Toying with the idea of a tourer build

[Andy_R]

Ok, so my daily commute is covered nicely with my Subway and its ideal to teach with, but I'm now toying with the idea of building a tourer for those longer weekend jaunts. What should I be looking for in a tourer frame? My thinking is steel instead of ali, 700 or 29er, but after that I really don't have any idea. So, tourer owners, what should I look for in the frame, and why?

 

[PpPete]

Look for the little clues that tell you the frame was designed for touring.
Separate eyelets for rack and mudguard above rear drop out, and mounting points near top of the seat stay.
"Low-rider" mounts on the forks.

Then - check you have no toe-overlap..... which usually means very stable steering too.

 

[gwhite]

Make sure the frame has sufficiently long chain-stays which would allow panniers to be carried by providing sufficient heel clearance. Relaxed angles are also a plus as these prevent twitchy steering and provide a stable ride when loaded up.

 

[mickle]

I wandered in to Cycle Heaven recently and was smitten by this Ridgeback Voyage It's nowt special - if I could justify the expense I'd have one custom built - but it's got everything it needs. In spite of my unreasonable loathing of all things Shi**no I'd happily ride that. Which really is saying something because I am an insufferable bike snob of the worst kind. But there's just something honest about it. It does what it says on the tin and its an amazing bike for the price. As an everyday bike or a long distance tourer I think it would be really hard to beat. The only - aside from the saddle obviously - thing I'd change would be the Sora shifters for separate bar-end shifters and stand alone brake levers. And I wouldn't bother with those in-line levers on the tops either. I'm seriously considering getting one.

It presses my buttons, I haven't even glanced at the Panorama top-o'-the-range jobby.

 

[gwhite]

That looks like a decent bike for the money. It might be possible to have the STIs swapped for the Bar-end shifters and I'd swap the brakes as well if I was buying. I have a longing for a Surly LHT at the moment which has the same honest, practical appeal....dearer though. Not much point for me though as I've had to give up touring.

 

[just jim]

Byercycles do a nice frameset- the Arivis. It is the same type as the Hewitt Cheviot, just different paint job.

 

[Little yellow Brompton]

I wandered in to Cycle Heaven recently and was smitten by this Ridgeback Voyage It's nowt special - if I could justify the expense I'd have one custom built - but it's got everything it needs. In spite of my unreasonable loathing of all things Shi**no I'd happily ride that. Which really is saying something because I am an insufferable bike snob of the worst kind. But there's just something honest about it. It does what it says on the tin and its an amazing bike for the price. As an everyday bike or a long distance tourer I think it would be really hard to beat. The only - aside from the saddle obviously - thing I'd change would be the Sora shifters for separate bar-end shifters and stand alone brake levers. And I wouldn't bother with those in-line levers on the tops either. I'm seriously considering getting one.

It presses my buttons, I haven't even glanced at the Panorama top-o'-the-range jobby.

I bought one last month to replace a 80's Galaxy that got twatted by a dozy cow . To my mind it's a direct replacment for the Galaxy , i'm very pleased with it , and I also coudn't see the point of another £400 for the Panorama or a Galaxy.

 

[Andy_R]

ok, so finally found something to start with. this is going to be the basis of my new baby:

http://cgi.ebay.co.u...e=STRK:MEWAXT

We'll see how it goes from here.............