Cycling UK Forum

Considering how often members on here say that they don't know how to get pics up on this site, shouldn't whoever runs it do something about it and make it easier for us non-geeks?

After looking all over the place for the weight, I eventually found it quoting 800 gms.

Why am I starting in Stuttgart?....................OK - a long-winded version of a short story..........I've been looking for the 'ultimate' touring bike, a 'keeper', for a couple of years, and saw it about 3 months ago in a shop in London. I'd actually gone to the shop - Bikefix - to see a Fahrrad Manufactur as they sounded pretty good. They had the models I was interested in, in store, so I got chance to check them out........I wasn't impressed.
Then I saw a Tout Terain Silkroad hanging on the wall, it looked nice but heavy. I asked to take it down and have a 'feel' of it. As soon as I picked it up, I knew I'd found the machine I'd been looking for.
I asked about the bike, the options etc. and the staff had no answers to any of my questions. They knew nowt about it basically. They are the only Tout Terrain dealers in the UK as far as I know, and they couldn't tell me anything about it. I was not impressed. Anyway, I went back to the shop a couple of weeks later and asked about it again, and also asked about trying to get some kind of deal for one.......as you do (especially if you're from Yorkshire). The second trip to the shop was a waste of time - I left none the wiser, and with no prospect of paying anything other than list price, even for cash there and then........so I though b******* to them. I bought a 1 pound ticket with Ryanair to southern Germany - close to where the bike is made. I have a friend in Stuttgart so I went to visit with him for a week whilst I looked at bikes.
Are we getting near the end of the story? - yes (thank god for that!)......I got the bike I wanted, with the spec I wanted , with a 10% discount off list, but in the same amount in euros as it was in pounds.......so I saved 10% as the euro is (was) 10% less than the pound, and I got a 10% discount from the shop - and a lot of help and information by very knowledgeable people.
I came away very happy with the service, my bike, and what I paid for it..............and saved 600 quid compared to buying the same thing in the UK.

I had some business to attend to in the UK and had a cheap flight already paid for so I left the bike with my mate in Stuttgart and returned home for 4 weeks. I shall fly back to Germany at the end of this month and go peddling........why go up to the North Cape? I don't know really, just somewhere to head for - with a bike like this, I've got to go somewhere on it! Which way am I going? I don't know, I'll just follow my nose (and a map)..............head up to the coast, maybe across the Kiel Canal - I understand there's a cycleway alongside it - then pop over to Sweden and up the east coast - I understand there's a long-distance cycleway all the way up, and up to the top and down the west coast of Norway - maybe.
I just bought a Duolite Tourer tent, a cheap sleeping mat and bag from (Argos), and am almost ready for the 'off'.

Sorry, I guess I should have posted this elsewhere. Please remove Mr/Mrs Moderator.

Early July I'm leaving Stuttgart and peddling up to North Cape at the top end of Norway if anyone is interested in joining me.

I shall have a look for some Hanwegs........I've been struggling to find replacements for the Brashers.

As for the previous comments on the cycling shoes - yes, I think the relatively soft sole has something to do with my feet problems - and though I have the laces and straps VERY loose, the shoes are still not wide enough either. I understand and acknowledge what you're saying about the feet swelling, so for sure that doesn't help things.......I've always had problems finding comfortable footwear!

As I have just bought a Rohloff - I have no further use for the Spa touring wheels. They're ideal for the Tricross. PM me if you're interested in them. They are as new, and dead true. Front tyre as new, the rear has been used (but not abused!). The wheels are just decorating one of my shed walls so they should go to a new home and get used.

The rack is an integral part of the frame on my new bike, so I also have a Blackburn rack I had on my Tricross for sale.

Thanks for that. Unfortunately I didn't have much internet time to do a proper search. Apologies for bringing up the subject again.

I shall look for a LIdl !!!!! I usually reside in Harrogate....... there are no 'cheap' shops there so I tend to miss the good offers, especially from Aldi. Whenever I go to another town I always take the opportunity to look around Aldi and Lidl and the 'pound' shops!!!I think there must be some kind of conspiracy to keep the cheap shops out of Harrogate. We don't even have a Tescos !...........what a terrible place to live. lol

As for walking boots - I used to always get Brashers as they were the widest boot I could find. Very, VERY comfortable too. Unfortunately the quality of them has deteriorated over the years and they don't last 2 minutes these days. I have been through 11 pairs so far....the last 4 or 5 from eBay. It's the only place can find the older ones. The newer Brashers are over-priced garb***

Anyway, thanks for the info, I shall follow it up..

Does anyone know of a wide-fitting, casual cycling shoe that takes the spd clip thingies? I take a 44/45 but can't find any shoes wide enough..........my feet look perfectly normal (to me!) but they always get cramp an hour or so into a ride and I keep having to shake my foot around! I had some old Shimano MTB shoes that were OK but they wore out/fell apart and the new range are all too narrow for me. At the moment I'm persevering with a pair of Specialized Tahoo MTB shoes - very nice but still not as wide as I'd like. I'm not a mountain biker - just a road biker/tourer, and need some shoes I can walk in at least a few hundred yards.
Just wondered if anyone knew of a make that does wide shoes?

I was in the same quandry (sp?) a couple of years ago........................my 1983 touring BJ frame had been sat around for long enough..........so I got the rear stay professionally widened at BJ's new shop and a 105 headset put in it........and it's still sat in the shed. Open to offers if anyone wants to renovate it as I had intentions of doing........make an offer. It's not in perfect nick, a few marks in the paintwork...........and size is 21 1/2" in old money.

..........actually, the toe clearance is a bit of a pain - I forgot about that, but still a bloody comfortable bike.
Just took delivery of a Tout-Terrain Silkroad today...........a once in a lifetime 'treat' for me! Love it! Though for the price I'm a bit annoyed I still have to peddle the damned thing..........

I bought a tri-Cross last year. Put about a thousand miles on it doing day in the Lakes.........then, as I was feeling fit, decided to do LEJoG.Bought a pair of heavy duty wheels fro Spa Cycles and put 700x28 Panaracers on. Bike rolled along much smother and faster without the stock tyres/wheels. I put the bike on eBay when I'd finished as I was going overseas and had nowhere to keep it.
Once I'd put good wheels/tyres and my B17 on it - it was by far the most comfortable bike I've ever ridden. Longest day in the saddle was 156 miles fully loaded. (stock saddle is crap).

I have a 'pre-loved' Bob Jackson 21 1/2" touring frame I had made in the 80's when the old man was still running the shop if anyone's interested in it. I was going to rebuild it but never got around to it.......

I paid a visit to BikeFix recently to view a Fahrrad.........can't say I was impressed - by the bike or the staff (least helpful/knowledgeable staff I've ever met in a bike shop).........but then saw the Tout-Terrain Silkroad on the wall.......then asked for it to be brought down......ain't cheap - but what a bike! I fly to South Germany tomorrow to buy one (courtesy of Ryanair for a quid inc. taxes). Bikefix wouldn't budge on price, even for cash. I save 15% by picking it up from where it's made - even with the poor exchange rate. If I was looking to set up a small business, I'd apply to be a Tout-Terrain (and other German and Dutch bikes, dealer), and open a specialised bike shop. I don't want to be tied-up like that otherwise I'd go for it.........

I had 3 months in Albania last year......without getting into much detail I'd just say be careful up towards Kosovo......it's a bit dodgy in that part of Albania. The most beautiful part is the south. great scenery, little traffic, and very friendly people....plenty of hills too.