where do you go to my lovely.

[JimK]

What a great way to hand off a bike!

Happy trails to the both of you!

[jags]

cheers jim and dan i'm off to me bed i'm knackered talk tomorrow.

[jags]

Ok thats it i'm Thornless and it sure feels strange even my Raleigh looks lonely sitting there on its lonesome. Well Chris got off at 6 am this morning, i left him and all his new gear to  dublin port so in a few hours he should be home i think he will enjoy his new buddy he sure has some great tours planned for it.
now i have to plan for y next Thorn The blue Audax

ok so who on here is riding one and whats your honest oponion on it i sure dont want to go spending money on a bike that not suitable for me.
i need a bike thats capable of carry a camping load
lightish
good climber
quick off the mark

[Danneaux]

All congratulations to you and Chris, jags!

In considering What's Next...have you considered a Club Tour?

As for touring on an Audax, no help I can provide personally, as I'm at the Heavy Lifting end of the spectrum with my Nomad Mk2.

The Thorn brochure ( http://www.sjscycles.com/thornpdf/Thorn_Audax_Mk3.pdf )speaks to this matter pretty clearly...

Versatility
Whilst the Mk3 Audax excels at light weight touring (less than 8Kg), the frame is strong enough to cope with medium weight touring.

If necessary, it will carry up to 31Kg of luggage.

It will carry 20Kg on a suitable rear carrier - if you need it to! 
It will carry 5Kg on the forks .
It will carry 3Kg in the bottle cages and it will carry a 3Kg bar bag.

The Mk3 is supplied with a pair of high quality, competition weight Cro-Mo forks, with cast crown, complete with stainless bosses for mudguards and lo-loader carrier. These forks are designed for comfort, with
narrow tyres, at high pressures, therefore it is important that you do not treat them as “full-blown touring forks”, they have a maximum luggage limit of 2.5Kg (per side).

Note, for medium weight touring, due to the fairly short wheelbase, if more than 10kg is carried at the rear, the bike will handle better, if some weight is carried in front lo loader  panniers.

Jags, if you wish to do some touring, it might be wise to consider buying the original steel fork as well as the carbon one, allowing for maximum versatility.

I did come across an interesting account of lightweight touring in a Thorn Audax Special Edition (looks like the now orange one Steve has, but in its original livery) on CGOAB here: http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/page/?page_id=41198 The owner used front and rear panniers and slept in a tent.

Photos of an Audax on-tour here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/11417866@N02/

Here's an owner's review of the Audax Mk3 at the 1,000km mark: http://aboutthebike.blogspot.com/2011/12/1000km-review-thorn-audax-3.html

Audax Mk3 setup for light touring (pics) here: http://www.ecovelo.info/2010/02/13/gallery-dottyes-thorn-mk3-audax/

Thoughts an ruminations on BikeForums here: http://www.bikeforums.net/archive/index.php/t-700665.html

Long-term review by NorthernWalker: http://northernwalker.wordpress.com/2011/05/08/thorn-audax-mk3-long-term-test/

General ruminations on Audax vs Touring bikes and suitability for each in an older thread at CTC Forum:
http://forum.ctc.org.uk/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=7677&start=0

I'm sure owners on the Forum can offer further opinions. John (Leftpoole) has owned a number of Thorns including the several Audaxes and a Club Tour and could speak to their comparative fitness-for-purpose.

Best,

Dan.

[jags]

How do you do it Dan boy your brainn is light sheet lightning
ok gonna take me a while to look at that lot.

oh yeah its the audax or me.kinda set on it.depends of course on will i have enough to get it on the road. i need  gear shifters more than likely go for dura ace barends 9 speed
 new chainset  like the stronglight but smaller rings 48/36/ 28 maybe even smaller that 28?new rear mech might go for shimano 105 medium cage, if short cage got me up to 28 it will do fine/dura ace 9 speed chain/ oh yeah get that ner 9 speed hub on the mavic cxp.
thats should do. now if i got a price on that lot.
i'm waiting for sjs to email me back on frameset mudguards.hopefully tomorrow i'll know.

cheers
Dan.

[Danneaux]

You've seen Adam's blue beauty, right jags?: http://www.thorncycles.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=4543.0

Best,

Dan.

[jags]

yeah class that looks sweet.
mind you my son in law cant believe i'm buying a new bike .

they'll never undestand the mind of a cyclist.

[jags]

Lads just an update on my cycling carrear
although no Thorn i just  fitted new sks mudguards to my Raleigh 753 what a pain to get the spot on  took me all day but job done so hopefully  they will stay putt and keep me dry all winter trouble free.
i also bought new light super wee light Lezyne mini drive seems much brighter than my cateye so with the 2 head lights i should get through a night ride no hassle.
when i was fitting the mudguards i was thinking how easy it would have been if only i could afford that audax ah well maybe some other time.

cheers
jags

photos up on my facebook page
anthony kelly.

[Danneaux]

The bike looks fantastic, Anto; prettier and more versatile each time I see it.

This is the one that can't leave your care; gotta hang onto it pretty much forever, I'd think.

All the best,

Dan.

[jags]

cheers dan yeah that ain't going anywhere thats for sure.
hell of a job fitting those mudguards.