Hi all,
been meaning to repsond to this for a while - here we go.
We did 9months from Guatemala to Bolivia with our two Nomads, 9000k's, 140 000 vertical metres of cycling uphill, lots of coffee, incredible part of the world.
Bikes performed marvelously, only things that didn't make it back in one piece was my lady's bike's rear rim (cracked, I'm guessing not from on the road bumps, but when it gets rolled fully loaded off a curb - dunkg it goes) and the little suspension locking levers on the handle-bar - they didn't survive the saltwater spray exposure on the stretch from Panama to Colombia (I used a lot of tape, tarp, oil to keep them protected, but there's only so much you can do on a sail boat. I think there's a more serious ferry running these days - or fly).
Good thing to figure out before is the various compression rings inside the steerer tube. I inserted them the wrong way during install at home (I didn't realise), then thought I'd lost them on the route and hunted for replacements in Costa Rica...to no avail, before realising my mistake. A lot easier to figure out at home, but then again, that was a pretty busy period as well.
Main point - minimise the stuff you take - hills become much more friendly. Minimise again.
So to respond to the items I listed before the trip:
Reliability of suspension fork:
Despite the dust, the bumps, the salt water - no problem at all. I was quite zealous wiping off dust and re-greasing once a week for the whole trip, but I think they would have survived the same without. Magura - great stuff. Main take-home: a little suspension fork grease goes a long way.
But that said, with the 2inch+ tyres, we could have done the same trip without suspension forks. If I would buy again, I would opt without suspension fork, but if you've got the cash, it can be nice, but certainly not necessary - on a loaded touring bike you'll never nail down a hill that fast anyway.
Pumps:
Main take-homes - you don't need that many pumps (one main and one samller backup are plenty between two), make your main one one that can be pinned against the floor with a foot, 2inch tyres with the mini handheld is an absurd workout. Lezyne makes good ones like that. And finally - check how much pressure your fork actually needs. My wife only needed 50psi, me somewhere 70-80psi depending on load - both easily attainable with a tyre-pump, no need for the higher pressure dedicated suspension pumps (we had too many pumps, sent them home). Check at home - then buy, check again before you leave.
Spares:
32mm Seal Kit - didn't use it, but it's tiny.
Rebound Adjuster - didn't use it, but it's tiny.
Rebound Bolt - didn't use it, but it's tiny.
Set of O-rings - didn't use it, but it's tiny.
Stendec Easyglide Fork Grease 150g Tub - I think I used 10g in 9months tops. Only take a small amount.
Magura Suspension Blood 2 - took 60ml, but shoul have left it all at home. In an emergency there are plenty MTB shops in all main cities all along central and south america.
Take home - don't regret the spares, as getting them would have been impossible, but cut down on the bulk items.
Brakes:
Avid BB7 cable/operated - great stuff, no regrets. The Magura Menjas could have taken V-brakes if needed. Take a few pads, but in Costa Rica, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolvia you could get hold of spares without too much trouble. On dry stretches on tarmac they last a long time, but with rain & dust they get eaten mcuh faster, so difficult to guess milage. Practice alignment (it's not that hard) and replacement at home - the first time will otherwise be on some dusty decent with light running out in the border nomands land just before Peru - and you'll curse yourself.
Do not take hydraulic breaks. Maintenance is not that hard, but you will have to carry heavy liquid replacement stash. Motorbike brake liquid which you can get everywhere is typically 1 grade lower, i.e. it can't handle the brake temperature you get on a loaded touring bike. Friends on the road had to walk their (admittedly tandem bike) down several 2000m descents in Peru because their brakes blew out and they couldn't get oil that could handle it. Don't do it, cables work just fine.
Sus forks for tall people:
I'm, 6'3"/ 190cm, so without considering the sus fork I'd be between a 590L and the next size up (620L I believe). With the sus fork the issue comes that the 690L head tube is too long for standard sus fork steerers. UK Magura guy confirmed that there is an XL version with a 300mm steerer in existence, but the one of it is hidden away somewhere in the German bush. Besides this, Thorn recommended me going with an 590L to get enough stand over clearance, so that 'soft parts' and top tube can remain friends in an emergency hop off the saddle (keeping in mind that without rider weight the fork will lift the bike a few cms). Yet taller folk - good luck!
- this sizing worked great!
Thule Pack'n Pedal racks:
They worked a treat - rock-solid, didn't slip at all on the suspension fork.
We had the 'classic' 2 small front rollers and a handle bar bag on the Thorn t-extension each. Worked fine. But - not rattle proof. The basic problem is that the glass-fiber plastic the Ortlieb mounts are made of, definitely start eating racks, no matter what they are made of. I used small ratchet straps to pull back&front pannier tight plus some extra cords to stop the handle-bar bag from jumping. All a bit of a pain, especially if you had to take bags off&on in hotel staircases, etc.
The back arangement (2 Ortlieb rollers, a main rack bag on the top) is fine. All it needs is a good amount of padding tape placed on at home and one ratcheting strap for each item to keep it snug against the rack.
For the front I will change to a more bike-packing type set-up. Same front-racks, but not using Ortlieb rollers, but some normal outdoor water-proof top-roll&clip type back bags, preferably sausage shaped (I'd say 1ft/30cm tall, circumferance that you could just get 2 hands around each) and place them parallel to the fork arms on each side with straps. And then use the top-platform for something handlebar-bag-esque, i.e. removable for a quick shop, but not the handle-bar bags, they just rattle too much off-road.
Ah and water - 1 10l bladder is enough. The one time you need more, you can really just strap some bottles on. And water-purification - over-rated. Take one packet of non-iodine pills for an emergency, but leave Steripen or pumps at home - we managed 9 months off the beaten path just fine. Stomach bugs will come to you no matter what.
And electronics - that's a curse. We had 1 smartphone with off-line maps and one simple digital camara. And a small, foldable solar panel. For the most part, charging batteries on the grid willl get you b. The less junk you have, the less hassle. As soon as laptop, tablet, gopro and slr take over your life - you are screwed. You'll be wondering some mountain village searching for wifi, stressing about uploading your youtube video, the video editing backlog (1min edited requires 1h of work), stressing that the GB's of mindless gopro footage of you cycling through somewhere boring have filled your TB harddrive...don't do it to yourself. The number of macbook drones we saw on our travels, slaves to their devices and online upload commitments that missed the beauty around them - too absurd to comprehend. Really.
Happy cycling,
C4C
