LEJOG 2026

[puffin]

Yea! All booked, leaving 5th May: Penzance, Camelford, Cullompton, Stanton Drew, Ross on Wye (being joined by my wife and dog for the day), Much Wenlock, Leigh, Bentham, Brampton, Peebles, Perth, Kingusie, Dingwall, Skail, JOG, sleeper home.

[puffin]

Yuk! Bike broke three times, gears slipping and chain breaking. Got about 450 miles in and made the call that the bike was impossible to ride in the hills. The gears were slipping and only giving me first gear if I didn't change up, and the jarring was hurting my knee pretty bad. I managed the issues for a couple of days, including being rescued by a brilliant lady who took my broken bike to a repair shop (who had to fit an near-fit chain), accepting that the big climbs, like Lythe Fell, could only be done if I stayed in first gear, and mentally accepting that my days were going to be a lot longer. I got into Bentham, had a bad night's sleep, gave the bike final adjustment in the morning, did a trial run up a hill, found the gears were still not playing ball, so made the call to come home, regroup and finish when the bike is fixed....or chucked in the nearest skip and replaced.

The bike has always been impossible to set up dead right....adjust the brakes and the gear appears to change kind of thing. It was a demo from Spa Cycles so I suspect the drive gear and even the brakes were not standard. My plan is to try and find the original spec, buy and fit those parts and play it from there. either way, the bike has done (I think) 7 of my LEJOG's so it ain't all bad.

[rareposter]

I got into Bentham, had a bad night's sleep, gave the bike final adjustment in the morning, did a trial run up a hill, found the gears were still not playing ball, so made the call to come home, regroup and finish when the bike is fixed....or chucked in the nearest skip and replaced.

Gutted it didn't work out for you but good on you for making the call when you did - the ride will still be there another day.

The bike has always been impossible to set up dead right....adjust the brakes and the gear appears to change kind of thing. It was a demo from Spa Cycles so I suspect the drive gear and even the brakes were not standard. My plan is to try and find the original spec, buy and fit those parts and play it from there.

You'd be better off just working out what gear ratios you want and buying a new groupset, that way everything will play together and work properly. If it's as old as you say, whatever was "standard" back when you bought it is probably barely available or obsolete now.

[JohnR]

You'd be better off just working out what gear ratios you want and buying a new groupset, that way everything will play together and work properly.

And add one more gear at the bottom end. Your legs won't get younger! If the bike has done at least seven LEJOGs then it deserves a good service.

[puffin]

Johnr and rareposter, thanks for getting back. Can you give me one more piece of information? I don't know about groupsets, do you think my best bet is to ask Spa Cycles what it should have, then go and order that?
Thanks again

[rareposter]

I don't know about groupsets, do you think my best bet is to ask Spa Cycles what it should have, then go and order that?

If you start with what is on it at the moment (a couple of pics would help if you're going to post it on here). Including how many gears it has.

The work out how much you want to spend on it (I guess you'll be factoring in labour cost as well, it sounds like you might be wanting a shop to do the removal of the old stuff and the fitting of the new?)

And then work from there. If you can start with a budget and some idea of what your lowest gear needs to be for your long-distance touring, it'll be a lot easier to formulate a plan. There'll also have to be some consideration given to the brakes because what it has will, to a certain extent, govern what shifters will work. I'm assuming it's a drop-bar bike with integrated shifters but if it isn't and it's running (eg) bar-end shifters, that could also become a factor.

Nothing is ever easy is it?!

[JohnR]

I agree that it's best to ask Spa who have a good understanding of what parts work together and can be combined to meet the user's needs. My first Spa derailleur build combined the Spa Super Compact 42/26 crankset with Shimano 105 derailleurs and brifters plus the Spa extender link and a 11 - 42 cassette. Bottom gear was only used when I came to a particularly nasty hill and my legs were feeling knackered.

[puffin]

Thanks guys, that was really useful. Spa have come back with the details, if I can ask for advice again, I'll post photos of my bike and see if you can identify what I actually have fitted?

[puffin]

Hi Johnr and rareposter,
If anyone can help, I'd be obliged. I am still trying to see if my Spa Tourer has the original spec of parts.
Here's the spec from Spa Cycles
Frame Reynolds 725 butted tubing with Touring specific geometry
Forks Reynolds Cro-Mo, dual eyelets at the dropouts and threaded lowrider bosses.
Rear Derailleur Shimano Sora RD-R3000
Front Derailleur Shimano Sora FD-R3030
Shifters Shimano Sora 9spd STI (ST-R3000/R3030)
Chainset Spa Cycles Touring Triple with Spa Cycles Zicral Chainrings, 46/36/26 as standard - different ratios available for intended purpose .
Bottom Bracket First F-2001
Chain KMC X9-93

I've also shown the brakes, are they the type you might expect? I had a comment that they were not the normal type for this bike . I know the bike needs a clean...I've just fallen out with it after it let me down. Frankly, its lucky its not in a ditch. Only joking, still my favourite bike. I'm off to finish LEJOG on the Galaxy on 23rd June.

