Travel Bike Wishlist

[drevil]

@hozn 149890 wrote:

Maybe if I had a quick release! I would need that for 12mm thru-axle. I don’t think this exists, but I’d be happy to be wrong.

https://jet.com/product/detail/fe3568266632453e9ea5eeaad01a7d5a?jcmp=pla:ggl:gen_sporting_goods_a2:outdoor_recreation_cycling_bicycle_accessories_a2_other:na:PLA_345660780_23687049900_pla-161669920140:na:na:na:2&code=PLA15&gclid=Cj0KEQiA25rFBRC8rfyX1vjeg7YBEiQAFIb3b3eIqj4IaLM_YI6sb-OaLbTRqlbKobDxLS9tH-rY-IoaAnpG8P8HAQ

[hozn]

@drevil 155264 wrote:

https://jet.com/product/detail/fe3568266632453e9ea5eeaad01a7d5a?jcmp=pla:ggl:gen_sporting_goods_a2:outdoor_recreation_cycling_bicycle_accessories_a2_other:na:PLA_345660780_23687049900_pla-161669920140:na:na:na:2&code=PLA15&gclid=Cj0KEQiA25rFBRC8rfyX1vjeg7YBEiQAFIb3b3eIqj4IaLM_YI6sb-OaLbTRqlbKobDxLS9tH-rY-IoaAnpG8P8HAQ

That is funny because I just stumbled across that last night. For reference, the complete set of those axles: https://robertaxleproject.com/

I’m building (well, spec’ing) out this travel bike frame (more on that later), and was debating whether to spec a thru axle. To do so, I needed to be able to solve the trailer problem. I saw that Burley makes a set of thru axles (https://burley.com/product/thru-axle/?) that look perfect as they should solve both the trailer hookup part and they have a spacer that should ensure that it clears the recessed (like “breezer”) cup on frame NDS.

[ginacico]

@mstone 149791 wrote:

It’s definitely not a spur of the moment “I think I’ll throw the bike in the car” kind of serendipity

Sometimes it is.

This past weekend we’d planned a trip to Lynchburg VA, for the primary purpose of a train excursion pulled by a historic steam engine (J-611). We took Amtrak so we wouldn’t have to drive (and because you just can’t ride enough trains in one weekend). Our hotel was in town, but about 5 miles from where the trip started, and 2 miles from the Amtrak station. We’d figured out the local bus system and found a reliable cab service to get around. But since the train excursion was Sunday and we had all day Saturday to goof off and explore, at the last minute we decided to take our bikes — last-minute meaning the day before we left. Packed them up, took them to the King Street station, and hauled our bikes onto Amtrak as carry-on luggage.

Having bikes for transportation within Lynchburg was a lot nicer than not having them. Lynchburg is nicknamed Hill City for good reason, but the streets are fairly quiet and there’s also a few bike trails. Saturday we were up early to watch the steam engine crossing a trestle, then we visited museums, a historic home, climbed the famed Monument Terrace, and snacked at the community market. The parts we didn’t want to ride, we just locked up and walked. Near the end of the day we took the trail out to Percival’s Island for a nature break and views of the (very flooded) James River.

Sunday we were out even earlier to join our trip at 6:30 AM (early morning hill ride on vacation). We packed up the bikes that evening for Amtrak on Monday morning. I didn’t get a chance to put my bike together again until before work today, but I had a little extra time, and I think it took less than an hour.

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[hozn]

@ginacico 155234 wrote:

I hadn’t seen those, specifically, but they look interesting.

Peter has the Backpack Case and I have Co-Motion’s Co-Pilot Travel Case.

Both are roughly 26x26x10, just inside the airline regulation limits. They accommodate 700c wheels (must deflate the tires) but don’t require removing the fork. Conveniently, the soft case fits inside the other one, which comes in handy when we’re traveling with two bikes or the tandem, because we can pre-ship or store them as one case.

Anecdotally, we both really appreciate that the Co-Motion case has a telescoping handle and wheels. Backpack styles work okay, but the reality of lugging around a bulky case on your back gets old pretty fast.

