Cycling / Camping advice

[raleighnut]

I think the £10 bags have small zipped compartments.

Ah but if you will edit the linkies I bit of advice DO Not ditch the mat/self inflating mattress, you will be very cold without one.

 

[Ootini]

Remember a pair of Ortliebs is cheaper than a cheap pair AND Ortliebs later

True, however, seeing as this is my first outing I'm thinking of testing the water with the, possibly crap, £10 bags. I could then "upgrade" to Ortliebs or similar but splashing out £70+ for something that may be a one off isn't my cuppa tea.
With regards to the rack, what kind of issues would one encounter with a cheapo rack like the one listed, I'm assuming it would just be "flimsy-ness"?

 

[Ootini]

Ah but if you will edit the linkies I bit of advice DO Not ditch the mat/self inflating mattress, you will be very cold without one.

Sorry about that, I didn't realise you'd replied before I edited.

 

[mcshroom]

Your CX bike is basically a light tourer anyway, though it may be a little higher geared than a standard tourer. I've used a number of racks over the years which were below that £40 figure (in fact I think only my Tubus Tara front rack cost that much). THat rack looks like it should be fine, unless you have disc brakes. If you do have discs you will need to get a disc-specific one as they are designed to fit round the brake caliper which otherwise gets in the way.

With the panniers they look like they would hold up for the tour. Non locking hooks on the top mean you need to make sure the bungee is attached as otherwise rough surfaces might shake the bag off (DAMHIKT )

Are you sure that 30 litres total is enough though? Especially with food/water to add on top of your permanent kit. Before buying the gear I'd be tempted to gather it all up and work out the sizes first.

Also don't bother going too thin on the tyres. With the extra weight on the back, having a bit more volume in the tyres will mean you are less likely to get a pinch flat, and it should make the ride a little smoother. As you are riding a CX rather than a tight clearance roadie, then (unless you already have the tyres), you might as well use the extra clearance for something like 32mm Schwalbe Marathons

 

[Ootini]

Your CX bike is basically a light tourer anyway, though it may be a little higher geared than a standard tourer. I've used a number of racks over the years which were below that £40 figure (in fact I think only my Tubus Tara front rack cost that much). THat rack looks like it should be fine, unless you have disc brakes. If you do have discs you will need to get a disc-specific one as they are designed to fit round the brake caliper which otherwise gets in the way.

With the panniers they look like they would hold up for the tour. Non locking hooks on the top mean you need to make sure the bungee is attached as otherwise rough surfaces might shake the bag off (DAMHIKT )

Are you sure that 30 litres total is enough though? Especially with food/water to add on top of your permanent kit. Before buying the gear I'd be tempted to gather it all up and work out the sizes first.

Also don't bother going too thin on the tyres. With the extra weight on the back, having a bit more volume in the tyres will mean you are less likely to get a pinch flat, and it should make the ride a little smoother. As you are riding a CX rather than a tight clearance roadie, then (unless you already have the tyres), you might as well use the extra clearance for something like 32mm Schwalbe Marathons

Hi thanks for the info.
The CX bike has v-brakes so no need for a disc brake specific rack.
I have no idea what DAMHIKT means I'm afraid.
We're probably going to be eating at shops / cafes / pubs etc So I'm going to take enough food for one or two meals (dehydrated camping type stuff).
The bike is currently running Continental 25mm road tyres, but I'm thinking for the purposes of this tour, I might stick the Griffo 32mm CX tyres back on, not 100% on this yet.

 

[mcshroom]

DAMHIKT = Don't Ask Me How I Know That

 

[Profpointy]

True, however, seeing as this is my first outing I'm thinking of testing the water with the, possibly crap, £10 bags. I could then "upgrade" to Ortliebs or similar but splashing out £70+ for something that may be a one off isn't my cuppa tea.
With regards to the rack, what kind of issues would one encounter with a cheapo rack like the one listed, I'm assuming it would just be "flimsy-ness"?

Ortlieb snobbery aside, I'd be inclined to risk cheapo panniers within reason, as they should at least work. With some gaffer tape and cable ties, you can probably bodge a get-you-home if the worst happens. A bad rack is an unmitigated pain. Admittedly my worst rack was very cheap indeed, and I doubt you can anything quite that bad these days, so I might have a jaundiced view. It wouldn't attach properly, wobbled about and was generally too flimsy, though in fairness the rear triangle on the bike I had then wobbled about as well.. Design wise, I'm dubious on the "single point" attachment style of rack, even from a good make.

 

[Bodhbh]

True, however, seeing as this is my first outing I'm thinking of testing the water with the, possibly crap, £10 bags. I could then "upgrade" to Ortliebs or similar but splashing out £70+ for something that may be a one off isn't my cuppa tea. With regards to the rack, what kind of issues would one encounter with a cheapo rack like the one listed, I'm assuming it would just be "flimsy-ness"?

