Confused about bike types

Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.

jethro10

Über Member
Hi,
Up until about now, i've been an MTB'er. I built my own bike about 10 yr ago, hard tail, 26"wheels and about 10 and a bit Kilo. £1,500 ish if I remember rightly.
I now find myself changing to "I think" touring bikes. I want one for shortish, but multi day trips, with rack, mudguards, paniers etc for a tent and the like, plus ok for trips to the shops for a bit of shopping now and then - approx a 6 mile round trip.

Seems touring bikes (flat bars for me) fit the description - was thinking hybrid, but seemings not, as touring bikes have mudguards, racks (or fittings for such).

Am I about right here?

Plus, a big plus, we seem to be looking at 14-15Kg. Is that right? I would have though MTB's with shocks and the ruggedness would have been heavier. I'm shocked then that touring bikes seem to be generally heavier?
Budget about £1,000 to £1,500.
Is building your own an option here?

Generally I'm lost.

J
 

Gravity Aided

Legendary Member
Location
Land of Lincoln
Many hybrid bikes have the braze-ons for fenders and racks, as well as the longer chain stays for the panniers heel strike clearance.
Trek 720:
trek-720-on-trail_edited-1.jpg
 

KneesUp

Guru
As @Dogtrousers suggests, get some rigid forks for your hardtail, fit some slicks and you're off - unless I suppose it's a more modern MTB frame with no guard / rack mounts (which you can work around) or short chain stays (which you can't).
 

Hugh Manatee

Veteran
Another suggestion might be to look at old rigid mountain bikes. Back in the early 90s and even before this, mountain bikes were made to be versatile. Even my racey Saracen Kili Flier Comp had eyes on the dropouts and brazed rack mounts.
With slick 1.3 tyres fitted it is fast enough on roads. A shorter stem (a 150mm was fitted as original) gives a less extreme and more comfortable position and old Durango bars a multitude of hand positions.
7 and 8 gear Shimano stuff goes on forever.

Have a look around to see what's available.
 
I built this little beasty for my daughter:
mini tour.jpg


Based on a 16" Kona Smoke with 26" wheels. As it turns out she didn't get on with the drops so it's now equipped with a nice light backswpt bar similar to a 'North Road' bend. A rigid steel mountain bike makes a stonking touring bike, perhaps not so fleet as a 700c bike, but totally bombproof. As she has limited mechanical skills I built this for comfort and reliability not speed. And it will, if she ever wants to, cope with some off roading.
 
OP
OP
J

jethro10

Über Member
As @Dogtrousers suggests, get some rigid forks for your hardtail, fit some slicks and you're off - unless I suppose it's a more modern MTB frame with no guard / rack mounts (which you can work around) or short chain stays (which you can't).

Work around?
Are you talking just bolt on frames for paniers etc?
As for the rest of it all, seems like there is no hard and fast rule.
Would larger than 26" wheels not make it a lot more efficient? - I have no idea, but wonder why they generally have larger wheels?

I'm more than happy to convert my MTB, kinda attached to it...

J
 

Pale Rider

Legendary Member
One of the reasons you have seen touring bikes that are quite heavy is they are usually made from steel.

Steel is heavier than aluminium, but many people will tell you it gives a more comfortable ride.

Flat bar tourers are a bit thinner on the ground than drop bar, but Spa in Harrogate can sort you for £1,000 or so.

Worth a trip across because - if they like the look of you - they will let you try two or three bikes.

Spa test rides are also proper test rides in that you are allowed to have the bike long enough to do some miles.

https://www.spacycles.co.uk/m1b0s21p2983/SPA-CYCLES-Steel-Tourer
 

KneesUp

Guru
Work around?
Are you talking just bolt on frames for paniers etc?
As for the rest of it all, seems like there is no hard and fast rule.
Would larger than 26" wheels not make it a lot more efficient? - I have no idea, but wonder why they generally have larger wheels?

I'm more than happy to convert my MTB, kinda attached to it...

J
You can get pannier racks that attach via the QR skewer if you have no mounting points, and you can get seat clamps with the top mounts, or you can use P-clips at the top, or you can bodge it another way if you have a monostay (as I have). You can also mount via the cantilever bosses if your frame has them - Blackburn and Old Man Mountain are good for this.

26" wheels are stronger than 700c. I don't think much has been proven in terms of 'efficiency' though. I suppose a 26 has to turn faster than a 700 for a given speed, so there might be more air resistance, but who is in a hurry when touring?
 
IMG_4179.JPG
@jethro10

Where about a are you?

If you have a decathlon near by, they have a flat bar road bike with all of the necessary braze ons for about £300 ish iirc EDIT: bit more expensive than my memory serves

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/triban-520-flat-bar-road-bike-sora-id_8322799.html

Might mean you get to keep your MTB for other purposes.

This is how I approached touring, it's a early 90's Mtb that Ive messes around with .

Heavy but strong as an ox
 
Last edited:
Work around?
Are you talking just bolt on frames for paniers etc?
As for the rest of it all, seems like there is no hard and fast rule.
Would larger than 26" wheels not make it a lot more efficient? - I have no idea, but wonder why they generally have larger wheels?

I'm more than happy to convert my MTB, kinda attached to it...

J

The difference in rolling resistance between a 700c and a 559 (all other things being equal) is so small as to be virtually unmeasurable.

Of all the forces slowing you down - air resistance accounts for about 80% of it at around 20mph. The remaining retarding forces are split fairly evenly between: mechanical drag - of hub/bb/pedal/jockey wheel bearings and rolling resistance, that is, the energy required to bend your tyre rubber over the surface of the terrain your riding on.

It used to be a simple choice - 700 tyres were available in high quality materials, low thread count and therefore fast / efficient, whereas 559 tyres were, even in the same model, heavier and more robust. And therefore slower. So long distance tourers were invariably specced with 770c hoops. With the advent of better quality tyres for the 559 standard, heralded by Schwalbe's 'Big Apple' which introduced supple sidewalls and high quality construction in a balloon sized tyre the overall performance differences between the two sizes narrowed substantially. Thorn, Surly, Rivendell all make 559 variants of their traditional steel tourers.
 

Brains

Legendary Member
Location
Greenwich
My first Touring Bike was a converted MTB.
After two long trips and 1,500 touring miles I'd gained enough knowledge to know what I realy wanted.

So I then ordered a Thorn Nomad
(They still make them, the current MK III is not as goood as the original Mk I, but will still get you anyplace on the planet)

If you have time on your side and know your frame measurements, then scouring e-bay may bring up either a good tourer or a good MTB frame to build into a tourer.
 

raleighnut

Legendary Member
DSCN0073.JPG
View attachment 409365 @jethro10

Where about a are you?

If you have a decathlon near by, they have a flat bar road bike with all of the necessary braze ons for about £300 ish iirc EDIT: bit more expensive than my memory serves

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/triban-520-flat-bar-road-bike-sora-id_8322799.html

Might mean you get to keep your MTB for other purposes.

This is how I approached touring, it's a early 90's Mtb that Ive messes around with .

Heavy but strong as an ox
Nice, is it on 26" or 700c wheels, this is my Ridgeback Hybrid (700c wheels) rebuilt to 'Fast Flat Bar' spec and used for touring (as well as commuting, shopping etc.)
 
Top Bottom