26" steel touring bike in the UK

Cycle-touring, Expeditions, Adventures, Major cycle routes NOT LeJoG (see other special board)
Spotty dog2
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Joined: 10 Feb 2013, 9:44am

Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by Spotty dog2 »

Thanks for the compliments and no don,t mind the pics being posted,the frame is an 18'' and the fork is a standard troll the rear tyre is the BOA-G, the black floyd is too wide for the seat stay clearance of frame.I run a BOA-G on the front now better for high speed descents at +30 mph.
I ride on the jones loop bars mostly I find them very comfy and wide giving good control,for distance touring tho the butterfly bars would be fitted but look a bit ugly for day to day use, I suffer badly with numb hands so drop bars and low stem positions are a no go for me.
The BB7 is a great disc brake simple to fit set up and adjust I just prefer them to v brakes I run 185mm front 160mm rear, with the grip of the large rubber i have massive stopping power.
I agree that a lighter less strong wheel set could be used but as I weigh 15st if I decide to go off road on a fully laden bike and accidentally do hit a pot hole chances are I will just carry on as this set up feels bomb proof to ride.
The big tyres have been an experiment to soften the ride on a rigid frame I use about 18psi off road they dampen the bumps and vibration well, on tarmac I run at 23psi for comfort or 32psi if I want to crack on.
The bike may look big heavy and sluggish but people I have let ride it are surprised how nice it rides so I recommend the troll frame as a good versatile base for a tourer just pick the components that best suit your needs.
BrianP
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Joined: 14 Apr 2011, 9:12am

Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by BrianP »

The new 26" Dirt Wizard at 2.75" wide will give a good option for Troll offroading. Surly's Troll page confirms the tyre fits.http://surlybikes.com/bikes/troll

http://surlybikes.com/parts/wheels/dirt_wizard_26

Image

I would guess that many here consider these tyres are huge. I am currently mainly riding a Moonlander with 4.8" tyres. These huge tyres are terrific fun offroad. What I am wondering is how much narrower could I go and still be able to ride Hurst Castle shingle bank. I nearly bought a Troll in the Triton sale last year and now wish I had.

Brian
Spotty dog2
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Joined: 10 Feb 2013, 9:44am

Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by Spotty dog2 »

Not seen those dirt wizards very interesting alternative to my heavy duros.
Went to NEC bike show today lots of electric bikes too many carbon road race bikes a good showing of MTBs.
But sadly hardly any touring bikes or accessories. Had hoped to buy a pump and a centre stand, was non to be seen.So rather disappointed also felt ripped off charged £10 to park and £16 admission fee, attendance was low by 3.00pm place was close to empty with sales staff outnumbering the public.Anyone going hoping to see touring bikes and kit will find very little to see.
22camels
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Joined: 21 Sep 2013, 8:15pm

Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by 22camels »

Thanks for all the replies and info, sorry for some reason I don't have thread email notifications enabled, so only just seen all the recent ones.

simonhill - interesting point you make about not really being able to get a good idea after a short test ride. I doubt I'll manage to get a long test ride so guess will have to hope for the best. I checked the google LHT owners group but there only seem to be 4 in the UK and none near me.. Regarding what roads, well that's still up in the air and some time away, but it has to be able to handle the sorts of unpaved roads you get in Sumatra, Laos, parts of China, the Karakoram highway, though I'd try to avoid the wet seasons, I might not be able to. So mud/gravel/sand and sometimes very uneven and bumpy. I would want to take the smaller roads to avoid traffic, typically their quality is not as good as the bigger roads. Though 80-90% of the time I will be on good roads.

Those surly troll tyres in the pics posted above look way fatter than what I'm considering - I was thinking Schwalbe Marathon Plus and a Marathon Extreme folding spare or two for the rougher sections, that seems to be what most people have.

andymiller - thanks for the tips, yeah bars I guess are a personal preference and I'm sure flat bars would be fine too. I'll consider disc brakes but in all likelihood will go with v-brakes. The evo 2 frame looks good but I'm leaning toward Surly for its reputation.

At the moment I think it's going to be between the following in current order of preference: 1) Troll 2) LHT 3) Thorn Sherpa. Going to attempt to find bike shops to try them out over the next year or so to get a better idea. I'm hoping to keep the bike itself under £1000, maybe I can even get it under £900.
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colin mitchell
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Joined: 15 Jun 2007, 3:45pm

Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by colin mitchell »

Have a look at the Oxford Bike Works Ltd site.
22camels
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Joined: 21 Sep 2013, 8:15pm

Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by 22camels »

I have, nice site, looks like a fairly new shop, are there any reviews? They use Reynolds steel which is higher quality than Chromoly and their basic touring bike seems good value at £995. And they offer a more customised service.

But if this is my first long tour and I want something reliable, and there are 100's of reports of folks using Surly's in the types of conditions I'll encounter, versus these guys who I am sure know what they are doing too but have very few reviews.. should I be thinking this way?
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horizon
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Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by horizon »

22camels wrote:I have, nice site, looks like a fairly new shop, are there any reviews? They use Reynolds steel which is higher quality than Chromoly and their basic touring bike seems good value at £995. And they offer a more customised service.

But if this is my first long tour and I want something reliable, and there are 100's of reports of folks using Surly's in the types of conditions I'll encounter, versus these guys who I am sure know what they are doing too but have very few reviews.. should I be thinking this way?


