BIKE T E ST Bikes • Accessories • Kit Expedition bikes Even if you’re not touring the world at breakneck pace, a heavy-duty rough- stuff tourer has advantages. Dan Joyce tests bikes from Thorn and Santos

ome things seem frame that’s suitable for carrying big (Opposite) The deeply socketed dropout is inescapable when you loads, you end up with a bike that neater than a chain- start talking about inevitably feels fairly tank-like. The stay torque arm

expedition bikes: extra weight is negligible once you’ve (Right) The eccentric 26-inch wheels and the added panniers weighing as much bottom bracket allows chain tensioning SRohloff Speedhub. While they’re as or more than the bike itself, but it’s not necessarily required, in the something you’re aware of when riding back of beyond durability is. with lighter loads. A 26-inch wheel is about 10% So the first question is: do you want stronger than a 700C wheel, this kind of bike? Both the Thorn other things being equal, and Nomad Mk 2 and Santos Travelmaster which is more than I carried on my last the ISO 559 tyre diameter is a 2.6 Alu are overkill for First World cycle-camping tour but a lot less than more common size worldwide tarmac-only touring. They’re meant either bike could carry. than 622. The 14-gear Speedhub, for lugging everything you need over meanwhile, has a well-deserved dirt roads and tracks. That could mean Frame and fork reputation for reliability rough-stuff cycle-camping in the UK The Thorn Nomad is steel throughout: compared to derailleurs, requiring just as much as South American ripio 531 for the fork and chrome-moly for only the odd oil change to keep (‘rubble roads’). the frame. It’s specifically designed running as well as it ever did. I tested the bikes on a mix of for the Rohloff hub, with a deeply When you add sturdy-tyred 26in bridleways and minor roads with four socketed dropout (instead of a chain- wheels and a 1.7 kg hub to a reinforced panniers weighing total of 16.5kg, stay mounted torque arm) to stop

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Bike Thorn Nomad Mk2 Price £2150.99 as tested (from £1899) Weight 16.5kg (inc pedals & accessories) Size 560M (17in) Sizes available 510M, 540L, 560M, 560L, 590L, 620L (see website for details) Frame Thorn ‘969’ chrome-moly steel the hub rotating during gear shifts, steel version is also available. There are and Fork with socketed dropout for Rohloff hub, eccentric bottom and an abundance of guides to keep 700C options too – the Travelmaster bracket, and fittings for three the twin gear cables neat and tidy. 2.8 alu or 2.8 cromo – as well as Alfine, bottles, rear disc brake, rear An eccentric bottom bracket enables belt-drive, and derailleur versions. As carrier, mudguard. Reynolds 531 chain tensioning. with the Thorn, an eccentric bottom steel fork with double-crown There are bracing struts between bracket tensions the chain. Here the and fittings for low-rider carrier, the chain- and seat-stays, to support Speedhub has a short torque arm mudguard, dynamo. and stiffen the rear triangle for a heavy that’s braced on the left-hand seat-stay. load and/or to cope with the stress of While there’s no dynamo mount, there Wheels Schwalbe Marathon Extreme 57- a rear disc brake, for which there are are fittings for a nurse’s lock and a 559, Rigida Andra 30 rims, 32x3 frame mounts. The fork is reinforced down-tube-mounted mudguard. spokes, Shimano Deore front hub, Rohloff Speedhub rear. The Santos is nominally slightly Thorn triple alloy bigger than the Thorn. 170mm, 38T chainring, Shimano They’re meant for In practice the contact UN54 bottom bracket, KMC Z chain. Rohloff 16T , points ended up in Rohloff twistgrip and lugging everything you the same place. An Speedhub. 14-speed, 18-93in. need over dirt roads adjustable stem – which I like less than Braking Shimano Deore V-brakes steerer spacers for an Seating and Ergon GP1L grips, SJSC Ergo too: it has a double-crown. The fork expedition bike – put the bars just Stearing Control bar ends, 580mm Thorn steerer is very long. Some people don’t where I wanted. aluminium flat bar, 105mm FSA care for Thorn’s trademark poker-chip The chain-stays are somewhat 25.4mm clamp stem, FSA Orbit stack of washers on top of it but I’m shorter on the Santos. I didn’t clip XLII threadless headset. Velo indifferent. The handlebar was exactly my (UK8) heels on the panniers, but Deluxe Sports saddle, Thorn where I wanted it: high enough to take if you’ve got bigger feet or bigger aluminium micro adjust seatpost. the strain off my hands and lower back panniers, or just want to fit bigger Accessories Thorn Expedition steel rear and to lift my gaze from the ground. tyres, the Thorn gives you more room. carrier, Thorn MkV steel low- In this respect, the detailed sizing loader front carrier, Profile Design information on Thorn’s website was Equipment Kage, SKS P65 chromoplastic very useful. Rohloff’s Speedhub is an impressive mudguards, bell Thorn make much of the piece of engineering that you may Contact www.thorncycles.co.uk, advantages of steel. Yet the more ready have seen discussed on internet 01278 441500 repairability compared to aluminium message boards. There are 14 evenly is seldom an issue for most cyclists, spaced gears with ratios of: 0.28, 0.32, 665 and both bikes are so solidly built 0.36, 0.41, 0.46, 0.53, 0.60, 0.68, 0.78, 570 that there was exactly no difference 0.88, 1:1, 1.14, 1.29 and 1.47. The in comfort between the steel Thorn Speedhub has a great track record 73.6° frame and the aluminium Santos. for toughness but there are some 740 87 The biggest difference between the shortcomings that its more fervent 430 frames is weight, with the Santos being fans prefer to overlook. 673 135 noticeably lighter even accounting Firstly, it’s only available for 32 48 635 450 for mudguards. This difference does spokes. Since the wheel isn’t dished, 559 become moot, however, when you fit it will be stronger than a comparable 71.4° 300 panniers. derailleur-geared wheel. But why not 170 57 While this Santos Travelmaster is 36 or even 40? There’s plenty of room 63 aluminium with a steel fork, an all- on that hub flange, and if 10% stronger 1080

