Touring the world retro-style, what bike for the missus?

[secret_squirrel]

Sachs grip shifts can be had for pennies sometimes and were far superior to actual Gripshifts BITD. I believe after SRAM bought both Gripshift and Sachs that everything Gripshift branded from then on was actually the Sachs mechanics inside. There are some Sachs Quarz (XT equivalent) ones in the sale section atm, although they are a little stiff if my set is anything to go by, so may not suit the missus. Sachs Waveys are super reliable done thousands of miles on mine.

 

[hamster]

Looks like some good choices. You may need to experiment a fair bit with loading her bike as the mixte frame is much more prone to flex and handling can get unpleasant.

Wheels are the most likely source of trouble. For bombproof touring rims try Sun Rhyno, Rigida Rally or take a look at the touring rims from Spa Cycles in the UK. Their wheels have an excellent reputation amongst serious tourers.

 

[henristig]

Re:

Thanks guys!

I'm actually pretty happy with how the cheapo gripshifters function. They will of course break at some point (I've mangled loads of those in my youth), and then they'll get replaced by a Sachs pair! Thanks for the intel secret_squirrel, never was much of a gripshift fan myself so I haven't bothered delving into that whole world in the past. And as said, Europe will be a benign place to begin figuring out what works and what doesn't so I hope I can get away with starting her on the journey with those shifters.

I have a pair of Sun Rhyno Lites in the parts bin, was thinking I'd build a touring wheelset of those combined with a Shutter dynamo and an LX rear hub, hopefully that's a bombproof combo. Now I need another set though, as that was supposed to be the set for me...

On a side note, does anybody happen to know of a bike shop called Velo Brujo in Portchester? The Alpinestars in the first post was bought off ebay from there last month, but ever since I paid for the bike two weeks ago the seller hasn't replied to my enquiries through ebay nor per email. I'm getting a bit worried something's not quite right... :facepalm:

 

[itscervo]

Re: Re:

Glad you got something she really wanted .

On a side note, does anybody happen to know of a bike shop called Velo Brujo in Portchester? The Alpinestars in the first post was bought off ebay from there last month, but ever since I paid for the bike two weeks ago the seller hasn't replied to my enquiries through ebay nor per email. I'm getting a bit worried something's not quite right... :facepalm:

I'd would try contacting them by phone &/or a friendly reminder on their Facebook/Twitter pages.

 

[hamster]

Re: Re:

I have a pair of Sun Rhyno Lites in the parts bin, was thinking I'd build a touring wheelset of those combined with a Shutter dynamo and an LX rear hub, hopefully that's a bombproof combo. Now I need another set though, as that was supposed to be the set for me...

Looks like a really good touring wheel choice! I can't think of any way to improve on it. 36 holes I presume?