long distance touring

adventurecyclist

Hi I'm new to cycling, i'm planning a yr long trip around New Zealand and South East Asia. i need help with what bike to do this on.

I have a specialized sectur road bike- can this be converted to a tourer?

Should I get a specific touring bike? New or 2nd hand?

Should I build a bike specific to my needs?

My budget is around £1000 for all the kit inc panniers etc.

HELPPPPPP!!!
:?:
Thanks Laura

cycladelic

Get another bike. That speed maching won't last the distance loaded up with stuff - and I can't see how you would put panniers on it anyway.

Maybe you should look at a bike like this Thorn:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Thorn-Club-Tour-B ... 35ac5fd8b4

Second-hand bikes are good. You just have to make sure the components aren't shagged out.

You can also find second-hand panniers on eBay. Makes like Carradice, Ortieb, Altura and Karrimor are good.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/carradice-pannier ... 2a0a3446d3

priory

bearing in mind the limited budget I would look at a raleigh royal or dawes tourer or trekking bike.

I have heard people say that 26inch wheelss and tyres are easier to find in remote places, but the trend to make tourers out of reasonable quality no-sus mtb's seems to have passed here.

If your lbs true the wheels before you go I hear that the spokes should not be dead tight for rough roadds aand touring longevity

andymiller

priory wrote:

I have heard people say that 26inch wheelss and tyres are easier to find in remote places, but the trend to make tourers out of reasonable quality no-sus mtb's seems to have passed here.

eh? there are a number of people on this forum (well OK maybe just me and a couple of others) touring on bikes built from On-One MTB frames. On a budget of £1,000 they are a much better bet than a Thorn frame - provided you csan live with disc brakes.

MichaelW

Ive been using a classic english touring bike with Shimano STI shifter on drop bars but it has been very unsatisfactory. 9-speed systems are too sensitive for touring and hard to keep in adjustment. The Tiagra shifters dont wotk well with bar bags. I would look at a trekking style of handlebar (also called butterfly) using MTB controls.
I dont know if there is any real difference between using 700c and 26" , both seem to work OK. m
Make sure you have enough tyre clearance for touring tyres (700c x 38mm or 26x 1.9, maybe fatter.

priory

###I dont know if there is any real difference between using 700c and 26" , both seem to work OK. m ####

I have done a lot of miles on adapted no-sus mtb's.

my point was based on the idea that when your wheel collapses you can get a 26inch easier in the backwoods of vietnam . I do not know if that is true.
I would not expect a disc brake problem to get fixed in a remote place.I tend to prefer old technology , like square taper bottom brackets, because it is always easy and cheap to find parts.

If you are trying to keep the money down and are not a good cycle mechanic buying a standard tourer would be the way to go.
I just did not find a cheap new 26inch one on sale.

If you want a bar bag on cluttered bars you can have a clickfix extension to take the bag further forward .
http://s189.photobucket.com/albums/z122 ... 010140.jpg
the carradice on the right is mounted on an extension. Mine on the left is a cheap strap-on from lidl.

satanas

I'd be inclined to go for 26" wheels rather than 700C for Asia as IMO you will find tyres much more easily, plus the wheels are a bit stronger. Having said that, either size will work. You might also find that 26" wheels will make it easier to get a bike that fits if you aren't very tall, and that the slightly lower gearing resulting from the smaller diameter is no bad thing.

While you *could* do the trip on your road bike, it will be difficult to carry camping gear and you may well need this if you are in fact on a low budget. If you can travel ultra-light (i.e., http://ultralightcycling.blogspot.com/), or are planning on staying indoors, then a road bike becomes a more realistic proposition. Still, it will take less abuse/hard use, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who isn't confident about basic wheel truing - or light enough that it will never be needed. It's also likely that you'll have difficulty getting suitable gearing, etc, etc.

Hoopdriver

A couple of things: bar end shifters are very, very, very reliable and will also keep your handlebars clear. They are very simple, maintenance free and virtually foolproof. I have done many thousands of miles of touring all over the world and have never had a single problem with bar end shifters; wouldn't leave home without them. STI shifters and the nifty indexed MBT type really have to place on a tourer, especially in remote corners of the world.

26 inch wheels are indeed stronger than 700c, but whether tyres to fit them, or indeed the rims themselves are as readily available in Third World countries is an interesting question. There are a couple different sizes of '26-inch' tyres and they are not compatible - the 559 on the one hand and the old fashioned 590 on the other. That said, I have always used 26 inch (the usual 559-MBT type) on my expedition tourer and have never had a problem with either rim or tyres. I used very sturdy Sun Rhyno rims and when I go off on a long trip put on a new pair of Schwalbe Marathon plusses. With a set up like that you are most unlikely to have any problems - unless of course you listen to poor advice and have somebody loosen your spokes and then of course you will have your share of problems.

Get a good wheel-builder to build you a set of wheels, with sturdy rims and good tyres, and you'll be fine.

A lightweight road bike just won't be up to the abuse. Get a touring bike. They needn't be all that expensive, and you won't need the super light (and pricey) road components on it.

Ortlieb and Carradice both make fine panniers. I've used both extensively. Both have their strong points but after using both in all kinds of conditions, I have a strong preference for Carradice Super-C. Ortliebs are totally waterproof, to be sure, but they can also get pretty stinky inside when you're in the tropics while the Carradice (which are highly water-resistant) can breath, are more readily repairable and more discrete in that their black cotton duck material doesn't reek Western money and make you a target for pilferers and thieves. I just wrap things in plastic bags and tuck them in the bag and I've always been fine.

