Wowk

Hi all,

After doing a handful of 4/5/6 day tours here in Australia, I have decided to quit my job and do a 12 month tour starting in London and heading south east towards Turkey starting in March 2014.

As this is my first long tour I am having trouble deciding what bike to take, or even, where I should get my bike. Unfortunately, I don't have the option to take my bike on the flight with me from Sydney to London. I have been doing some research online and have been looking at the range offered by Evans Cycles, unfortunately my budget doesn't extend too high and I have been tossing up between these two Ridgeback tourers:

https://www.evanscycles.com/products/...-bike-ec043421

https://www.evanscycles.com/products/...-bike-ec043419

A decent price difference between the two. Obviously for a longer trip one would choose the voyage 2013, but does anyone see the harm in taking the lower-spec version for a 12 month trip considering my frugality? Alternatively, would anyone not recommend either? think they are too low-spec for such a long tour?

Any suggestions from Londoners of a good touring bike retailer? Or anyone had experience sourcing a good touring bike while in London? I have also looked to Gumtree, but vintage tourers don't cut it for me, unfortunately.

All help would be appreciated, first time on a long tour comes with it many reservations and questions!

Cheers

LeeG

I don't see the bikes providing limitations unless you were heavy wanting to carry lots of weight and you needed larger tires. Otherwise the most important thing isn't the components it's whether the bike has been well assembled and serviced in the first few hundred or so miles. After that you make sure to be on top of rack attachment bolts and wheels (tire pressure, rim true). Get the cheaper bike and make sure your gear is well secured.

What bugs me about a lot of low to mid priced bikes with adjustable cone hubs is that they are often too tight, you shouldn't pick up a brand new wheel of a bike and feel a notchy rough rotation. If I got a new bike and rode it around the block the hubs should be fairly smooth running. No reason to wear out the bearing races prematurely.

the wheels on the two bikes are the same. I'd pay the mechanic to put extra grease in the hubs, adjust them, ride around the block and if they're still adjusted right head off into the sunset.

Cyclebum

As you'll be traveling through Europe, parts should be no problem. Either bike will get you to Istanbul.

Fit is First. Cover that carefully and you'll be fine.

Thought: As touring seems to be your "thing," consider getting a bike with 26" wheels. You can find tires/tubes for 26'ers world wide, and not just in bike shops.

bikemig 

No. 1; go with the 26 inch wheels.

Tourist in MSN

I have never been to UK, I do not know how far SJS is from London. They sell Thorns which are often used for long trips. (I have two Thorns, for a trip like that I would use one of them.) But, they might be above your budget. Also, they would have to build it up for you before you go there to pick it up.

A couple years ago I met a woman biking through my community in the northern middle part of USA. I chatted with her for a bit. She was riding a pretty low level MTB, I was guessing it would cost about $400 to $500 USD if sold here, but it had a brand name I had never heard of. I asked where she got her bike, she said her Roberts was stolen in eastern Europe, she bought this as a replacement.

Thus, she started out her trip with a high end touring machine, but had to replace it with a low level MTB soon after she started out. She then rode that cheap MTB across rest of eastern Europe, all of Asia, around Japan, flew to west coast of North America and was a bit over half way across North America.

She proved you can accomplish a lot on a low level bike. So, I would not worry about a bike that sells for the price range you are looking at. But, you might want to research the durability and reliability of those specific model of STI shifters. I have never used Shimano STI shifters but it is my understanding that they wear out and have to be replaced.

The ones you are looking at use the same 8 speed cassette I use on three of my bikes. There is nothing wrong with an 8 speed cassette. Since I built up those three bikes, I could have used any gearing I wanted but I specifically chose the 11/32 eight speed cassette for touring.

But, you might want 35mm or 37mm tires instead of 32mm. Ask if you can fit these wider tires in that frame with the fenders that it comes with. You could start out with the 32mm and decide later if you want to buy wider ones, but you might want to make sure you have the room for that switch before you buy. While most of your trip will be on good pavement, some of it will not be on good roads.

Wowk

Thanks for the responses everyone, very helpful. Will definitely have to look into my bikes accommodating larger tired widths.

Is the 26" wheel suggestion because 700c are harder to find outside of Europe?

10 Wheels

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kBMGbHanLU

Cyclebum

Yes. Harder to find outside of the developed West. Impossible in much of the world. So I hear. No personal experience.

