I had Specialized Fast Tracks on my touring bike, they were pretty fast on road and had a bit of grip for looser stuff. Have also used the Smart Sams, they are pretty good due to the near solid central tread, and worked well on the Ridgeway which mostly chalk, was fairly dry when I did it though.

All this makes me feel better about the wheels I built up that have a 2mm(ish) wobble that I haven't done anything about.

Same. I like to have my down jacket inside the bag, normally over my feet as they tend to get cold first, but I can move it around or take it out without unzipping or getting out of the bag. If I lay it on top of the bag it normally just slides off in the night so it doesn't benefit me using that way.

I've had two c2c chargers, one for about two years of faultless use until it was stolen along with the bike it was attached to x( and a replacement for about a year. Both worked fine, but have mainly been used for paved and dirt road touring, so no really rough terrain. The times I've used it more o...

I cut the bars down on my longitude to about 760 and put on some Superstar silicon grips (ESI clones) way better than the stock setup for long rides.

I have an Alpkit bag with the surgeon zip opening, it works great. I can easily access it while standing over the bike via the top zip, and when the bike is laid on it's side I can open it out fully to get at whatever I need. As above, careful the bag doesn't touch the chain or rings - I got them to...

Depending on how snug you quilt is, could you use it over the top of a thinner down bag to give yourself a more versatile, two piece system? Probably wouldn't weigh much more than a single winter weight bag that you might only use a couple of nights a year?

I got a few bits off Paul over the summer, front harness and stem bags that were back ordered. He was super friendly and helpful, but I think there's a couple of reasons for the low levels of stock. The stuff is handmade in South America (Peru?) so takes a while for materials to be orders to be comp...

Normally just a light retractable cable lock designed for skis. Just to stop someone riding away, won't stop someone with proper tools. Try to leave the bike where it's visible from the windows and shift down through the gears (without moving pedals) so the chain will get stuck if someone does try t...

On my touring bike I have them for comfort, not speed and have s-bend ones. J-bend ones would probably be better as they'd allow my whole hand to rest on the end without bending my wrists so much. I'll change them at some point but it's not that big a deal.

The chainstays on my Longitude aren't symmetrical - the metal plate on the drive side is a lot thinner than the nds stay. Have you tried flipping the wheel to check that the dishing is correct? Also, given the amount of abuse my Longitude has taken without batting an eye, I'd be more worried about t...

I've been listening to some of the Paul Kirtley podcasts recently, it's geared more towards bushcraft than bikes or travel, but he has some interesting guests and subjects.

http://paulkirtley.co.uk/Topics/pkpodcast/

Imo, the Lomo bag is a much better shape for bike packing with flat bars, it's slimmer and longer so is less likely to buzz on the front tyre. The Alpkit one is ok for drops bars but a bit too fat if you have a suspension fork.

I've got one too, was after a bag to go on my Specialized Pizza rack and it's the perfect size. The bag itself is great, not too heavy and totally waterproof. However I've had to do quite a bit of work on the straps as the ones over the top aren't long enough to go over anything you want to lash dow...

Think my phone must have auto-corrected, the front harness is not just "vaguely exciting", it's actually extremely exciting and well made!

Shame you didn't ask this a month ago, I was looking for an older model Caribou!

If you don't mind waiting for them to come back into stock, the Alpamayo one is rock solid, like the rest of their stuff. My buddy has one and is super happy, I've got the front harness which is also vaguely exciting and will get the rear when my Apidura one wears out.

It's been done. While it might seem a lot, he's basically touring long term using bikepacking gear, plus a drone camera and full winter kit. It does look like a lot compared to most of our short trip setups, but if he had a traditional touring bike, 4 panniers plus trunk and handlebar bag, no one wo...

As above, had one for over two years and very happy with it. Battery life is good, one charge is easily enough for a week of camping when the low and red light settings are used. Also use it for running and cross country skiing in the winter, I actually prefer the non reactive mode for this as the c...

I'm tempted to try it! There's a long thread on the mtbr fatbike forum, looks like the hood off a kids ski jacket is a good starting point...

Not sure if it matters, but the USB werk has an internal cache battery, (not sure about the E werk) so technically it will be always charging something even if there's no GPS/phone plugged in?

I've done the same thing a couple of times, Maplins have all the stuff to make a waterproof two way switch, easy to do with a soldering iron and some patience! A good idea is to add in extra male/female connectors so the lights/charger can be removed without disassembling the whole thing.

Not all 4 season tents are free standing, many tunnel tents are very strong but need pegging out at the ends. The difference between 3 and 4 season is more often down to the inner - A 3 season will typically have mesh panels to allow ventilation and save weight, 4 season tend to have solid fabric in...

They are good but limited in the angle you can set it at and don't work well with short stems. A friend got a few of these of Aliexpress and they work great, much cheaper than the Quadlock too. https://ae01.alicdn.com/kf/HTB1yxcQPpXXXXc8apXXq6xXFXXXQ/Universal-For-iPhone-7-7-Plus-For-Samsung-Phone-H...

Try living in Norway! :lol: When I bought my Genesis it was cheaper to book a return flight home to the UK and bring it back, than buy it locally or have it shipped over. I now buy mid level stuff that lasts, rather than lusting after the really shiny stuff! Thankfully the scenery is free and the ri...