More touirng bike questions please?

On Apr 18, 3:52 pm, landotter wrote:
On Apr 18, 2:26 pm, wrote:
... there's only one drop-bar brake lever on the market that will
operate V brakes correctly.

Not true as of last year. Tektro makes the quite excellent RL520 which
retails for $25 on the street.

Ah. Didn't know that. Thanks.

- Frank Krygowski

On Apr 19, 11:47 am, wrote:
On Apr 18, 3:52 pm, landotter wrote:

On Apr 18, 2:26 pm, wrote:
... there's only one drop-bar brake lever on the market that will
operate V brakes correctly.

Not true as of last year. Tektro makes the quite excellent RL520 which
retails for $25 on the street.

Ah. Didn't know that. Thanks.

Yup, you can get them for even cheaper if you look around. The lever
has a QR so you can remove often remove wheels without undoing the
noodle. Very comfy hood.

wrote:
Some more questions abt various touring bike options:

1. Brakes. Do all touring bike shave canti-lever? If
yes...why? Wouldn't something like V brakes used on mt
bikes work as well?

The problem is that it's hard to design a dropped-bar brake lever that
pulls enough cable for a V-brake. Dia-Compe 287V levers claim to, but
IME are pretty hopeless. Tektro have a new design which may work
better. If you have flat bars and MTB levers, you might as well use
V-brakes.

2. Folders. Is a folding touring bike inherently going
to make less sense...more trouble? Should one stick
with normal non-folding diamond frames?

Yes, because it has to be strong and rigid enougth to carry luggage.
S&S couplings are one solution to making a conventional frame separable,
although expensive.

3. Rim size. 700c vs 26"? is this a non -issue really?
Or some merit to using 26" rims for touring bikes?

I would go 700c, because I have a 26" wheeled touring bike (Thorn) and
*road* tyre choice is very poor indeed in that size. I've settled on
Schwalbe Stelvio 26 x 1.125", but they're not perfect.

landotter wrote:

I resisted vees till I got some cheap Tektros on the city scoot last
year and learned to dial them in. I like cantis--I'd run them on a
cross bike for sure

why would you use cantis on the cross bike for sure?

Zog The Undeniable wrote:
The problem is that it's hard to design a dropped-bar brake lever that
pulls enough cable for a V-brake. Dia-Compe 287V levers claim to, but
IME are pretty hopeless.

What didn't you like about them? I have them ony my touring bike with
V-brakes and they work quite well for me.

--
K.

Lang may your lum reek.

On Apr 19, 1:17 pm, wrote:
landotter wrote:
I resisted vees till I got some cheap Tektros on the city scoot last
year and learned to dial them in. I like cantis--I'd run them on a
cross bike for sure

why would you use cantis on the cross bike for sure?

Simply put, the brake pad on a vee will move less with a stroke of the
lever than a canti with the appropriate levers for both. This means
that you need to set vees closer to the rim and that cantis can be let
to fall back further from the rim and still be in proper adjustment,
increasing mud clearance. This varies among different canti designs. I
am not a crosser--have a google--there is a lot of design madness when
it comes to cross and cantis. I'd probably just use some Tektro Oryx
and avoid the headache of thinking too much.

Zog The Undeniable wrote:

wrote:
Some more questions abt various touring bike options:

1. Brakes. Do all touring bike shave canti-lever? If
yes...why? Wouldn't something like V brakes used on mt
bikes work as well?

The problem is that it's hard to design a dropped-bar brake lever that
pulls enough cable for a V-brake. Dia-Compe 287V levers claim to, but
IME are pretty hopeless. Tektro have a new design which may work
better. If you have flat bars and MTB levers, you might as well use
V-brakes.


Ahh...so its a function of the handlebars more than
anything, yes? IOW.... it depends on whether you have
drop bars or flat or moustache bars as to what kind of
brakes one can use? And the levers that will fit on
those bars and the mechanics involved.

I would go 700c, because I have a 26" wheeled touring bike (Thorn) and
*road* tyre choice is very poor indeed in that size. I've settled on
Schwalbe Stelvio 26 x 1.125", but they're not perfect.

