Thorn Club Tour or Galaxy Ultra?

[Tim Bennet.]

There are other builders who may be closer to him and just as good!

Then tell us your personal experiences of them. The more information the OP gets, the more informed decision he can make.

 

[rich p]

Then tell us your personal experiences of them. The more information the OP gets, the more informed decision he can make.

I already did in an earlier post!
And just because it was nearer me doesn't mean it's nearer him which was my point!

 

[P.H]

I have a Hewitt Cheviot SE and a Thorn Raven Tour, both superb bikes and I was very happy with the service from both companies.
For what you want, I'd get a Hewitt. It's the closest thing you'll find to a custom bike at off the peg prices. The extra few quid and the trip to Leyland are insignificant when making a purchase that'll last decades. What you'll learn from the bike fitting session could be of greater benefit than component choice or frame material.

 

[P.H]

I've ridden a bike with one, and I agreed with my friend the owner that the hub saps energy in the low gears.

The noise and feel make it easy to come to that conclusion. The facts tell a different story
http://www.bhpc.org.uk/HParchive/PDF/hp52-2001.pdf

In an independent test the Rohloffs efficiency was 86 - 93% and a 27spd Shimano 89 - 97%. So there is a difference, nothing like the amount mentioned in the Cycle review and soon narrowed by a dirty or worn derailleur setup.

 

[simoncc]

The noise and feel make it easy to come to that conclusion. The facts tell a different story
http://www.bhpc.org.uk/HParchive/PDF/hp52-2001.pdf

In an independent test the Rohloffs efficiency was 86 - 93% and a 27spd Shimano 89 - 97%. So there is a difference, nothing like the amount mentioned in the Cycle review and soon narrowed by a dirty or worn derailleur setup.

Well, a good derailleur system is very cheap now, and still more efficient.I'd be tempted by a Rohloff if I was ever to go trekking across the wilds of Asia or Africa for months on end and needed a bulletproof simple system, but for touring round the hilly, scenic bits of England and Scotland in the spring/summer/early autumn for a week or two I don't see the point of going to the extra expense or inefficiency of a hub.

If you use a mid-range 21 or 24 speed system to keep costs down, you can buy an awful lot of new chains, chainrings, cassettes and jockey wheels before you ever come close to the cost of a Rohloff. In my experience most people tour on their bikes in late spring/summer, and on my bikes nearly all the wear and tear on the drive train takes place in the grim and gritty winter. Summer tourers needn't worry about wear and tear too much.

 

[nobby]

The more I read and hear about other peoples' bike buying experiences, the more I appreciate making the effort to get down to Hewitts. For the same sort of money as a Dawes or Thorn:

- You get the whole thing assembled by a meticulous, slightly anal, time served mechanical engineer.

Slightly?

My only problem with Hewitt was on the delivery date for the frame. I took a day off work and it never arrived. When I phoned I was lied to. Explanations that it had been dispatched the day before were punctured when I pointed out that the day before had been a Sunday. Eventually, it was admitted that the carrier had only collected from them that morning and it was in the carriers warehouse. It was completely unnecessary. A simple truth of 'we've got it wrong' would have been better.
I put the component list to my lbs who knowing of my back problem, and what I wanted the bike for, sent me to Hewitt rather than squeeze me ala Thorn onto what he had, or could get. Some components I used XTR (hubs and block come to mind) most were XT.
It is a very comfy bike with a full camping load and equally enjoyable for two day B&B rides or day tours.
HTH

Re: Rohloff

The search for the perfect low maintenace gearset has been going on for a long while and still there are mostly derailleurs about on touring bikes. I happily use a Sachs 3 speed on my Brompton and my old series 3 Moultons I had 5 speed SA hubs that gave no problems and I am thinking of a SA 5 in my recumbent.
If you are touring and get any kind of gear failure a derailleur is likely to be easiest to repair.
There is a guy going around Oz at the moment on a Rohloff and it is leaking oil. He has communicated the problem back to Rohloff and the bike supplier - Thorn - and been told, efectively - don't worry about it. It hasn't caused him any real problems yet but I'd worry. I like faults fixed. If oil is leaking out something isn't right and how much leeway have you got between constant topping up and it running dry?.
I have a friend who lost 7 rear spokes in a Rohloff equipped rear wheel in France, and I'm sure that I have read of at least two round the world riders who had hub flanges snap off on Rohloffs. Both had to wait for replacements to be flown to them where derailleurs could have been repaired or replaced on the spot.
When I'm absolutely certain that the Rohloff is more reliable than derailleur for loaded touring then I'd think it the ideal gear solution. I don't think it is yet. Rohloff faults in the average European town aren't going to get repaired at the local bike shop.
My view is that any failure on a Rohloff is going to delay you longer than a fault on a derailleur set.

 

[simoncc]

Slightly?

