# My new touring bike



## User (16 Mar 2013)




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## rich p (16 Mar 2013)

It's a beauty TMN. May you have many pleasurable, leisurable miles in the saddle!


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## andylaw79 (16 Mar 2013)

Very nice indeed, happy riding!


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## fossala (16 Mar 2013)

That frame looks too small if the bar stack/seatpost showing is anything to go by.


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## Sittingduck (16 Mar 2013)

Very nice!


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## MacB (16 Mar 2013)

fossala said:


> That frame looks too small if the bar stack/seatpost showing is anything to go by.


 
it's a Thorn, that one actually looks well proportioned by their standards


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## MacB (16 Mar 2013)

it actually looks quite speedy for a tourer, hopefully TMN can allay fears in that direction


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## deptfordmarmoset (16 Mar 2013)

Hmmm, I do like green bikes!


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## vernon (16 Mar 2013)

User13710 said:


> View attachment 20508


 
That the nicest looking Thorn that I've seen.


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## mickle (16 Mar 2013)

There's tidy.


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## GM (16 Mar 2013)

Very nice! good choice, you'll be flying up the hills with that gearing.


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## MacB (16 Mar 2013)

User13710 said:


> Aw, am I not allowed to go fast?


 
course you can it was just my usual cheap jibe to shore up my own lack of self esteem


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## Pale Rider (16 Mar 2013)

Nice looking bike.

There's something to be said for a smaller frame - easier to handle when not riding.

Proper full-length front mudguard as well, although someone will be along in a minute to say it's too long.


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## doog (16 Mar 2013)

Great looking bike and you can have complete confidence in it.


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## Hitchington (16 Mar 2013)

I like


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## ianrauk (16 Mar 2013)

We gonna see it on the Felpham run then?


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## P.H (17 Mar 2013)

It's tiny! Good for Thorn for making such a range of sizes rather than just the best selling ones.
Many happy miles and smiles on it.


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## Crankarm (17 Mar 2013)

I hope you and your bike are very happy. Congratulations.


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## clarion (17 Mar 2013)

It's my very favourite Thorn ever, because it makes TMN happy.


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## betty swollocks (17 Mar 2013)

Lucky you: it looks lovely and I wish you many many exquisite rides on it


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## andylaw79 (17 Mar 2013)

MacB said:


> it's a Thorn, that one actually looks well proportioned by their standards



They do seem to have their own unique take on sizing but I've never heard anyone say anything other than how comfortable the ride is.


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## GrumpyGregry (17 Mar 2013)

andylaw79 said:


> They do seem to have their own unique take on sizing but I've never heard anyone say anything other than how comfortable the ride is.


they have their own unique take on a lot of things.


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## BigonaBianchi (17 Mar 2013)

British racing green is the ONLY colour any self respecting tourer is allowed to be seen out and about on


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## ianrauk (17 Mar 2013)

Can't really see the colour too well in the pic. So looking forward to seeing it in the flesh.....


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## Nigeyy (17 Mar 2013)

Lovely bike, enjoy riding it (green is my favourite colour too; I wish I could see it a bit better on the photo)


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## coffeejo (17 Mar 2013)

Very nice. Very jealous.


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## coffeejo (17 Mar 2013)

User13710 said:


> Well, I don't really 'like' making people jealous, but it is a lovely bike. And I broke my Orbea!




How??????


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## coffeejo (17 Mar 2013)

User13710 said:


> Had a bit of a collision with a car! Claim against her insurance under way, but it needs a new frame, forks, and handlebars. I wasn't badly injured, luckily - the poor bike took the brunt.


*sniff*

Glad you're ok though.


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## deptfordmarmoset (17 Mar 2013)

Have you christened it yet? After the comments about it looking small, I'd suggest ''Tiny," as in Tiny, my newtouring bike.


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## biggs682 (17 Mar 2013)

very nice


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## The Jogger (17 Mar 2013)

It's a classy bike...........


