Originally Posted by kkarstad
Hi,
I am looking for two good touring bikes, for myself and my wife and my budget is £1000 ($1700) per bike. This lead me to the Dawes Super Galaxy which incidentily I have found for a stonking £600 in the form of last years model. Does any of you have any experienc with this bike (any year model)?
It is the first time I'm shopping for a touring bike, so I don't know a lot about the diferent tubings. The 2003 Super Galaxy has Reynolds 531 frame tubing and the 2004 model has an 853 frame. Is there a big difference in the two? One that will make a significant difference in riding experience?
I see Thorn is mentioned a bit on these pages. Why is it regarded so highly? Is it the frame or anything in particular that warants its popularity?
Are there any other good bikes I should be considering in this price range? I am not limited to order from a particular part of the world so any suggestions are apreciated.
My intention is to use the bike for fully loaded camping touring mainly on surfaced roads with quite a bit of climbing since I am plannign a longer tour in the Alps.
TIA for any feedback.
Ketil
Alright mate, ive had adwaes super for a while and it is good only swapped because of wheel size(need 26inch) id recomend it as very sturdy good under load and very reliable. That said if youve got a grand to play with id look at bob jackson, they just finished making me a 26inch tourer with all braze ons, and super paintjob the service was excellent, they care unlike s9ome ie thorn, that guy is an arsehole who doesnt really care about bikes or rider more into the money as far i can tell. An example of this is in the paint work, thoirn state that paint chips as a fact, hence why bother with a quality paint job as youll only need to touch it up, at bob jacksons i watched a they beat a painted peoice of tube for nye on 5 minutes it only cracked round the edges where the tubes buckled, it seems that paint chips is a way to say our paint will chip, they had a frame that had scratched on the hanging peg not exactly tough wearing however you cut it
My new frame and forks cost 425 handbuilt truly in uk by master craftsman who dont cut corners, most thorns are made in taiwan now, those that arent are sub contracted out to a chap inthe midlands, unless you pay top dollar then they are made by a man trained by Bob Jackson anyway. At the price ive paid you would still have enough for a good groupset ie deore lx and extras, bob jackson do a off the peg tourer for 350 i think if you dont want or need the custom. Check out their website its very informative.
THat said the super is exactly that super, only prob in my book is wheel size its like they havent moved forward but if 27 inche wheels is ok there really is no need to splash out extra cash because its great at what it is for