Bob Jackson Special Tourist

[Mr.E]

Hi,

My first post, hope it´s in the right place...

For most of you guys maybe it´s not an unusual bike but it´s my pride and joy, i have other bikes but this is the one i use for everything.

I bought the frame (used) from the UK and assembled it slowly with new parts, used parts, made-up parts. It´s not the best it can be but i would like to think it´s not a terrible combination of components, anyway i love it, it´s really confortable and fast even if a little heavy, but hey... it´s a tourer...

The photos are a little fuzzy here, i don´t know why, but you can see the links and see them with better quality.

I hope you like it.

Cheers


Untitled by Mr. E Himself., on Flickr


Untitled by Mr. E Himself., on Flickr


Untitled by Mr. E Himself., on Flickr


Untitled by Mr. E Himself., on Flickr


Untitled by Mr. E Himself., on Flickr


Untitled by Mr. E Himself., on Flickr

 

[LaurenceCardiff]

That's incredible.

 

[Melon]

Wow, I've done something similar but no way near as nice!

 

[Jamiedyer]

Looks brilliant, really nice build.
The parts all suite and it looks just right to me.

Jamie

 

[Midlife]

Understated class act

Shaun

PS rather like my Bob Jackson in the garage

 

[American Friend]

Nice bike! It’s somewhat amusing to see a Bob Jackson set up this way with the big boxy handlebar bag. That style, copied from old French touring bikes and lately revived in the US by Jan Heine and Rivendell, hasn’t caught on over here across the pond in the UK. Like all English touring bikes in the past 40-50 years, the Bob Jackson Super Tourist model was designed for carrying most of the load at the back. If you were going to have just one bag, in the UK it would be a saddle bag and preferably a cotton duck saddle bag made by Carradice. That’s still the fashion today in British touring circles. Perhaps this old French style will eventually catch on over here, but I doubt it. The British are much too attached to their own tradition.

I used to have a Bob Jackson Super Tourist myself, and it was a great bike to ride. While the quality of their brazing has varied over the years, and they sometimes got the clearances a bit too tight, they used, and still use, a tried-and-tested geometry for that kind of bike that makes it a pleasure to ride. Their finishes have also always been top-notch. I particularly love their enamels, like yours. The have a wonderful depth of colour and they hold up their shine for years thanks to the tough clear-coat lacquer. The 531ST tubeset was also great for touring bikes, although it could be argued that it’s overkill for a small or medium sized bike that’s never going to carry anything more than some stuff in a handlebar bag, or a saddle bag for that matter.

One day, you might want to try swapping the bar bag for a saddle bag. You’d find the bike handles even better! But maybe that’s only secondary.

 

[Mr.E]

i do have a saddle bag, and it´s a carradice. I use it when i need to carry more stuff. This bike is always well behaved with front and back loads, on long downhills i am usually the guy in the front and can easily do 40/45 m/h (around 70 km/h) loaded or unloaded, she´s really steady and gives me a lot of confidence. You are right about clearances, 32c´s are already a stretch, i run 28c´s with a little clearance for road debris.
Here´s a couple of photos while touring in the Alentejo (Portugal).


Untitled by Mr. E Himself., on Flickr


Untitled by Mr. E Himself., on Flickr

 

[American Friend]

hi there, lovely pix. btw, what camera are you using?

 

[Mr.E]

Thanks, the photos of the first post are with a nikon d300 & nikkor 50 f1.8 the ones on the last post with a Lumix Lx3 point´n´shoot. But photography to me is like cycling, i always have way too much cameras.... :roll:

 

[Rich34]

That is sheer class. I've just bought an Aende from Spibblo on here and hope to have something similar to yours once it's finished - thanks for the inspiration.