One Thorn to Rule them All!

[douggiefox]

Hi All

I'm asking myself the questions that everyone must ask themselves over and over again when faced with the inevitable Thorn purchase.

I'd had my mind set on a Sport Raven Tour.  I could commute on it, I could go for light rides on the weekend & the odd tour.  I'm sure this would be my mainstay of cycling.

But then I might wanna do something more adventurous.  Looking at Cass Gilbert's tours, I quite fancy something like that! http://www.out-there-biking.com  So do I choose a Tour or Catalyst??

Of course I'd like them all!  But that's not gonna happen.  I've got one shot at it....

I'm not really looking for answers..just sharing the agony :-)

Best

DF

[stutho]

We feel your pain - we really do.  

The good news is that I think you will love any of the bikes you mentioned - but which one to choose?

Best advice I can give you is to separate out the kind of riding you are already doing (or know that you will do) from the aspirational riding that may happen in the future. Pay far more attention to the first group and when you make your choice be happy that it was the best decision at the time.

[lewisnoble]

I agree with stutho and john.  I bought a Raven Tour expecting to be able to do expedition camping etc., but it has not happenned and is becoming less likely to.  In fact, the Tour suits me very well, but I sometimes wonder about a Sport Tour . . . I have absolutely no regrets about going Rohloff.

If I have interpreted the brochures corectly, the great advantage of the Tour, Catalyst and the new Nomad is that they can be fitted with suspension forks, which sounds as though might be needed for you if your plans come to fruition.  

Best of luck

[stutho]

It might be possible to fit shocks to the sport.  It was an option on the old Mk1 Sport but I don't know about the current Mk2.

[Swislon]

We all share the agony of making the wrong decision. But 100 days is 100 days !
I went for the RST as my Jack of all trades. I'm not disappointed but then I'm not planning any off road adventure tours in the near future. If I could only have one bike then this would be it. []
I'd also consider getting an additional frame and swapping the wheels and tyres if I wanted an adventure tour.

[douggiefox]

Hi Guys

Thanks for all that...

I had my heart set on an RST in stealth black with flat bars and I think I'm gonna stick with that.  My mainstay is commuting and out and about at the weekends.  If a big adventure looms I'll deal with that at the time.  Nice idea from Swision though...

So now onto extras...

Anyone suggest any must haves?

What're your thoughts on the brake upgrades?

And as the geometry is tighter, do I have to give any consideration to the size of panniers?

Best

DF

[lardy]

I have a black RST, which I use for commuting and weekends. I upgraded the brakes to XTR and they are very very good, noticably better than the Deore brakes that were on my previous bike, whether it's worth the money tough to decide, but given that my bike was in memory of my in-laws money was not a ocnsideration. One other advantage of the XTR brakes, is that they're cartridge based so changing brake blocks is simple.

I must confess I bought every upgrade I could think of, so I probably went a bit over the top.

The only consideration to panniers I made is I got the lightweight Thorn ones. I don't intend to use the bike for expeditions so those are suitable and lighter.

One thing I wished I'd considerred was the dynamo. I now have a Arc HID, but wish I'd at least thought about a dynamo when I bought the bike as the HID interferes with my computer.

[douggiefox]

Hi Lardy

So did u go for the full carbon stem, seat post and handle bars?  If so, do u think they're worth the additional cost?

Best  DF

[Swislon]

Hi douggiefox,

You may have seen this thread already which is where I discussed my proposed spec. http://www.sjscycles.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=959
I now have a stealth black RST 561L, flat bars like you're proposing.
I upgraded brakes to LX, and they are great, no problems stopping. I chose some other small upgrades but didn't go mad as I wanted to be sure this was the bike for me. It is. However I'm happy with my spec and as and when things wear out I will consider what to replace them with. I've just changed the stem out for a 110mm instead of 105mm and I can't believe it but it does make a difference. Now I just want to ride and get more miles under my belt and forget about the bike, which is very easy with a Rohloff.
Happy speccing. []

[lardy]

quote:Originally posted by douggiefox

Hi Lardy

So did u go for the full carbon stem, seat post and handle bars?  If so, do u think they're worth the additional cost?

Best  DF

Yes I have carbon stem, seat post and handle bars. It's hard to say if they're worth it. I like the look of them and my bike is great to ride, whether it's better than if those components were aluminium or steel I don't really know. What I do know is I'm very happy with it. I have gone from a decent suspension seatpost on my old bike to doing without on the Raven with no noticable lack of comfort, but whether that is the seatpost or the frame is hard to tell.

The only thing I didn't buy were carbon mudguards, because I thought what is the point the plastic is just as light. However my wife when she first saw the bike said "it's really cool looking, but those mudguards look a bit cheap". I took that as carte blanche to spend some more money and keep meaning to drive down and get carbon mudguards fitted.

[graham]

I'd go for the XTR brakes.
Even on the tandem, with the levers on minimum power setting, I can lock the back wheel if I try hard enough.

[roycowherd]

Suck it up and get a standard Raven Tour.  Yes, you may have to suffer some slowness on good roads, but think of what I've done twice now (no more though):  Ruining a good road bike because you finally wanted to ride that 400-mile greenway or rail trail that was all cinder and mudholes and tree branches.  

Twice, I've gone out on road bikes and come back on ruined pieces of trash, so much money down the drain.  Suffer the extra effort on good roads and be glad for what you have on gravel, dirt, and frost-heaved pavement.  There is no heartbreak like finding yourself 200 miles into a trip and realizing your new French rims and aluminum racks are not going to survive the ride back.

[stutho]

The one option I wish that I had is a SON dynamo hub.  Some time in the future I may make up a spare wheel around one.  

Brakes - I went for the best I could afford - Avid Ultimates – they are excellent I don’t regret the cost.

(NB I built up the bike myself, including the wheels)

[freddered]

The Raven Tour is the only one to do it ALL I think.
If you mean Commuting, Audax, Loaded Touring, true off-road, shopping and so on.

The real decider is true off-road.  The Raven Tour can take full MTB off-road tyres and suss-forks.  

I've yet to off-road mine (I probably never will).  I'll be cycle camping in May and I have just completed a 200K Audax on it (soon to do a 300K Audax on it). It can also take bigger panniers without snagging your heels.

I use 1.5" Panaracer Hi-Roads and it coasts down hills as quickly as any other bikes on the Audax. I also don't get impact/pinch punctures the same as the 700C boys either.

I have a perfectly nice 700C 'fast' Tourer in the garage that I haven't sat on in 12 months.  

If the Sport Tour is better then it must be some bike.  

[piggling bland]

Doesn't the xTc deserve some consideration?  Not for off-road in the Himalaya, but mine tours well, descends brilliantly, does easyish off-road as well as my first (rigid) mountain bike  and is exceptional in badly surfaced back-lanes.  If really big hills are on the agenda, with camping gear, is Rolhoff a good choice?  The granny on my bike made easy work of Mt Lozčre and Mont Aigoual.  My longest day so far was a hilly 83 miles.  The total lack of discomfort at the end of the ride and again next day was amazing.  Thorn design comfortable bikes, but they aren't fast.