My New KOGA WorldTraveller Signature has arrived (Picture) :)

[Bonefishblues]

I think Stephen was mightly annoyed by day 24 when stuck in France with his new very expensive bike which had been prepared for a round the world trip to have to pay out 95euros for some very thick grease to cure an on going problem with his bike which had started before he had left the UK cycling down to the south coast.

These things happen and it's never going to be a good idea to get new kit three weeks before setting off on such an undertaking.

Indeed. There was a last minute drama about the spec as delivered IIRC.

Still, he's doing OK - more than OK actually, reading his posts on his Blog.

[Gattonero]

I think Stephen was mightly annoyed by day 24 when stuck in France with his new very expensive bike which had been prepared for a round the world trip to have to pay out 95euros for some very thick grease to cure an on going problem with his bike which had started before he had left the UK cycling down to the south coast.

These things happen and it's never going to be a good idea to get new kit three weeks before setting off on such an undertaking.

Sometimes you learn along the way, it's not easily forgotten

[cyclesense]

to have to pay out 95euros

Stephen was royally ripped off by the French shop... again, beyond our control.
The grease that they used was supplied free of charge by Koga but they shrugged their shoulders and did not feel that they should look after him.
Despite the fact that Koga would have reimbursed them.
Stephen has been reimbursed by myself so no cost incurred.

indeed. There was a last minute drama about the spec as delivered IIRC.

Simply untrue so please don't make things up .. Stephen had forgotten to order something ( Igaro) but it was supplied and fitted foc without any delay.

[Bonefishblues]

to have to pay out 95euros

Stephen was royally ripped off by the French shop... again, beyond our control.
The grease that they used was supplied free of charge by Koga but they shrugged their shoulders and did not feel that they should look after him.
Despite the fact that Koga would have reimbursed them.
Stephen has been reimbursed by myself so no cost incurred.

indeed. There was a last minute drama about the spec as delivered IIRC.

Simply untrue so please don't make things up .. Stephen had forgotten to order something ( Igaro) but it was supplied and fitted foc without any delay.

Excuse me, I made nothing up. There was a last minute drama, wasn't there? I was agreeing with the ordering for delivery at the last moment being unwise as opposed to casting aspersions on anyone.

You will note that in an earlier post I questioned a previous poster who was incorrect about the source of the issue with the noise from the Rohloff.

You may care to measure your skin thickness before you accuse people of making things up.

[StephenPeel]

For those interested in what actually happened:

I'm back in the UK as the noise returned after I cycled through Spain and into Southern France. I contacted all involved and was not offered any assistance in getting the bike back or even the wheel back on it's own. Rohloff informed me that even if I sent the wheel back to them, all they would do is put more grease in it to keep the noise down so they may as well send me some grease. I still felt there was more to it than just lobbing grease into it, so sought professional advice as the noise wasn't just some light ticking or clicking, it could be heard from the other side of a busy road.

The advice given to me independently was that I had to return the bike to the dealer while it was still under warranty, as now there could be safety issues with grease getting onto the belt and the grinding noise was not what I was expecting from this bike. As I was offered no assistance in getting the bike back or taking it into a dealership or bike shop nearest me, I was left with no choice but to return to the UK with the bike to get it sorted.

Turns out it was more than noise and there was considerable wear involved. There is apparently an issue with the marriage of the new splined carrier / components and the Gates carbon belt drive.

After phone calls and emails, Rohloff felt that to better suit my needs, my bike would be fitted with a chain drive to the Rohloff hub instead of the belt. The bike has now been fitted with sprockets / cogs / to carry a heavy duty chain. The main hub unit is intact and had been serviced with oil change. The issue was with the parts that connected to the main hub unit and not the unit itself.

Rohloff and Gates Carbon Drive are working on a permanent solution to the marriage of parts with regard to the belt, but as yet none is available other than a temporary fix with a thick grease. It is believed that this issue might only appear in less then 1% of hub and chain setups.

I had a feeling it was more than just a case of applying a thick grease from the start, and it's not often I'm wrong when I get a gut feeling. Between Rohloff and Cyclesense, the bike has now been converted to the chain drive and hub, with extra spare rear sprocket, rear carrier and clip, front sprocket, being supplied too.

Also Cyclesense is fitting a new bottom bracket to give me peace of mind, as I expressed that the BB might need a looking at too, not that I thought there was anything wrong with it, just that while other things were being looked at. New Schwalbe tyres and tubes, tools to help me carry out sprocket changes myself, service and spare hub oil change kit, as well as a chainglider to help keep some oil of my legs.

