touring bike, what is your favourite and why?

[islandboy]

I am looking to replace my 13 yr old marinoni (campy gruppo) this year and thought I would start by asking forum members what features they liked in the bikes they chose to ride

I am 6'2", 195 lbs (180 in my visualizations) and do rides in the 50 to 100km a day range. My partner does is very capable of rides in the 100 to 200 km range so I am definately looking for a solid road bike. Most of my touring has been done with panniers, though last year we started using a bob trailer (all the ammenities of a winnabago - none of the fumes).

Please enlighten me.

 

[geoffs]

I am looking to replace my 13 yr old marinoni (campy gruppo) this year and thought I would start by asking forum members what features they liked in the bikes they chose to ride

I am 6'2", 195 lbs (180 in my visualizations) and do rides in the 50 to 100km a day range. My partner does is very capable of rides in the 100 to 200 km range so I am definately looking for a solid road bike. Most of my touring has been done with panniers, though last year we started using a bob trailer (all the ammenities of a winnabago - none of the fumes).

Please enlighten me.

Just came across your post.
Get a tandem if your partner rides to. We do all our touring on one and its a great way to go.
I am 6'2" and normally weigh around the 220lb mark and have just lost a bit so I know what you mean about needing a strong bike. I have broken 3 frames and now only buy top quality bits and peices so that they last. Cartridge bearings only!! For your size you will most probably need a custom frame.
Have you had a look at Co-motions touring bikes? They look like they make a bike called the Nor'wester that looks ideal to me. I may be biased as we have a new Co-motion Mocha Copilot. Rivendell also make some solid touring bikes. When you are a clydesdale its not about saving onces its about finishing the ride without a breakdown.

Cheers

Geoff

 

[nun]

Just came across your post.
Get a tandem if your partner rides to. We do all our touring on one and its a great way to go.
I am 6'2" and normally weigh around the 220lb mark and have just lost a bit so I know what you mean about needing a strong bike. I have broken 3 frames and now only buy top quality bits and peices so that they last. Cartridge bearings only!! For your size you will most probably need a custom frame.
Have you had a look at Co-motions touring bikes? They look like they make a bike called the Nor'wester that looks ideal to me. I may be biased as we have a new Co-motion Mocha Copilot. Rivendell also make some solid touring bikes. When you are a clydesdale its not about saving onces its about finishing the ride without a breakdown.

Cheers

Geoff

Sometime soon I'm going to be buying a nicer tourer than my Volpe, and the way I'm approaching it is to do lots of research and test out gears and other component arrangements on the Volpe, then I'll ride as many bikes as I can and make the choice. I think you have to sit on the things before laying down $$$$

I think cost is an important spec that's been left out. At the low end of the range thers's the Bianchi Volpe (my bike which is solid and has the required fender clearances and mounting spots for racks), the Trek 520 gets lots of praise and the Cannondale T2000 and T800 look nice. For an off the shelf bike the Cannondales come with the best touring gearing, but some might not like the Al frames.

If you are looking for something a bit more expensive I agree with the recommendation for Co-Motion Americano or Nor'wester. They seem to be nicely set up. Other ones to consider and ride would be, Rivendell Atlantis (long leat time), Bruce Gordon, Litespeed Blude Ridge, Airbourne, Sakkit or Waterford. The advantage of going with a more expensive bike I think will be the opportunity to get a better fitting bike and spec components that you'd like. Also why not look at another Marinoni, a Turismo

 

[geoffs]

I bought my first tourer in London as at the time bikes were a bit cheaper there than in Australia. I thought 531st was pretty good from what I'd read and that if a bike was made from 531st it would be good.
I didn't realise what a difference having the frame made by a good builder could make. I met another Aussie in Innsbruck who was 6'4" and had broken an off the shelf Clamont frame from Clarence Street cyclery. They replaced it guarantee with a hand built frame made by Geoff Scott who at the time was one of Sydney's top frame builders.
The buke looked the same as mine, weighed the same, had the same diameter tubes and the same tube stickers but it was a completely different bike in the way it handled and how stiff it was.
It quality of the builder makes a huge difference to the quality of the frame.

The first tour that I did was nearly 12,000 kms. The only parts of my bike that didn't require replacing on my return to London to work for the winter were the h/bars, stem and the crank arms. All the 105 parts had completely died.

On the 2200km tour we have just done on the Co-Motion Mocha (we are now up to (2800) we have had zero problems. The rear chain was replaced on return home due to wear but everything else still feels like new.

Cheers

Geoff

 

[ravenbents]

I am looking to replace my 13 yr old marinoni (campy gruppo) this year and thought I would start by asking forum members what features they liked in the bikes they chose to ride...

