Note that Jandd makes panniers specifically desined for grocery bags:
If you don’t mind Royal Blue, you can get them cheaper:
I have Jandd economy panniers, and am satisfied with thier quality. (used them to commute to work, and on a ~200 mile supported multi-day bike tour)
Brian
Check out the xtracycle. Looks pretty cool.
Do you know if shops make more money off of new bike sales, accessory/parts sales, or repair work? Should I feel guilty bringing bikes to a shop for repairs but never buying new bikes from them? (I only do it because no local shop sells the kinds of bikes I want.)
My SO and I, both experienced cyclists, are dabbling in the recumbent tandem world. Before our first metric century, I was convinced we would have one of the fastest times - at least faster than anything I had ever done on an upright bike but it was a significantly slower time. Would you think the slower time is because of our combined weight (plus the tandem being heavier than a single bike) or could it be less than optimal use of our stroke power since we have a tandem with independent pedaling? Do you think recumbent vs. upright is a factor?
I worked under the biggest wheel building nazi you can imagine and I never heard him specify. We always did pulling spokes head out, though, so I guess that’s your answer. Same story for the best wheel builder I know (built for pros before all the pre-built wheels).
Yeah, if you’re the kind of guy who actually believes it when you say, “If it’s not from Italy, it’s crap.” Other than that, you’re free to change patterns.
Hangs, of course.
You obviously forgot the Campy corkscrew!
When I build a wheel, I install all of the pulling spokes on both flanges first and then twist the hub in the driving direction to set those spokes in the correct orientation. Then I put in and lace the remaining spokes. Having the second set of spokes head in makes lacing much easier as you don’t have to work the spoke around the spokes installed on the opposite flange. Maybe that doesn’t make sense in writing, but do it once the ‘wrong’ way and you’ll see what I’m talking about.
So another vote for pulling spokes head out, for building ease.
Sounds like the exact same pattern that I learned. I was just too lazy to type the whole thing out!
As far as SRAM Force - the only thing you need to know is that it is MORE EXPENSIVE THAN RECORD!!!
I mean, come on, it can’t be that good! Especially first generation.
I have met one guy who has it and he says that he likes it, but that doesn’t count for much.
Despite its sexy looks, the campy corkscrew is actually pretty lousy at getting corks out of bottles. If you really want the sweetest bike tool around, I recommend the Park TP-2.
If I had walked into your bike shop and asked for a sturdy utiltarian bicycle and you pointed to a mountain bike I would have walked out.
For you, a recreational mountain bike with slick tires would be best. You will get stability and the durability of a mountain bike plus the low gearings. Look for something like a Trek 4300 / 4500, a Giant Boulder / Boulder SE, or a Specialized Hardrock Sport. They should be around your price range. You can also fit a bike rack on these bikes to carry what you need.
If after trying out the mountain bikes and you find that you can get a comfortable position, you could try out the hybrid/comfort bikes like the Giant Cypress or the Giant Sedona. They are also in your price range and are quite similar to mountain bikes except they can give you a more upright position.
You didn’t specify it had to be a utilitarian bicycle. You said that you wanted a bicycle that is able to haul two full bags of groceries. I gave you a solution that would meet your requirements without costing a great deal. You will find that you have more selection in hardtail mountain bikes than utilitarian bicycles because they are more common. What aspect of a mountain bike over a utilitarian bike turns you off?
If you wanted the bike to have a basket attached to the front of the it, you will get poor handling when you load it with two bags of groceries.
I have a custom built hybrid bike, 58cm frame, with bar end gear shifts.
My problem is this. When I apply power, say, going up a hill and pulling down hard on the handlebars, the chain slips over the gear teeth. This happens even though the chain seems to be set in place (no gear changing while applying torque).
This is very annoying, because I become tentative in applying force for fear of crushing my nads on the top bar when the chain slips.
Even when I got a new chain and cluster the same thing was happening.
What is going on here?
And thanks for offering your knowledge.
I never got to see the exact finances for the shop I worked at but if I rated those things by mark-up, I would say accessory/part sales are first, repair work second, and new bike sales last. I remember that at my shop, a single bicycle tube was marked-up by 400% compared to what I could buy at an outdoor store. Bottle cages, bottles, lubricants, shoes, all cost way more than what you could buy over the internet so there is some major markup.
Repair work is second because virtually all the cost to the shop in repair work is in the form of labor. Bike shop guys don’t get paid all that much, they do it for the love of the sport.
The markup on new bikes is lower than the other two items above because they form the large majority of the revenue of a bike shop. They can afford to earn less per dollar received from new bike sales.
So, don’t feel guilty. As long you buy the parts to repair your bike at the bike shop you regularly go to, they won’t mind.
What is the best defense against goatheads?
What’s the difference between a city and a road bike?
I ride a bike for about an hour a day through our neighborhood and bike paths about 4-5 times a week in nice weather.