All in all I feel we have settled on a good setup and I'm really pleased that it is Cyclesense that is carrying out the work and I'm looking forward to collecting the bike this week.

I will be returning to the point I left off in Marseille Southern France. Despite the issues with the bike, I am really looking forward to getting back on it and continuing my world cycle. The date I will be returning is 1st March 2018. It has been an amazing experience on the tour. Through the UK to Portsmouth, St-Milo in France to San Sebastian in Spain. Then over the Basque Country hills and mountains to Madrid, Madrid to Valencia, then I followed the coast of Spain up and through to Marseille. A total of 3300 km's.



It was really tough at times. Lonely, hard work on my body and mind, but amazing too. I met some wonderful people and experienced things that I never expected. For this first time cycle tourer, I'm really proud of my achievement thus far.

I had originally planned my tour so that I would have been clear of Europe before the worst of the winter weather set in, but due to my having to return, I missed my window. I will now be spending Christmas with my daughters and loved ones and I'm looking forward to it. I will be timing my return with the hope that I will have missed the worst of winter and will be heading into Spring.

My route has slightly changed, and instead of following the coast of Italy from France, I will be crossing to Sardinia and up into Corsica from there, before Livorno on mainland Italy. Then it's down the coast through......... oh who knows We will see how I feel at the time.



Of course I'm sad about the return, but fingers crossed you lot that this new setup get's me a heck of a lot farther than the last setup. I still haven't given the bike a name, but I have a few in mind.

https://www.facebook.com/StephenPeelAdventureTravel/
http://www.stephenpeel.co.uk/

[videoman]

Pleased its all getting sorted and I know something you could have done without but at least it gives you an excuse to see your daughters and loved ones at this time of year and you must be looking forward to continuing your journey next year. Its just a pity you had to bring the bike back to the UK and I don't suppose anyone has offered any sort of financial help or compensation and I just find it hard to believe anyone would spec and recommend a bike to travel around the world on which was built up out of components which was obviously untested.

Were all looking forward to reading about the next stage of your journey and the great photos you take.

[Sweep]

Good luck with the rest of the trip.

Am impressed.

Which ferry are you taking to Sardinia?

Disappointing to read upthread that ferries are being cut in places because of the "convenience" of flying. I love ferries (wahay a free economy cruise!) and who is in a hurry on a pedal powered trip? Modern flying is just tension/waiting in queues/getting endlessly checked. More so with a bike.

Must say though Stephen that your experience has turned me off any idea of using advanced bike tech on tour.

[Cyril Haearn]

Good luck with the rest of the trip.

Am impressed.

Which ferry are you taking to Sardinia?

Disappointing to read upthread that ferries are being cut in places because of the "convenience" of flying. I love ferries (wahay a free economy cruise!) and who is in a hurry on a pedal powered trip? Modern flying is just tension/waiting in queues/getting endlessly checked. More so with a bike.

Must say though Stephen that your experience has turned me off any idea of using advanced bike tech on tour.

I love ferries too, Harwich - Hamburg was the best
Read an article about the Hull - Rotterdam cruiseferries *there is a cinema on board*
Wrong, there are two cinemas on each vessel!

[StephenPeel]

Were all looking forward to reading about the next stage of your journey and the great photos you take.

Thank you, I'm looking forward to returning, but yes your right, it's good to be spending Christmas with my daughters. There have been people using the belt and hub with the new splined carrier / components around I'm now told, but I don't know of any that are cycling around the world. Of course, if I had known about this issue in advance I wouldn't have touched it with a barge pole. A Worldtraveller was the sales pitch I went for

If I were to do it all again, It would be derailleur gears, and a lot cheaper manufacturer. But hey, let's just hope this new setup gets me around. Failing that, it will be flown back for repair then mothballed until I return, and I will be buying a simple more reliable setup from wherever I am in the world, especially now that I know I won't be getting the support from KOGA to return it.

And I can say that with experience, having just had to hire a car and drive across the whole of France, a ferry over to Dover, and another cars journey to Cheshire, and now back again with still no offer from KOGA to send it on to where I left off, in fact I haven't had a personal apology email or letter from KOGA. Not Cyclesense though, as they are doing all the work to get it ready for my return and then some, communication has been top notch, and were kept in the dark about this issue too and are doing everything they can to get me back on the road.

