Steel tourer

[wongaga]

Anyone near Melbourne got a 54 - 56 cm steel tourer they want to sell?

[MountGower]

tourer.

[wongaga]

Thanks mate, but I'm after a real touring frame - slopey seat tube, rack mounts etc etc.

[mikesbytes]

Thanks mate, but I'm after a real touring frame - slopey seat tube, rack mounts etc etc.

I would of thought you were after something like what MountGrower suggested. Could you post a picture of what you are after.

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[wongaga]

Google Trek 520, or Fuji tourer, or Surly Longhaul Trucker to get an idea of what I'm on about.

There are quite a few differences to your average racing type frame, most notably more relaxed frame angles, more stable steering etc, as welll as the rack mounts etc.

[stryker84]

hmm, is Richard unwell? someone mentioned "steel" +"tourer" +"trek 520"and he's not yet filled 95% of the thread...

[MountGower]

luck.

[mikesbytes]

hmm, is Richard unwell? someone mentioned "steel" +"tourer" +"trek 520"and he's not yet filled 95% of the thread...

Good point, he hasn't posted since 2.44pm yesterday. Should we be concerned?

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[rider06]

he is probably trapped under the pile of bikes in his dining room

[mikesbytes]

He's looking for those girls that assisted him after his accident, so he can get there phone number. The accident needs to be discussed over a bottle or red (one glass = 20 minutes cycling).

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[heavymetal]

hmm, is Richard unwell? someone mentioned "steel" +"tourer" +"trek 520"and he's not yet filled 95% of the thread...

No, I think he is OK. I presume he knows as well as I do that steel tourers rarely exist in Australia.

Ever tried to buy one in a shop?

[mikesbytes]

Ever tried to buy one in a shop?

What about Fuji ? do they make a steel tourer?

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[TriggerFish]

Ever tried to buy one in a shop?

Bought a Cannondale T800 not long ago. Very happy with it thus far. Wasn't hard to track down. Some of the others that I was trying to look at based on reccomendations here were a little harder to find though.

[heavymetal]

Perth is really hard to find steel tourers, or any tourer for that matter. They try and sell you a mountain bike on the premise that it's strong enough for touring.

I've found a couple of places in the eastern states that can get tourers, but I'd rather buy something I can see first.

[wongaga]

I actually have a Cannondale T2000, bought late last year. There is a lot I like about it, not least the lovely Ultegra and the DH rims, but the frame is not a good fit for me. I also notice a very big difference in harshness compared with my steel road bike, so I am probably going to flog the Cannondale.

Hence the search for steel.

[geoffs]

what sort of budget are you looking at?
What sort of touring are you going to be doing?

I've heard lots of good things about the long haul trucker and the frame is reasonably priced. Chain stays are a bit longer than the Trek 520 and you can fit larger tyres.

Cheers

Geoff

[wongaga]

Budget is sort of open - still dithering between a reasonable SH frame to swap exisitng some bits onto, or new custom frame. Surly is also an option.

I'd like to get a SH frame to experiment on set-up wise though before I plough $$$'s into a custom.

[geoffs]

Budget is sort of open - still dithering between a reasonable SH frame to swap exisitng some bits onto, or new custom frame. Surly is also an option.

I'd like to get a SH frame to experiment on set-up wise though before I plough $$$'s into a custom.

The first proper touring frame that I had was made from 531 and I bought it in London. It seemed ok at the time as I didn't know any better.
I met another Aussie in Innsbruck who also has a frame made from the same tubing but had been made for him by Clarence Street Cyclery's Geoff Scott. Geoff Scott had made the frame as this guy was big 6'4" and had broken 2 of the standard off the shelf frames.
His bike was just so much better in the way it rode and handled it was unbelievable. Nice and stiff, complaint over the bumps and didn't even notice a full load of panniers.

Just make sure you have your size exact before you start shopping.

Big guys that ride the Canondale tours love them, if your light then they give a hard ride.

The forum that has the most info on this is touring@phred

Cheers

Geoff

[Hotdog]

Most of the steel tourers out there seem to have already been mentioned, i.e. Surly LHT, Trek 520, Fuji Touring, but I noticed in an ad recently that Vivente have introduced a steel tourer into their lineup too, the World Radonneur. No idea on the price but it seems pretty well equipped for serious touring with front and rear Tubus pannier racks, Shimano dynamo hub and Lumotec LED front light as standard.

Edit: Price of the World Randonneur seems to be around $1750, not bad considering all the bits and pieces included as standard.

[wongaga]

Thanks for that, I have emailed a few Q's to Vivente