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## potsy (17 Mar 2013)

User13710 said:


> Had a bit of a collision with a car! Claim against her insurance under way, but it needs a new frame, forks, and handlebars. I wasn't badly injured, luckily - the poor bike took the brunt.


Aww, should have popped into the tea thread for some sympathy


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## Rev (17 Mar 2013)

That is what I would call bloody lovely!


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## Herbie (17 Mar 2013)

User13710 said:


> I finally decided to go to Bridgewater in Somerset to SJS Cycles, to look at the Thorn Audax Mk3. They only had the one small frame in stock, specced for someone else who didn't take it, in the 'guest' colour (British racing green) I would have wanted anyway, and they were happy to change the bar-end shifters for STIs and the honey-coloured saddle for a black one, so I bought it. I think it's rather beautiful.
> 
> View attachment 20508


 
very nice


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## GrumpyGregry (18 Mar 2013)

Two things

You didn't break your Orbea. A **** in a car did.
The drops... they look very very deep, wouldn't something shallower suit the smaller of stature person?

Moss? As in who do you think you are Stirling or the rolling stone gathers no variety?


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## mmmmartin (18 Mar 2013)

Ihave done 10,000k on mine and it's fine. The bottle cages are worth the extra as they are really easy to use. You might want to fit a Deda Dog Fang, which for £7 removes all worry of the chain coming off inside the small ring at the front but mychain never came off. If you want to fit a load of lights, GPS, trip computer etc etc Thorn do a natty little accesories bar, very easy to fit, does a good job, but it always takes ages to fettle a bike exactly the way you want it. If you are looking for small panniers for a tour to put on that rack, go for the smaller Ortlieb Front Panniers, which I used for two weeks in Spain and they were big enough. were you to be contemplating a trip to, say a French chateau with perhaps 49 other cyclists in perhaps June, there would be a washing machine, thus rendering the smaller panniers exactly the right size for such a trip. The big rear panniers are OK on a longer wheelbase exped bike but a bit too wide for this bike, esp in the small size. I had a new front wheel made with a dynohub to power a big light, which you might find handy were you to be thinking of a ride that might, for instance, last all night.


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## Brains (18 Mar 2013)

As an owner of a Thorn Nomad I like the bikes, but where did that rack come from ? Surely Thorn did not provide that ?
I'd suggest something a little more robust, Thorn have their own model, but Tubus and others do reasonable spec racks


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## mmmmartin (18 Mar 2013)

i had that rack on an MTB, it will be perfectly strong enough for the quantity of luggage you will be carrying. If I was going to France for a week in May, I would take two small Ortlieb panniers and the Carradice saddlebag and use only the saddlebag for the day rides. And that is what I'd do if I were contemplating a similar trip in, say, June. To a chateau, perhaps. It is, after all, an audax bike rather than an expedition bike. 

And although I am not a fan of Bike Porn, it does look really rather nice. 

And a comfy steel frame and decent kit on it should last for donkey's years. 

It will be interesting to see if you are faster than me on your Moss (I suspect you will be), as you were on the late lamented Orbea (which, as a small factoid, was made by a Spanish workers' co-operative so was quite appropriate for taking on trips involving Lenin and his linoleum).


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## srw (18 Mar 2013)

User13710 said:


> Thanks mmmmartin, I knew you would approve! Funnily enough on an inaugural ride today the bottle cages were the only thing that I didn't like! I like to take a drink on the move, and they're too tight to be safe - are you meant to take the elastic thing off?


I rather like the bottle cages, and was slightly miffed when one of the bits of elastic broke. The trick is to find a bottle just the right size - from memory our aluminium bottles work better than the rather fatter plastic ones.

If those are panaracer tourguard tyres the sidewalls are made of condom rubber. Being about a third of the weight of the pair of us you might have better luck than we did - I think the second tyre got replaced after about 300 miles.


