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alternative to thorn bike :tout terrain silkroad

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rohloffadmirer:
I joined the thorn website when I was researching a bike to buy. I have ended up buying an alternative to thorn. After considerable research I ended up buying a German rohloff equipped  bike called the silkroad by Tout Terrain based in Freiburg.
There are a number of differences to a thorn.
the frame is columbus but has a reinforced fork on the left side as the bike has XT disc brakes. I have not ridden a thorn so I do not know if this affects comfort. i have schwalbe marathon supreme 26x2.0 tyres that provide significant comfort.
The specs of the components is very high. Head set is chris king, cranks middleburn, stem+handlebars syntace VRO system (adjustable), seatpost ritchey pro, chain is wipperman connex stainless steel (doesn't rust).
The brakes are XT disc brakes. i know that there has been discussion regarding the advisability of discs for touring. All I can say is that if you use disc brakes, you will not want to go back to V brakes, with perfect braking in all conditions. I use my bike for a daily 30km commute and not heavy touring. Hwever, i am over 100kg and have had no problems with the brakes at all.
there is also an integrated rear rack made of stainless steel. Very robust but needs ingenuity to avoid scratching from panniers.
i use a nabendynamo and stronglight front and rear LED light which are excellent.
Rohloff works well and the cables are via stainless steel fittings.
Paint is fantastic, a deep lustrous racing green powder coat with tough clear coat. I have heard a lot about the enamel paint on the thorn being soft although Robin Thorn says the paint is fine.
The bike was an ex demo and cost me 2550 euros.
More expensive than a thorn but I believe a better deal.
It is interesting to see that there are a number of German and Swiss alternatives but that they are not easy to access for non English speaking people.
Would be interested in feedback and thorn owners comments. Cant figure out how to down load photos but there are a couple of photos on the tout terrain website.

freddered:
2550 Euros is a lot of money, almost double what I paid for my Raven Tour 2 years ago.

Here is a Silk Road from 'Peter White' web site Peter White


They looks nice and rugged but I have to say I do not like the integrated rack at all, I want to have the choice of removing my rack (5 minute job). The asymmetrical fork looks ugly also.  Basically these 2 parts (rack and fork) are necessary because of the use of disk brakes.

I like the eccentric bottom-bracket clamp, that looks easier to make small adjustments and it's nice to have a 700c wheel option but it seems like a lot of money.

Tell me, do you get a 100 day warranty?  For me that is the most incredible part of the Thorn raven 'equipment list'.

Looks nice though, I like 'chunky' bikes.  I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

jags:
it sure is a beauty i hope you tour the planet trouble free on that beauty,but it would not be my choice sorry,okay if i had the money i dont proberly never will ,well the bike i would buy having spent months drooling over this would be the thorn exp-r ,i think thorn said they spent 3years dreaming this fantastic machine up ,this is english craftmanship at it's best class ,but in the mean time i hack along on my sherpa (only jocking )until i win the lottery.enjoy your bike whatever your riding keep safe.

vik:
In Canada it would cost me about the same to get a Thorn Nomad S&S or the TT Silk Road [both frame and fork only] and I spent some time looking over both bikes.  Having used disc brakes on tour [still have them on one of my touring bikes] I'm not a huge fan and only offering discs is a deal breaker for me.  When I first became aware of the TT bikes I posted a query on a popular North American touring forum asking who had one and what they thought - I got zero replies.  The same forum has quite a few reports about Thorn bikes.  It is very hard to order an expensive frame set sight unseen when you can't find anyone who is riding one in your part of the world. 

geocycle:
Looks like a great bike and I am sure you'll love the rohloff.  I'm not keen on the integrated rack but otherwise very nice.  The clamp-approach to the EBB looks nice and simple.  My only experience with disk brakes has been at the cheaper end of the range and they were rubbish.  There is certainly a logic in using high quality discs to avoid rim wear as long as you can be sure to keep the rotors straight.  I'd like to see them as an option on more of the thorn bikes, but would probably stick with v's in the end.

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