I did a lot of climbing around Chamonix in the 1980s so knew the area well but it's changed a lot in the intervening years, the last few times I've been have been skiing.
We'll be another group of middle aged, pasty faced Brits on the trail
Better weight than wisdom, a traveller cannot carry
I have a 26x2.2 hardtail Kona Mtb and still tend to use my boardman hybrid fitted with 700x38 tyres about 90% of the time when I bikepack (for those that don't know the boardman hybrid it is on the road bike end of the hybrid spectrum and has solid forks).
The only thing I don't like about the hybrid is the way it carries a drybag on the handle bars and problems I get with lever positions and cables being compressed etc.
Otherwise, I really enjoy hitting the hills on it!
Oh, and it is lighter to carry/push on the hiking sections : )
I think anyone looking for a bike suited to 'bikepacking' will struggle to do better than this. Last years model is also available at a good discount but only in small ... same bike that Karl rode to a sub 24 on this years BB200.
I've just had a spin around mid Wales with some BearBones folks on my vintage 26er with V brakes. The only time I wished for bigger wheels was a spot of wet rocks where 29 inch wheels would've allowed me to roll over some of the bigger obstacles a little easier. There was a couple of moments where some disc brakes would've been useful, but other than that, a 20 year old carbon/composite hardtail with 8 year old SID forks was keeping up ok - only the engine let it down TBH.
As to luggage...a decent bar harness and a decent saddle bag will see you started. Many different makes to choose from. I use Revelate but liked the compact Wildcat saddle bags I saw on the weekend. I tend to use a Revelate Jerry Can for tools, but some folks don't like 'em due to what was described to me by a lass as "chub rub" (sounds so wrong).
That Ramin posted by Mr S8tan would be a bloody good intro for not a huge outlay. Drop on aforementioned bar harness and a saddle bag and you're good to go.
atk wrote:With Shand's new 29er available, the temptation for matching bikes must be quite high? I type this while surrounded by an assortment of Surly bikes...
Having got a Karate monkey I now want to own a stable of black singlespeed surlys with carbon forks, its baaad
atk wrote:With Shand's new 29er available, the temptation for matching bikes must be quite high? I type this while surrounded by an assortment of Surly bikes...
Very high!
However, unless the boss suddenly makes a fortune it is not very likely
But another factor is I have a very strong preference for locally manufactured stuff. Hence, my Shand has lots of bits from Hope, Use and Middleburn.
Yeah as Stu says. Pinnicle Ramin 1 is great value. I had to buy it because all our bikes got stolen a few weeks before the bb200 and needed something to ride. I'm planning on now using it on the htr550. Its a really efficient bike. Lightweight for the money and most importantly as a bikepacking bike its simple.
Lughnasadh wrote:I have a 26x2.2 hardtail Kona Mtb and still tend to use my boardman hybrid fitted with 700x38 tyres about 90% of the time when I bikepack (for those that don't know the boardman hybrid it is on the road bike end of the hybrid spectrum and has solid forks).
Thanks. Very interesting! You don't find the tyres get stuck in the mud?
I'm looking for a new bike as my main ride is a 20 year old ti hardtail with v brakes, I love riding it but would like something with better stopping power when carrying a load, that is a good all rounder and I keep coming back to this http://www.cyclesurgery.com/pws/UniqueP ... lsrc=aw.ds
would appreciate any advice on this being any good for Bikepacking or would i be better getting less trail orientated ride
scott of the woods wrote:I'm looking for a new bike as my main ride is a 20 year old ti hardtail with v brakes, I love riding it but would like something with better stopping power when carrying a load, that is a good all rounder and I keep coming back to this http://www.cyclesurgery.com/pws/UniqueP ... lsrc=aw.ds
would appreciate any advice on this being any good for Bikepacking or would i be better getting less trail orientated ride
scott of the woods wrote:I'm looking for a new bike as my main ride is a 20 year old ti hardtail with v brakes, I love riding it but would like something with better stopping power when carrying a load, that is a good all rounder and I keep coming back to this http://www.cyclesurgery.com/pws/UniqueP ... lsrc=aw.ds
would appreciate any advice on this being any good for Bikepacking or would i be better getting less trail orientated ride
I might be missing something but £1600 for an alloy frame and Deore seems a bit expensive.....