Re tire width. Shoot for the lightest tires you can manage that still have some puncture protection. Your ride will be more responsive. I run 25's on my touring DF. Not sure why wide tires are considered a necessity for loaded touring, most of which is done on smooth pavement.

fietsbob

Something from Koga's signature program offers a 26" wheel and fitting Tubus Racks Sks mud guards

Im a fan of Rohloff hubs, those are on the build option list too.

You can sort out the build from the component menus, then it's shipped to a Dealer to collect it.

check out the world tour model https://www.koga-signature.com/en/?utm_source=koga.com

MichaelW

In your budget range, Rohloff or custom Miyata is not on the cards.
Check out Edinburgh cycles , another good source of value touring bikes.
Don't forget to bring your own saddle and pedals as well as bike luggage.
I would not be happy taking low end STI controls beyond Istambul. Bar ends are more versatile and durable. At least carry a spare downtube friction lever. There is a lot to be said for using MTB controls on butterfly/trekking bars.

bikemig 

No way I'd do a loaded tour on a 25c. YMMV and obviously does in this case!

Wowk

I find bar end shifters inconvenient, and considering their position, vulnerable to being knocked and damaged, especially during a tour that will include alot of stopping and starting. Are STI shifters more liable to damage on unpaved roads?

Advice noted with downtube shifters, that's a good one. Edinburgh cycles' website is currently down, thanks for that, though.

Got in contact with Evans Cycles regarding wheel size, was told The Ridgeback Voyage 2013 can accommodate 35mm tires, would this be appropriate for unpaved touring, or would something even larger be needed? Would not like to face the prospect of having to find a new bike if i decided to go further than Turkey. That being said, UK retailers don't seem to offer too much in the way of touring bikes in my price range that would withstand both paved and unpaved touring. Unless I am simply looking in the wrong places.

bradtx

Wowk, Of the two bikes you listed, the aluminum Ridgeback would be my choice. Integrated shifters work fine and are pretty darn reliable, but are slightly more susceptible to crash damage. Shimano integrated shifters do have a grease hardening history. Seems to effect older units on bikes that aren't used often, IME. Repair is simply using solvent to clean out the old grease and re greasing for most folks.

I have 35 mm tires on my touring bike and they're a good choice for multiple surface conditions and I'd expect 32 mm tires to be little different. If you plan to tour outside of the EU extensively I'd chosse a bike with 26" tires, for a single trip or two, simply carry spare tubes/tires.

Here in the US there are budget touring bikes that have performed quite well. Generally the advice is to have their wheel sets re-tensioned and re-trued. Something not done by hand to meet the seller's price point, or so it seems.

Brad

Tourist in MSN

There is unpaved touring and there is unpaved touring. I was on one tour where the unpaved section was much better than the paved sections.

Also, we have no idea how heavy you are - thus no idea how much weight you would have on your tires. I assume you are hauling lightweight camping gear and will be doing some of your own cooking which adds weight too. Less weight means that you can use a narrower tire and get away with it.

I weigh about 175 pounds, but have toured as high as 205 pounds. I usually carry about 60 pounds of gear and food and water on a bike that weighs about 30 some pounds. Thus, I usually have a total weight on the tires of roughly 280 pounds.

I think you will find a lot of different opinions on how wide a tire you really need, thus this is simply my opinion. And I am trying to be somewhat specific here as I am sure you are looking for specificity. I would be willing to tour on an unpaved road that is commonly used by two wheel drive cars that drive at a moderate to high speed if I had 35mm to 37mm tires. But, if I was going to have more weight on the tires than the total of 280 pounds that I commonly tour with, I would want a wider tire on such a road. And if the road was one where the two wheel drive cars have to drive slower than moderate speed, I would probably avoid any tires narrower than 47mm.

That said, I use a 50mm wide tire with 26 inch wheels for all unpaved touring, but I own two 26 inch wheel touring bikes and a 700c touring bike so I have the ability to choose which bike I want to use for the conditions.

Take a look at this website. You will see photos of some bikes that have traveled a long way. Some are quite expensive, but a few are relatively inexpensive.
https://www.pbase.com/canyonlands/fullyloaded

bicyclridr4life

Why not ship your bike to a shop in London (after contacting them, of course) a week or so before you fly out? That should cost a lot less than a new bike, and should cost less than taking it with you on the flight.

fietsbob

Air Freight is more expensive than the accompanied luggage costs , even with a Bike special handling fee.

