Bike Check: Lettuce-San’s Suntour Tandem
Feeling extra in sync with your bestie recently and wondering how it would feel to blast on a gorgeous track bike but… together. Don’t worry, the Shuhari collection has what you need…
Track tandems! not Many of them, and each one, full of quirks that make them truly unique. And this example in particular is by Suntour (Yes they made frames) and dates back to the late '80s.
Built for the 4000m pursuit, this bike has been out of use for a while, and we had to rebuild it specifically for this shoot. and evenif we were unable to find three chainrings of the same size, we still built the bike to showcase some of the intriguing features you'll find on that build… And also have a bit of fun!
Let's start with these two extra tubes going all the way from the head tube to the dropouts. Why? Well, when you know, two massive sprinters are giving it their all, you try to get every bit of rigidity you can.
And you’re going to see that "stiffness" will be the key word here, and for that reason, it is usually "bigger is better" that rules the construction of a sprint tandem. So although it is from the late 80s, this Suntour tandem is constructed with an oversized head tube... but with a one-inch quill stem. You can’t have it all I guess. And if you look at the fork, the traditional double plate crown has been updated with a third plate, because again… the more, the better.
More interesting bits from front to back: The eccentric bottom bracket sets proper tension between the cranks. Both of them linked by this oversized bottom tube for maximum rigidity. Lastly, the curved seat tube (all the way at the back) reduces wheelbase without bringing riders too close from each-other.
Detailed Parts List
Frameset
Suntour Tandem
Chainring and Cog Mighty Competition 47T, 17T Cog
Crank Superb Pro Track
Seatpost and Saddle
Suntour Superbe Pro, Kashimax FG-4P
Stem and Handlebar
Nitto NJ Pro stem , Nitto B123
Wheels Araya Aero 4 laced to Suntour Hub Font, Sugino 75 Tyranno Rear
You’ll also notice the two massive rear dropouts, that for some reason, are in a 130 mm spacing configuration. As a result, this rear Sugino 75 aluminum disk has some custom spacers bolted to it, to fit properly. Both of the handles are traditional Keirin style dropbars by Nitto, and the saddles are of course Kashimax in true Japanese Fashion.
As I said earlier, it’s yet another bike filled with quirks and other oddities, making more or lens sense. But isn’t why we love that kind of stuff?
City shredding together?
🎞: Kodak Gold 200
📷: Nikon F100
📍: Okinawa
