not much of a power loss on a recumbent IMHO as you can’t really muscle your way up hills. My average cadence went from 90 to just over 100 rpm when I moved over to 150mm cranks, now all my bents have them (if you get into recumbents then you will have more than one! :lol: )


I’m sure bents are the future for me. So comfortable and fun.

Would like a bit more speed though! I think that’s a combination of bike and bent legs. I’m going for a high racer next which I can use for distance and audax, then I might get a lowracer, probably a raptobike - just for fun!
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[XAP]Bob
Posts: 19793
Joined: 26 Sep 2008, 4:12pm

Re: New to Bents

Post by [XAP]Bob »

Gee wrote:
hercule wrote:Once you get more familiar you might want to investigate shorter cranks... not much of a power loss on a recumbent IMHO as you can’t really muscle your way up hills. My average cadence went from 90 to just over 100 rpm when I moved over to 150mm cranks, now all my bents have them (if you get into recumbents then you will have more than one! :lol: )


I’m sure bents are the future for me. So comfortable and fun.

Would like a bit more speed though! I think that’s a combination of bike and bent legs. I’m going for a high racer next which I can use for distance and audax, then I might get a lowracer, probably a raptobike - just for fun!


The raptobike was seriously fun...
A shortcut has to be a challenge, otherwise it would just be the way. No situation is so dire that panic cannot make it worse.
There are two kinds of people in this world: those can extrapolate from incomplete data.
Lodge
Posts: 142
Joined: 28 Feb 2016, 8:59pm
Location: Staffordshire Moorlands

Re: New to Bents

Post by Lodge »

I used to have a Bacchetta Giro 26 but built with 24 inch wheels as I'm only 5' 7" and, at 29" inside, a bit short of leg. After about 4000 miles in 2 years I got my daily commute of approx 40 miles & 1000 feet ascent up to 14.3 mph. When I started it was much slower! That said it was still with the same size 35 mm Kojak tyres as when I bought it. I didn't do anything special for speed other than train and, as I got more proficient, recline the seat as flat as possible consistent with maintaining control in traffic.

Note that the frames for the Giro 20 and 26 have different steering head angles. Dropping to 24 inch was OK for me as the angles remained the same. It did quicken the steering as the trail was reduced with the smaller wheels. Luckily I got used to it (no worse than my Brompton). As an experiment I tried a couple of 26 inch wheels in it and it was noticeably more stable. For your Giro 20 I would recommend staying with different wheel sizes to keep the geometry. Perhaps go up to 24 inch at the front but also increase the rear to a 700? Then fit narrower tyres (but not too narrow) recline the seat, ride lots and train.

Attached is a picture of my bike on day 1. It wasn't the lightest of machines having a Rohloff at the rear. I swapped that off before selling it and fitted a 10 speed derailleur from a bike I'd just bought (musical IGH). The derailleur didn't have the range but on test rides I did note the lighter weight helped it climb rather better than I would have thought. I sometimes wish I still had it but moved on to trikes after falling off the Bacchetta. The front wheel suddenly let go on a dry corner I'd been round many times on the way to work. Luckily I only had grazes (10x10 cm on the buttock mind) and nothing broken. At least with a recumbent one doesn't have as far to fall (lowering chance of collar bone fracture) but just slides down the road (it took 1.5 sec to stop according to my Garmin). Should have got Kevlar shorts!

Bacchetta day 1 3229.JPG
Gee
Posts: 102
Joined: 24 Mar 2021, 10:11pm

Re: New to Bents

Post by Gee »

Lodge wrote:I used to have a Bacchetta Giro 26 but built with 24 inch wheels as I'm only 5' 7" and, at 29" inside, a bit short of leg. After about 4000 miles in 2 years I got my daily commute of approx 40 miles & 1000 feet ascent up to 14.3 mph. When I started it was much slower! That said it was still with the same size 35 mm Kojak tyres as when I bought it. I didn't do anything special for speed other than train and, as I got more proficient, recline the seat as flat as possible consistent with maintaining control in traffic.

Note that the frames for the Giro 20 and 26 have different steering head angles. Dropping to 24 inch was OK for me as the angles remained the same. It did quicken the steering as the trail was reduced with the smaller wheels. Luckily I got used to it (no worse than my Brompton). As an experiment I tried a couple of 26 inch wheels in it and it was noticeably more stable. For your Giro 20 I would recommend staying with different wheel sizes to keep the geometry. Perhaps go up to 24 inch at the front but also increase the rear to a 700? Then fit narrower tyres (but not too narrow) recline the seat, ride lots and train.

Attached is a picture of my bike on day 1. It wasn't the lightest of machines having a Rohloff at the rear. I swapped that off before selling it and fitted a 10 speed derailleur from a bike I'd just bought (musical IGH). The derailleur didn't have the range but on test rides I did note the lighter weight helped it climb rather better than I would have thought. I sometimes wish I still had it but moved on to trikes after falling off the Bacchetta. The front wheel suddenly let go on a dry corner I'd been round many times on the way to work. Luckily I only had grazes (10x10 cm on the buttock mind) and nothing broken. At least with a recumbent one doesn't have as far to fall (lowering chance of collar bone fracture) but just slides down the road (it took 1.5 sec to stop according to my Garmin). Should have got Kevlar shorts!

Bacchetta day 1 3229.JPG


Lol, I’ve had a few learners tumbles! I keep telling the wife it’s no worse than rolling out of bed!
Gee
Posts: 102
Joined: 24 Mar 2021, 10:11pm

Re: New to Bents

Post by Gee »

Quick update, had a couple of weeks of bike when other stuff took over, Had 50 miles in today, over 300 now, so much more confident already. Getting faster as well. Think I’m falling in love with 5he Bachetta. I’m planning my next one though😀😀😀. Actually thinking I might go for another Bachetta, either a Giro 26 or a corsa.
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