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is worth having (an argument for 26in confidently brake with one finger. wheels over 700C) why not have 10% They’re harder to fix if something more spokes too? Even if you’re only does go wrong, but that’s unlikely. The buying peace of mind (and if you’re a Thorn has its front V-brake mounted big rider or have a big load, it could be behind the fork; I didn’t notice any more than that), the weight penalty differences in noise or braking would be peanuts. performance. Secondly, there’s noticeable noise What is annoying about the Thorn’s and loss of efficiency in the bottom brakes is that the levers have been seven ratios – which are the top seven mounted too far in board of the grips. ratios repeated via a reduction gear. That’s because standard Ergon grips The hub does run in and get quieter. have been used rather than the shorter And the longer you ride with a Rohloff, twistgrip-compatible versions fitted to the less you notice the sound of the the Santos. I could reach the levers but hub anyway – your ear tunes it out. it was an awkward stretch from where The Travelmaster is noting that both bikes have a huge list available in steel as On the plus side: everything else. my hands naturally rested on the grips. well as aluminium, of à la carte options. The internal gears are protected from I’d cut them to size to fix this. and in 700C wheel versions weather, dirt or damage. Cable tension Both bikes have strong carrier racks The ride is less critical because the ‘indexing’ front and rear. The Santos rear mounts (Above) A shortened Riding either bike unladen up a steep Ergon grip means the goes on inside the hub. And being able the panniers several centimetres brake lever is kept in hill in gears 1-7 is a joyless experience. to go from a high gear to a low gear – or below the top of the rack. That gives easy reach To an incessant clockwork whirr, you vice versa – with the twist of one wrist the panniers a lower centre of gravity. do whatever the opposite is of dancing is useful. Any glitches can usually be I was using Carradice Carradry bags, on the pedals. (Grovelling?) Add cured with an oil change. which sit quite low anyway, so it was panniers and it’s less of an issue. Off- To stop you, Santos use Magura lucky that there was no rear mech to road with panniers, where there’s more hydraulic rim brakes whereas Thorn foul with the bottom of the right-hand riding noise and more to keep your use Deore V-brakes. There’s no real pannier. mind occupied, it’s a trivial annoyance. difference in outright stopping power: Our Santos came with a surprisingly Both bikes have flat bars, which you can lock the wheels with either. useful kickstand. This is strong enough makes steering easier off-road. There The hydraulic brakes provide better to hold the bike up with four panniers is a cost: even with the broad platform modulation and require less grip on. It didn’t come with mudguards, that the Ergon grips provide the single strength, to the extent that you can which the Thorn did, but it’s worth hand position of the Santos becomes

