Suggestions for an off road touring bike.

[steveindenmark]

Does anyone have any suggestions for an off road touring bike under £1000. Probably with front suspension and that can take a rear rack.

Can you fit a rack to suspension forks?

Steve

 

[Ticktockmy]

I Steve I have posted this before in other threads, regarding fitting racks to suspension units I have use the old man mountain racks as most suspension units don't have V brake fittings I have used P clamps with no problems. the dealership in the UK for them is here http://www.carradice.co.uk.
For some years now I have always sourced cycle part to make up my bike to my spec.

I made my Mountain bike up to so suit my own requirements for pottering around on the trails and byways and also for touring:
Charge Duster 2010 frame, (has bigger diameter tubes than the Duster 2011 frame)
RockShox Recon Silver TK Solo Air 100mm Suspension Fork
Hope Tech X2 Disc Brake front and rear.
Truvativ Noir XC 3.3 Team Triple Chainset.( got it for £90 so could not miss such a good bargain)
Shimano XT M770 Derailleur and leavers front and rear..
Race Face Evolve MTB Handlebar
Charge Spoon saddle
Mavic Crossride XC717 front wheeL
Halo SAS Pro 26 Inch Rear Mtb Wheel (heavy wheel but great for when I am touring off road fully laden)
Old man mountain Sherpa racks on the front and rear.
Current tyres are Schwalbe Marathon XR's for touring otherwise when not set up for touring: I use Panaracer Fire XC Pro's

 

[Bodhbh]

Something like an On-One Inbred (steel frame MTB with rack mounts) would do. Full bikes go on eBay often go for 200-300 quid, which would leave plenty of change to pimp it just so within budget. New I think they come around 700quid, but for some reason they seem to hardly have any Inbred stock or sizes on their website of built up bikes. No mudguard mounts, is the main con I can think of.

Tubus do the 'Swing' rack for suss forks, as Ticktockmy says I think most of the Old Man Mountain front racks fit on suss forks too. It's worth seaching the forum, I think pros and cons of both have been discussed a couple of times.

 

[andym]

I would say an On-One as well.

I tour with suspension forks but I'm really not convinced you need them - they're good if you ride over step or inadvertently charge into a big hole, but they don't do much to damp the vibration of a dirt road. I'd go for a steel suspension-adjusted fork.

Another possibility would be a Surly Long-Haul Trucker.

 

[Pale Rider]

Might a Rose trekking bike suit?

They have Marathon Supreme tyres, which are almost balloons, although not a very deep tread:

http://www.rosebikes.co.uk/products/bikes/trekkingtravel-bikes/

 

[takeonafrica]

I've toured with my Specialized Rockhopper Disc (front suspension) with rear rack. I've also toured a lot with a Thorn Raven Tour.
I'd say if you want to go 'touring', then you don't need suspension. If you want to go mountain-biking with some gear, take a front suspension mountain bike and only rear panniers and bar bag or even better, go lighter and kit it out bikepacking style, with seat pack, frame bag and bar bag (bikepack.pl, alpkit, bike-bag.co.uk etc)...
I love my MTB but for longer distances, I'd take the Thorn any time (i.e. a non-suspension bike) - and it's amazing what trails you can get down with a fully loaded touring bike without suspension.
If buying again, I'd look to Surly for a touring bike or go with any MTB hardtail (Specialized, On-one etc) depending on needs

 

[DaveFY7]

I'm using an Orange P7 MTB with fixed forks. Great bikes for touring in rough conditions.

 

[Titanium]

If you fancy a tourer that has suspension forks, Cannondale make quite a few interesting touring-capable bikes with Headshok - the suspension is built into the headtube. And some of these Headshok bikes have forks with front pannier rack bosses. They're quite neat and innovative. Here's one example in this link:-
http://www.mattsbikeblog.co.uk/2010/03/cannondale-touring-ultra-review.html
Also, try searching in Google for - cannondale touring headshok
Mark.

 

[bikepacker]

Purchased a Rido R2 so next week will be another saddle testing time. I was planning a small tour of Wales and Forest of Dean so it will be a good opportunity to try it out.

 

[donftps]

me too,I'm using an Orange P7 MTB with fixed forks. Great bikes for touring in rough conditions.

 

[Crankarm]

Kona Kula as std with suspension fork (lock out-able), mudguards, front Tubus Ergo low loader and rear Madison Summit. A little heavy but will withstand anything. Rock solid, no flex what so ever in the frame when fully loaded with full set of panniers and bar bag. Can unlock front susp for rough surfaces.