After the Linear

[deejayen]

It looks good! Hopefully it will sell quickly - if that's what you want!

Your Stratus XP looks a great replacement, though! I'd spoken with Paul about it over the years, and would have been tempted to add it to my recumbent collection, but (thankfully?) it wasn't my size!

 

[grldtnr]

The Linear is finally up for sale on the Bay of e after much heart searching. It's taken a while to find a bike that can replace it after the ups and downs of of other bikes owned and found wanting over recent years. Of course I might have it for a while yet, such are the vagaries of that auction site. I'd hoped to list it during August, but it's September now, and the Christmas stuff is already in some shops! It's always later than you think.

A gratuitous pic of the Linear, just because.
View attachment 785690

Surprised to see that offered on the Bay of E, thought xou'd rather liked it but In truth it's getting on a bit now and parts might be getting scarce, tho most are standard bits.
Something I should have realized when I bought the PG, in truth I haven't no ded with it, but that's more a case I haven't got to grips with riding it. A legacy of riding the trike with built in staberlizers.
It might happen yet, but I reckon it's time to .ove it on,I've yet to solve the front tyre problem , not something I am prepared to fling money at, but for now the outsize 20 " shopper tyre makes it ridable, although I still have the original tyre, which I will put back on ,if I ever move it on.

 

[a.twiddler]

It couldn't be said that I haven't bonded with the Linear. There are a lot of things that I like about it, and there have been no issues getting parts. I've upgraded and modernised it a bit over the years, done a bit of "bodgineering" too. It's expanded my horizons a lot, after finding I could do less and less miles on a conventional bike before the aches and pains set in.

After the high hopes with the Grasshopper, and the eventual disappointment when its expectations didn't work out, I'd have been content to have just the Linear and the Spirit in my garage for the forseeable future, as they complemented each other.

Then along came the Rans Stratus XP. After the cosy familiarity of the Linear it came as a bit of a shock. I'd wondered if it might be just a bit too high end for someone with my modest aspirations, so I put it through the same on and off road local routes as I'd done with the Linear, and it coped very well. Where it stood out was on longer rides, with the first longish ride being 0.05 miles short of 90 miles.

I knew when I bought it that there wouldn't be room in the garage for two LWB bikes long term, and thought long and hard about which one would stay and which would go. I did wonder if the Linear would shrug off this one too. If there was the space, I'd keep them both.

So soon, after five years with the Linear, it'll be just the Rans and the Spirit.

 

[a.twiddler]

So, the deed is done. The nondescript, trusty Linear has gone to a new home in Wales. As I gaze glumly at the empty space in the garage where it once stood I wonder if the shiny Rans will grow to fill its boots. There's something about having a non shiny, weatherbeaten bike that makes you more likely to take it to mucky, unlikely places. When you have a nice bike there's a reluctance to get it dirty. I'm sure I'll overcome that with time, as my relationship with it develops.

At least the Linear has gone to someone who has an idea about bikes, and might make the most of it, maybe even more than I have.

 

[404 Not Found Anywhere]

It’s the end of an era 😢

 

[a.twiddler]

It’s the end of an era 😢

It certainly feels like it at the moment. It felt like part of me went with it. But if not for the Linear, I wouldn't have been motivated to try other recumbents, with their strengths and weaknesses, and learned what works for me or not.

I started riding recumbents in 2020, which was a bit of a magic time for cycling anyway, what with lockdown, permitted exercise and very little traffic. I'm glad I experienced that while getting to grips with the Linear.

 

[recumbentpanda]

You sound sad . . .
. . . This why I can’t let go of my Linear. Something about their weird combination of fragility and ruggedness. Bit like an old Landy. Nothing in recumbent world is even similar unless it be an old Peer Gynt or similar. Mine is still in the shed, will I ever be able to let go . . . ? 😧🥺

 

[a.twiddler]

The Linear's tall shadow lingers as dusk approaches. Complete with sun hat and front panniers.

On my way back on my 100 miler. Wirral Way, homebound. It turned into a memorable night ride, having got lost at the Neston end of the Wirral way. Hard to believe it was only last month, the way the weather's been recently.

I hope to do the whole Wirral circular trail on the Rans before the nights draw in this year, being quite aware that the Dreaded Pericarditis struck me down this time last year, putting an end to all that stuff for a while.

 

[a.twiddler]

It looks good! Hopefully it will sell quickly - if that's what you want!

Your Stratus XP looks a great replacement, though! I'd spoken with Paul about it over the years, and would have been tempted to add it to my recumbent collection, but (thankfully?) it wasn't my size!

Curiously enough, it only took two days to get a decent offer for the Linear, similarly to the Grasshopper. Previously the Dawes Low Rider took months to sell, then the Sinner Comfort trike just a few weeks. Maybe I'm just getting better at promoting my used bikes? Though the chap who bought the Linear said he'd been following some of my stuff on here, so perhaps there was more background to that sale. Anyway, the lady who bought the trike seemed particularly delighted with it. I hope she's still enjoying it. It would be interesting to know how the buyer of the Grasshopper is getting on with it. Sometimes, unless you buy or sell a bike on this forum, they disappear into the wide blue yonder. It's nice to feel that you might have spread a little happiness sometimes.

 

[a.twiddler]

15/10/25
Update on the Rans Stratus XP

About 5 weeks since the Linear went now. When I see a picture of it I still feel a pang. Mainly using the Rans now. Have had a brief ride on the Spirit, and used the Brompton when I took the car for an MOT.