Think the full bike is around 13kg/29lb and isn't badly spec'd for just under a grand... Spyke brakes with compressionless housing, 35mm rims... Friend picked one up a few months back and has been very happy with it so far.
s8tannorm wrote:You could put yourself something 'custom' together for less than £1600 or buy a similar bike for half the price.
Genesis Longitude frame/forks/headset/alt bars is £375. Plenty left to buy parts and all bivi gear!
It does look good. Any indication of weight especially as it is using different tubes to most.
Reading between the lines in the Genesis blurb it's the same tubing they've always used but they aren't paying Reynolds a fee to put a sticker on taiwanese tubing made under licence.
Thanks all, i was looking for something that would replace my Ti xc orientated ride that would be good for the odd race/endurance and good for bike tramping. I've got a Spesh Enduro which is pretty good for trail park and endurance events and the ti is great for xc racing, but not really suited for extreme back country rocky rides. I guess I should just add another specific iron horse to the stables, I like the look of the Longtitude just have to sweet talk SWMBO, but maybe the Pinnacle will be fine for me. Thanks again and looking forward to meeting some of you at the FF
scott of the woods wrote:I'm looking for a new bike as my main ride is a 20 year old ti hardtail with v brakes, I love riding it but would like something with better stopping power when carrying a load, that is a good all rounder and I keep coming back to this http://www.cyclesurgery.com/pws/UniqueP ... lsrc=aw.ds
would appreciate any advice on this being any good for Bikepacking or would i be better getting less trail orientated ride
I've got a 905, albeit and older one (2011) - the spec has changed a bit (now 650b) - but I got it in the sale and even with £500 off then there were better value options at the time, but I wanted something light (weighed about 11.5kg with original kit). I've only used it for one bike packing ride and it wasn't really a long one in the saddle. However I know from riding it a lot it wouldn't make the best 'long ride' bike for two reasons: the frame is harsh and with that seat tube there is very little flex, and secondly the geometery doesn't lend itself well to longer rides due to the lower/racier/xc front end (sure you could do something to correct this with stem and bar combo), your arms and shoulders end up taking bit too much. As a bonus negative it's got quite a small trianlge in the frame, so couldn't accomodate as big a frame bag. It accelerates quick, is chuckable, I love taking it to Lee Quarry, but in summary: there are lot better value bikes on the market, and I can't see it being the best option for long bikepacking rides for the above reasons. HTH!
scott of the woods wrote:I'm looking for a new bike as my main ride is a 20 year old ti hardtail with v brakes, I love riding it but would like something with better stopping power when carrying a load, that is a good all rounder and I keep coming back to this http://www.cyclesurgery.com/pws/UniqueP ... lsrc=aw.ds
would appreciate any advice on this being any good for Bikepacking or would i be better getting less trail orientated ride
I've got a 905, albeit and older one (2011) - the spec has changed a bit (now 650b) - but I got it in the sale and even with £500 off then there were better value options at the time, but I wanted something light (weighed about 11.5kg with original kit). I've only used it for one bike packing ride and it wasn't really a long one in the saddle. However I know from riding it a lot it wouldn't make the best 'long ride' bike for two reasons: the frame is harsh and with that seat tube there is very little flex, and secondly the geometery doesn't lend itself well to longer rides due to the lower/racier/xc front end (sure you could do something to correct this with stem and bar combo), your arms and shoulders end up taking bit too much. As a bonus negative it's got quite a small trianlge in the frame, so couldn't accomodate as big a frame bag. It accelerates quick, is chuckable, I love taking it to Lee Quarry, but in summary: there are lot better value bikes on the market, and I can't see it being the best option for long bikepacking rides for the above reasons. HTH!
That's great advice thank you, i was just going on the reviews and everyone was saying it was a great bike, i was just hoping it would double up as a Bikepacking bike but as you say its not suitable. i will keep using my old bike and hopefully pick up something suitable after Christmas, the models that have been suggested above all look great, just got to make the decision on how much to spend £500 or £1000? in all honesty i think the ramin one will be perfect as although i have done a bit of wild camping and biking i am still very much a bikepacking novice. cheers all
