Planning our first small Tour ( North shields to Moray )

[chrismisterx]

Right you sound a bit like me it's either all in or nothing can't fault you wanting to go for it and try touring/bike packing. It's on my list too.

I don't know enough about doing up older bikes to say if it's worth it and what it will cost. Other's on here do though and they are best placed to advise.
From what you say about the bike if it make you happy and you like riding it maybe it is the right bike for you ?

I remember you found a good LBS and your happy with it so maybe ask them about what they think about the other all worth of the bike and if it makes sense to spend on it in the way you want.

As others have said just slow down and enjoy the view. Maybe divert a bit of the energy and love into planning for your goal , what just do really need? How you going to get it? ect,ect . I'm currently going a few and it's 1/2 the fun

One thing to remember what ever bike you have a lot's down the engine so don't forget to plan and work on that too.

hehe I have spent 1000's on virtual planning, I fill baskets on all the items I like and want, its great fun, if only i was rich!

Last night to clear my head of all the planning, jumped on my bike in the rain and went for a ride, first pitch black ride, what a blast!
went up the old wagon ways to test my new lights out, a bit on the dim side compared to some but fine for me, going along these paths with no street lights was so different and very peaceful. Didn't mind that I had no water proofs or that me and the bike ended up covered in mud, was just so freeing, did just shy of 9 miles in under an hour, think it was around 9.5 miles an hour avg. Dodge the puddle was a great game ( no idea how deep the hole could be in the path, so wasn't taking any chances.

 

[Gravity Aided]

Have you had a look at your local Gumtree? Craigslist in the States. I get a few good deals there.

 

[MartinQ]

Just a couple of points, the weather can be rubbish (even in the North East :-)) over Winter. You / your wife may not get out much on your bikes in Dec - Feb. If you've not ridden in the Winter, avoid ice (you come off and break things) and make sure you have warm enough gear including shoes / overshoes, leggings, jackets, gloves, headgear etc. (can be more expensive than a cheaper bike). Riding on a clear night is fun, when its chucking it down / blowing a gale / cold ... less so.

Why not plan a first trip along Hadrians Wall (or something like that) in the Spring. Plenty of B&B-type accommodation, train out or back if necessary, not too hilly, ... in the Spring. Split the 80 miles up into 2 days (or 160 miles - 4 days return), so ~5 hours on your bikes each day. I'd ditch the camping on the first time and aim for something that is achievable (and enjoyable). Or a similar trip would be "just" up to Edinburgh.

I'd care less about the bike and more about being realisitic about what training you/your wife would do, making sure you have some 1/2 decent (water proof, wind resistant, warm) gear, and hence plan a realistic 1st trip. Having said that, if you decide to go for it, good luck :-)

 

[mjr]

P.S.- In a pawn shop, not four miles from my house, there is an old Hercules three-speed that was once used as a touring bike.

Hey, my touring bike resembles that remark!

You can tour on about anything. But gearing and good wheelsets may make your tour more amenable.

Fark gearing and fragile lightweight wheelsets. Give me the reliability and comfort of a good steel three-speed any day!

 

[chrismisterx]

Took the advice given above and went to a local bike shop with good reviews about 16 miles from me today and had a chat about my needs and basically told me something different to what I was planning lol.

He thinks a Touring bike isnt the way forward and after looking at my bike said its time to move on from it, he said modern bikes are such better rides.

So he recommended that since I am new to cycling to choose a bike between £500 - £700 max, he said thats a good entry level bike price point that will last years.
He told me to stay away from mountain bikes and Touring bikes, he said I needed something thats good on the road but also can handle the crappy states of cycle paths and bridleways.

The guy really seemed to know his stuff, very friendly and helpful.

So to cut to the chase the bike he recommended was the Cube Natural Pro 2019 either the 27 speed or 30 speed ( 30 speed is £60 more but he said the gears are better quality but that I most likely wouldn't tell the difference between the two at my skill level lol )

this is his website and the bike :-

https://www.cjperformancecycles.com/386 ... black.aspx

I have no idea if thats value for money or not, or if thats good advice that he give, the bike isnt in stock and the one on the shop floor doesn't fit me, so he would have order in and its quite the wait he said atm. He didnt come across like a salesman and I didnt feel he was trying to sell me anything, was trying to help.

what do you all think, could use some honest advice.