But I'm getting ahead of myself and obviously still upset with KOGA, I do have my fingers crossed and I do hope that one day I will like the bike enough to be able to give it a pet name. People have asked me what I call it, as most people I encounter have names for their bikes out of affection.

Thanks for following my adventure too.

[StephenPeel]

Good luck with the rest of the trip. Which ferry are you taking to Sardinia? Must say though Stephen that your experience has turned me off any idea of using advanced bike tech on tour.

Hi, it's Corsica Ferries from Toulon / Porto Torres on the 4th March. Can't say I blame you about advanced tech on tour. It made my trip a real problem, but I still managed to experience plenty of wonders and meet amazing people, and I'm much wiser. Stick to derailleur and don't spend too much either

[Sweep]

Good luck with the rest of the trip. Which ferry are you taking to Sardinia? Must say though Stephen that your experience has turned me off any idea of using advanced bike tech on tour.

Hi, it's Corsica Ferries from Toulon / Porto Torres on the 4th March. Can't say I blame you about advanced tech on tour. It made my trip a real problem, but I still managed to experience plenty of wonders and meet amazing people, and I'm much wiser. Stick to derailleur and don't spend too much either

Ta for the reply.
The museum in porto torres is worth visiting if you have some time to spare. There's also a lidl which might be handy for supplies.

[StephenPeel]

There's also a lidl which might be handy for supplies.

Great, I will stock up there. I will have been at a campsite the night before in Toulon which is open, then as the ferry is a long trip, I have booked it for late in the evening so I arrive before lunch the next day and I'll be kipping on-board and raring to go. Might try and find a really really cheap place to keep on the day I arrive actually so I can check out some site and get a fresh start the following day. I chose the way of Sardinia and Corsica as I was told its beautiful at that time of year with early flora.

[rollinbone]

Hi
Just catching up with this tread: I have had a Signature for nearly 10 years now (bought Mar'08 from Cyclesence (Tadcaster)
Originally it had Shimano XT on it but I changed to Rohloff after 2 years of the chain leaping off the small chainring when changing down.
Camping/Touring is not fit place to fine adjust a front mech, especially as I know nothing.

Since change to Rohloff(chain driven) its been care free. It does sometimes fail to engage the selected gear but its a minor issue.
The only thing on a long trip would be finding the Rohloff oil kit you need every so often (at least once a year)
My Rohloff has now done about 5.000 miles or so around the UK, not a lot compared to some but I have my excuses.
Note: I've been using a Shimano 8 speed chain with the Rohloff.

Heres a pic of me bike down Tatton park way (Cheshire)

Best wishes on your trip

[StephenPeel]

Hi changed to Rohloff after 2 years of the chain. 5.000 miles or so around the UK, not a lot compared to some but I have my excuses. Best wishes on your trip

Let's hope I get a little more life out of my own new setup hey. I looked at the possibility of being able to change from Rohloff to derailleur if the Rohloff keeps causing problems on my tour, but I'm told that this frame can't accommodate a derailleur so that's a bit sad. The earlier frames like your own it seems where able to switch between Rohloff and derailleur, which is a great idea, because I would have changed to derailleur in a heartbeat.

That said, after being back on my old GIANT hybrid bike just recently while keeping my legs working, it feels really clunky and noisy. Switching between gears isn't nearly as smooth as with the Rohloff. I have no idea how it will be with the a chain and Rohloff, but I get to find out tomorrow when I pick up my bike. It was super smooth with the belt, but turned out a bad choice for this tour. I like being able to change gear when at a stop, especially on a hill. I struggle with hills and stop quite often on hills to catch my breath, and being able to just put it in any gear without turning the pedals is great.

On one plus note, my frame comes apart in order to fit new belts, so I can have a spare chain already set up in a complete loop and just take the section out of the frame to install the chain. All the best to you.

[PH]

Sounds like a great trip, but how disappointing that you haven't had more support from supplier or manufacturer. If it had been my business that had sold you a product that wasn't fit for purpose and the fault was a known one, I'd have got a replacement to you pretty quickly.
My Rohloff has done around 70,000 miles, it's had a couple of issues, two cracked flanges and an oil leak, but hasn't been un-rideable at any time and they were sorted by the supplier (Thorn) within days. It has by far been more reliable and required a lot less maintenance than any derailleur bike I've owned. If I'd been choosing a bike for an extended tour, it would have had changeable dropouts allowing any gearing system to be used, but would certainly have started out with a Rohloff.