Touring Bike/Equipment Information!

mullercorner

Hi everyone,

I have read over a few of the threads posted on this topic already and they seem to be mostly from two years ago! So hopefully someone can provide more up to date information!

Basically me and a group of friends have decided to take on a long distance cycle from Calais France to Barcelona Spain over the summer of 2014! We've already begun basic preparations like planning training prior to the cycle, etc, etc.

I was wondering if anyone could recommend a good touring bike in the price range of €500 to €1000?

We plan on travelling on fairly smooth surfaces (hopefully) the whole journey and aim to be doing maybe 70 to 80km per day, or whatever is required in order for us to reach our scheduled stop.

*EDIT*

Thanks for some of the tips so far! really appreciate it!

With regards to the type of tour this will be, we're thinking a mixture of both camping and staying in hostels.

For the camping, bare essentials, such as a one man tent each and lightweight sleeping bag.

We were aiming to make an average of 70 to 80km per day, but I think that in order to get the best out of the journey we will probably to do 100km+ some days in order to reach a certain destination and have a look around! (basically we want to be able to say we did more than just cycle every single day without seeing anything!)

I suppose 2nd hand would be an option depending on the condition of the bike obviously... would there be a higher chance of constant maintenance with a 2nd hand bike though?

And myself, I have an old rigid frame mountain bike that i'll use for training until I can splash out on the tour/road/hybrid bike, tis a heavy aul thing so should do the job for training prior to getting a lighter bike!

I think i will be looking to get a bike thats sized at about 56 to 57cm ...according to the evanscycles bike sizing chart anyways!

Tonyandthewhale

Well what kind of tour is this going to be?
Are you camping (and if so does that mean a bivvy or tarp and a lightweight sleeping bag or a two man tent for each of you and an air mattress and camping stool etc etc) or are you staying in hostels?
Do you want to travel light or do you need your creature comforts? Are you looking to maximise daily mileage or just toddle along?
And are you happy to buy second hand or do the bikes have to be new?
And do you have a bike already?

http://www.evanscycles.com/categories/bikes/touring-bikes#!!price_from=;price_to=;on_sale=;sort=asc; Evans have a pretty good selection of off the peg touring bikes, some of which fit your budget. I like traditional touring bikes because they're comfy and practical, my first few tours were on a raleigh royal (which I wouldn't recommend even if you go the traditional tourer route) and it was nice because it was stable and comfy and had big tyres and rack mounts left right and centre and mountain bike gearing etc etc.
However, it was heavy as bejasus and I found I didn't really need all the over-engineering and extra capacity that a traditional touring bike entails. At the moment I'm using a late 80's road frame with a brooke's saddle and modern wheels and gears. The road bike is much nippier and easier on the hills and on the longer days and generally more fun to ride - a lighter rig is also easier to manage when I have to lug it onto trains and the like.
For the last few tours I've gotten by with just frame-pack, handlebar bag and saddlebag which is more than enough for winter-time touring as I tend to sleep indoors but will require some creativity for next time I hit the road and have to bring a sleeping bag and bivvy. I could add a rear rack and use panniers but that just feels excessive now.

Personally I think a road bike/audax bike is more than enough for touring in a civilised part of the world such as Western Europe. But it's each to their own.

Older rigid mountain bikes can also make good touring machines (I have a fully rigid giant rock with butterfly bars for off-road/dirt road touring) and hybrids can also be made work but both of these are if anything heavier and slower than the touring bikes.

Seaneh

I spotted this on adverts the other day.
http://www.adverts.ie/bikes/specialized-tricross-sport-2012/2724974

Front and rear rack mounts, 9 speed sora groupo alu frame, carbon fork, clearence for 35c tyres and mudguards and a great geo for touring. If you can knock him down to 550-600 it's a bargain.

feck sake lads

what size bike are you after,check out ebay look for THORN bikes you could get lucky.also check the ctc site for sale section. also spa cycles have great prices on tourers there owm make and dawes galaxy older models.

reallyunique

How about a Ridgeback Voyage, a steel frame and €999 from Hollingsworth so you might get to take it for a spin to see how it feels. The Panorama is nicer but a bit more expensive.

If you're willing to do the ebay thing there are usually some Dawes Galaxys available. They're a little heavy but can handle most anything, they hold their value too so won't break the bank if you get back and want to try something else.

Enjoy!

petethedrummer

Evans cycles have a good few reasonably priced tourers: http://www.evanscycles.com/categories/bikes/touring-bikes

If I was keeping it under €1000 I would go for one of the Jamis Bikes. Though do some research of Jamis bikes and read reviews before buying.

If I was going over €1000 I'd get a pre-built Surly Long Haul trucker or a Bob Jackson World Tour frame and build it up myself.


You could tour on a cross bike or a hybrid or even certain less racy road bikes with long reach brakes and clearance for larger tyres such as the Pinnacle Dolomite. Buying a dedicated touring bike for 1 trip on good roads is probably overkill. It all depends on how much you intend to carry and what you plan to do with the bike after the trip.

Plutonium Kun

An old steel framed bike can actually make the base of a very good touring bike, get good wheel built up, Schwalbe marathon Supreme tyres, and it would be great.

On One/Planet X bikes do very good value bikes that are good light tourers. An example is the Pompetamine, with an 8 speed hub:

http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/CBOOPOMPALF/on_one_pompetamine_alfine_8_speed

The Uncle John would be very good too:

http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/CBPXUJFOR/planet_x_uncle_john_sram_force

But the first thing to think about is the kit you will carry, and how light you can get it. If you are willing to invest in light kit, you can go on almost any bike, but once you go above around 20 Kg, then you put a lot of strain on the bike and you need to think a specialist touring bike.