Thorn Nomad S&S or the EXP R advice please.

[kingoftheworld]

Dear all,

My first post so be gentle with me 

Basically, I thought before I phone Thorn directly & get a friendly, but maybe some what biased opinion
I would ask the group here.I have already spent months combing the web, viewing bikes from all over
Europe (most being good Dutch & German Company's) but I really keep coming back to Thorn. I was close
to going for the Nomad with all the trimmings, I then noticed (not easy to find) the EXP R which (I think)
would suit me better as I want a "sportier" lighter bike (?) that can still handle 20kg of weight (don't want to carry more)
But I won't be cycling Argentina or Chile on dirt tracks.

On the other hand I don't really need a double lifetime guarantee not even one lifetime (30 years will do) I'm 46   

I'll post more on the spec I would be interested in, but I thought I'd get the ball rolling with this post first.

Appreciate your thoughts, feed back

Cheers
Greetings from Vienna Austria.

 
     

[stutho]

but maybe some what biased opinion

What us .....Never   

Just to muddy the waters a little more have you considered the Raven Sport Tour (RST).   Now I am very biased when it comes the RST but to my mind, if you are not looking to carry more than 20kg,  it might be just the bike you are looking for.  The RST is substantially lighter than the Nomad.  It is also a lot more 'athletic'.

Having said that the if money was no objects  they I would be very tempted to trade my RST for an EXP R

Stutho

PS welcome to the list 

[freddered]

When I got my Raven Tour Thorn was an obvious choice.  They were very competetively priced (3 1/2 years ago) but now they seem very expensive.

The RST is from (ie. starting price, with no pedals, pump, racks and so on) £2099.

The RT is from £1699 (it was from £1099 when I got mine).

Recently I ordered a new fast tourer/Audax bike.  My first choice was the Audax Mk3 but I got a shock when I checked the latest price.  It's £1699 in the spec I want.  I got a Condor Fratello in the end for £1299 in same spec.

I think Thorn sell great bikes but no longer great-value bikes.

[vik]

Dear all,

My first post so be gentle with me 

Basically, I thought before I phone Thorn directly & get a friendly, but maybe some what biased opinion
I would ask the group here.I have already spent months combing the web, viewing bikes from all over
Europe (most being good Dutch & German Company's) but I really keep coming back to Thorn. I was close
to going for the Nomad with all the trimmings, I then noticed (not easy to find) the EXP R which (I think)
would suit me better as I want a "sportier" lighter bike (?) that can still handle 20kg of weight (don't want to carry more)
But I won't be cycling Argentina or Chile on dirt tracks.

On the other hand I don't really need a double lifetime guarantee not even one lifetime (30 years will do) I'm 46   

I'll post more on the spec I would be interested in, but I thought I'd get the ball rolling with this post first.

Appreciate your thoughts, feed back

Cheers
Greetings from Vienna Austria.

 
     

Do you really want a Rohloff?  If you don't a Thorn Sherpa can handle 20kgs/40lbs of gear just fine, it's cheaper, lighter and can be had with drop bars.  You can fit it with a Rohloff if you use a chain tensioner....it will work and I have that setup on one of my bikes, but if I was getting another Rohloff bike I'd want one designed specifically for this hub.

safe riding,

Vik
www.thelazyrando.com

[john28july]

 :)Hello
Good choice would be a Sherpa. Best value best ride and well worth the cost whichever spec you decide. I have 2 Club Tours, a Sherpa and a Audax 853.
My favourite bike the one I would keep if I had to get rid of three? The Sherpa!
Good Luck.
John.
www.

[kingoftheworld]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the great feed back so far. A quick answer round 

Stutho, freddered, Money is certainly an issue, but the good old pound has taken such a bashing that me & my € gives me more
spending power than I used to have when buying in the UK. If you compare Thorn to , Koga Miyata, Santos, tout terrain, cannondale
then price wise there all around the same but I think (hope) I am getting a lot more bike for my money.

Vik, your site is fantastic, I have spent hours reading up on your blogs & passions. I like you way of life , but you really should buy a sofa 
I never expected that YOU of all people would steer (pardon my pun) me away from a Rohlhof! I fly a lot & bag my bike, my gears usually
always take a bashing. Although I am a geek & love technology I am useless & am petrified everytime I have to play around with anything
mechanical on my bike especially my shimano gears  I hope & pray that apart from the occasional oil change, my rohlhof will run & run & run.

My plan is to take a year off in 2011 & cycle around Europe & the East, who knows maybe even as far as Australia. So I will need a durable bike
with the S&S set up, I do like it, anybody against it ? Could someone here maybe also tell me (couldn't find that out from the specs) what the EXP R weighs ?   

