Dawes Kickback 2 Tandem 1995

Here's my Dawes Kickback 2. I think it's from 1995 judging from the STX Chromica kit on it. Bought last year on ebay for just over 200 quid.

The frame has a dishless built back end to save the cost of a 145OLN rear hub, built up in Reynolds 531 Tandem. Interestingly it's filled brazed, not welded.

Hubs, Rear mech: STX (Chromica finish, looks quite cool)
Front mech: Exage (I guess Dawes had some old stock!)
Cassette: 11-28 STX (Chromica again)
Chainsets: Thun 28/38/48, 42T timing chain
Brakes: STX cantis now in the toolbox, Maguras replacing them as the cantis were scary bad.
Shifters: 7s gripshift. They'll go I think and I'll put thumbies on.
Wheels: Alesa rims, hugely wide like Sun Rhynos.
Headset: I fitted an old Raceface Real Seal from the toolbox and the original was trashed.

As you can see I've also fitted kiddy cranks which gave a 3rd chain and lots of fun. But it all works now! The bike is about to go in a diet as the handlebars etc are steel.

My 5 year old son now stokes the back.

(and in the front is my 2 year old's bike!)

Loving your tandem Must be a real trust thing once you get some speed up :?: . Did they not have tandem mountain bike race BITD in MBUK?

Oh, it flies downhill!

It's a bit rubbish on singletrack due to its huge wheelbase and near impossibility of hopping the front wheel. There is also a shortage of ground clearance in the middle, not helped by the timing chain being the first thing to hit bottom.

I need to try out a suspension fork on it, although I suspect that it will be a disaster as tandem forks carry a lot of trail to neutralise the steering (so you don't head off into a ditch if the stoker scratches his leg.) It's a real upper body workout to steer with an adult on the back. Racing must have been terrifying.

A repaint is due in the summer when I've finished fiddling with the setup. The paint is really tough but it's blistering underneath. In whole areas the primer seems to have failed and it flakes off leaving bare steel.