What to look for on a new touring bike.

[vjosullivan]

OK, I'm turning 50 this year and I'm looking to buy the proverbial "my last bike" before springtime, with the expectation that it will last me twenty years plus like my current bike - a Dawes Horizon - has done. (But for the snow I might have got it at Christmas.)

I'm currently thinking about either a Dawes Ultra Galaxy, Sabbath Silk Route or Spa Cyles Unnamed Titanium Tourer. I can't afford a custom frame and, in any case, am probably sufficiently average sized and undemanding in my needs not to require one. I've read up as much as it's possible to on all of them and now it's time to go out and test some. My needs? A bike on which I feel as if I can tour the world fully laden whilst I tour the UK with a credit card and and two bags (and occasionally further with occasionally more).

The question is: I expect to have no more than about fifteen twenty minutes 'trying out' any particular bike. Is that long enough to properly appraise it? I'm sure it's enough to identify the completely wrong bike but is it long enough to identify the right one?

So. How do you appraise a new bike from a shop before accepting or rejecting it? How long do you need? What do you do? What do you specifically look for when testing the bike?

Thanks,
Vince.

[julk]

You could always go and buy a Thorn touring bike, they make excellent touring bikes which come with a no risk money back guarantee for purchases of complete bikes.
IE if the bike does not suit you after riding it then you can get your money back!
eg Sherpa (derailleur) 14 day money back guarantee, Raven Tour (Rohloff) 100 day money back guarantee.

[jake]

Where do you live? A trip to Spa would cover the Dawes and their own ti model. While a trip to Fat Birds in Hunstanton would cover the Sabbath and the Van Nicholas Amazon. I have the predecessor to the Amazon and would highly recommend it. (http://www.fatbirds.co.uk/store.asp/d=1/c=152 )

[vjosullivan]

Where do you live?

Hampshire. It's a long way to Spa but I've got in-laws in Yorkshire, so I can throw two stones at one bird with a trip up north. Spa appear to currently stock their own bike (obviously) and the Sabbath but no Ultras at the moment. I'll phone and check before I do head that way. As to Hunstanton. Is it safe to go that far into Norfolk?

[Barrenfluffit]

I think you'd know weather it was the wrong size pretty quickly. And if it was a perfect fit you know that straight away too.

I don't think there's enough time to work out if it could be made into a perfect fit. So much on a bike is changeable that in practise the only thing you really commit over is the frame. But the design of the frame does impose constraints on what can fitted to it.

[simonhill]

These sound like great bikes for the UK stuff, but are they the right ones for your " I feel as if I can tour the world fully laden" dream?

[thirdcrank]

If you make it to Yorkshire, Cyclesense at Tadcaster might also be worth a visit. I've no recent experience and they have expanded a lot since I was in there, so I cannot recommend them personally, but they had an excellent review from former forum member manx cat, who was so impressed with them over the phone she made a special trip there from the IoM to buy a bike. (I think she too had Yorkshire connection, hubby from these parts IIRC.) They have a touring dept and their advertised range includes van Nic. and Koga.

http://www.cyclesense.co.uk/

Her's one of Mary's several posts about the shop:

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=14226&p=108929&hilit=cyclesense#p108929

[531colin]

So. How do you appraise a new bike from a shop before accepting or rejecting it? How long do you need? What do you do? What do you specifically look for when testing the bike?

PERSONALLY, and it is personal;-
As you are looking at tourers, I would take as a "given" all the mountings for carriers & mudguards. Then, in no particular order;-
Clearance for at least 32mm. tyres and mud
No toe overlap
handbuilt wheels
steerer long enough to get the bars as high as I think I will want them in 20 years time.
comfortable reach now, room to shorten the stem (its that 20 years again)
able to get my Brooks saddle far enough back
standover clearance, obviously
DEALBREAKER (for me) I hate twitchy steering
Frame stiff enough for efficiency and load lugging, springy enough for comfort see here http://forum.ctc.org.uk/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=27686&start=15
EDITED to add
compact drop bars (but I'm over 60)
AND
chainset 24 34 46 (I'm still over 60)
bar end shifters

[jake]

Norfolk is a wonderful (and safe) place to visit but it's a long way out of your way en route to Yorkshire.
If you are worried about sizing etc, another possibility would be a fitting session with Paul Hewitt in Leyland, Lancs. For £50 he does a 2 hour fitting session on a special jig, which is highly recommended on this forum. He sells Van Nic bikes plus his own Cheviot SE tourer (a Dawes UG sound-a-like).

