Touring on a Vision Metro R30

Quoted message said:

I have an opportunity to get a Metro R30. It seems
Vision's and I can't find much on line regarding
these bikes.

I'm casting about for a touring bike (I ride fixed gear
pretty much exclusively) and thought a SWB 'bent may be
an option. Price being an issue, the used market is the
only option.

Any opinions about the suitability for the Metro would be
welcome (or comments in general)....about the bike :-)

I had a chance to purchase a new Vision R-30 Metro for under
$500 on September 4, 1999. The major reason I bought a RANS
Wave instead was that the caliper brakes and ISO 349-mm
front wheel (IIRC) would not allow for the use of wider
tires. This will be an issue for touring, since the
available tires are not the best for rough surfaces and/or
durability.

The second issue is that it may be difficult to mount a rear
pannier rack on the R-30. Vision made an underseat pannier
rack - if the bike does not have one, there may be some NOS
or used ones available, or another underseat rack might be
able to be adapted to the R-30.

The rear suspension means the R-30 is not ideal for pulling
a B.O.B. or other single wheel trailer, but most double
wheel trailers should work fine (though some may require a
special hitch adapter).

The low BB on the R-30 will mean the chance of foot numbness
is low, but the upright seating position may cause recumbent
butt on extended rides. Unfortunately, there is no way to
determine if these are issues in advance.

There are other bikes that can be found used for around $500
or so that would work well for touring. For riders under
about 5'10" (or slightly taller with short legs) the RANS
Tailwind would be a good choice, while the RANS Rocket would
work well for riders in the 5'6" to 6'2" range. Both these
bikes would need lower than stock gearing for touring in
hilly terrain, and both will benefit from the use of an
underseat pannier rack.

Another bike that can often be found used for not too much
money is the Vision R-40. The 1999 and later models would be
preferred, as they have a longer wheelbase and better weight
distribution (and better components) that makes the handling
much less twitchy than the 1998 and earlier models.

There are other very good touring bikes out there than can
be found used, such as the Easy Racers Tour Easy, RANS
Stratus and V-Rex, and Ryan Vanguard, etc., but these will
typically cost closer to $1000 used if they are in good
condition (the older bikes may be less).

--
Tom Sherman – Quad City Area

"Tom Sherman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I have an opportunity to get a Metro R30. It seems
Vision's and I can't find much on line regarding these
bikes.

I'm casting about for a touring bike (I ride fixed gear
pretty much exclusively) and thought a SWB 'bent may be
an option. Price being an issue, the used market is the
only option.

Any opinions about the suitability for the Metro
would be welcome (or comments in general)....about
the bike :-)

I had a chance to purchase a new Vision R-30 Metro for
under $500 on September 4, 1999. The major reason I bought
a RANS Wave instead was that the caliper brakes and ISO
349-mm front wheel (IIRC) would not allow for the use of
wider tires. This will be an issue for touring, since the
available tires are not the best for rough surfaces and/or
durability.

The second issue is that it may be difficult to mount a
rear pannier rack on the R-30. Vision made an underseat
pannier rack - if the bike does not have one, there may be
some NOS or used ones available, or another underseat rack
might be able to be adapted to the R-30.

The rear suspension means the R-30 is not ideal for
pulling a B.O.B. or other single wheel trailer, but most
double wheel trailers should work fine (though some may
require a special hitch adapter).

The low BB on the R-30 will mean the chance of foot
numbness is low, but the upright seating position may
cause recumbent butt on extended rides. Unfortunately,
there is no way to determine if these are issues in

advance.

Quoted message said:

There are other bikes that can be found used for around
$500 or so that would work well for touring. For riders
under about 5'10" (or slightly taller with short legs) the
RANS Tailwind would be a good choice, while the RANS
Rocket would work well for riders in the 5'6" to 6'2"
range. Both these bikes would need lower than stock
gearing for touring in hilly terrain, and both will
benefit from the use of an underseat pannier rack.

Another bike that can often be found used for not too
much money is the Vision R-40. The 1999 and later models
would be preferred, as they have a longer wheelbase and
better weight distribution (and better components) that
makes the handling much less twitchy than the 1998 and
earlier models.

There are other very good touring bikes out there than can
be found used, such as the Easy Racers Tour Easy, RANS
Stratus and V-Rex, and Ryan Vanguard, etc., but these will
typically cost closer to $1000 used if they are in good
condition (the older bikes may be less).

All very good and sound advice about the Visions and other
suitable reucmbents for touring. An older Vision R-40, if
set up LWB, is also a very good touring recumbent.

It is a constant source of puzzlement to me how Mr. Sherman
can provided such good and sound advice concerning
recumbents, but be completely at sea with respect to
politics. I wonder if different sides of the brain might be
involved for different subject matter. Maybe the left side
is for recumbents and the right side is for politics. In any
event, once you know this about
Mr. Sherman, you can take the one and leave the other.

--
Ed Dolan - Minnesota

Tom Sherman said:

... I had a chance to purchase a new Vision R-30 Metro for
under $500 on September 4, 1999. The major reason I bought
a RANS Wave instead was that the caliper brakes and ISO
349-mm front wheel (IIRC) would not allow for the use of
wider tires. This will be an issue for touring, since the
available tires are not the best for rough surfaces and/or
durability....

It should be pointed out that the ISO 349-mm, ISO 355-mm,
and ISO 451-mm tires will typically only be available at
bicycle shops that stock almost everything or those that
carry recumbents and/or folding bicycles. ISO 622-mm (700C)
and ISO 571-mm (650C) tires will generally only be available
at bicycle shops. However, ISO 305-mm ("12-inch"😉, ISO 406-
mm (BMX) and ISO 559-mm (MTB) tires and Schrader valve tubes
will be available from almost every hardware and discount
store. The tires and tubes may be of low quality compared to
what is available from a bicycle store, but they are
adequate for emergency use.

--
Tom Sherman – Quad City Area