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## Fab Foodie (18 Mar 2013)

Sweet, very sweet!


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## GrumpyGregry (19 Mar 2013)

My barley self destructed after a period of intensive commuting use and is back in Nelson for some free tlc and repair.

My sqr frame broke and dumped my Nelson onto my back wheel on the fixed. At high speed. That was fun. Still if you can't fall off on the way home after a trying day in the office what's the point eh?

So I'm slightly out-of-love with Messrs Carradice at present.


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## rb58 (19 Mar 2013)

I think all Thorn Audax owners should be allowed to go to the front of the queue for breakfast at the end of a night ride. That should be the law.

And I agree about the stock tyres - I ditched mine pretty quickly, but not before a couple of visitations.


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## theloafer (19 Mar 2013)

hey tiny .... congreats on the new bike  its a beauty hope you have many happy mile,s togetyer


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## mmmmartin (20 Mar 2013)

I have had superb longevity from my Tourguards, about 3,000 kilometres from the back and a bit more from the front. I inspect the tyres with a big magnifying glass after every trip and pick out the flints with a small screwdriver and have a bout one puncture per year. I will replace the rear more often than the front as it seems to wear more. The tyres are light and springy. Recommended. If you want no punctures at all, fit Marathon Plus but they are a very stiff ride.


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## jags (20 Mar 2013)

enjoy every pedal stroke. its a class looking bike and hard to beat thorn for a quality bike.
hope you have a good strong lock for it.


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## GrumpyGregry (20 Mar 2013)

If a hard core boy mocks you for your dog fang point out many top drawer cx-ers use 'em and they don't come more hard core than them.


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## ianrauk (20 Mar 2013)

Well this hard core boy isn't going to mock.
Had one on my Secteur Elite Triple and it saved the chain a few times.

Dog Fang away dearest.


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## deptfordmarmoset (20 Mar 2013)

User13710 said:


> First long ride today (about 45 miles & pretty hard work, I'm so unfit). Very comfy, but the first time I tried out the smallest chainring the chain did exactly that! Might just be adjustment I suppose, but for £7 one of those dog fangs might be a good idea, whatever they are. Will I be mocked by the hard core boys, like they do for those plastic disc things? (Not that I care much, of course  .)


They're also very difficult to spot, nestling behind the crank in the crook between down and seat tubes.


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## mmmmartin (20 Mar 2013)

User13710 said:


> for £7 one of those dog fangs might be a good idea, whatever they are



Beware of two things. Of two things, be aware. 

Thing the first. They come in differing sizes. Your paperwork from Thorn says something about the front derailleur fitting a 28.6mm tube. So get one fits that size of tube. Check this size. http://www.wiggle.co.uk/deda-dog-fang/
I had the 28.6mm so I think you will, too.

Thing the second. When you get it there are no instructions. But you need to first tighten the screw on the nut, which drags the nut into the plastic a bit. Then when you put it on the downtube the screw will reach the nut. If you do not do this it will not reach the nut and you will go out and buy a longer screw, as have many peeps before you, and probably many after. 
These pix show where it goes
http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=de...sAQ&biw=1024&bih=660&sei=mUJKUbn2K4jtOvStgZgC

Somewhere on the interwebs is a pic of Bob McHardy (a finer man never wore socks) banging a metal tyre lever with a furkin great brick to shift a chain that went off a small chainring and jammed itself, in a most inconsiderate manner, between the bottom bracket and the going-round-part-of-the-pedally-bit on someone else's frame. This was funny for about five minutes before we all got cold, what with this being December on the Mince Pie and Stollen on Romney Marsh in a friggin gale. It's seven quid well spent, believe me.


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## mmmmartin (20 Mar 2013)

https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=54741.msg1115496#msg1115496

Shows in easy-to-understand words and three photographs why audax will never catch on with The Bloomsbury Set. And why a Deda Dog Fang is worth seven quid.


