bonzobanana
Guru
I'm sure the bike is reasonably solid but a bit more information about the rider might have been useful, a female rider is lighter than a man and a little weaker typically and the components on this bike will surely wear faster and if higher end unlikely to be available in poorer countries she travels through. I would have the opposite opinion to others here and say an Argos bike would be stronger and better overall as a touring bike however that doesn't mean it won't be better off with a few key upgrades for a lengthy trip. I could see an Argos bike having steel chainrings, thick 7 speed chain and very easy to replace parts wherever you go in the world. This looks a decent option with a 3x drivetrain and decent tyre clearance. I would replace the tyres and tubes for heavy hard wearing tyres, maybe replace the rear wheel for a freehub and 7 speed cassette wheel plus saddle and bar tape and maybe a angle adjustable stem. It's less than 150 pounds but a few key upgrades if you buy carefully could get you a decent touring bike for maybe around 200 pounds or at least less than 250 pounds.
The steel forks will definitely not give you any problems with a long tour. The Microshift 7 speed brifters are really decent and superior to the basic Tourney brifters. I'd guess the bike would take up to 700x32 tyres possibly more? The high viz frame is definitely useful for getting you seen. If I buy a bike with parts I know I don't want, I sell those parts on immediately as new rather than try them and then have to sell them on as secondhand. That way I get the maximum return on them. This bike was reviewed by one of the Youtube channels and overall the review was quite positive with the Microshift gearing getting some praise despite having a freewheel. Replace that with a freehub and 7 speed cassette and it will be far superior at shifting because of the wide tolerances and lack of freewheel wobble. Ideal for touring. Overall I would say the Argos bike is a better touring bike than a lightweight carbon fibre road bike designed for speed with very low spoke count wheels and thin tyres. However I know the Argos bikes only get rough assembly in the factory and then boxed up and that will be what the end customer gets. You will need to give the bike a full service and safety check when you get it. It's possible this Argos bike has a sealed bottom bracket but it might be loose bearings and I would change it to a sealed bottom bracket for touring. Lastly everything about this Argos bike can be serviced with basic tools anywhere in the world, so as long as there is some sort of garage or small bike shop any problem can be solved. Yes its an aluminium frame but these cheap bikes tend to have heavier stronger frames without clever butted tubes, it will likely be plain gauge tubes all around which surely is an asset for touring, being more robust.
The steel forks will definitely not give you any problems with a long tour. The Microshift 7 speed brifters are really decent and superior to the basic Tourney brifters. I'd guess the bike would take up to 700x32 tyres possibly more? The high viz frame is definitely useful for getting you seen. If I buy a bike with parts I know I don't want, I sell those parts on immediately as new rather than try them and then have to sell them on as secondhand. That way I get the maximum return on them. This bike was reviewed by one of the Youtube channels and overall the review was quite positive with the Microshift gearing getting some praise despite having a freewheel. Replace that with a freehub and 7 speed cassette and it will be far superior at shifting because of the wide tolerances and lack of freewheel wobble. Ideal for touring. Overall I would say the Argos bike is a better touring bike than a lightweight carbon fibre road bike designed for speed with very low spoke count wheels and thin tyres. However I know the Argos bikes only get rough assembly in the factory and then boxed up and that will be what the end customer gets. You will need to give the bike a full service and safety check when you get it. It's possible this Argos bike has a sealed bottom bracket but it might be loose bearings and I would change it to a sealed bottom bracket for touring. Lastly everything about this Argos bike can be serviced with basic tools anywhere in the world, so as long as there is some sort of garage or small bike shop any problem can be solved. Yes its an aluminium frame but these cheap bikes tend to have heavier stronger frames without clever butted tubes, it will likely be plain gauge tubes all around which surely is an asset for touring, being more robust.
