Tips From Ryan Owners Club

Here are some useful tips from the Ryan Owners Club 

You can see the complete list at Ryan Owners Club Tips. The Ryan Owners Club is a great resource for all Ryan Owners, I still own two Vanguards.

Most of these tips also work just fime for Longbikes Slipstream Owners.

Computers
1. The Cateye Mity 3 computer works very well on a Vanguard. The computer itself can be mounted on the end portion of the handlebars with the pickup wire going back to the rear chainstay. With this arrangement, there is no need to buy the optional “long” wire kit. The Cateye manual states that the distance from the pickup probe to the magnet mounted on the spoke should only be 2-5mm but a distance of 1/2″ will work just as well. – Bob Krzewinski2. I have a Cateye Cordless 2, model CC-CL200 on my Vanguard. The magnet is on the front wheel, and the computer is inserted into the head tube. It works very well, and allows me to see the computer while riding without having to look down at the bars. Previously I had a bar mounted computer with a rear wheel magnet and pickup, and found this to be a bit distracting while riding, to have to look away from the road to see the computer. Also, it was in the way of my hands at times when on the bars.

My Vanguard had a small plastic cap (“ATI”) over the head tube that was easily popped out. I then inserted the computer with the mount and straps hanging down into the head tube. It stays in place simply by way of gravity and the friction of the straps hanging down and spreading against the inside of the head tube. While it generally has stayed in place well while riding, it did bounce out of place when I rode over some railroad tracks, so I need to improve the “mount”. It is a bit far away, but quite visible and readable while riding. Also there are no wires to route or contend with. The magnet is on the front wheel and the pickup on the front fork. I had to roll the bike out to calculate the smaller wheel circumference.

This particular computer is now being replaced by a newer model, and I was able to buy a it on closeout from Performance for about $35 which was about half the original price. It worked so well I picked up a couple more for other bikes in the stable. – Paul McGrath

Computer Mounting
See “Waterbottle Mountings”

Fenders
The Planet Bike recumbent specific fenders work very well on a Vanguard, and probably a Duplex also. They are low in price (around $10 for a front, and $18 for the rear) and fit with a minimum of adjustment. On older Vanguards, the front of the rear fender may have to be attached to the frame with zip-ties as there are no frame fender mounting bolts. – Bob Krzewinski

Kickstands
On a Vanguard, the best working kickstand seems to be a Greenfield chainstay kickstand. These cost about $20 and offer the bike quite a bit of support as well as a fairly upright parking angle. When you mount the chainstay kickstand, slide it as far back as it will go and then the top part of the kickstand will move up against the top chaistay tube. Also, don’t tighten the kickstand down too much as it is cast metal and can crack. Older Vanguards have a fitting welded on the bottom tube that is meant to mount a kickstand but you may find the fitting is not all that strong and the bike may flex quite a bit, maybe eventually leading to the support breaking off. – Bob Krzewinski

Lights
A rather ingenious light mounting was seen on a Longbikes Eliminator that should also work on a Ryan. A person had bought a Minoura bottle cage holder (part #BH-95), inverting it and turning the black mount 90 degrees. They then mounted the two water bottle cage attachments to the two forward bolt holes on the top tube (the aft bolt hole, and a “shared” middle bolt hole can still be used for a water bottle cage). Next they took some 1/2″ PVC pipe (4-1/2″ long – longer than that and you may have heel strike issues) and mounted that in the “band” that the single allen wrench tighten-down fitting. This PVC pipe allowed a space for a computer mount and a light mount on either side of the attachment. Also, to give the PVC pipe ends a little more finished look, you can mount 5/8 nylon hole plugs in the end of the pipe. – Bob Krzewinski

Racks
One problem for Ryans is the need for a rack attachment devise to attach the front of a rack to the bike itself. This requires a piece of metal that is in an ‘S’ shape when looking at the bike from its right side.

To make one of these rack attachment bars, go to a hardware store and buy an aluminum strip that measures around 1/8” x 3/4″. Use a vice to make the bends and then drill holes in the strip to match up the attachment holes on the front of the rack as well as the bolt holes on the rear top tube of the bike. There may be some trial and error in making the attachment but the price of the metal strip is rather cheap. – Bob Krzewinski

Seat Cushions
Some Ryan riders have used the Therm-A-Rest seat cushions on the bikes with a great deal of success. These were even an option from Ryan in the 1990s. The cushion that fits real good is the Therm-A-Rest Camp Cushion/Backrest (8”x16x2”) and costs about $18-20 in most camping stores. Also, in the Hostel Shoppe catalog it looks like they sell this same cushion along with a cover and attachment belt (part #73731). – Bob Krzewinski

S & S Couplings
These work really good, allowing you to split a Duplex into basically two sections. Owners who had a non S & S Duplex who sent it in to be modified report absolutely no difference in bike handling and never a problem with the couplings coming loose. It takes 10 minutes to assemble an S & S Duplex, same amount of time to take apart. – Bob Krzewinski

Transporting
A Ryan Duplex will fit in a Dodge Grand Caravan, fully enclosed. The front wheel will be up by the passenger seat area, but it fits. A person, may, however, want to remove the front pedals off of a Duplex so they are not jabbing the passenger and driver. Also, bungee cords (four) help secure the bike to the floor of the van in back.

A Duplex will also fit in the back of a Dodge longbed Dakota. The front of the bike will need to be attached to a front fork mounting device. The rear wheel can fit on the lowered tailgate. If you have a truck cap, you can lower the window down so it rests on the top of the rear seat, and then use bungee cords to keep the rear cap window from flying up. – Bob Krzewinski

Waterbottle Mountings
While the Vanguard and Duplex normally have one spot on the top tube (three bolt holes) to mount a waterbottle holder, additional waterbottles can be mounted on a number of locations on the bike using the Minoura bottle cage holder (part #BH-95), with the best place being the upper seat frame. – Bob Krzewinski

Water – Camelbacks
Both the Duplex and Vanguard will allow a Camelback water bladder to be mounted right behind the seats. Simply clip the mounting straps around the seat back supports. This is one of my favorites tips and I use it on all of my recumbents.