Recommend me a tourer and why please.

[Chess]

Hi all,
As the title states please as I'm spoiled for choice, I can't decide so I thought I'd ask the more experienced tourer owners on here.
I've decided on a Tourer because I really like the relaxed geometry and I loved my 20 year old Dawes Galaxy, until sadly it was trashed when a van reversed over it.
O.K., here's my preferences / needs:-
Budget Max £1000
A practical replacement for the Galaxy, Strong and reliable, built to last.
Gears, hub would be nice (less maintenance ect) but don't mind.
Lights, wouldn't mind having a Dynamo set up, but not essential.
Full mudguards, rack and panniers will be a must.
Used for light leisurely rides at weekends, but will be my sole transport / workhorse during the week, used for my 8 mile commute to work and collecting a bit of shopping on the way home.
Your recommendations would be appreciated as I'm a bit bewildered with the choice, and I'm told the modern Galaxy isn't what it used to be ?
Thanks, and I look forward to your replies.
Cheers.

 

[alicat]

Spa Cycles steel tourer

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

and £15 change.

Never tried it, mind.

 

[alicat]

And not too far from you so you can take one for a test ride.

 

[snorri]

A second hand Galaxy, which would leave you with some cash to buy the extras of your choice?

 

[midlife]

I've got 2 Ridgebacks in the garage, seem to do a good bang for buck ..... how about one of their World Series models.

Shaun

 

[srw]

Sounds like a case for a flat-bar hybrid to me. It won't be steel, but for only 8 miles and light pottering at the weekend that would bother me less than it would if I was touring properly.

This sort of thing: https://www.evanscycles.com/dawes-urban-express-7-2016-hybrid-bike-EV238276 would take a rack and mudguards for an extra £50 or so.

 

[Tin Pot]

Hi all,
As the title states please as I'm spoiled for choice, I can't decide so I thought I'd ask the more experienced tourer owners on here.
I've decided on a Tourer because I really like the relaxed geometry and I loved my 20 year old Dawes Galaxy, until sadly it was trashed when a van reversed over it.
O.K., here's my preferences / needs:-
Budget Max £1000
A practical replacement for the Galaxy, Strong and reliable, built to last.
Gears, hub would be nice (less maintenance ect) but don't mind.
Lights, wouldn't mind having a Dynamo set up, but not essential.
Full mudguards, rack and panniers will be a must.
Used for light leisurely rides at weekends, but will be my sole transport / workhorse during the week, used for my 8 mile commute to work and collecting a bit of shopping on the way home.
Your recommendations would be appreciated as I'm a bit bewildered with the choice, and I'm told the modern Galaxy isn't what it used to be ?
Thanks, and I look forward to your replies.
Cheers.

Cinelli Hobo bootleg, because....I want one!

 

[Chess]

Thanks for the replies so far, keep them coming. ! And any links would be appreciated. Meanwhile, I'll go and check out those recommendations. Look forward to more, so I can do plenty of research over the weekend.
Cheers all.

 

[Spiderweb]

These are all well regarded touring bikes;
1. Surly Long Haul Trucker.
2. Kona Sutra.
3. Salsa Vaya.
4. Trek 920 (above your budget but worth checking late season sales).
If you had a bigger budget a Shand Stoater with hub gears would be my choice, superb bike hand built in Scotland.

 

[dim]

Surly Long Haul Disk Trucker .... I have the normal Long Haul Trucker.

Problem if you buy new, is that you are basically buying a skeleton. you need to customise it to suit ... i.e fenders/mudguards, a decent saddle, dynamo hub and lights, pannier bags etc

I bought mine brand new for £600 (was sitting in a bike shop in Portsmouth for 3 years with no buyers) .... I'm still customising mine, and by the time I am finished, it would cost me close to £1800

look on ebay for a good used one with pannier bags/dynamo hub etc and expect to pay close to £1000. Not the fastest bike around, but mine has 26 inch wheels and my all day speed with little or no head wind on flats is approx 27.5km/hr. It's my most comfy bike and one that I can ride for 10-12hrs a day. Mine will be my winter bike

here's a pic from the internet (not mine).... mine is black with black Carradice Super C front and rear pannier bags, Velo Orange stainless steel pannier racks ... Velo Orange Stainless steel mudguards and shiny silver Kleen Kanteen water bottles... I also changed the saddle to Gilles Berthoud Aravis saddle which cost me £160.... :

pic above shows the bike with a kickstand ... according to Surly, that in a 'no-no' .... it damages the frame. Also, if you get one and intend to tour fully ladden with front and rear pannier bags, get one that is one size smaller than what you would normally use as it will handle better when fully loaded

 

[raleighnut]

Ridgeback.

 

[dim]

you could do it for cheap:

I bought an 1980's Bridgestone MB2 mountain bike for £10, converted it with drop bars, bar end shifters, added a rear pannier rack with Carradice Super C panniers, added an old Brooks saddle, a red water bottle and sold it for £250 ... all parts were 2nd hand and were cheap... I did however buy new Schwalbe Marathon Supreme 2 inch tyres, but even those were cheap as I bought them off ebay for £39 for the pair: (amazing tyres)

needs a pair of mudguards and will be an amazing winter bike. The red and green paint job is all original (this is how they were sold) .... These old Bridgestones are highly sought after in the USA .... guys are doing similar to old Trek and Specialized mountain bikes

 

[mjr]

Cinelli Hobo bootleg, because....I want one!

I think that's what someone I sometimes ride with has got. It does look pretty lush to me.

For steel and hub gears, I'd probably consider the Bobbin Daytripper, or look and see what the Dutch and German makers are doing in the way of touring/trekking bikes now.

 

[mmmmartin]

If you're aiming for Europe you can cope with 700c wheels but if you're going further afield and they break you're in real trouble, tyres, inner tubes, spokes, all are difficult to get. You can carry spares of course. 26 inch wheels are a priority for me.
Racks must be steel, spend £100 on each, cheap racks break.
Wheels should have 36 spokes.
Buy a used bike on eBay or preferably from a friend.
I'm a fan of Thorn, had several over the years, now happy with an Audax for hotel touring and a Raven for expedition stuff. They sell used versions of their bikes, very worth checking out.
Forget this obsession with the name on the frame, they virtually all come from the same factory in Taiwan anyway.

 

[stuartmac]

I bought myself a Genesis Equilibrium Ltd Edition, excellent tourer ... you could pick up a used one for under £1k

From carbon fork with built in rack mounts
Rear rack mounts
Front and rear mudguard fixings
700c wheels
Semi hydraulic disk brakes
11 speed
Reynolds 725

Just did channel to med on it, very comfortable, easily carries a good load, quite a swift bike as well. Not sure you want to cross a continent with a carbon fork but it's good for JOGLE type trips