Touring advice

[Moonlight]

Hey guys,

I have been cycling for about a year now and have a cheapy halfrauds roadie (love it =D). Was wondering what it would be like with 48L of pannier on the back? Will most likely be considerable weight, will the Ali frame handle it ok?

Any advice would be great.

I'm a student and looking at budget!, so buying a touring bike would be unrealistic, and having two sets of panniers undesirable.

Thanks!

ML.

 

[Tynan]

wild guess without seeing the bike is yeah, it's going to be a strong bike

 

[Noodley]

Is the "roadie" bike able to take a rack?

 

[seano]

You should have no problem provided you take extra care fitting the racks. Dont trust your LBS. Tape bars under fixtures, throw away the nuts and bolts you got with pannier racks, Go to B&Q or engineer supply shop and buy stainless steel hex head nuts and bolts, allow for a locking nut on every bolt. Enjoy the tour.

 

[Noodley]

You should have no problem provided you take extra care fitting the racks. Dont trust your LBS. Tape bars under fixtures, throw away the nuts and bolts you got with pannier racks, Go to B&Q or engineer supply shop and buy stainless steel hex head nuts and bolts, allow for a locking nut on every bolt. Enjoy the tour.

Student can just about open a tin of beans Little chance of knowing what you are on about...

 

[Big T]

The frame will be alright but I would worry about the wheels.

Don't fall into the trap of taking too much stuff with you. You only need one set of evening clothes and 2 sets of cycling clothes, one of which you'll be wearing. I've done a 2 week tour of the Alps with just a saddle bag and handlebar bag.

If you're camping - that's another matter. you'll have to take shed loads of stuff and i certainly doubt the normal wheels will cope.

 

[RedBike]

I think most racks have a weight limit of about 25kg. (Obviously some can take more weight) You could easily overload a rack with a single 48L bag. Not to mention the fact that the bike will probably handle rather strangely with that sort of weight on the back!

I used to use a trailer for touring. It saved worrying about weight limits; and it was a lot easier stuffing a wet tent in a trailer than a pannier bag!

http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~armb/cycling/trailer.html

 

[Bigtallfatbloke]

Dont trust your LBS

...these are wise words of wisdom I wish I had had.

 

[Moonlight]

We can open a can of beans, but it requires 3 of us. Same with changing a light bulb .

I'm with Seano on everything except "Tape bars under fixtures", do you mean I should duck tape metal rods between the bike and the rack to ensure the rack is still secure should the fixtures fail?
My mate will be on his MTB with a pannier and he'll be carrying the tent, which very light anyway. I will need to carry my matt, sleeping bag, and the above mentioned 3 sets of clothes. I always travel light, often too light, but gaining experience quickly.

I have considered a trailer and it seems a smart option, but we're only going for a week and would be a bit of an overkill.

 

[Moonlight]

The bike does have standard rack holes.

 

[Arch]

My mate will be on his MTB with a pannier and he'll be carrying the tent, which very light anyway. I will need to carry my matt, sleeping bag, and the above mentioned 3 sets of clothes. I always travel light, often too light, but gaining experience quickly.

That lot should be pretty light. That's the trouble - 48L of something dense (water, or soil, not that you'd carry them, but...) will weigh more than 48L of clothes and sleeping bag. Unless you are carrying leather jackets jeans and steel toe cap boots, the clothing, mat and bag shouldn't weigh too much.

You can also help your bike cope by riding carefully. Avoid hitting potholes or bumps in the road too hard, stand up on the pedals over bumps to let the frame pivot under you, that sort of thing. I rode from York to Winchester on my FCR, which is fairly light and frisky, having bodged a rack on, and with two little panniers and a bar bag, and it coped perfectly well.

Have fun!