u/fooferdoggie

We did this ride the top were it starts zigzagging was from 8 to 18% grade about 1.5 miles and 800 feet of elevation. we were on our bosch powered tandem it is about 450# with both of us on it. great view too. but man coming down I think was more work. even though its in the rich part of town the roads were not super smooth and the switchbacks and steepness I was working hard to keep the speed down and doing bad spots. its hard to stop such a bike on 14% or more grades. even with shimano xt 4 piston calipers and 203mm rotors. trying to keep the brakes from overheating was hard.

I think the climb averaged 8 to 10% with steeper sections up to 18% for a rich area of town. The roads are a bit rough. Not sure if it was harder going up or coming down. There were no sections we could coast for more than 10 seconds or so, especially with the road conditions and the turns. It’s hard to stop a 450# tandem on a 14# or more grade. We named the bike the Beast, and doing that downhill it felt like taming a beast. 

You too can have this beauty

If you have squeaky brakes or you change pad brands or the rotors get dirt and alcohol won’t clean them, I found a really easy way to refresh them without the hassle of using sandpaper on the rotors and pads. 

 Use Bar Keepers Friend, but I am sure Comet or such will work well too. Just get a scrubby wet and put a bunch on it, pinch the rotor and scrub. It only takes a minute to really clean them well. If the pads need cleaned, just make sure you have it all over the rotor and roll the bike with the brakes lightly on, and it will scrub pads too, then just rinse with water. You do not need to take the wheels off either. You will need to bed the pads in again if you do this.

   I also got tired of the bent cotter pin pad retention when a brand of pads I got did not come with an extra pin. So I bought Clovis pins and R clips, and now I can remove the pads with my hand. 

ole Clevis Pins - 3mm X 30mm

1.2mm R Shaped Clips