I think that the Sherpa is a little too light weight for such a tour ?



Keep on cycling
Simon
 
 

[vik]

Vik, your site is fantastic, I have spent hours reading up on your blogs & passions. I like you way of life , but you really should buy a sofa 
I never expected that YOU of all people would steer (pardon my pun) me away from a Rohlhof! I fly a lot & bag my bike, my gears usually
always take a bashing. Although I am a geek & love technology I am useless & am petrified everytime I have to play around with anything
mechanical on my bike especially my shimano gears  I hope & pray that apart from the occasional oil change, my rohlhof will run & run & run.

Thanks for the kind words...   I wouldn't try and convince you not to get a Rohloff, but at the same time I wouldn't assume it's the right solution for everyone.  It is less likely to get damaged in transit or to need attention than a derailleur bike.

My plan is to take a year off in 2011 & cycle around Europe & the East, who knows maybe even as far as Australia. So I will need a durable bike
with the S&S set up, I do like it, anybody against it ?

Well to be honest if you aren't stoked about dealing with derailleurs when you travel I cannot imagine you'll be happy to tear down a bike with S&S couplers enough to fit it into a suitcase - presumably a suitcase you won't even have with you if you are taking multiple flights on your trip.  Have a look at a photo of a Nomad S&S in a suitcase and look at all the disassembly you need to do and then rebuilding the bike at the other end.

Personally I cannot imagine ever being that motivated that I'd use my S&S couplers to put a bike in a suitcase.

Having said that I do think they are great for quickly making your bike smaller.  You can break it in half with minimal hassle and then package it in a cardboard box for a flight.  You can also break it into two and easily fit it into a car or bus.

If I could have bought the same frame as the Nomad S&S without the S&S I would have bought it and saved myself a significant amount of money.

Now that I have an S&S bike I'll use the feature, but I don't see it as vital.

I think that the Sherpa is a little too light weight for such a tour ?

If your gear is going to weigh 20kgs or 40lbs the Sherpa can easily handle that, but if you want a Rohloff I'd skip the Sherpa and look at one of Thorn's dedicated Rohloff frames.

safe riding,

Vik
www.thelazyrando.com

[john28july]

You said...........
I think that the Sherpa is a little too light weight for such a tour ?


I say-rubbish! Its built like a tank.
John.

[freddered]

I think the Sherpa is more capable than a RST as a pure load-lugger.

If money isn't an issue I would go for a Rohloff model every time. 

Having seen S&S couplings in action (including a 3-section tandem) I would have them fitted (if money was no object).  They give you another option should you ever need to get your bike into a vehicle.

It took me several years to choose my Thorn but I'm glad I chose one (RT).  For 3 years it was my only road bike.  Now I have some quicker, lighter,  bikes I tend to use on my Audax rides and the Raven Tour gets used mainly in bad weather (when I absolutely don't want to get stranded). 

It always surprises me how smooth it feels.  No chain-lash and no real need to avoid potholes.

Having just spent several evenings trying to get a derailleur set-up to stop rattling and change slickly I really appreciate the fit & forget Rohloff.

Don't forget to post pictures.

[greenie]

I have 2 Club Tours, a Sherpa and a Audax 853.
My favourite bike the one I would keep if I had to get rid of three? The Sherpa!

Sorry to go off on a tangent to the original thread here but John, you seem an ideal chap to sound out to aid me in my own dilemma.

According to Thorn of old the best 'all rounder' was the XTC which was billed as being sporty as well as being able to cope with summer camping gear. I commute 8 miles to work on potholed urban streets on my venerable (?20y+) Dawes Galaxy & am keen for its replacement to 'do it all' ie still be pretty quick but needs to be more stable, cope with a full ortlieb office bag & second pannier for personal gear, not shake my bones to bits over potholes, and also to head off for summer camping tours with front and back bags.

I thought long and hard about the XTC but it's not made now & e-bay prices are £800+ second hand so I've been thinking about the Club Tour & the Sherpa as alternatives. Which of these would you go for in my position and what is it about the Sherpa that trumps the Club Tour?