My only problem with Hewitt was on the delivery date for the frame. I took a day off work and it never arrived. When I phoned I was lied to. Explanations that it had been dispatched the day before were punctured when I pointed out that the day before had been a Sunday. Eventually, it was admitted that the carrier had only collected from them that morning and it was in the carriers warehouse. It was completely unnecessary. A simple truth of 'we've got it wrong' would have been better.
I put the component list to my lbs who knowing of my back problem, and what I wanted the bike for, sent me to Hewitt rather than squeeze me ala Thorn onto what he had, or could get. Some components I used XTR (hubs and block come to mind) most were XT.
It is a very comfy bike with a full camping load and equally enjoyable for two day B&B rides or day tours.
HTH

Re: Rohloff

The search for the perfect low maintenace gearset has been going on for a long while and still there are mostly derailleurs about on touring bikes. I happily use a Sachs 3 speed on my Brompton and my old series 3 Moultons I had 5 speed SA hubs that gave no problems and I am thinking of a SA 5 in my recumbent.
If you are touring and get any kind of gear failure a derailleur is likely to be easiest to repair.
There is a guy going around Oz at the moment on a Rohloff and it is leaking oil. He has communicated the problem back to Rohloff and the bike supplier - Thorn - and been told, efectively - don't worry about it. It hasn't caused him any real problems yet but I'd worry. I like faults fixed. If oil is leaking out something isn't right and how much leeway have you got between constant topping up and it running dry?.
I have a friend who lost 7 rear spokes in a Rohloff equipped rear wheel in France, and I'm sure that I have read of at least two round the world riders who had hub flanges snap off on Rohloffs. Both had to wait for replacements to be flown to them where derailleurs could have been repaired or replaced on the spot.
When I'm absolutely certain that the Rohloff is more reliable than derailleur for loaded touring then I'd think it the ideal gear solution. I don't think it is yet. Rohloff faults in the average European town aren't going to get repaired at the local bike shop.
My view is that any failure on a Rohloff is going to delay you longer than a fault on a derailleur set.

I know a couple of people with Rohloffs and they haven't had any trouble with them, but they do drag and they are expensive so why bother? They are a solution looking for a problem really, and derailleurs are usually not a problem, they are cheap and they don't drag.

 

[Andy in Sig]

Nobby,

you're right about the potential difficulty for getting Rohloff's repaired in remote places. The leaking oil is the first account of something wrong with the "doings" of a Rohloff which I've ever heard. In fact Rohloff's proud boast was that not one hub is know to have failed since the system was introduced (in 96 I think). Obviously derailleurs are much more likely to go wrong but will be quicker to repair.

The broken spokes sounds like a badly built wheel as one of the big advantages of hub gears is that the back wheel is stronger as there is no need for dishing.

All I can say is that I have two Rohloff equipped backs, have not had a hint of a problem with either and would not go back to derailleurs at all. And while I accept Simon's opinion that he experiences drag, I can only say that I've never been aware of such a problem.

 

[Danny]

The problem I've found with Paul Hewitt is that his website is so poor that it is impossible to find out what range of frames he actually builds or how much they cost.

Can he send you some kind of brochure, or do you have to go all the way to Leyland to find out?

 

[Tim Bennet.]

His site for the Cheviots isn't that bad:

www.hewittcheviot.co.uk

but if it's something else, it's best to call him. As everything is available in every combination, they haven't detailed every variation. There's not even mention of the 26inch wheel version, but I've seen one being wheeled away by a customer.

 

[Danny]

Thanks. The site for Paul Hewitt Cycles that comes top of the list on Google is the one that's not very good. Have to confess that I didn't think to try any of the other links.

 

[vernon]

There is a guy going around Oz at the moment on a Rohloff and it is leaking oil. He has communicated the problem back to Rohloff and the bike supplier - Thorn - and been told, efectively - don't worry about it. It hasn't caused him any real problems yet but I'd worry. I like faults fixed. If oil is leaking out something isn't right and how much leeway have you got between constant topping up and it running dry?.
I have a friend who lost 7 rear spokes in a Rohloff equipped rear wheel in France, and I'm sure that I have read of at least two round the world riders who had hub flanges snap off on Rohloffs. Both had to wait for replacements to be flown to them where derailleurs could have been repaired or replaced on the spot.
When I'm absolutely certain that the Rohloff is more reliable than derailleur for loaded touring then I'd think it the ideal gear solution. I don't think it is yet. Rohloff faults in the average European town aren't going to get repaired at the local bike shop.
My view is that any failure on a Rohloff is going to delay you longer than a fault on a derailleur set.

The chap in Australia sounds like George Brown. The bike has covered a fair number of miles having done a substantial part of the South American part of the Pan American Highway, chunks of Spain France and North Africa in the past couple of years. I know from his blogs and emails that he had problems with his forks (oil leak would you believe) in South America and he was very happy with the support that he received. I believe parts were shipped out to him.

Thorns are like Marmite. They are loved or loathed with no middle ground.

 

[simoncc]

Thorn make some nice audax bikes which I wouldn't mind, but their tourers seem to be the cycling equivalent of 4x4 cars to me. They are all toughness and rugged features like Rohloff hubs that most people will never need but don't mind paying extra for.

 

[Keith Oates]

I have a Thorn Brevet and am really happy with it and the service I got from Thorn when buying the bike. They would get my vote although the others are also good AFAIK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Achilles]

Just got the CTC mag today - a super Galaxy is reviewed in it. Interesting to note that the frame is changing shape for 2008 . Not bad but I might look at the Hewitt Cheviot SE and the Ridgeback Panorama.

Whatever - it will be make your mind up time soon!