Cycling UK Forum

Here is the thing. I’m sorting out a tourer for here and Europe. I ‘m lucky enough to have a few bikes that I intend to use to contribute to this project. I’ve got older steel bikes and newer Aluminium/carbon forked modern ones. Last year I toured B&B and fully loaded using an Ali framed normal road bike. I never noticed any problems with this but it did get knocked about a bit in transit and I am tempted to use an older steel bike that I will not be that bothered about. I’m happy enough to use D/T levers and have triple chain sets available and modern touring wheels. I will not be going out of Europe so don’t see the need to be bothering about welding frames. My Ali bikes have 16” chain stays where as the steel Harry Hall has 17” and the rough Raleigh Royal frame I have has 17.5” chain stays so the steel boys will take panniers easier and be placed nearer to the axle. I never use front panniers any more, just two rear and tent on the rack and a bar bag. I know the steel is more flexi than the Ali but I’m a big lad and I love to ride out of the saddle so before I make decision, I’m wondering if the flex may be too much on tour. Before I build the bike up [or not] it would be good to know what others think and if they have experience of touring with steel and Ali, Tourer/Road framed bikes and what do they think? Couple of examples below.


Cheers. Jim.

I'd go for steel, it will flex but that's a good thing within reason.
The longer stays should make for a more comfortable ride day after day.
Out of the saddle a lot on a bike loaded up for touring you don't see many riders doing that, better to put a triple on and make sure you can ride seated up all but the steepest ramps.
If the road surface is poor alu will be a harder more jarring ride.Not sure about carbon forks on a long tour either I'm sure lots of people do it but I'd rather have steel and not have to think about it.

There's Europe and Europe. Even on roads the surfaces get worse and in some countries are shocking. Also you can't depend on sticking to good roads as circumstances dictate route more than choice! That said road conditions in say Germany and France are in a different league to say Hungary and Bulgaria. So it depends where your going. Personally I like steel but only have limited experience of alloys.

Why these retro 'bars?
Drop 'bars are quite a rare sight nowadays on touring bikes in mainland Europe where tourers have adopted modern styles which provide multiple hand hold options and generally a more upright position to better view the passing scene.

I like my "modern drop bars". Tried flat bars with barends, not my thing. Why do you think an Ali frame will be worse in eastern europe? You mean there are worse roads than the UK?

Yes there are roads worse than UK roads.

I cycled along a stretch of Roman road in France. I though that it was a stretch of pave but subsequent research revealed its history. The jarring ride on it might well have been the straw that broke the camel's back because the rear drop out on my Dawes Galaxy fractured a day later which led me to purchase an aluminium framed replacement bike in Orleans from Decathlon. Both bikes offered comfortable rides. The steel framed drop barred Dawes was matched by the flat barred aluminium framed Decathlon B'twin hybrid/tourer that I purchased for 400€.

I am now about to get a flat barred steel framed tourer.

Vernon
I'm confused [doesn't take much]. You were happy with the Ali framed bike but are looking to replace it with a steel bike?
Last year in Austria I was on a number of very badly surfaced trails but the Ali framed bike was fine, though I was shaken up, but I don't know if that would have been any different on a steel frame.

No need to be confused.

The B'twin was always destined to be a stop gap measure. It got me out of a hole quite cheaply and cheap solutions are rarely long term solutions.

Although the B'twin offered a comfortable ride it has suspension forks which I ride locked out, a heavy aluminium frame, and average finishing kit some of which needs to be replaced soon.

The steel framed bike that I am purchasing is a top of the range bespoke tourer with a Rohloff hub, belt drive and assorted bling. It's been designed to be low maintenance and should be the last bike that I purchase for touring. I was loaned the prototype for a weekend's test ride and the ride was sublime. It converted my scepticism about the claims for the bike into a confirmed sale.

Back to flexing. All of my steel framed bikes have flexed to some degree, one of them disconcertingly so especially when out of the seat honking up hills. he cure was simple - sit down and choose a lower gear.

Given the clearance between the rear wheel and the down tube, ie almost none, both of those bikes are road bikes. Are the really appropriate for carrying even that quantity of luggage? Won't you get too much flex in the rear triangle? I get quite noticeable rear triangle flex even on my fast tourer if I load it up that much.

Also, for touring like that, don't you want to have mudguards, or at least the clearance for it so you can choose to have them if you want them? Maybe you are sticking to dry warm tours, but if you are riding somewhere it rains mudguards are good.

I quite happily tour on my 1982 Raleigh Royal:



Nothing particularly fancy or special about the set-up. GB touring bars, 14-32 6-speed freewheel 48-44-28 half-step+granny gears, diacompe retrofriction bar-end shifters, Brooks Flyer saddle and 32-630 wheels and tyres. I use cheap Vee-Rubber tyres, which funnily enough work well for touring on unsealed roads with the soft casing - need to use tyre liners though, not particularly puncture resistant.

My only complaint is that I will need to use p-clamps to fit front low-rider racks, but in Australia we don't have little towns with cheap hotels or B&Bs every 10 miles like in Europe (sometimes it is an entire day's ride between towns and not all of them have places to stay!)

I wouldn't get hung up about the material, you can make a rubbish tourer out of Al or steel,
and a flexy rack and you can end up with bike that can barely be ridden out of the saddle.

Load each bike up and ride up a 1 in 5, then ride down a 1 in 5 with really really bad pavement,
you'll know which bike to take.

If bad pavement is a concern, I'd be thinking of tire sizes not frame material.
1st European tour, I had 27mm tires, not too much fun on cobbles or on gravel
paths and really bad on root infested Swiss bike routes. Next tour 37mm Conti
Avenues, much much better.

Thanks for the info. I can't do the test thing with the two bikes as I will have to build them up to spec first. I was trying to avoid that by choosing the correct frame.

Quick update. Decison made. One £50 frame and a raid on my box of bits results in this complete Raleigh Royal that is going to be my European Tourer. Rides lovely. Hope it's the right decision.