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## PpPete (21 Mar 2013)

mmmmartin said:


> https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=54741.msg1115496#msg1115496
> Shows in easy-to-understand words and three photographs why audax will never catch on with The Bloomsbury Set. And why a Deda Dog Fang is worth seven quid.


or indeed £4.53 here
Cheap? Moi?


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## mmmmartin (21 Mar 2013)

PpPete said:


> or indeed £4.53 here
> Cheap? Moi?


that's the wrong size, and the reason it is cheap is because it is a non-standard tube size. Beware.


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## PpPete (21 Mar 2013)

Er...31.8 was the right size for me, and they do 34.9 at the same price


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## RecordAceFromNew (21 Mar 2013)

mmmmartin said:


> https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=54741.msg1115496#msg1115496
> 
> Shows in easy-to-understand words and three photographs why audax will never catch on with The Bloomsbury Set. And why a Deda Dog Fang is worth seven quid.


 
Your dog fang must be rather special. Mine will never stop a chain jamming between two front rings...


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## PpPete (21 Mar 2013)

RecordAceFromNew said:


> Your dog fang must be rather special. Mine will never stop a chain jamming between two front rings...


That's now't to do with the dog fang....you are missing a ring. 
TRIPLES RULE !


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## deptfordmarmoset (21 Mar 2013)

I just saw a Thorn Audax (cobalt blue, not my colour but still good looking) outside Decathlon - looks like 28.6mm to me.


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## shouldbeinbed (21 Mar 2013)

Pretty bike


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## RecordAceFromNew (21 Mar 2013)

PpPete said:


> That's now't to do with the dog fang....


 
You have misread my post (and mmmm's link).



PpPete said:


> you are missing a ring.
> TRIPLES RULE !


 
tRipLeS what are they? Real men only need a single front ring.


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## London Female (21 Mar 2013)

User13710 said:


> I finally decided to go to Bridgewater in Somerset to SJS Cycles, to look at the Thorn Audax Mk3. They only had the one small frame in stock, specced for someone else who didn't take it, in the 'guest' colour (British racing green) I would have wanted anyway, and they were happy to change the bar-end shifters for STIs and the honey-coloured saddle for a black one, so I bought it. I think it's rather beautiful.
> 
> View attachment 20508


 
That looks lovely and just about the right size for me, sadly my budget won't stretch to a thorn but I have seen a couple of Dawes Galaxy 2012 models which have been reduced by a fair bit.


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## mmmmartin (21 Mar 2013)

Yes indeed, last year's Dawes Galaxies have to be some of the best bargains ever.


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## P.H (21 Mar 2013)

You could get a Dog Fang, but a Jump Stop is better
http://n-gear.com/whatis.html
http://www.billys.co.uk/english/group.php?prod=chng-js

A Dog Fang catches the chain when it falls off, a Jump Stop means in can't fall off. It also has the advantage of letting you adjust the stop screw to allow a bit of overshift, making a middle to small ring shift very slick.


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## clarion (21 Mar 2013)

Or you could adjust your derailleur correctly and not get taken in by marketing of unnecessary products...


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## P.H (21 Mar 2013)

clarion said:


> not get taken in by marketing of unnecessary products...


You mean gears?


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## deptfordmarmoset (21 Mar 2013)

User13710 said:


> Thank you. The two quid I just saved might go in the beer kitty.


I guess Adrian's post is saying that a dog fang is no substitute for poorly-adjusted gears but it's still useful for those ''just in case'' moments. Which seems right to me.


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## P.H (21 Mar 2013)

User13710 said:


> Thank you. The two quid I just saved might go in the beer kitty.


You pays your money and takes your choice. The Dog Fang works fine, but I doubt you'd find anyone who's used both that doesn't prefer the Jump Stop.
As for Clarion's point, it must be nice to have such confidence that your chain could never come off, I wonder how many people with missing paint used to be that confident.


