what is thorn's best bike and why.

[jags]

what is thorn 's best bike and why.
i love my sherpa but was surprized how heavy it is compaired to my buddy's new ultra galaxy.but having said that i think the sherpa is a much better looking bike ,but i would say that..
anyway back to the question ,why is the top of the range thorn so much better than my sherpa.

[john28july]

Ah ha!
The Sherpa is probably Thorns best bike actually. It is based on the original Nomad . I had a quill stem Nomad and an ahead stem Nomad. The Sherpa beats them both for comfort. I do not know why but it just does. I used to have a Thorn Audax 853 and I thought that it was the best Thorn ever, until I had illness problems when I decided that the Club tour of which I have two was better! So its a mental thing really. What suits one person etc.I tried a Mk 3 Audax for a few days. I did not like the ride at all and found it a harsh bike to ride-but many find it a great bike, so somewhere there is a Thorn which to the rider is in fact the top of the range-to them? The more expensive bikes are not really better or top of the range they are simply built with more expensive parts which in an ideal World will last longer.Regarding your friends Galaxy...your Sherpa is  a much much better bike than any Dawes Galaxy as it rides better, looks better, has more braze on attachment points and is generally a better fit depending on size chose, so Thorn will win every time IN MY OPINION.
John.

[julk]

As John says, Thorn's best bike is the one you are enjoying riding!

[jags]

ah yes have to agree as well i was just curious as to what people taught,yes my sherpa is a great bike well pleased with it.
btw john i send you a message on the frame did you get it .

[Fred A-M]

Interesting debate.  I agree that beauty is in the eye of the beholder according to his/her individual cycling preferences.  I'm extremely fond of my RST but can't help feel that the Raven Tour or a Sherpa might ultimately be better suited to my long term needs in terms of load capacity, come the day I want to do a serious camping expedition.   Or decide that audax is something that I'd seriously like to pursue in which case Thorn clearly also has some serious options. 

But as I haven't reached that point yet, the RST's alround "light" suitability suits me just fine and I'd have to disagree with Stutho's modest rating of it for on-road touring with a load (as opposed to a significantly better unloaded on-road rating).   Having cycled up Mulhacen (Spain's highest mountain) on a very rough track with with a touring load, I can also vouch for its reasonable off-road handling. 

[stutho]

This is all so subjective!  For me the ultimate (non custom) Thorn would probably be either a RST or a Nomad or possibly a RT or possibly a Sherpa or maybe a Audax although I would also like to try a sterling that is probably good too!  Hmm.

The biggest problem in deciding which bike is right (for me) was deciding what my PRIMARY mission was (not what I would like it to be). While I do lots of other stuff I do most of my miles on road - commuting and specked my  bike accordantly. 

The great point about all the main stream Thorns is that can be configured in multiple roles - I often take both my (wife's)RT and my RST off road. Both cope fine.  I am no distance rider, I do maybe 6 or 7 100milers a year on the RST - again you could ask for a nicer ride.  Loaded up the RT is the better bike - however I only spend a few weeks a year with panniers on the bike.  Unloaded The RST is better - and noticeable faster!

I for one don't believe there is a best bike - only a bike that is best for you - for me that is the RST.

       

[expr]

Have to agree with stutho, are we actually talking about custom or non custom first of all, then we can take it one step further than custom, I have a cutomised custom Expr all made by keven at bridgewater to my specifacation, which I beleive to be the best bike on the planet, without sounding to proud.

All joking aside though I beleive that if it suits you and you like it there is no one single winner, but the general feel does seem to be for the sherpa / nomad is there any more expr riders out there to support me please.

[stutho]

I would dearly like to try a EXP (made to measure) - especially the road version.  I am sure it would be even better than my much loved RST - but the co$t...

maybe when I retire!

[jags]

if i were to compare say my look kx light full carbon road bike to my sherpa,this may sound daft but there's not that much difference,ok the look is obviously lighter goes up hills faster steering is light, but compare the ride quality they would be equally as good as one another,does that make sense.
the best looking thorn i seen ever,was john28 july black thorn nomad , which he no longer has .man that was a beauty proberly the reason im rideing a thorn ,sjs stopped making the nomad when i was buying. >:(but yeah the sherpa is a great bike im well pleased with it,my mission now is to find a really good pair of slick's for it just to give me that extra bit of speed.

[freddered]

After looking at the current prices it seems important to choose the correct one.

I can't belive how expensive they have all become.  The Sherpa starts at £1099 now !  That's the same as my RT cost 3 years ago (now £1699).