You can guarantee reliability by buying a £2500 Thorn Nomad. At the other extreme you can pick up an old £200 MTB and replace the bits en route. A lot depends on exactly how you will travel - you can ride on 25mm 700c in Asia on the right roads. Thorn have almost cornered the market in non-custom "expedition" bikes but a Surly will be cheaper and no worse depending on the parts chosen. I do sympathise - you are trying to find these bikes built up in your size not too far away which is almost impossible. Otherwise you are buying from what you see on a website - not ideal.
When the pestilence strikes from the East, go far and breathe the cold air deeply. Ignore the sage, stay not indoors. Ho Ri Zon 12th Century Chinese philosopher
22camels
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Joined: 21 Sep 2013, 8:15pm

Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by 22camels »

Sorry I was not very clear perhaps. I am comparing these two options
a) get an LHT with low/medium quality components for £1000. There are bike shops in the UK I can travel to that have my size built up.
b) try going to this Oxford Bike Works place and get their basic tourer model for £1000. They claim to offer better value (e.g. Reynolds steel, racks included) and will try to customise the components to my requirements.

Advantage of a) is reputation but I am wondering if I could get better value with b).
rualexander
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Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by rualexander »

The Oxford Bike Works models look nice but Reynolds 525 is a CroMo steel http://reynoldstechnology.biz/our_materials_525.php anyway so not necessarily any better than that used by other brands.
Also their Model 2 bike shown on the website http://oxfordbikeworks.co.uk/OxfordBike ... del_2.html looks badly set up to me. The front V brake doesn't look right and the quoted Blackburn lowrider rack has been installed dangerously without the stabilising hoop and at an odd angle.
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horizon
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Location: Cornwall

Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by horizon »

22camels wrote:Sorry I was not very clear perhaps. I am comparing these two options
a) get an LHT with low/medium quality components for £1000. There are bike shops in the UK I can travel to that have my size built up.
b) try going to this Oxford Bike Works place and get their basic tourer model for £1000. They claim to offer better value (e.g. Reynolds steel, racks included) and will try to customise the components to my requirements.

Advantage of a) is reputation but I am wondering if I could get better value with b).


22camels: I think you can get away with a lot of different bikes (see current thread on the AWOL). But I agree with you about the 26" wheels and, if you really are going off tarmac for extended periods fully loaded, then that limits your options again. Most people in your position would simply make an appointment with Thorn and head down to Bridgwater because it is that sort of touring they do better than anyone at that price level (i.e. non-custom frame). You then have to think about the quality of your racks and wheels etc.

I also really like the look of OBW but I think it would be unfair on them even to compare them with Thorn: OBW seem to be making the sort of bike that IMV everyone should be riding around Oxford but not necessarily in central Asia.
When the pestilence strikes from the East, go far and breathe the cold air deeply. Ignore the sage, stay not indoors. Ho Ri Zon 12th Century Chinese philosopher
22camels
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Joined: 21 Sep 2013, 8:15pm

Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by 22camels »

"make an appointment with Thorn and head down to Bridgwater because it is that sort of touring they do better than anyone at that price level (i.e. non-custom frame)."

So you think Thorn would be a better match than Surly? I guess I will try both.

Thanks for all the advice, much appreciated.
simonhill
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Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by simonhill »

I don't think Thorn are particularly cheap. When I looked (albeit a few years ago) I wasn't impressed with (some of) the spec of their stock models. They were selling their bikes as 'the ultimate touring bikes', but in the showroom were recommending upgrades. This was one thing that put me off.

Nonetheless, the point in me reposting is to say that if you are buying soon and not going away for a couple of years then a fair amount of the gear on the bike will (probably) need replacing before your big trip. 1 or 2 years could easily be 10-20,000kms and that is plenty of time to wear out (or wear more than you would want to set off on) things from tryes and brake blocks, to chainrings and bb. This means that you don't have to get the spec absolutely right at the moment as you'll be having a rebuild before your big trip.
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horizon
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Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by horizon »

simonhill wrote:I don't think Thorn are particularly cheap.


They're not. But they offer a custom spec on an off-the-peg frame (with lots of sizing choices) in 26". So do Surly and their basic frameset is £200 cheaper (though Thorn's frame may be better). But that AFAIK is it. So there we go - a choice of two. It's not much to go on.
When the pestilence strikes from the East, go far and breathe the cold air deeply. Ignore the sage, stay not indoors. Ho Ri Zon 12th Century Chinese philosopher
22camels
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Joined: 21 Sep 2013, 8:15pm

Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by 22camels »

Yes their brochure says they charge £1300 to build up their basic Thorn Sherpa (the 26" with derailleur which is what I want), but I can see that it looks like they would encourage you to spend more on higher specs. But they seem to have some good deals on ready built ex-display bikes there is a Sherpa going for £900 at the moment but not in my size.

I doubt I'll be buying soon, though if I do, I won't be doing much riding on it before the big trip, except a few hundred km to test it out. I am just a bit bored and thinking too much about this but I guess it's better to start planning too early than too late :). I don't think my current bike (specialized tricross) is going to be suitable for loaded touring. I'd like to try out a couple of touring bikes and if I see a good deal in the next two years I'll take it. I'd rather not buy blind. There is a small chance I'll be going to the US at some point so I could get a Surly for a bit over $1000 and bring it back. I have also started thinking of getting a cheaper steel MTB frame and getting it built up as a tourer at an LBS. Maybe I'll even build it myself, (either from a touring frame or from a cheaper MTB frame) but I have little experience and though fun it seems time consuming. I doubt I'd save much ££ with the last two options (assuming I got the same components as an off the shelf £1000 tourer). Maybe in the end I'll just go with a cheap MTB around the £400 mark and save some money.
mochunk
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Joined: 27 Dec 2013, 11:36am

Re: 26" steel touring bike in the UK

Post by mochunk »

Spotty: Concerning your Troll with Boa G's, I wanted to do a similar setup for a SS Troll build. What width are the rims you are using? Do you think there is enough clearance to fit them on a 47-50mm rim like a Trialtech or the new 26" Rabbit hole?
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