Many thanks & apologies for thread hijacking

Andrew

[Arnaud]

Hi Kingoftheworld,

I've just returned from a one month cycling holiday in France and Belgium with a S & s equipped RST.
On and off the plane, train, taxi,etc...a pleasure with the standard S & s soft backpack.
On my return I managed to stuff 30kg of gear in the bag (Emirates airlines has a 30kg allowance) !
I did the major Cols in the Pyrenees (some 19km long ) and most of the Tour van Vlaanderen climbs (the hardest being the Koppenberg with a 22% section); all cycling, no walking.
I own several bikes with derailleurs (Shimano and Campagnolo) and did part of the riding alongside some of the lightest and most expensive bikes on the market and my conclusion is that the RST + S & S combination was the best.
I almost forgot: in one day we did Aubisque, Soulor, Tourmalet and Aspin; a long day with lots of sweat but no pain thanks to the Brooks B17 Champion saddle.
My bike was equipped with drop handlebars with the shifter on the flat section.
An RST is even strong enough for Flemish cobblestones and Australian unsealed gravel roads; no need to go heavier...unless you're going for a two year round the world trip.
Light and fast is so much more enjoyable for daily use.
Bike number four is being built right now: Columbus XCr, S & S couplings,Nitto drop handlebars,700c wheels,Gilles Berthould leather saddle and, of course, a Rohloff hub.
I agree that Thorn bikes are becoming rather expensive; the freight charges to Australia are ridiculous.
Have fun...

Arnaud

[kingoftheworld]

Hi Guys,

Well I must admit it seems that RST with S&S could be a nice option.
I could splash out on all types of added goodies & still have money to spare
compared to buying a Rohlhof EXPR.

As I am also not sure what frame set up, colour etc I should go for, I think the
best bet is to make an appointment & let them take me through it.

I'll be over for X-mas, I can order it then, pick it up in March-April &
cycle back home though France, Germany & Switzerland. Life is tough 

All the best & thanks for the feed back.

P.S Arnuad, I also cycled France in June this year. Strassbourg to Pamplona 1600km
16,000 altitude metres in total but oohh those chocholate eclairs, god I loved them


 

[john28july]

Sorry to go off on a tangent to the original thread here but John, you seem an ideal chap to sound out to aid me in my own dilemma.

According to Thorn of old the best 'all rounder' was the XTC which was billed as being sporty as well as being able to cope with summer camping gear. I commute 8 miles to work on potholed urban streets on my venerable (?20y+) Dawes Galaxy & am keen for its replacement to 'do it all' ie still be pretty quick but needs to be more stable, cope with a full ortlieb office bag & second pannier for personal gear, not shake my bones to bits over potholes, and also to head off for summer camping tours with front and back bags.

I thought long and hard about the XTC but it's not made now & e-bay prices are £800+ second hand so I've been thinking about the Club Tour & the Sherpa as alternatives. Which of these would you go for in my position and what is it about the Sherpa that trumps the Club Tour?

Many thanks & apologies for thread hijacking

Andrew

Hello
I have two Club Tours and a Sherpa plus an Audax 853. The Club Tours are used as general riding bikes one for Summer one for Winter. Iuse the SHerpa for some days rides and Camping trips. The difference in my opinion as a user is that the Club Tours are a bit more lively whereas the Sherpa is a load carrier in feel and ride. The Sherpa is very comfortable more so in my opinion that the Club Tours. You would be happy with either however!
John.

[Tito]

Hi Kingoftheworld,

i had a similar dilemma when ordering my bike a couple of months ago. You may find interesting some of the reflections adn comments on my post
http://www.thorncycles.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=2040.0

I chose RST finally, and am really happy with my choice. It offers the perfect combination of agility and lightweight touring capability. (I am planning to write a longer appraisal on my post soon) I suppose it depends somewhat on your own weight, but it should do 20kg of luggage easily.

If you are planning to tour only in west and east Europe, I would think that RST is the best chocie for you. However, if you are planning to go all the way to Australia, then get an RT.

EXP R would be great, and I was thinking about it a lot too. But in the end, it's the same bike built in UK instead of Taiwan (by equally skilled craftsmen...), with better finishing and more choice of colour. The frame is a bit sturdier than RST, and SJSC told me it weighs aroudn 200g more..

I would rather invest the money in the best available components...

S&S coupling would have been a great upgrade, but I don't bring my bike on the plane that much, and I was afraid that in NYC it would just be easier to steal it can be unscrewed in two parts... If you leave your bike in an urban area, I would not get S&S, otherwise you would need to have additional locks and chains...

After a day or two, I got accustomed to Rohloff, and I would really advise you to go for it. If you do opt for a derailer, you shouldn't worry about Sherpa - it is basically a derailer-equipped RT, capable of carrying 40kg on rough roads....

good luck

[kingoftheworld]

Hi Tito,

Excellent post, with lots of good information, thanks. I never thought
about the S&S couplings being a robbers delight, although he
might have to read the manual before he figures out how to take the bike apart (smile)

I think I'll go over at x-mas & talk to them personally, but I am tending towards the
Nomad or Raven.

All the best
Keep on cycling