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## deptfordmarmoset (21 Mar 2013)

User13710 said:


> I'm not sure if the gears are poorly adjusted, it might just have been over-enthusiasm on my part. You're right though, I like the idea of belt and braces - chains coming off on a sunny afternoon is one thing - in the middle of a rainy night seven quid might seem like a good investment.


Even on a sunny afternoon you don't want your new chain damaged and your brand new paint job all scratched.


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## clarion (21 Mar 2013)

With the quality of componentry on this Thorn, there is no need for an ugly muck collector.

Do so many CCers really not know how to adjust a front mech? Admittedly, it's a lot easier for a friction lever - set the top limit, set the bottom limit & ride off (which is one reason why I tend to use friction gears for touring) - but even with silly stuff like STIs it's not rocket science.


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## clarion (21 Mar 2013)

If you like STIs, that's fine. I'm not a fan, for lots of reasons, but that's not relevant. Sure, STI makes gears a bit more difficult to adjust, but there is no way your chain should be coming off. If it did on your first ride, well, it just needs a tweak, is all. It'd be surprising if the shakedown ride on a new bike _didn't _highlight some adjustments needed in various ways. Doesn't mean you need a daft accessory.


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## srw (21 Mar 2013)

Knowing how to adjust a front mech and getting around to adjusting a front mech are two very different things. Actually adjusting a front mech precisely is something completely different again. Especially on a tandem with a 53-40-27 triple.

We have a jump stop, and if properly adjusted itself it works. It's silly not to have a "daft accessory" if it's cheap and makes your life easier.


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## GrumpyGregry (21 Mar 2013)

A chain can still drop even on a perfectly adjusted mech especially with modern chainrings. Harsh mistress is physics.


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## vernon (21 Mar 2013)

RecordAceFromNew said:


> You have misread my post (and mmmm's link).
> 
> 
> 
> tRipLeS what are they? Real men only need a single front ring.


 
Nah, proper real men dispense with single front rings and ride ordinaries.


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## PpPete (22 Mar 2013)

P.H said:


> You could get a Dog Fang, but a Jump Stop is better
> http://n-gear.com/whatis.html
> http://www.billys.co.uk/english/group.php?prod=chng-js
> 
> A Dog Fang catches the chain when it falls off, a Jump Stop means in can't fall off. It also has the advantage of letting you adjust the stop screw to allow a bit of overshift, making a middle to small ring shift very slick.


 
I beg to differ. A properly adjusted dog fang will prevent the chain falling off.


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## clarion (22 Mar 2013)

If you can adjust your dog fang properly, why not your mech?


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## PpPete (22 Mar 2013)

Mech properly adjusted eliminates only 99.9% of chance of a chain drop.**
The dog fang properly adjusted deals with the 0.1% at a cost of 7 grams and £4.50 for the cheap taiwanese copy or £7.50 for the Deda one.
What's not to like?

** And even pros on doubles drop chains occasionally. Well, if you can still call Andy Schleck a pro that is.


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## mmmmartin (22 Mar 2013)

User13710 said:


> Actually I was thinking of buying a Galaxy


you did well not to, for doing the rides you tend to do. I had a Galaxy (sold recently to fund a new Thorn Sherpa) and lifting it into the car made me realise how much heavier it is. The Thorn Audax is noticeably lighter. This may have something to do with the fact that the Galaxy is a load lugger capable of toting back and front loaded panniers, tent, sleeping mat, stove etc etc. I have done several tours on it and it is fine. The Thorn Audax is a lighter bike, made more for, um, er, audax rides, with a bit of luggage (eg saddlebag). After Lon-JoG last year I rode on the Audax from Victoria to London Bridge with 35lbs of luggage, inc 60 litre rucksack with camping kit and two full rear large Ortliebs. Not sure if the bike or me was the unhappier. We both wobbled rather alarmingly in the heavy traffic. But the Galaxy would have been fine.


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