Marathon Greenguard now fitted to the front wheel. 40-559, actually measures 38mm on these rims. Surprisingly, the Continental was more reluctant to come off than the Greenguard was to go on. I’ve read a lot about Marathons of various types being hard to fit but generally they’ve gone on with thumb pressure, as did this one. Perhaps I’ve been lucky so far with rim tolerances. It’s a lot bigger than the Continental that came before. Getting a balance between some mudguard clearance and crank clearance is a fine line. I do not want my manoevreing to be upset by mudguard strike, so I have to accept the compromise of a less than ideal gap between tyre and mudguard.

Rear Pasela measures 42mm, though nominally the same size.

All set to go for a test ride earlier but something came up. I took some photos instead. The mudguard/crank clearance is minimal but there is no contact. The 165mm crank is curious as it looks as if it’s long enough for 170mm but the pedal is actually set in from the end to 165mm. A 170mm crank might be fitted with the pedal in the conventional position without upsetting the mudguard clearance. On a recumbent the pedals are vertical rather than horizontal as on an upright bike so there would be no toe overlap. It works well enough with the 165mm cranks so it will stay that way unless I need to change them.

The Rans Stratus XP leaning on the shed, with the recently painted green garage door in the background. It needs some retouching, as the primer coat has leached through in places. The Rans looks even more of a beast with the 40 -559 on the front, though in reality it’s only the same size as the rear.

 

[a.twiddler]

6/2/26 Front low rider rack for the Rans.

During my time with the Linear I acquired a cheap Blackburn Lowrider front rack with a view to experimenting with making an underseat rack for it. Due to various reasons I didn’t get round to it before I sold the Linear. It would have been an interesting project.

Since I’d managed to buy and adapt an underseat rack for the Rans I couldn’t fight off the temptation to try to fit the Blackburn rack to those outrageously raked forks. After being used to the panniers on the front of the old Linear it did seem sort of naked. I did wonder if the aluminium forks might be a bit fragile for the additional stress but on the other hand I wasn’t planning on transporting any great weights. The other unknown was whether the steering would be OK with the amount of tiller effect it had once I added any extra weights to it. Only one way to find out! If it did work, the rack bag would do for my bike gear, the front panniers for any light shopping, and the Arkel underseat panniers would be easy to snap on and off as required for any bulky loads or for longer trips. That was the theory, anyway.

At first glance I thought I’d need to make some aluminium brackets to level out the pannier frames but I’d have preferred not to make up extra bits if possible -more things to vibrate loose. I offered up the existing parts, turned some of them round, and got them to fit in place. It was a tight fit to get the wheel quick release to close without interfering with the rack but it was just possible to do it with it closed neatly. I would probably have to take the LH pannier off to be able to open the quick release in the event of a puncture but the main thing is that it closes securely.

The low rider frame fits securely although has a rearward lean. With the panniers on, there is still a lean but it seems to flow with the rake of the forks. Steady rain today so I haven’t had a chance to get a feel for it. I think I can live with the look of it as long as the steering is OK.

Photos at night in the rain don't make for the sharpest of images.
Hoping for a dry spell tomorrow to give it a blast.

 

[a.twiddler]

28/7/26.
Front panniers. Having proved the concept, and with the front bags now having migrated to the back, it took a long night ride on the way back from the Wirral Way ride to expose the major flaw. The front light has its best possible location on a bracket ahead of the voluminous cables at the front of the bike. The Blackburn pannier rack has its bracing stay slap bang in the middle of the light beam, or slightly below. The light bracket is attached to the frame, while the pannier frame moves with the steering. Thus a large distracting shadow appears in the headlight beam, moving around with the steering. The light could be swung upwards a little, but the shadow would still be there. The front rack on the Linear had a home made brace, but was on a 20” wheel with the light fixed to the raised accessory bar which moved with the steering, hence no discernible effect. The Rans front wheel is disproportionately huge in comparison, with the standard Blackburn fittings.

As I have the under seat rack, I had no qualms in removing the front low rider last night. It came off easily. The large front wheel now leads in solitary splendour which I suppose is the way it ought to be as it is a major feature of the Rans Stratus XP. The Linear was a bike with its own character, as is the Rans. The rack experiment was interesting but ultimately unsuccessful My only concern is that I had to trim the sensor for the Velo 7 to accommodate the clamps when originally fitting it. It may be OK, a test ride is needed, but I can beef it up if necessary.

Wheel sensor seems OK after a short test run.

Back to the original appearance

 

[a.twiddler]

10/9/95
After the Linear.

A footnote to this thread

It’s a year and a day since the Linear departed on the new owner’s car roof and I wonder if he has had such a joyful and revelatory first year with it as I did. Just seeing a picture of it still gives me a pang.

I still miss that old bike, unlike the other four I’ve owned and sold recently -Dawes Lowrider, Sinner Comfort, Grasshopper, Revolution Country Explorer tourer (miss that a bit as it was good value for money and I did a lot of rides on it, my last diamond frame bike.)

Had things been different would I still have been pondering a replacement by now? I’d probably have replaced the rear brake with another Big Dog or equivalent as the pivots were getting worn, maybe have uprated the gear and brake cables, but essentially I wouldn’t have changed it much.

As I rescued it from hibernation in the previous owner’s barn for about 10 years and got a good 5+ years’ use from it would be good to think that the current owner might be using it as it was, better still to have done some improvements as you might with a new-to-you bike. Would be sad if it was just gathering dust somewhere. Not everybody takes to to recumbents, after all.

No point wondering, not my responsibility any more. No doubt it would feel very unfamiliar after the miles I’ve done and the places I’ve been to on the Rans in the last 18 months, and that is accumulating its own history now.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

10/9/95
After the Linear.

Why 1995 in the date?

 

[a.twiddler]

Why 1995 in the date?

Finger trouble. Poor editing. Losing my marbles. A glitch in the flux capacitor. A senior moment. Take your pick. Amended now!