VISION R45 RECUMBENT BICYCLE. Under seat stearing (USS). Over seat stearing (OSS) hardware also included. It is in great condition. New stainless steel brake and shifter cables and cable housings were installed when I converted it from OSS to USS. 27 speed. Components: Shimano 105 front crank, click shift Shimano Deore LX shifters, Shimano Deore LX brakes, front Shimano 105 hub with 20" Sun Rim CR16, rear Shimano RX100 hub with 26" Sun Rim M14A racing rim and 26" Primo Racer tire, bar end protectors, extremely comfortable contoured foam seat with Nylon mesh back, water bottle carrier. The person I bought this from believed it to be a late 1990's model. This recumbent is light weight, responsive, and comfortable. The manufacturer went out of business several years ago, but this is still considered to be one of the best recumbents. Many more photos listed below. Click on the photos to enlarge; click on your back button to return to this page. $1000
One size fits most. The crankshaft and 3 chainwheels are mounted on an extendable front tube. It is presently adjusted for a person of average height. There is plenty of room to move the crankshaft and 3 chainwheels backward or forward to accommodate a shorter or taller person. The 2 bolts on the bottom of the main tube clamp onto the extendable front tube.
Now with Shimano 105 pedals. Other images on this page show it with a lesser pedal. I will continue to upgrade this bicycle as opportunity allows. I have ordered a new seat belt for the bicycle. Why a seat belt for a bicycle? Because the brakes work really well. Brake too hard and you may slide forward off the seat.
The seat is adjustable. It may be mounted in 2 different positions along the main tube, providing even more adjustment capability. The seat is mounted with 2 quick release clamps, allowing not only quick adjustment, but also quick removal for transport or storage. There is a water bottle carrier mounted on the back of the seat. The seat may be reclined considerably from the position illustrated........easily using the quick release bolt. The seat is cloth covered contoured foam. The Nylon mesh back provides good ventilation. The comfortable seat and the comfortable sitting position with its great degree of adjustment are one of the primary reasons people choose recumbent bicycles. Think about it: no more neck pain, no more back pain, no more crotch pain. When you step off a recumbent, you can walk as easily as if you just got out of an easy chair. When I dismount an upright bicycle, I am too stiff to walk properly. Another reason people buy recumbents is that they are more efficient. In the seated position with your back supported, with less air resistance, you may ride much more efficiently. You may go farther and faster with less effort. The land speed record for a bicycle is on a recumbent. If the upright bicycle racing organizations were less uptight about the competition, most racing would be done on recumbents and a lot more of the public would be riding recumbents when they saw racers on them. Oh, and then there is the safety issue. Recumbent riders do not have as far to fall! Recumbent riders will break a lot fewer necks and collar bones. I broke my collar bone when I hit an unleashed dog and went flying over the handlebars of an upright bicycle. I hit my head so hard that I am lucky I did not break my neck despite wearing a helmet.
The vertical column and handlebars used in OSS are included. This original steering column is the one to have because of the way it neatly organizes the 4 cables. The column tilts forward for adjustment or storage. An adjustable stop bolt places it in the ideal position for use. Also included are the original brake and shifter cables and cable housings that came with the bicycle OSS system.
The extra long handlebar stem that I added to the front derailleur mast was needed on another bicycle for its intended purpose, so it is not included. You may find another stem for that purpose or you may buy a Volae T-bar light mount made expressly for that purpose. The original OSS handlebars shown here holding light and mirror are included, but the mirror and light are not included. The front mounted Mirror works like the fender mirrors on a 1964 Mercedes coupe that was a favorite car of mine. You barely have to take your eyes off the road to see what is behind you. I was planning to add a 2nd light, a 2nd Mirror, red strobes at the rear, a flag and more. I include this picture of some items that are not included to give you some ideas that you may want to utilize. The Blackburn rack is not included; I wanted to show you that you may mount a rack on the bicycle. Also, this is a good view of the coutoured extremely comfortable foam seat.
The brakes work really well. These are the 1st indexing shifters I have had the pleasure to use. They are also the 1st integrated brakes/shifters I have used. It feels much like when I moved from a stick shift car to an automatic. You sort of wonder what took you so long to switch over.
42 tooth chainring, 144BCD. For 39 years I rode a Raleigh Professional with 53 and 44 tooth chainrings on a Campy Neuvo Record crank. I installed this 42 tooth chainring in place of the 44 tooth and used the 44 tooth as the larger chainring and I was again riding as if I were still a young man. Finally I found a bicycle I liked better than the Raleigh Professional. I sold the Raleigh Professional. The buyer of the Raleigh Professional wanted the 53 and 44 tooth chainrings. So I have this chainring that I have no need for. 42 tooth chainrings to fit a 144 BCD crank are difficult to find. Although Sugino, not Campy, you will not feel any difference. 42 tooth chainrings are so hard to find that there is a bicycle shop that had some custom made. I considered buying theirs, but they did not have theirs anodized. Anodizing is important because it hardens the surface. Anodized aluminum is harder than hardened steel. Aluminum oxide is the term for hardened aluminum; aluminum oxide is used in sandpaper and in grinding wheels. When you have a steel chain riding on your aluminum chainring, you want the chainring anodized. $60.
41 tooth chainring, 144BCD. When I found this 41 tooth chainring I bought it because it is rare and I figured I would need it some day as I age. As mentioned above, I sold the bicycle I was planning to use it on--in this case before I even had a chance to install it. If I were planning a ride in hilly terrain I would have installed it, otherwise I had no plans to install it until I needed it because the 42 tooth chainring was perfect for the terrain I usually ride. It has been slightly used, but not by me. RARE. $100.
"Sports," by Neil Leifer, hardcover, dust jacket, 11X14", color photos, 186 pages, 1992, Mint, $35
"Olympia," by Leni Riefenstahl, documentation for the "Olympia" film with numerous photographs of the olympic games 1936, picture sequence (except pages 11 and 12 of the original edition, omitted for reasons of space) and captions as in the original edition of 1937, hardcover, dust jacket, 286 pages, 1988, B&W photos, 10X12.5", Mint, $50