SJS can be a little steep pricewise sometimes, but those panniers look a bargin. At least on paper. I'd like to think their own brand stuff would be okay...

Some racks can flex alot, but unless you're going off-road or going totally silly with the weight will probably be fine If you shelled out on a Tubus or something (try Rose bikes not SJS) it would be absolutely solid.

 

[steveindenmark]

Benefits of a touring bike over your CX on a trip like this?

If you get racks fitted to your CX and don't put too much weight on it you will be fine.

The benefits of a touring bike is that they have at least rear racks and most have a triple chain ring and a good ratio of gears to get up big hills.

But your CX will be fine. I do short trips like yours on my scooter without any problem and so a CX will be a doddle. I would just try and not have a backpack on try to restrict your weight to around 15kg

When it comes to panniers you need to have a think. If you intend to tour quite regularly I would go for Ortleibs. They are not eliteist, they are simply the best. I have spent lots of money on many sets of cheap panniers until I bought my Ortleibs.

 

[Ootini]

One more quick question.
The tent we will be using has enough room inside for three people to sleep, that's it. No room for storage etc, so the panniers will be staying on the bikes. I was thinking, we could simply lock all three bikes together using one lock, and use a second lock to connect them to an "object" post, street lamp etc and simply cover the three bikes using a cheapo waterproof tarpaulin type thing. It won't make the bikes particularly difficult to steal, but they'd be near the tent and I don't think even a ninja could get the three bikes apart etc without waking us up. Any obvious errors in this thinking ?

Something like this, but hopefully a lighter weight version: http://www.halfords.com/cycling/too...olutions/bikehut-all-weather-multi-bike-cover or even just a bit of old tarp cut to shape.

It's main job would be to cover / disguise the bikes as opposed to really protect them from the elements as such. As I pointed out earlier, if the weather was truly foul, the trip would be off.

 

[Bodhbh]

The tent we will be using has enough room inside for three people to sleep, that's it. No room for storage etc, so the panniers will be staying on the bikes. I was thinking, we could simply lock all three bikes together using one lock, and use a second lock to connect them to an "object" post, street lamp etc and simply cover the three bikes using a cheapo waterproof tarpaulin type thing. It won't make the bikes particularly difficult to steal, but they'd be near the tent and I don't think even a ninja could get the three bikes apart etc without waking us up. Any obvious errors in this thinking?

Sounds okay to me. When I go off with my mate, we put his D-lock thru both frames and my cable lock thru both + wheels + whatever's kicking about. If there's nothing, then no worries - two 18kg touring bikes d-locked together are pretty hard to ninja. My tent is too small, and I tend to leave most of the panniers on the bike as well. Don't see it as a big issue, the panniers are prolly worth more than anything left in them over night.

 

[KneesUp]

I have an Axiom Transit rack I got off eBay for £13 inc delivery - it's light and sturdy and is rated up to 60kg. I've not had it long, but it seems fine so far.

EDIT - although if you have 700c wheels and/or big bags you might want one that has the extra support bit at the bag (so three bits of metal coming from the mount) to stop your bag rubbing your back wheel.

 

[Ootini]

I have an Axiom Transit rack I got off eBay for £13 inc delivery - it's light and sturdy and is rated up to 60kg. I've not had it long, but it seems fine so far.

EDIT - although if you have 700c wheels and/or big bags you might want one that has the extra support bit at the bag (so three bits of metal coming from the mount) to stop your bag rubbing your back wheel.

Three rods like this ?

 

[Ootini]

Sounds okay to me. When I go off with my mate, we put his D-lock thru both frames and my cable lock thru both + wheels + whatever's kicking about. If there's nothing, then no worries - two 18kg touring bikes d-locked together are pretty hard to ninja. My tent is too small, and I tend to leave most of the panniers on the bike as well. Don't see it as a big issue, the panniers are prolly worth more than anything left in them over night.

Do you cover the bikes up at all over night? Or just leave them exposed?

 

[KneesUp]

Three rods like this ?

Yep that's it - mine doesn't have the rearmost ones - it's study as anything, but I only have 26" wheels and the bag did rub a tiny bit at first before I tightened up the bag fixings, and it's still quite close - but then it's a laptop bag for a 17" latop, so quite long. For a tenner it's a great rack if it will work for you, but if it doesn't it will be annoying I'd have thought It is light though - it doesn't have a sprung bit, but I've never seen the point of them (my mum's shopper had one) as even if you can get wedge shaped things to fit under them, they don't seem to hold things very well. Or at least the one on my mum's shopper didn't Just get bungee chords.