Thorn Raven Tour: I really want to like this bike.

[retrodirect]

Just hawking for the collective wisdom of this forum, I recently bought a Thorn Raven Tour for a good price but after 2000miles I must admit I'm not enamoured with the handling. I really want to like this bike, but I just can't get on with the sluggish turning speed.

On the SJS website they sell thorn replacement forks in both 48mm rake and 60mm and I was keen to know which set come stock on a 537L Thorn Raven Tour? If the forks are 48mm stock I'd be keen to change them for 60mm.
Is their a decent second hand market for a set of these forks? So that I could recoup some losses or get some cheap 60mm ones; I'm currently saving money working as a bike-courier (so money is particularly tight).

I'm supposed to be setting off on a long tour in the spring for a few months and would really like to get this right.

[john28july]

Hello,
The Raven Tour is not a racing bike! The Raven Tour is a tourer and as such will be slower handling. Get used to it. Change to slicker tyres if need be. Load the bike up. But mostly do not ride other bikes until you get comfortable with it. I had a Raven Tour and did not find it a slow handling bike. It was like a touring bike!
John.

[pastafarian]

What John said... Have you tried fully laden touring on it, compared to a "quicker" bike?

Another thing that matters I think are the handlebars. I really like the curved randonneur drop bars (Nitto) on my Raven. I prefer them to the rather wide riser bar on my other bike, as it feels like they provide more leverage. If you think of the handlebar movement as a steering wheel, I definitely prefer the smaller wheel of the drops bars. Not much wisdom perhaps, but to put it short, perhaps a new set of handlebars would also change turning characteristics for the better. What say everyone else?

[freddered]

My Raven Tour handles quicker than my Road Bike which is 'on rails'.



But a bit slower than my 'twitchiest' bike (531 British Eagle Touristique) which always takes me by surprise when I ride it.



So I guess it's what you are used to.

I'm not sure about the rake on my forks but I find it a good compromise, can you figure it out from the photo?



Note:  You may be glad of sluggush handling when touring.  The idea is that you can relax, not concentrate so hard, without steering into a ditch.

If you are a cycle courier then I expect you have got yourself a very sharp handling bike.