My first Thorn Raven Tour

[pongpat520]

From Thailand to help me choose a Thorn Raven tour.

I am 175 cm tall , inseam 77.5 cm.

Between 2 Size 512S to 537S and 2 Size of this bracket.

In the past, I used the Surly LHT size 52 Stem 90 Drop bar and a comfortable ride Thorn has the correct size.

1. If the 512S top tube length of 53 cm, so if I use a 53 cm top tube length Thorn 512S Stem 100 is equal to a Size that.
Chainstay 440 mm shorter than the Surly LHT 2 cm

2. If the 537S top tube length, 54.5 Stem 90 , then set the hands to a higher level.
Chainstay 453 mm long, up to the better stability.



Thanks for all the comments.

[julk]

Let SJS/Thorn do the work, they are very good at getting the size to suit you.
E-mail them, contact details on their website.

Enjoy the new bike!

[JimK]

I think that chainstay length is mostly important just to get the panniers back far enough to avoid hitting them with your heels.

For stability, I think the key measurement is total wheelbase. Of course longer chainstays will create a longer wheelbase. But the front wheel can move out too in various ways. You might want to use wheelbase to compare the LHT to the various Thorn models.

Anyway, first priority is that the bike has to fit you!

[Andre Jute]

Let SJS/Thorn do the work, they are very good at getting the size to suit you.
E-mail them, contact details on their website.

You're no doubt right but I was enjoying Pongpat's detailed analysis.

[JimK]

Here is one place where I see a bit of comparison

http://forum.ctc.org.uk/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=37365

Here the poster has some sort of Thorn next to a Surley LHT. The Surley has longer chainstays, but still the Thorn has a longer wheelbase.

I was looking at the Thorn brochures that I have downloaded, and I am not seeing wheelbase measurements. Maybe you could ask the Thorn folk for that data on the frames you're interested in.

[JimK]

One data point that isn't so useful, but something that I can measure - the wheelbase on my Thorn Nomad MkII 565L is 1118 mm.

Hard to compare across such different bikes. I would probably take a 58cm LHT. That's a 460 mm chainstay vs. 466 for my Thorn. The LHT wheelbase is 1091. So my wheelbase is 27mm longer than the LHT, though the chainstays are only 6mm longer. Actually the chainstays aren't parallel to the ground, either, but that is probably a very small factor. Anyway, 21mm of my longer wheelbase comes from someplace other than the chainstays.

My virtual toptube is 605, while the LHT is 586. That's a 19mm difference - could account for the whole extra wheelbase! The LHT is really set up for drop handlebars, while my Thorn has straight handlebars.

Amazing how all these factors intertwine!

[pongpat520]

Thank you for your comments.