On another not after my wife read the replies on the forum posts and she booked up B&B's and is planning to ride the whole way, no trains. Also means the camping isnt going to happen now so much less luggage needed, So we can work on the cycling this trip and next time maybe do the camping.
she has that going to prove everyone wrong look in her eye, she is bloody stubborn at times lol

I cant thank you all so much for the friendly and helpful advice, its been very helpful and has really opened my eyes to quite a bit, given me tons to think about.
Also just watched a video of some guy that did 500km in 24 hours, wow thats insane and just cant even begin to think how hard that must be and how sore his bum ended up lol.

 

[Pale Rider]

You won't go far wrong with a Cube, but the one in the link is not best specced for the job.

It has an inevitably cheap Suntour suspension fork which will add weight, mechanical complication, and nothing else.

The Smart Sam tyres are decent quality, but you do not need that much tread for roads and gravel/cinder track.

A shallower tread - and better puncture protection - can be had elsewhere.

Assuming you told the bloke you wanted to do long day rides and some overnights travelling light, I'm a bit disappointed that's the best he could come up with.

Evans' own brand Pinnacle make several flat bar bikes with rigid forks, plenty of clearance for tyres, and lots of bosses on the frame to mount stuff.

Such a bike makes a capable tourer - @Pat "5mph" has toured on hers.

I take it you are in striking distance of the Toon so you could do worse than take a trip to Byker and have a look in Edinburgh Bicycles and Newcastle Cycle Centre, which is a few hundred yards down the road.

 

[chrismisterx]

You won't go far wrong with a Cube, but the one in the link is not best specced for the job.

It has an inevitably cheap Suntour suspension fork which will add weight, mechanical complication, and nothing else.

The Smart Sam tyres are decent quality, but you do not need that much tread for roads and gravel/cinder track.

A shallower tread - and better puncture protection - can be had elsewhere.

Assuming you told the bloke you wanted to do long day rides and some overnights travelling light, I'm a bit disappointed that's the best he could come up with.

Evans' own brand Pinnacle make several flat bar bikes with rigid forks, plenty of clearance for tyres, and lots of bosses on the frame to mount stuff.

Such a bike makes a capable tourer - @Pat "5mph" has toured on hers.

I take it you are in striking distance of the Toon so you could do worse than take a trip to Byker and have a look in Edinburgh Bicycles and Newcastle Cycle Centre, which is a few hundred yards down the road.

I just missed that Newcastle cycle centre up the road, it had just shut, but will be heading back to take a look in, seems they do course on bike maintenance too, which is handy.

The whole bike shop thing is why I joined the forums for advice, you guys have nothing to gain sharing your thoughts, where the shops are needing to make a living, so finding the right one is so important to us and when we do we will be really loyal to them, its important to look after your local shops imo. The bike he showed me he said was the type of bike that people doing the coast to coast would use, made it sound like the perfect bike, but i knew I should check in online and get second opinions from you guys, theres no rush to buy anything yet, but plenty time to shop around.

 

[Pale Rider]

There are some gnarly bits (which can be avoided) on the Coast to Coast, but the shop guy's point about that is a fair one.

You are spot on about supporting a local shop if possible.

Having them on side will come in handy, one day you might want something done on the hurry up and they will prioritise you as 'their' customer or lend you a bike to keep you mobile.

I occasionally use my local bike shop as free secure parking when I'm in town.

A while ago I got half way to the supermarket and realised I'd forgotten my lock.

I was able to double back a short distance and borrow one from the shop, rather than ride all the way home.

A local shop can also be a handy source of route intelligence and group riding opportunities.

 

[Gravity Aided]

On another not after my wife read the replies on the forum posts and she booked up B&B's and is planning to ride the whole way, no trains. Also means the camping isnt going to happen now so much less luggage needed, So we can work on the cycling this trip and next time maybe do the camping.
she has that going to prove everyone wrong look in her eye, she is bloody stubborn at times lol

I know that feeling, been married to a beautiful smart ginger for years. Once the course is set, there will be no deviations.

 

[MartinQ]

Took the advice given above and went to a local bike shop with good reviews about 16 miles from me today and had a chat about my needs and basically told me something different to what I was planning lol.

He thinks a Touring bike isnt the way forward and after looking at my bike said its time to move on from it, he said modern bikes are such better rides.

So he recommended that since I am new to cycling to choose a bike between £500 - £700 max, he said thats a good entry level bike price point that will last years.
He told me to stay away from mountain bikes and Touring bikes, he said I needed something thats good on the road but also can handle the crappy states of cycle paths and bridleways.

The guy really seemed to know his stuff, very friendly and helpful.

