Dawes 531 frame re build

[jonmonks]

I have an Edinburgh bike Co op County (Dawes frame made from 531 tubing ) that I have used for two lejog s and loads of weekend rides carrying two panniers and bar bag on unsupported tours. It has seen better days and I am thinking of rebuilding it into an expedition bike adding front racks and panniers and carrying a tent with all the gubbins to attempt a coastal tour around Britian when I retire in a couple of years time. Do you think this 12 to 15 year old frame is up to the challange and can you suggest what wheels, groupset, brakes etc will be up to the job but not break the bank to buy..........oh I already have a number of B17s so the saddle is sorted.
Thanks for any advice

[531colin]

Oh come on, that's the best excuse there is for a new bike!
I'm just building up bike number 5 as a belated retirement present to myself.......

Old standard size 531 (inch top tube, inch and eighth elsewhere) is much slimmer than modern steel frames, and therefore less stiff. It needs careful building to make an adequately stiff frame for really loaded touring in the large sizes. On the other hand, if you are small and light, an old 531 frame can be much more forgiving unloaded than a modern over-engineered offering.
A bike you use for heavy and lightly loaded riding will have a compromise to be reached.

edit.....that's pretty recent for 531, isn't it?

[iviehoff]

Even in the glory days of 531 frames, people used to have distinct builds for loaded touring as opposed to general touring, because the latter flopped around on hills with heavy luggage. 531ST was a variant for stronger bikes. Oversizing the seat stays was a common adjustment often seen before oversizing everything became popular.

Further, to call it a proper expedition bike rather than just a beefed up tourer for camping via tarmac, you really also need clearance for fatter tyres than the 32mm the 531 touring frames were often designed to take. Even 40mm tyres are going to make a big difference, but don't fit in typical touring frames: they are quite a good compromise for mixed surface tours.

The cost of building up a bike from individually procured components, even if the frame is free, is such that I would have thought that it wouldn't cost so much different to get a purpose-designed off-the-shelf expedition bike.

[Mick F]

This is one of the reasons I use a trailer with my old 531c Mercian.
I have used panniers in the past, but I really didn't get on with them. The bike felt heavy and more like a Chieftain tank than a lightweight bicycle. By using a trailer, the bike still feels like the bike I know and love, and I have versatility instead of having two different bikes.

[jonmonks]

Yes it is fairly recent and I was surprised to see it was a Dawes frame after I bought the bike online new from the Co op. They must have got a job lot. It was my first proper bike in many years but has done me well and got me into long distance cycling.
Maybe it is about time to retire it and spend out on a higher spec expedition bike. Would be grateful for advice on which one and where to look as it likely to be the last one I buy. I have also thought about trying butterfly bars instead of the UK standard drops.
I did think about a trailer but there might be times I would want to take the bike on a train....I know that not real expedition cycling but at my age and the age of the rest of my family you never know when you might need to get home in a hurry.....
I have time to decide so and get right is important so I’m not rushing into anything and would consider used if anybody is selling the right one.

[bigjim]

Do you think this 12 to 15 year old frame is up to the challange

My European touring frame is 23yrs old.

[bikes4two]

I suppose a lot depends on what you might mean by 'expedition touring ' - for me it means something like you saw Mark Beaumont encountering on his round the world trip, e.g. very rough/rocky roads. Touring around Britain even on minor roads, is a much tamer experience and I'd have no doubts a 531 frame would cope.

My own tourer, a Dawes Super Galaxy, has done Lejog, Geneva to Monton (French Alps), Gibraltar to Santander and so on, fully loaded in most cases including my 95Kg carcase and no structural problems.

Triple Deore chainset, something like 34-12 spockets and 48/38/24 on the back with bar end shifters and tubus racks front/rear. It's 'good to go' for anywhere but it's not an off road/3rd world tourer though.