june/july 2010 cycle 57 BIKE T E ST Bikes • Accessories • Kit uncomfortable – not just for your bumpy and soft surfaces – exactly the hand, which is stuck in one position, terrain you’d expect to encounter on but because this position locks out a rough-stuff bike. It’s true they’re not your elbows so any shocks come all as strong – unless they’re built better, the way up your arms. Ergonomic bar use better components, or have more ends like the Thorn’s are the answer. spokes – but I’d take my chances with Here comfort on the bar ends is tyre availability as I think you gain tech spec compromised slightly by the raised more than you lose, especially for metal clamp on the Ergons; I’d keep rougher but less remote riding. (For Bike Santos Travelmaster the bar ends and switch grips. which I’d use a 29er MTB with a big 2.6 Alu The Thorn’s Schwalbe Marathon saddlebag and maybe a bar bag.) Price £2845 as tested (from £2545 Extreme tyres (an option on the Saddles are personal, but I didn’t get with Rohloff) Santos) cope well with rough, dirt on with the Terry Riviera on the Santos. Weight 15.1kg (inc pedals & accessories) tracks. Conversely, the Marathon Plus it absorbed rain like a sponge. Supremes of the Santos are quicker Size 19in running on tarmac but don’t offer the Summary Sizes available 15, 17, 19, 21, 23in same level of grip or toughness off it. These are both very good quality Frame Aluminium frame with eccentric Given the strengths of this kind of bike, heavy-duty touring bikes. As well as and Fork bottom bracket and fittings tougher, grippier, slower tyres make for rough-stuff riding, you could use for three bottles, rear carrier, the most sense. either for general purpose touring mudguard, down tube ‘crud The only place either bike really and commuting – with the proviso guard’ and nurse’s lock. Chrome- that they’re at moly steel fork with fittings for their best when low-load carrier and mudguard. they’re carrying a Wheels Schwalbe Marathon Supreme Over choppy surfaces decent load (two or 50-559, Rigida Tungsten Carbide more substantial aluminium rims, 36x3 spokes and loose gravel I panniers). (front) 32x2 spokes (rear), DT missed 700C wheels Minimalist tourers Swiss 340 hub (front), Rohloff and tourers who Speedhub (rear) mostly stick to Transmission Truvativ 5D 170mm chainset, struggled was on a narrow dirt track tarmac should look elsewhere. 42T chainring, Truvativ bottom that had been used by off-road There’s not a lot to choose between bracket, Rohloff SLT99 chain. motorcycles or quad bikes. With deep them. The Travelmaster has the odd Rohloff 17T sprocket, Rohloff twistgrip shifter, Rohloff ruts and wheel troughs half full of high spec component that this Nomad Speedhub. 14-speed, 18-94in water it looked like an African back lacks (e.g. the Chris King headset, road after heavy rain. The sheer weight hydraulic brakes and tungsten-carbide Braking Magura HS33 hydraulic rim of the loaded bikes made it hard to treated rims), but these don’t come brakes with Evo 2 adaptor negotiate this section. I walked. close to offsetting the £700 difference Ergon GP1 Rohloff-compatible Where I was riding over choppy in price. That would buy a ticket to Seating and Steering grips, 580mm aluminium flat bar, surfaces and through loose gravel I anywhere. So in a straight choice, I’d 90mm Ritchey Pro adjustable missed 700C wheels, which even my pick the better-value Thorn Nomad. I’d stem, Chris King headset. Ritchey has. Bigger wheels roll like it even more if, like the Santos, it alu micro-adjust seatpost, Terry better, particularly on these sorts of were also available in a 700C option. Riviera saddle. Accessories Tubus/Santos Pack Rack (rear), Tubus Ergo rack (front), ESGE/ Other options Pletscher kickstand, bottle cage. Contact www.msgbikes.com, 01903 752308

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Tout Terrain Panamericana Salsa Fargo Van Nicholas Pioneer 73.3° From £2850 From £1600 From 3251 Euros 790 79 Full-suspension 26in-wheel Rough-stuff tourer with 29er Flat-bar titanium expedition 485 German touring bike that also wheels – that’s 700C with bike with 26in wheels, Rohloff 659

suspends the luggage via wider rims and fatter tyres. gearing and a wide choice 45 630 430 135 bespoke carriers. Available It’ll take 2.4in tyres or 2.1 with of components. Comes with in derailleur options or (for guards. Drop bars, disc brake mudguards and a kickstand 559 70.8° 300 more money) with a Rohloff. only, with carrier mounts and as well as the expected 170 Reviewed Cycle Feb/Mar ’09. fittings for six bottles. carrier racks front and rear. 50 www.bikefix.co.uk www.ison-distribution.com www.vannicholas.com 65 1060

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