So to cut to the chase the bike he recommended was the Cube Natural Pro 2019 either the 27 speed or 30 speed ( 30 speed is £60 more but he said the gears are better quality but that I most likely wouldn't tell the difference between the two at my skill level lol )

this is his website and the bike :-

https://www.cjperformancecycles.com/386 ... black.aspx

I have no idea if thats value for money or not, or if thats good advice that he give, the bike isnt in stock and the one on the shop floor doesn't fit me, so he would have order in and its quite the wait he said atm. He didnt come across like a salesman and I didnt feel he was trying to sell me anything, was trying to help.

what do you all think, could use some honest advice.

On another not after my wife read the replies on the forum posts and she booked up B&B's and is planning to ride the whole way, no trains. Also means the camping isnt going to happen now so much less luggage needed, So we can work on the cycling this trip and next time maybe do the camping.
she has that going to prove everyone wrong look in her eye, she is bloody stubborn at times lol

I cant thank you all so much for the friendly and helpful advice, its been very helpful and has really opened my eyes to quite a bit, given me tons to think about.
Also just watched a video of some guy that did 500km in 24 hours, wow thats insane and just cant even begin to think how hard that must be and how sore his bum ended up lol.

Even if your wife is fairly stubborn (you said it, not me :-)), make sure you do at least one day before the trip (possibly before you book B&Bs so you can see how far apart they need to be) where you do typical daily mileage. So if you're proposing to do 100 miles for 3 or 4 days, make sure you get at least one century in beforehand to see how you both feel. It also gives you an idea of how much drink and food you'll need during each day as well as clothes, any tools (repair punctures etc) to keep you going and how you recover the next day.

There are many ways to go about the different types of bikes. If you're looking at touring, primarily on roads/cycle paths but possibly with a small amount on bridle ways, I'd just put some 32 tyres on a "normal" road / touring bike (flat bar or drops), as long as it can take it. Overcompensating for the rough stuff will make the normal cycling harder work than it needs to be. On the bikes, the boardmans (halfords) and the tribans (decathlon) are generally good value at ~£500, though there are almost too many choices.

 

[alicat]

I stopped checking out the Cube after I noticed it had suspension forks.

 

[HobbesOnTour]

I think you missed the point I was trying to make.

Slow down in your planning. You are bouncing all over the Internet like a ball in a pinball machine.

Multiple threads in multiple forums means that most people don't have the full picture of your situation and what you need - neither, it seems, do you!

If you're on a tight budget and you go buying stuff without knowing what you need, well, it won't end well.

Its quite funny but my wife is the one who thinks we can do the trip no problem as long as we do some training, she is quite relaxed about the trip its the day to day riding atm that she is having a problem with

To be honest, if this is indicative of your wife's approach, it seems to me, to be far more suitable to a touring mindset than yours. Sorry if that's a bit brutal

My wife is getting a new bike via work, so she gets 0% interest and its taken direct from her wages, we are just waiting to find out how it works and what her budget would be, she seems to think could be as high as £1000. My bike would have to be paid with cold hard cash, so what ever I could save extra over what I already have would be my budget.

Your wife gets to buy a new bike...... and not 1 question about what type of a bike for her? And you have another thread running about how to encourage her more??

Again..... slow down.

So what to do? Could my bike be made fit for purpose and at what sort of cost? ( remember even this morning I have changed my mind 10 times between new bike or not lol )

And that is why you should put your credit card away until you know a little more. And by learn, I mean figure things out for yourself - what is important to you - and your wife.

So my question is, what parts should I replace and what sort of cost are we looking at, all the parts until 3 weeks ago are from when the bike was built.
its only new parts are the tires, inner tubes and brake pads. So I would think quite a bit to replace, on the plus side maybe a good way to learn about bikes fixing it up I suppose.

I think the bike fits, its 18 / 19" frame approx I think will have to double check and I am 5'8, it seems to fit anyway lol.