The next bicycle frameset I purchase will be a Surly Long Haul Trucker. I don't have one yet, but I did a brief test ride on a demo that was built up. It rode great. My reasons for deciding on the LHT:

- Long 46cm chainstays. In my opinion, the longer the chainstay the better (on a touring bike).

- Great price. I've found a frameset in my size (54 cm) for $400 USD.

- They have good quality double-butted cro-mo tubing. Tubes are actually quite a large diameter... although I don't remember what off the top of my head... so it's a nice stiff frame too. I'm not an aluminum fan, so the steel frame is a big selling point to me.

- The frame also has a very good touring geometry... relaxed angles.
- It's set up for canti brakes and down-tube shifters.
- I rather like sage-green. Nice and understated.

Only real negative I see is that the frame is welded rather than lugged... I'm a fan of a lugged frame for aesthetic reasons, if nothing else.

So there you have it... my "favorite" and why. I plan on making the frame purchase next month and building it up with top of the line touring components (Phil BB and hubs, King headset, TA Zephyr crankset (assuming I can find one!), etc). When it's done I'll post about the completed bike and post a pic or two.

-keith

 

[islandboy]

I am still researching which bike to buy and I am leaning towards a Marinoni with campy record groupo - trying for a bike that will last 10+ years of serious touring. I am looking for a single, not a tandem as it will also serve as my commuter bike. I probably willl not be getting an off the shelf as I require a 60 cm. With luck the order will be going in by October.

 

[geoffs]

I am still researching which bike to buy and I am leaning towards a Marinoni with campy record groupo - trying for a bike that will last 10+ years of serious touring. I am looking for a single, not a tandem as it will also serve as my commuter bike. I probably willl not be getting an off the shelf as I require a 60 cm. With luck the order will be going in by October.

Is it the turismo that you are looking at?? If your are geting the frame custom made, check out Co-motion, Rivendell, Jonnycycles and Vanilla. I tried to find some specs for the components but no luck. Campy Record sounds nice. If you are doing serious kms at your weight it's amazing how quickly cheaper parts can wear out. I have some friends who are much lighter than I and it's amazing how long tires and hubs last for them. We have Dura-ace STI, XTR RD, Ultegra FD, FSA carbon cranks, Chris King HS on the tandem. My commuter has Campy Record track hubs with Dura-ace track cranks. Do it once and do it right is always te best option. Things can always go wrong but it's nice not to have to worry about things wearing out or breaking when you are on a holiday.

Cheers

Geoff

 

[nun]

Is it the turismo that you are looking at?? If your are geting the frame custom made, check out Co-motion, Rivendell, Jonnycycles and Vanilla. I tried to find some specs for the components but no luck. Campy Record sounds nice. If you are doing serious kms at your weight it's amazing how quickly cheaper parts can wear out. I have some friends who are much lighter than I and it's amazing how long tires and hubs last for them. We have Dura-ace STI, XTR RD, Ultegra FD, FSA carbon cranks, Chris King HS on the tandem. My commuter has Campy Record track hubs with Dura-ace track cranks. Do it once and do it right is always te best option. Things can always go wrong but it's nice not to have to worry about things wearing out or breaking when you are on a holiday.

Cheers

Geoff

If you are interested in Rivendell look at

http://www.peterwhitecycles.com

He builds up complete bikes using Atlantis frames, or just check out a LBS that will do it for you.

Also mercian bicycles look really nice

 

[byfred]

I am still researching which bike to buy and I am leaning towards a Marinoni with campy record groupo - trying for a bike that will last 10+ years of serious touring. I am looking for a single, not a tandem as it will also serve as my commuter bike. I probably willl not be getting an off the shelf as I require a 60 cm. With luck the order will be going in by October.

I have a Marinoni Road Bike, 1980 vintage, with a Campy Record Groupo and I love it. I have toured a little with it, and it was fine, except that the gearing ratios were a little "intense" for my legs, and I didn't want to "mess" with it at that time.
I bought a True North Custom Built Touring Bike with Shamano 105 Groupo and have toured with it for the past 8 or 9 summers. My weight and size is about like yours, and this summer I had to replace the gears, halfway through my tour. The teeth on some of my favourite gears had worn down to the point where things were "slipping" when I really needed them. I replaced them with the cheapest arrangement, just to finish the trip, but this winter I will be looking for input into permanent replacements. Any suggestions out there?
I have never had a problem with Campy or my Marinoni. I had it repainted a couple of years ago and they did a wonderful job on that too.

Safe cycling........byfred