[JohnR]

Hi Johnr and rareposter,
If anyone can help, I'd be obliged. I am still trying to see if my Spa Tourer has the original spec of parts.
Here's the spec from Spa Cycles

I can't comment on the brakes - I like my disc brakes (preferably hydraulic). You could pose that question in the technical forum.

Regarding the drivetrain, I see that the bike was initially built with a Spa triple crankset with Shimano Sora derailleurs and cassette. I get the impression that you've clocked up a lot of miles with those parts. A triple front derailleur is always more challenging to set up than a double and I would be tempted to go for the Spa Super Compact crankset, probably 40/24 to give a lower bottom gear, with a Sora double FD. I built a bike with that configuration and the gears behaved themselves. There's the option of a size bigger chainrings coupled with a 40T cassette (which might need a hanger extender). I haven't tried that but have positive experience of an 11 speed with 42T cassette and the extender. Unless the cassette is very new then change that as well. Spa's Super Compact chainset is basically a triple with a chainguard instead of the outer ring so you might be able to just change the chainrings and not the cranks. You might need a slightly shorter bottom bracket to match using only the two inner chainrings. Spa provided me with a 119mm DX30. If replacing the other components then it might be worthwhile replacing the rear derailleur. Sora parts aren't expensive and keeping to 9 speed avoids the cost of replacing shifters.

[rareposter]

Hi Johnr and rareposter,
If anyone can help, I'd be obliged. I am still trying to see if my Spa Tourer has the original spec of parts.

That looks to be a broadly original spec - aren't Spa the sort of helpful people who'll build up a bike more or less to the customer's individual requirements anyway?

Honestly you could rebuild it with pretty much anything so long as it'll work with rim brakes.

If the drivetrain has been giving you problems, I'd junk the lot and start from fresh, it doesn't have to be expensive / top-of-the-range or anything. The suggestion ^^ of going for a double chainset is good, they're a lot easier to adjust and work with than triples. You can stick with 9sp (and keep the existing shifters).

If you want to upgrade to 10sp, you'll need to start playing with the V-brakes because the only current 10sp STI's are Shimano Tiagra 4700 (for double chainset) or 4703 (for triple chainset) which are designed to work with cable rim brakes BUT, they don't pull enough cable to work with V-brakes so you need to get inline cable travel adaptors.

I think you could do anything from a full on "go to town on it" refresh (complete strip, respray, the works), right through to a basic clean and a few replacement Sora parts (like for like). And then you can celebrate by finishing off your LEJOG!
Good luck with it, let us know what you decide to do.

[slowster]

Yuk! Bike broke three times, gears slipping and chain breaking. Got about 450 miles in and made the call that the bike was impossible to ride in the hills. The gears were slipping and only giving me first gear if I didn't change up, and the jarring was hurting my knee pretty bad. I managed the issues for a couple of days, including being rescued by a brilliant lady who took my broken bike to a repair shop (who had to fit an near-fit chain), accepting that the big climbs, like Lythe Fell, could only be done if I stayed in first gear, and mentally accepting that my days were going to be a lot longer. I got into Bentham, had a bad night's sleep, gave the bike final adjustment in the morning, did a trial run up a hill, found the gears were still not playing ball, so made the call to come home, regroup and finish when the bike is fixed....or chucked in the nearest skip and replaced.

The bike has always been impossible to set up dead right....adjust the brakes and the gear appears to change kind of thing. It was a demo from Spa Cycles so I suspect the drive gear and even the brakes were not standard. My plan is to try and find the original spec, buy and fit those parts and play it from there. either way, the bike has done (I think) 7 of my LEJOG's so it ain't all bad.

I am confident you could get the gears working properly, but a systematic and methodical approach to identifying the cause(s) of the problems and fixing it/them is essential.

I think you would have had more responses and advice if you had posted this in Bikes and Bits (and similarly if you had posted your new thread viewtopic.php?t=168576 in Bikes and Bits instead of in Touring). If you want one or both threads moved to Bikes and Bits, report your opening post(s) using the '!' button above the post, and request that the thread be moved.

[puffin]

Just a quick note, I completed the LEJOG 2026 last week, yea! I got into trouble a couple of times due to the heat.

[Jdsk]

Well done.

Any comments on the bike after that?

Jonathan

[puffin]

Well done.

Any comments on the bike after that?

Jonathan

Thanks Jonathan.
Comments on the bike:
The Spa Tourer i started on was lucky there was no handy ditch to toss it into after Day 7 when I broke off and headed home to get the:
Dawes Galaxy Ultra. This beauty was fine. The only Sword of Damocles is that apparently the cassette or the rear axle is a defunct size / type so I'm always a bit fearful of a breakdown there .