these are the specs from another website which shows what the bike came with :-

Item Description
Frame 18" A transfer states 'ATT 23 fork blades, stays and main tubes'.
ATT is Raleigh All Terrain Tubing, no idea what 23 is. Probably high tensile of some sort.
Forks and headset etc. Raleigh Rigid, no suspension, no additional markings.
Brakes Weinmann cantilever. Rear dated on the casting April 1992, front July 1992 There is a small Weinmann logo on the calipers and hangers. No idea of model number so far, had enough trouble finding out they were Weinmann.
Brake levers I assume Weinmann, perhaps Raleigh, no markings but not stripped yet. Plastic/resin but seem sound. Brake action overall is not very positive.
Shifters Shifters Indexed thumb shifts.
Front Derailleur Shimano FD-TY15 GS Works well following new cable and adjustment.
Rear Dérailleur Shimano RD-TY15. Date code April 1990. Works well following new cable and adjustment.
Freewheel SHIMANO SIS MF-Z015 14T-17T-20T-24T-28T Date code January 1993
Chain 1/2" x 3/32"
Cranks Thun 170mm, cotterless Very little information on these.
Chainrings 48T-38T-28T Riveted, no idea of manufacturer but not stripped down yet. Thun or Raleigh?
Pedal Union No idea of model, plastic/resin type.
Hubs Steel, unknown make. There is a logo followed by W GERMANY stamped around the centre but I have not been able to identify a manufacturer.
Spokes 36 to front and rear Galvanised but no rust showing.
Rims ETRTO 559x19 DIN Made in Belgium Alesa Alloy 419-26x1.75 I guess made for Raleigh.

Saddle Raleigh badged Selle Royal, dated Sep 1992 No idea of model, padded vinyl type.
Weight 31.5 lbs

website link where info comes from http://www.ply.me.uk/bits_and_pieces/bike.html

Sorry, but this is where you have jumped the shark!

I understand your enthusiasm. I applaud it. But I think you are misdirecting it.
Your brain must be fried between hearing all the various replies you are getting.
Not to mention a lot of posters will switch off due to your scattergun approach. You risk people ignoring your future questions.

Ride your bike.
Enjoy riding your bike.
Pay attention to how it feels. What's good? Not good?
Make a lost of the things you really will need for your trip.
Practise planning routes and following them.
Can you do basic mechanics? Fix a puncture? Adjust a brake? Replace a chain? If not, learn!
Throw some weight on the bike and try it out.

Took the advice given above and went to a local bike shop.....

I'll say this once more because you have said that you're on a budget. Don't make any decisions now.
By your own admission, you don't know what you need yet.
All you're doing is feeding the moster of getting a new bike - teasing yourself.

I have no idea if thats value for money or not, or if thats good advice that he give, the bike isnt in stock and the one on the shop floor doesn't fit me, so he would have order in and its quite the wait he said atm. He didnt come across like a salesman and I didnt feel he was trying to sell me anything, was trying to help.

what do you all think, could use some honest advice.

You see? You don't know.
I'm sorry. I'm not trying to kick you (really!), but that's a recipe for wasting money.

I can foresee a poor choice of bike(s), cheap gear because there's no budget left leading to a miserable trip, lots of conflict, bikes being thrown in the back garden and never being ridden again.

On another not after my wife read the replies on the forum posts and she booked up B&B's and is planning to ride the whole way, no trains. Also means the camping isnt going to happen now so much less luggage needed, So we can work on the cycling this trip and next time maybe do the camping.
she has that going to prove everyone wrong look in her eye, she is bloody stubborn at times lol

I like that woman's style!

From what you have posted you (not necessarily your wife) are looking for a bike to tour, ride for pleasure and do practical things like shopping.
Make a list of what you think you need in that bike.
See what bikes people use for the same things.
Refine your list.
then you will know what to buy.

And it's not that Cube

And by the way, it's entirely possible that you might really enjoy riding a bike every day, going long distance and really pushing yourself, but your wife doesn't. Doesn't mean you can't tour enjoyably together. I hope to God that you're not bouncing off your wife like you are online! You could be seriously damaging your chances of life..... never mind touring

Good luck, but for Feck's sake.... slow down!

 

[Andy in Germany]

Ride your bike.
Enjoy riding your bike.
Pay attention to how it feels. What's good? Not good?
Make a lost of the things you really will need for your trip.
Practise planning routes and following them.
Can you do basic mechanics? Fix a puncture? Adjust a brake? Replace a chain? If not, learn!
Throw some weight on the bike and try it out.

Lots of this.

 

[alicat]

You risk people ignoring your future questions.

To be blunt, this is where I am heading. You posted a question about a Decathlon bike. We questioned if you needed suspension forks. Now you are posting about a Cube bike that has suspension forks. Rinse and repeat.

The problem your approach causes for you is that people are posting based on scattered, incomplete information so you end up with mixed, counter-productive advice.

 

[Heltor Chasca]

I disagree. If you are excited, go for it.

I’ll agree that you can’t go far wrong with a Cube being an owner. The suspension? Probably not. Are the chanstays long enough to accommodate your panniers and feet?

But I would also question why your LBS doesn’t think a touring bike wasn’t suitable for touring. I would be wary if that guy perhaps.