LeeG

exactly. I had a friend who weighed 125lbs and he toured on fat sewups in the early 70's in Italy. When I weighed 145lbs 32mm-35mm tires and 25lbs could pretty much take me anywhere cars went although most of my touring was ultralight with 28-32mm tires on good roads. What became obvious running a bike shop on the north coast of Ca. with a steady supply of tourists coming down Hwy 1 was that heavy riders and heavy loads had a much narrower margin of error with narrow tires before rims got dinged or wheels tacoed in a crash.

wheels and rims are better than back then but when it comes to big loads and crappy loads there needs to be plenty of air and tire between rim and road.

Wowk

143 pounds. I am only 24 so, dare i say it, can go without some creature comforts, which will hopefully reduce my load. Camping gear, cooking gear etc will take up two rear panniers, with a 30 litre backpack with clothes strapped across the panniers, hopefully not too much stress on the tyres with that load.

fietsbob

consider a bike trailer , rather than overload the rear of the rack...

Using a backpack , with straps on that bag, you can put the trailer on your back

and cary your bike .. say over a road washout. ..

LeeG

No problem. Looking over the other bikes Evans sells it looks like there are more choices for touring bikes than I've ever seen here in the US. With your weight and load I don't see 700c wheels and 35mm tires a limitation. Make sure you have a durable rear tire and carry a spare when you're far from a shop. You might consider getting smaller front panniers to be used front or back instead of large rear panniers that can only fit on the rear and invite rear wheel overloading. A small front rack that can carry panniers or provide a platform can also provide packing flexibility.

Wowk

Awesome, thanks for advice everyone.
Will be sure to update on progress and invite anymore help/suggestions early next year.

Tourist in MSN

I think you could start out with the stock tires, were they 32mm? But maybe buy a folding spare that is 35mm or if 37 will fit. Tubes, get ones that will work with either size. But, before you get to Turkey, buy a second and maybe even a third wider tire so you have them by the time you need them.

I still have no idea how things will go for you once you get to Turkey, but through continental Europe you will probably do ok.

You will want a good big handlebar bag too. Get one that you can hang on a shoulder strap to take your valuables into the stores or restaurants.

Lower priced bikes might need more frequent wheel truing. If you do not know how to true a wheel, learn and get the proper sized spoke wrench. With most of your weight on the rear wheel, you may need to true it up a few times.

A friend of mine tours with two really big rear panniers and a big stuff sack strapped on top, no weight on the front. I would not want to have a bike that handles like that, but it works for him.

djb

I understand if you do not want to ship a bike because of the fees involved if you are on a tight budget, but do consider that if you pick up a brand new bike, you get into all kinds of possible problems that may end up with you having to spend money at a bike store to fix along your trip--maybe very little, or maybe more. Im thinking if the wheels arent up to the weight you will be carrying, or even if they are, if they havent been properly adjusted, spokes, hubs etc.
Then we also get into the aspect of riding a bike you havent been on, riding day after day you want a bike that fits you really well, and a bike that you havent ridden--or rather I should say, a bike that you are familiar with and have ridden a lot means that you have to time to have made sure the bike is comfortable for you and fits you properly.

How much would it cost you to ship your own bike to London? Maybe because I'm older, but the idea of setting off on a big trip like this on a brand new, unridden bike doesnt seem worth the money you would spend flying with a "known quantity" bike that you could ride a fair amount beforehand and know it fits you, or get it to fit you over time, and also know that the bike works fine hauling the stuff you have prepared.
I guess it comes down to cost of going with bike, and if not, hopefully finding an honest, reputable bike shop that will really prepare a new bike properly for a loaded trip. Always keeping in mind that on a new bike, stuff often comes loose, especially with 40lbs of stuff on it-this also touches on how mechanical you are with bikes, as a new bike has a good chance of presenting some mechanical issues, all depending on a bunch of factors-how well it was put together, the parts themselves etc.

SparkyGA

Building a bike from scratch is kinda a pain in the butt if your away from home. A new bike takes a lot of time in to get it right, which is a lot harder to do on the road than at home. At least if your in Europe, it should be pretty easy to find LBS to get parts to get your fit perfect.

jkbannon

Voyage steel imho...