I just bought one of these for a winter hack, and I was also a bit wary of the 26" wheels, having only used them on MTBs in the past, but having been commuting on it for two weeks, I can't say I've noticed the difference. The fat 1.75 Panaracers are great, they feel planted and soak up bad road surfaces a treat. I kept the same crank length (175) and matched the gear ratios as well as I could to my old derailleur commuter (16x46), and its just brilliant. The evenly spaced gears are a joy, making it much easier to maintain a constant cadence, uphill, downhill and on the flat. The Thorn is a well designed and built bike, and the German parts work well: Rohloff, SON and Magura.
By "hack" I mean cheap. And by "cheap" I mean not having to replace expensive components at regular intervals (wheels, mechs, cassettes, dynamos). And if you could put a price on doing road-side repairs in the rain.... If I'd bought a bike like this three years ago, I'd be richer now by many eurocents and no mistake.
By "hack" I mean cheap. And by "cheap" I mean not having to replace expensive components at regular intervals (wheels, mechs, cassettes, dynamos). And if you could put a price on doing road-side repairs in the rain.... If I'd bought a bike like this three years ago, I'd be richer now by many eurocents and no mistake.
Which paint finish did you plump for? I can't say I'm a fan of the Thorn "Celtic" designs shown in the brochure... --
"Bob"
'The people have spoken, the [censored]'
Email address is spam trapped. To reply directly remove the beverage.
By "hack" I mean cheap. And by "cheap" I mean not having to replace expensive components at regular intervals (wheels, mechs, cassettes, dynamos). And if you could put a price on doing road-side repairs in the rain.... If I'd bought a bike like this three years ago, I'd be richer now by many eurocents and no mistake.
Which paint finish did you plump for? I can't say I'm a fan of the Thorn "Celtic" designs shown in the brochure...
The word Celtic is a big no-no for me. Even though I have a vague interest in 5th & 6th century stuff, the concept of the idealised perfect Celtic society in contrast to the debased Saxon culture which has overrun it strikes me as romantic [censored] which ignores the fact that the cultures intermingled and cooperated perfectly at ease with each other.
I just bought one of these for a winter hack, and I was also a bit wary of the 26" wheels, having only used them on MTBs in the past, but having been commuting on it for two weeks, I can't say I've noticed the difference. The fat 1.75 Panaracers are great, they feel planted and soak up bad road surfaces a treat. I kept the same crank length (175) and matched the gear ratios as well as I could to my old derailleur commuter (16x46), and its just brilliant. The evenly spaced gears are a joy, making it much easier to maintain a constant cadence, uphill, downhill and on the flat. The Thorn is a well designed and built bike, and the German parts work well: Rohloff, SON and Magura.
Since my original post at the top of the thread I've decided that my commuting bike will survive for a bit with its current frame. I am however considering bying a new bike for off-road use ... and a speedhub equipped mountain bike is tempting.
Which paint finish did you plump for? I can't say I'm a fan of the Thorn "Celtic" designs shown in the brochure...
The word Celtic is a big no-no for me. Even though I have a vague interest in 5th & 6th century stuff, the concept of the idealised perfect Celtic society in contrast to the debased Saxon culture which has overrun it strikes me as romantic [censored] which ignores the fact that the cultures intermingled and cooperated perfectly at ease with each other.
That's the term Thorn chose, not me. They design doesn't look particularly Celtic to my eyes, just bloody ugly. --
"Bob"
'The people have spoken, the [censored]'
Email address is spam trapped. To reply directly remove the beverage.
Which paint finish did you plump for? I can't say I'm a fan of the Thorn "Celtic" designs shown in the brochure...
The word Celtic is a big no-no for me. Even though I have a vague interest in 5th & 6th century stuff, the concept of the idealised perfect Celtic society in contrast to the debased Saxon culture which has overrun it strikes me as romantic [censored] which ignores the fact that the cultures intermingled and cooperated perfectly at ease with each other.
That's the term Thorn chose, not me. They design doesn't look particularly Celtic to my eyes, just bloody ugly.
Yes, excuse the rant. I'm not a big fan of any more decals than absolutely necessary on bikes, but I guess it wasn't necessary to describe my exact annoyances with the connotations of the design.
Call me Bob <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...
Quoted message said:
(Rory) said:
Quoted message said:
£1000 for a hack? What's your "good" bike?
By "hack" I mean cheap. And by "cheap" I mean not having to replace expensive components at regular intervals (wheels, mechs, cassettes, dynamos). And if you could put a price on doing road-side repairs in the rain.... If I'd bought a bike like this three years ago, I'd be richer now by many eurocents and no mistake.
Which paint finish did you plump for? I can't say I'm a fan of the Thorn "Celtic" designs shown in the brochure...
The Radical green with said knotwork. It was the only choice left in my size. Highly visible, which is a plus point I suppose...
Ambrose Nankivell <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...
Quoted message said:
Call me Bob said:
(Rory) said:
> £1000 for a hack? What's your "good" bike?
By "hack" I mean cheap. And by "cheap" I mean not having to replace expensive components at regular intervals (wheels, mechs, cassettes, dynamos). And if you could put a price on doing road-side repairs in the rain.... If I'd bought a bike like this three years ago, I'd be richer now by many eurocents and no mistake.
Which paint finish did you plump for? I can't say I'm a fan of the Thorn "Celtic" designs shown in the brochure...
The word Celtic is a big no-no for me. Even though I have a vague interest in 5th & 6th century stuff, the concept of the idealised perfect Celtic society in contrast to the debased Saxon culture which has overrun it strikes me as romantic [censored] which ignores the fact that the cultures intermingled and cooperated perfectly at ease with each other.
If you go and look at the Book of Kells in Trinity in Dublin (kind of teh "knotwork bible"😉, they say that it developed as a hybrid of Celtic and Saxon styles (from Greek origins), so that supports your "cultures intermingled" pretty much.
