what to go for, touring or hybrid

M

Mark south wales

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what size tourer. would be good for some one with a 32-33 inside leg, 6foot on the nose. ALWAYS had atb or mtb, never had a tourer, but have a hankering for a Randonneur or a Dyna-tech Tourlite. i see they both hold there money well, which is a good sign. fancy doing some bike packing, before i get to old. i did look at a pioneer trail in 501, that could be an option, or the pioneer elite in 4130. the gemini 531, or dynatcech xc50, xct60 or x80, so somthing hybrid or road specific. away the mtb and heavy traill
 
You really want a drop bar to cover miles.
Those early 90s 531 tourers like the rando, royal, dalesperson or gal are nearly perfect.
Make sure you get 8 speed cassette and canti setup, so it's all modernisable if required.
You'll find the stem is too long, and the bars are too throwy and deep.

And all those bearded old men will tell you bar end shifters are brilliant.
Let me know if you need any, we usually have heaps.

The reality is, STIs are brilliant, as long as the bike is compatible, and the riding positing correctly matched.

Size probably 22 1/2 on the old parallel toptube lugged British ironwork - basically you're after a 56cm toptube c2c
 
I cannot comment on size as I am a lot smaller but can recommend anything from the Raleigh lightweight frame division, they made tourers through the '80s and '90s such as the Royal and Randonneur plus various other versions in Reynolds 531 and later 708 tubing all of which are pretty good. They had various brake setups with centre pulls or cantilever and various equipment levels, they can be had for a very reasonable price and made frames in most sizes between 20 and 25 inch so something to suit most people.
 
bikeworkshop said:
You really want a drop bar to cover miles.
Those early 90s 531 tourers like the rando, royal, dalesperson or gal are nearly perfect.
Make sure you get 8 speed cassette and canti setup, so it's all modernisable if required.
You'll find the stem is too long, and the bars are too throwy and deep.

And all those bearded old men will tell you bar end shifters are brilliant.
Let me know if you need any, we usually have heaps.

The reality is, STIs are brilliant, as long as the bike is compatible, and the riding positing correctly matched.

Size probably 22 1/2 on the old parallel toptube lugged British ironwork - basically you're after a 56cm toptube c2c
Click to expand...
so go for a canti frame pref in 531, did see a tour-lite on ebay in 21"so that is def gonna be to small for me then.
 
You’ll most likely want 56-57cm, maybe 58cm depending on whether you like longer or shorter reach 👍
 
For my money the Raleigh Royal has always been a stand out value for money quality tourer. Unless you want to spend big money I'd plump for one of those. Readily available online at your usual auction site. Try Facebook marketplace also. If money no object, got to be a Surly Long Haul Trucker.
 
Canuk said:
For my money the Raleigh Royal has always been a stand out value for money quality tourer. Unless you want to spend big money I'd plump for one of those. Readily available online at your usual auction site. Try Facebook marketplace also. If money no object, got to be a Surly Long Haul Trucker.
Click to expand...

Surly LHT is a lump of iron compared to top end 531.
But if you want discs, you need thicker gauges.
And fatter tyres make tube compliance less important.
 
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I have a lovely 1987 Raleigh Royal frameset for sale, however it’s a 60cm so may be a little on the tall side for you - I’m not much taller but take a 34 leg jean.

Can attest to 531 frames for covering miles though - the Royal saw me through multiple century rides in supreme comfort.
 
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