I just purchased my 2005 Burley Django and thought I'd share a few
initial thoughts for other potential buyers. Firstly, this is my first
bicycle in maybe fifteen years -- and my first recumbent at that!
Looks-wise, this is a classy bicycle, and it garnered many stares on
the way out of the bicycle shop. My paint job is "black amber".
Indoors, it looks black to me. I didn't understand the significance of
the naming convention until I took it out until the sunlight. It's got
that retro glitter-paint-thing going on. Sometimes it looks purplish,
and sometimes it looks greenish. Freaky, in a cool kinda way.
Being used to a conventional bicycle, riding kick-back style is
definitely a change. The bike is very wobbly starting out, but this is
no doubt partially attributed to my re-familiarizing myself with
bicycling skills in general. It took about fifteen minutes of
stop-and-go before I was on my way. The disc brakes are really nice.
The Winzip on front has the better stopping power, and the disc out
back is probably more for slowing down. I'm still getting used to the
twist shifter. Sometimes if I tug on the bar end the wrong way, I will
accidentally change gear.
A bit about the seat: very comfortable. Part of what has discouraged
me from getting back on a bike all these years was the soreness after a
long rides. The mesh seat is a nice change, although I wonder if a
headrest would improve things. The seat -- while adjustable -- is
really not intended for frequent adjustments. In truth, I spent a
couple of hours wrestling with the bushings that rest on the rail. The
trouble with this design is that the bushings -- one placed in each
bottom corner of the seat's bracket -- are all loose. You have to
position them just right on the rails so that when you place the seat
over them, the holes must line up to push the locking pins through.
This is truly a test of one's patience, and I must admit that I found
myself close to bawling like a five-year-old from the sheer frustration
of it. But I did get the seat adjusted to my liking, and if it still
isn't right then, darn it, I'll get used to it anyway.
A bit about the steering column: I have mixed feeling about this. This
"open cockpit" design is nice because you can lift the column to get
into the bicycle and drop it back down. I find that when dropped down,
the steering is way to close to my body -- inches from my girthy
abdomen in fact -- to properly steer the bicycle. So far, the only way
I have been able to operate the bicycle is by pushing it all the way up
to its farthest extent (which is adjustable) and steering that way.
Now I know what is meant when you are "gophering" on your recumbent.
That's all I have for now. I hope this was helpful, if not amusing, to
read.
Happy Trails.