I hope this helps.

satanas

These days, I would not take anything other than 26" (559mm - MTB size) wheels to Asia, certainly to South Asia (i.e., India/Pakistan/Nepal). It is currently the most commonly found tyre size IME.

It's dimly possible you may find used 700C stuff at Dawn to Dusk in Kathmandu, but IME you will not find *any* 700C tyres in India/Pakistan/China, or indeed in most country towns in Australia - unless these happen to have a bike shop. Even then, the chances of finding decent touring tyres in Oz are low; they will be worse in most of Asia, It's entirely possible that 700x23 road tyres nay be easier to find, but these won't be much use for touring.

OTOH, it will be possible to get some sort of 559mm tyres almost anywhere. They might not be good tyres, but they will keep you moving. Whilst we're on this subject, don't expect to find anything other than Woods valve tubes on the subcontinent apart from Kathmandu, and perhaps Pokhara. I imagine things are much better in many places in South-east Asia, for instance Singapore.

Re panniers: just about anything will work, and they can usually be fixed. It's good to have a secure attachment system. More important is to have reliable racks, and IME that means steel. These are also repairable just about anywhere, unlike alu.

Really though, people have toured just about everywhere on just about every type of bike imaginable. As long as you're aware of the limitations of whatever you decide to take you should be fine.

Hoopdriver

Re 700c tyres in Australia: I happen to have some expertise on Australia - being Australian myself and having toured extensively through the bush, including a solo 10,000-mile circuit of the continent. It is true that bike shops are thin on the ground out there - as is almost everything else - but where there are bike shops, you'll be able to find 700c, no worries.

And while there may not be bike shops in really tiny places, there are bike shops in most regional towns - I found them in Longreach, for example, and Katherine, and Broome to name a few. And in point of fact I even replaced a 700c tyre at the shop in Katherine. Shop well before you go, put good tyres on the bike, and believe me, you'll be fine. Especially in Oz.

Hoopdriver

Oh and let me add that the quality of the tyres you'll find in Australia will be well up to scratch. No worries. I'd say Satanas, whoever he is, couldn't have toured much if at all, in Australia.

satanas

^ FYI, I live in Oz and have spent many years in the bike industry here.

The point I was trying to make was that *touring specific* 700C tyres are not that common in most parts of the world, Oz included. However, it would appear that they are common in many parts of Europe, given how European cycle tourists seem to expect to find Schwalbe Marathon XR tyres (or something very similar) anywhere they might go.

In most Oz bike shops, tyres like this are rare. If you want 700x23C road tyres (in a range of qualities and weights) or 700x35-38 hybrid tyres of varying (but generally average or lower) quality, then yes, these are fairly readily available, BUT, distances in Oz are much larger than in Europe and the population density is much lower, and thus bike shops are much more widely spaced. If you are at all fussy, prior planning will be useful.

Cycle touring is still very much a fringe thing in Oz, and I say that as a cycle tourist myself, not as someone to whom it is an alien activity.

Hoopdriver

True - you probably couldn't find Marathon Plusses or Extreme XR at a bike shop in Katherine or Broome or Longreach, but if you simply come prepared with good tyres, as I suggested in my earlier post, the chances of you wearing out such tyres as these suddenly and in the middle of nowhere are pretty slim.

In most cities, these tyres are obtainable.

I live in country SA and have always been able to order Marathon Plusses from my local shop - even though they don't keep them in stock. Takes a couple of days. The tyres they do keep in stock,while not my usual preference, are however quite okay, and not at all worse than those you find in Asia.

satanas

Hoopdriver wrote:

In most cities, these tyres are obtainable.

But with considerable difficulty unless you know where to look IME.

Still, the point I was attempting to make before was that in most places it is much more likely that one will be able to find some sort of barely acceptable/lowest common denominator 559 tyre than an equivalent 622 tyre, and that the latter is in fact a much rarer beastie. Or at least that's been my experience. Even discount department stores carry *some* sort of "MTB" tyres, but 700C?!?

Hoopdriver

Sorry - I just plain disagree with that.

Hoopdriver

I meant to add that the idea that you cannot readily find 700c tyres in Australia is just bizarre.

satanas

All this "religious war" stuff isn't helping the OP, to whom I apologise. She wasn't even talking about coming to Oz, so there's not much point in continuing the argument.

To the OP: any vaguely suitable bike which fits you well (crucial!) and is in good repair will do the job. Don't sweat it too much. I'd suggest you talk to a few bike shops, check out a few touring oriented web sites, and do some test rides. The most important thing is fit and comfort, then reliability. Make sure you have reasonably good racks and that whatever bags you get are capable of being securely attached, as luggage problems are common with some of the cheap stuff. Provided the bike is comfortable and reliable, it will do the job.

lloyd_bower

With 1k budget, I'd consider getting a good second hand tourer/rigid mtb. I'd agree with some of the views 26" mtn bike sized wheels are the way to go if you're considering touring in third world places - South East Asia.

I've not toured there but done plenty in Central America and while plenty of places will have bike shops, you much more likely to be able to get a 26" tyres, or a wheel replaced in the event of a disaster.

Certainly get good quality panniers, bar bag etc. waterproof ones take away the hassle of packing everything plastics bags. Waterproof panniers will be very handy in NZ has there's no shortage of rain.