Beginner Touring Bike

ls119

Beginner Touring Bike

The world of Cycling is fairly new and daunting place for me, especially long distance touring, which is why i'm looking for some advise from likeminded people before my next purchase.

I'm currently looking into purchasing a entry level touring bike, capably of long distance touring. Once fit and ready and after i've had time to prepare I hope to cycle across America (coast to coast). So I'm looking for a bike capably of doing this and any further advise to assist.

My budget for the bike itself is anything between £500- £1000, However my budget can be stretched if advisable as from recent research 'Touring Bikes' are much more expensive than your average road bike. I want something reliable, comfortable, lightweight and strong, basically a good all-rounder for use on mainly road and gravel surfaces. I've so far been advised to look for something with triple gearing to handle all variants and tyre clearance between
28 - 32mm.

Could anyone recommend anything in particular (make or model) or anything else I should be looking for in my bike purchase for this task. Any further advise on this subject most welcome as I am a rookie to touring.

andymiller

ls119 wrote:

Beginner Touring Bike

... basically a good all-rounder for use on mainly road and gravel surfaces. I've so far been advised to look for something with triple gearing to handle all variants and tyre clearance between
28 - 32mm.

That, and the obvious, pannier mounting points pretty much sums up the minimum requirements (although the clearance to take tyres more than 32mm is a good idea) - beyond that it really comes down to personal preferences.

Issues you need to consider are:

- frame (ie steel or aluminium). A lot of people say steel gives a less harsh ride, but aluminium has its fans;
- handlebars. You can tour perfectly well with either drop bars, flat bars or trekking bars (also known as butterfly bars);
- brakes. Most tourers have rim brakes and these are perfectly fine, but disc brakes are also a completely viable option and an increasing range of bikes are available with disc brake fittings.

My personal recommendation for a bike to consider would be the Planet-X Kaffenback, but the Surly Long Haul Trucker is well regarded.

Buying a secondhand bike might well be a good option.

Make sure to budget for a set of wheels from a specialist wheelbuilder.

I would strongly advise doing some shorter tours (if only weekends) nearer to home. This will give you a better idea of what works for you.

mjcaskey

If you are seeing this bike as a stepping stone, then perhaps you could consider a second hand Dawes Galaxy, perhaps for £200.00, lots on ebay. Then rebuild it with parts to your own requirements, maybe to carry over to your future machine...

For example..my attempt at same..

- Original Dawes Galaxy 1990 frame/forks/mudguards
- Stronglight cartridge headset
- thomson seat post
- Fizik Gobi saddle
- Tubus rack
- Avid shorty ultimate brakes (very good..)
- Specialized bar Phat bar tape (cushioned)
- Mavic opn pro rims, ultegra front hub, XTR rear hub.
- Lx (original) chainset and front mech,
- Xt rear mech
- Durace bar end shifters(original)

About half of this was bought on this forum or ebay.
Bike works well as commute tourer

Or there is this...good reviews but dearer..

http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/ ... ern-39909/

Good luck

eede

Maybe have a browse through a touring specialist like Spa:

http://www.spacycles.co.uk/products.php?plid=m1b0s21p0

Garz

A second hand Dawes galaxy should be right up your street!

Big Tcp

I'd recommend a visit to Spa, you can still pick up a Super Galaxy or Galaxy Plus for less than £1000. Spa let us try the bikes out on the road outside the shop and were willing to swap stems etc to adjust the position. My wife ended up buying a Dawes Horizon from them. I bought a Ridgeback Panorama from a different shop (managed to get a particularly good deal, as it was the previous year's model), but would have bought a Super galaxy from Spa otherwise.

Other options would be Byercycles, who are based in Bedfordshire, or one of the bespoke builders such as Vernon Barker, Ellis Briggs, Bob Jackson or Paul Hewitt. Mercians are also good but very expensive.

andrewleck

I have a Ridgeback Panorama, you should be able to pick up a new 2011 bike for around £1k if your size is still in stock. Lovely solid bike and comes complete with racks, cages, and pump. Downsides are a lack of space for a lge bar bag and would be better with disc brakes, still looking forward to touring the Alps fully loaded come summer though

random man

I bought one of these this year and can't fault it - excellent value. The disc brakes are a godsend when you're descending in the wet fully loaded!

http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/ebwPNLq ... 155c018343