Genesis or Spa?

[LincolnshirePoacher]

I’m looking at treating myself to a new touring bike for my 73rd birthday. Its been a bout ten years since I was cycling regularly.



I want something that is of good quality, I probably won’t be riding that far but still want something that’s nice to own and look at. I recall buying a Dawes Discovery in the early 80’s, I really wanted a Galaxy but that was not within my means at the time.



I am considering the Genesis Tour De Fer 20 or maybe even the 40. The Spa D’Tour 725 and Wayfarer are also possibilities.

I should add that I am 5 foot seven, 29 inch inside leg, my weight is about 12.5 stone.



Anyone advise on the Genesis and Spa bikes please?

 

[Big T]

Depends on where you want to ride and what sort of riding you will be doing. Both the Spa bikes and the Tour de Fer come with disc brakes - with the TDF your only option is mechanical discs, but you can get hydraulic discs on a Spa bike, depending on what groupset you spec it with. You can get a 9 speed triple chainset bike with mechanical discs, or an 11 speed double chainset bike with hydraulics. Hydraulics are more powerful, but less easy to fix if you break down in the middle of nowhere. The Spa is much more customisable than the TDF.

Are you doing full on touring with luggage? Do you live somewhere hilly? If neither of these, then do you really need a full on touring bike? Would a “light tourer” like a Spa Elan be better? Again, the Elan is fully customisable.

I’ve been considering a new tourer myself, but I’m going to stick with my old Dawes Super Galaxy for now.

 

[otherself]

The Spa has a superior finishing kit, and a better frame material.

 

[Oldhippy]

I can highly recommend the Tour de Fer 30 if that helps. It is comfortable, reliable and serves me well on all road and track surfaces. Very happy with it indeed.

 

[geocycle]

There’s a good review of the Spa d’tour in this months CTC mag. Should be on the cycling uk website. I don’t know the genesis but have heard good things. My Spa elan is a lovely ride as is the audax and both are fully customisable. I’d suggest a trip to Harrogate and have a look,they know their touring bikes.

 

[wafter]

It's probably worth noting that the spec of the Genesis has changed a fair bit with (IIRC) the last model iteration; with previous models being pretty stable in this respect for many years.

From memory:

Geometry - changed; IIRC went a bit odd for some of the sizes but seems reasonable upon looking again. Current geometry will be on Genesis' website; old values should be readily available on the net.

Fork - changed from a curved item to a straight one. Unsure of real-world implications; I prefer the aesthetic of the old one while it's reasonable to assume this might be more compliant / comfortable. The cynic in me suggests they've changed this to the same item as the CdF to cut inventory (EDIT: unlikely as the offsets are different).

Frame Material - historically always Reynolds 725; I think some of the lower-end models at least are now Genesis' propriatory steel (presumably to cut costs). Unsure of what real-world difference this makes. EDIT: The 10 and 20 get Mjolnir steel, the 30 and above 725).

Groupset - typically these models all had a Sora 3x groupset and mech discs, now they've got a 2x groupset (and I think still mech. discs). The natural consequence of a fickle, marketing-driven industry turning on the glorious triple that's been the mainstay of touring bikes forever


There are doubtless other changes but the above are the ones that stuck in my mind.

The TdFs typically have a great rep, however were I in the market for one (as I thought I might have been a while ago whilst learning all of the above) I think I'd be looking at a used TdF30 rather than any of the newer offerings.

It's also worth noting that their frame geometries tend to be pretty "compact" compared to alternatives; with very short seatpost tubes relative to similar bikes aimed at similar-sized riders (I think this trend is more obvious on the earlier bikes).

 

[nogoodnamesleft]

I have (and ride a lot) a Genesis Croix de Fer (2014 model) and have used it extensively for touring (laden camping). Works very well. First few tours (each couple of months) with the standard gearing but subsequently changed for a triple with lower low. ie 2 front panniers, two rear panniers and bar bag (no rack bag, nothing on top of rack) on Tubus racks.

Love it. If it were stolen I'd probably buy the same again except I'm not so convinced with the more modern version size ranges (mine is a 54 and they were then available in 2 cm frames sizes, and my (maybe wrong) impression is that there are fewer frame sizes with bigger difference between). I would also look closely at the Tour de Fer though only drop bar models.

Can't comment on or compare to Spa as I have no experience of their bikes.

 

[gom]

I have a 2019 Tour de Fer 20 which I’ve used for cycle camping, and found excellent. But it is heavy (don’t know about later years’ specs). If you are not camping I’d think something lighter would be better. My Thorn Audax is just the thing for B&B touring.

 

[All uphill]

I have a Spa Aubisque from 2021. If it was stolen I'd replace it with a Spa Elan, and would make sure to get hydraulic discs.