[thirdcrank]

[quote="jake"]Norfolk is a wonderful (and safe) place to visit but it's a long way out of your way en route to Yorkshire. ...[quote]

+1

I forgot to say when I posted about cyclesense that Fat Birds seems like a nice shop. I've been in a couple of times - like cyclesense they have moved to different (local) premises within the last few years. I've only been in Fat Birds to buy small bits and pieces and to have a bit of a nosey when I've been on my many visits to Norfolk. OTOH, Hunstanton is a long way from anywhere (except King's Lynne and Cromer )

[MartinBrice]

Clearance for at least 32mm. tyres and mud
No toe overlap
handbuilt wheels
steerer long enough to get the bars as high as I think I will want them in 20 years time.
comfortable reach now, room to shorten the stem (its that 20 years again)
able to get my Brooks saddle far enough back
standover clearance, obviously
DEALBREAKER (for me) I hate twitchy steering
Frame stiff enough for efficiency and load lugging, springy enough for comfort see here http://forum.ctc.org.uk/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=27686&start=15
chainset 24 34 46 (I'm still over 60)
bar end shifters

I'd agree with that lot, I recommend Thorn, it's a short walk from the station at Bridgewater and they were great for me. They do only a few types of bike but each in six sizes so you're pretty much bound to get it right. They spent an hour or so sizing me up and I'm very happy with the result. I'd also go for 36 spoke wheels, it's worth paying a bit more for wheels that will not give you trouble - if you get wheel problems you can be pretty much stuck.
also - for touring you will want much lower gearing than the normal 30 inches most production bikes give you. You'll be lugging a heavy load up a hill one day and wish you had something near 20 inches. This is what Thorn will give you if you ask.

[al_yrpal]

How long....., how to try it out?

It's a big problem. I found that my local bike shop was very loth to let me go any distance. Halfords were better. With a big budget like yours, I would ring them up first and get a commitment from anywhere you are considering. Rarely will all the standard bits you want, be your choices - pedals, saddle, types, and even for an expensive purchase, you wouldn't expect your choices to be fitted just for a tryout.

It wasn't until I had my 'last' tourer 3 months that I felt it was almost right after changing various bits and now a year later I can still see room for improvement. My modified Halfords special cost less than half of what you are spending. It was well worth looking at the online PDF brochures for Thorn bikes, there is so much experience and good sense in them - up to 16 pages of why and how their touring bikes are made like they are, and how they choose optimum components. Choosing the right gear ratios for loaded touring, the Halfords bike came with SRAM MTB gearing exactly the ratios recommended by Thorn. The excellent but inexpensive Velo saddles Thorn fit as standard, Ergo bar ends and padded grips, Panaracer Pasela tyres..., all class parts that make that subtle difference. My only indulgence, disc brakes.

At 50 you see this as your last steed. At 68 I am not yet at that stage, and looking forward to the next one!

Al

[yakdiver]

I bought a Thorn Club Tour, I phoned up and spoke to Robin Thorn gave him my measurements and told him I didn't want a racing position and that was it what I got was a large frame bike with a shorten topbar, it fits me like a glove and have done over 22,000 miles on it lovely bike to ride and still smiling

[Fratercula]

Cyclesense in Tadcaster has a wide range of stock, great after service and stocks Koga who have some really good and fully equipped "off the peg" bikes in their range, might be worth looking

[Richard Barrett]

Enigma Etape -http://www.enigmabikes.com - just beautiful. As a 57yr old I reached the same stage in my life and though I'd buy something that would see me to the bitter end.

It does everything I want - credit card touring with Ortlieb Sports bags, day rides and the odd sportive - is a joy to ride and will look good for ever. It's kitted with Bontrager carbon bars and seat pillar, mixed Dura Ace and Ultegra group set, Mavic Open Pro rim, Selle San Marco Regal saddle, Turbus rack. I paid extra for the mist finish and ended up with a total cost of about £4k - fortunately my son is in the trade so it actually cost about £3k. It's worth more than my car. But [inappropriate word removed], it's a bike and that's all that matters. Just don't skimp; when you reach our age, time is running out for us and it's time to go to the limit.

PS The photo is from some photographer's calendar who took a shot as I was going over to Jura last year.