Hmmm..... I've always wanted a Thorn bike but it sounds
like you make a god argument for NOT having 26" wheels!

How do you like the Thorn?

On Apr 19, 1:55 pm, wrote:
Zog The Undeniable wrote:

wrote:
Some more questions abt various touring bike options:

1. Brakes. Do all touring bike shave canti-lever? If
yes...why? Wouldn't something like V brakes used on mt
bikes work as well?

The problem is that it's hard to design a dropped-bar brake lever that
pulls enough cable for a V-brake. Dia-Compe 287V levers claim to, but
IME are pretty hopeless. Tektro have a new design which may work
better. If you have flat bars and MTB levers, you might as well use
V-brakes.

Ahh...so its a function of the handlebars more than
anything, yes? IOW.... it depends on whether you have
drop bars or flat or moustache bars as to what kind of
brakes one can use?

No. It depends on cable pull. There is regular cable pull for cantis
and caliper brakes, like what you see on traditional road, bmx, and
old mtbs, then there is long pull for vees and most cable discs. You
can get Tektro or Diacompe levers for road bikes that do long pull.


And the levers that will fit on
those bars and the mechanics involved.

I would go 700c, because I have a 26" wheeled touring bike (Thorn) and
*road* tyre choice is very poor indeed in that size. I've settled on
Schwalbe Stelvio 26 x 1.125", but they're not perfect.

Hmmm..... I've always wanted a Thorn bike but it sounds
like you make a god argument for NOT having 26" wheels!


Doesn't sound like a great argument unless you're really really picky.
I just went to the mass market website of Performance--a good half
dozen 26" tires you could tour on. I like their house brand ST or ST/
K. Light, supple, and cheap. I've run the plain STs and loved them on
an old mtb. Did I mention they're cheap? $8 right now. To be honest, I
haven't run them in brutal conditions, but they did just great in
urban detritus. I've run the same tire in 700c by Performance as well
and it was also very nice. Made by Cheng Shin, AKA Maxxis.

landotter wrote:

Doesn't sound like a great argument unless you're really really picky.
I just went to the mass market website of Performance--a good half
dozen 26" tires you could tour on. I like their house brand ST or ST/
K. Light, supple, and cheap. I've run the plain STs and loved them on
an old mtb. Did I mention they're cheap? $8 right now. To be honest, I
haven't run them in brutal conditions, but they did just great in
urban detritus. I've run the same tire in 700c by Performance as well
and it was also very nice. Made by Cheng Shin, AKA Maxxis

Good to hear as I'm attracted to the idea of smaller
wheels on a touring bike... maybe not as small as the
20" Bike Friday wheels..but smaller than the 700c of
the Randonee.

I know this sounds crazy but a smaller wheel makes for
a bike that isn't so massive... makes it easier to
handle up and down stairs and thru doors. Can also take
the front wheel off a 26"wheeled bike and it fits
better in the car when hauling the bike somewhere.

On Apr 19, 5:26 pm, wrote:
landotter wrote:
Doesn't sound like a great argument unless you're really really picky.
I just went to the mass market website of Performance--a good half
dozen 26" tires you could tour on. I like their house brand ST or ST/
K. Light, supple, and cheap. I've run the plain STs and loved them on
an old mtb. Did I mention they're cheap? $8 right now. To be honest, I
haven't run them in brutal conditions, but they did just great in
urban detritus. I've run the same tire in 700c by Performance as well
and it was also very nice. Made by Cheng Shin, AKA Maxxis

Good to hear as I'm attracted to the idea of smaller
wheels on a touring bike... maybe not as small as the
20" Bike Friday wheels..but smaller than the 700c of
the Randonee.

I know this sounds crazy but a smaller wheel makes for
a bike that isn't so massive... makes it easier to
handle up and down stairs and thru doors. Can also take
the front wheel off a 26"wheeled bike and it fits
better in the car when hauling the bike somewhere.


Oddly enough, you can take the front wheel off a 700c bike, too.

But 26" touring bikes DO have a lot of fans. My current bikes are all
700s but when I had 26"ers I never had problems getting 'touring' or
otherwise mostly slick tires. "City Slickers" were my favorites.