I had a bike I was really happy with that I got at a garage sale but it sort of fell apart. My husband got me a bike for Christmas that I wasn’t exactly thrilled with and returned until I could find another bike. I sort of wanted one of the old fashioned Cruiser type bikes but he said they weren’t really good bikes because they’re either no speeds or 3-speeds. He has a Klein Bike (sp) that he paid too much for and rarely uses. I just wanted something for a little exercise that’s not expensive to tool around the neighborhood.
Any suggestions?
There are a number a factors to consider here to see what is making you slower. The most significant thing that I can see is that you may not have enough hours in the saddle of a recumbent bicycle to be able to generate the same amount of power you would on an upright. Your muscles have to work differently since you are in a prone position and don’t have your body weight helping to drive your legs downward like in an upright. Given enough time, you should be able to generate the same amount of power as on your upright. Your nervous system just needs to adapt to the new position and fire your leg muscles in a different sequence.
The fact that you have a tandem with independent pedaling should be a plus because your SO likely doesn’t have the exact same cadence you do. The independent pedaling will allow both of you to generate lots of power without inhibiting the other.
That being said, does your SO typically ride as fast as you on an upright? Maybe he is slowing you down. 
The other major thing to consider is what type of terrain you are riding on and the weight of your recumbent. If you did your metric century over lots of hills? If so, your tandem recumbent will likely be a disadvantage because the majority of tandems I see are heavier than two light road bikes put together. However, if the ride is flat, you should be flying.
How large (weight) of a rider are you? What kind of components (shifter, chain, sprockets, wheels) do you have? Names of the components could be helpful here. Do you know how to adjust the cable tension on your bike to make it perform clean shifts? Have you crashed the bike before or damaged it? Has this problem always occurred? If you have some pictures of your bike, that would also be helpful in finding the problem.
One thing you could try is to make sure that your rear wheel is properly tightened in the rear dropouts because when you put lots of power into your bike on an uphill, you could be cause your wheel to deflect.
A recumbent tandem with independent pedaling?! Are you going for the most possible variations on the bicycle theme? 
Tandems are faster than upright bikes on flat ground, with no tailwind. If the ride you did had any hills then you pretty much instantly lose your advantage. I’m sure you noticed how slow you have to go up hills on a recumbant. I used to ride in an area also cohabitated with a pack of recumbant riders. They could menacingly chase me down on the flats, but I would more than make up for it as soon as a hill came along - and I’m not a “climber”.
I’m not quite sure if your time was slow in relation to what you thought it would be, or slow compared to other riders - but a tailwind is much more helpful to upright bicycles than to recumbants. Obviously, this is for the same reason that recumbants are faster than upright bikes without wind. So, if 40k out of 60k had a tailwind the advantage goes to the upright bikes.
As for the independent pedaling - that one’s beyond me. Except that any extra friction incurred, in what must be a complex system, is just wasted energy as far as going forward.
All that being said, I’m sure you picked a recumbant tandem with independent pedaling for reasons other than speed - like spending time with your S.O. doing something you both enjoyed. As for me, I just like typing “recumbant tandem with independent pedaling”.
I don’t get what goatheads are. Please explain.
A city bike is built more for comfort, durability, and slow speed handling. On the other hand, a road bike is built for pure speed. It is lighter, more aerodynamic, and has thinner wheels and tires than a typical city bike. You sacrifice some comfort and durability. In general, a city bike will have a more upright position than a road bike. See here and here for examples of city bikes and here ]here for examples of road bikes.
From your description, your husband seems to have a good taste in bicycles. He is the foundation that a bike shop stands on 
For you, since you are a casual rider, a old fashioned style cruiser should be fine. Trek makes a nice range of old fashioned style cruisers, see here. Electra also makes a nice range of cruisers and are popular too.
For one, mountain bikes don’t have an upright riding position which I think of as central to a bicycle useful for general commuting. Nobby tires have more rolling resistance. Granted different tires can be used, but nearly every mountian bike I’ve ever looked at has nobbys. Also, don’t most - if not all mountain bikes have 26" wheels? I want 700mm.
Second, mountain bikes generally lack fenders. Further, they often lack of any way to mount fenders. I’ve seen those plastic add-on jobs that mount to the rear seat-post, but I want full fenders around both tires. The mounting hardware should be integral to the dropouts, the fenders should be included as part of the design, not an after thought.
I want lighting options. Specifically, I want dynamo power! Extra points for hub dynamos. I’ve tried in the past with limited success to mount those cheap tire driven dynamos to mountain bikes. I have come across mountain bike frames that didn’t work as an adequate ground for the dynamo. What do they make these things out of, brass?
I also have strong feelings about internally geard hubs. They are superior to derailuer systems which seem to need constant adjustment and attention (when they work at all). A good internally geared hub should require next to no attention and adjusting it youself isn’t difficult to learn and usually require no specialized tools. Sturmey-Archer rules.
As far as luggage capacity I am aware that handlebar mounted baskets move the center of gravity dangerously closer to the top and fore and a heavy payload would severely affect handling. Panniers are okay but I was thinking more along the lines of this. A trailer, as you suggested, would be interesting as an additional accessory, when you really want to move stuff.
I should have been more specific. Sorry.