Which case do you recommend? Is the Copilot worth the premium?

I’m to the point where I am looking at cases.

[ginacico]

@hozn 159843 wrote:

Which case do you recommend? Is the Copilot worth the premium?

I’m to the point where I am looking at cases.

Based on the two styles we have, the Copilot definitely wins. Having wheels and a handle is just a lot easier while lugging the bike through train stations, to hotels, etc. It has sturdy handles on all four sides, for whenever you need to hump it into a luggage rack. It’s made of a durable fabric with hard plastic internal supports, which means it’s less likely to be crushed during travel, but it’s still flexible enough to accommodate the wheels and frame. Large pockets on the outside are nice for tools and accessories.

[hozn]

@ginacico 159877 wrote:

Based on the two styles we have, the Copilot definitely wins. Having wheels and a handle is just a lot easier while lugging the bike through train stations, to hotels, etc. It has sturdy handles on all four sides, for whenever you need to hump it into a luggage rack. It’s made of a durable fabric with hard plastic internal supports, which means it’s less likely to be crushed during travel, but it’s still flexible enough to accommodate the wheels and frame. Large pockets on the outside are nice for tools and accessories.

Yeah, it was between those two that I was debating, so glad for the great review. I have been watching for a used one to come up (on eBay or whatever), but looks like I will be getting a new one! Thanks again. Really appreciate the advice.

[ginacico]

Happy to share the enthusiasm, and I can’t wait to hear about your first adventures!

[FFX_Hinterlands]

A couple things that I didn’t see scanning this thread:

1) BicycleTouringPro has been all over the world with his Co-motion bike. He doesn’t seem to use the S&S couplers very often. It’s easier to pack into a full sized box. You may want to ask him about it.

2) Bike Friday and Moulton both make packable road bikes (BF has touring/gravel bikes also). Bikes@Vienna has a Moulton at a really good price right now if you want to test ride it. Having smaller wheels makes it easier to get a smaller package. Path Less Pedaled has a video showing the unpacking/packing of the Moulton and several reviews of it.

3) Bikes with couplers on the frame typically have cable quick releases, if that hasn’t been brought up.

[hozn]

@FFX_Hinterlands 159902 wrote:

A couple things that I didn’t see scanning this thread:

1) BicycleTouringPro has been all over the world with his Co-motion bike. He doesn’t seem to use the S&S couplers very often. It’s easier to pack into a full sized box. You may want to ask him about it.

Yeah, I’m sure it’s much easier to pack in a full-size box My primary concern is fitting a full-size bike box in the back of a European car along with two suitcases, carry-ons, … kids. I don’t see that happening. My secondary concern (“while I’m at it”) is that if I can save $300 per trip in baggage costs, that’d pay for the cost of the couplers after 2 trips.

@FFX_Hinterlands 159902 wrote:

2) Bike Friday and Moulton both make packable road bikes (BF has touring/gravel bikes also). Bikes@Vienna has a Moulton at a really good price right now if you want to test ride it. Having smaller wheels makes it easier to get a smaller package. Path Less Pedaled has a video showing the unpacking/packing of the Moulton and several reviews of it.

Good points. Yeah, I briefly considered a smaller/folding bike too. If I travelled a lot and was intending to use my bike more casually (e.g. for transportation or more occasional short rides), I’d probably have considered that option more fully. But for longer usage (weeks) I want a full-size bike, and really I want my bike with my saddle, my bars & brakes, etc.

@FFX_Hinterlands 159902 wrote:

3) Bikes with couplers on the frame typically have cable quick releases, if that hasn’t been brought up.

Yeah, cable splitters were discussed at some point here. For me, I am just using external routing with zip-tie stops; it’s easy to pull off the cables/hoses. If I’m removing my RD anyway (which it sounds like is the prudent thing to do), it’s minimal extra work.
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I have heard that there are velcro zip-ties that work in place of the c-clips (or regular zip ties) that might be worth pursuing (@ginacico, have you heard of that?), though popping off c-clips is quite quick (I mostly worry about them popping off and getting lost).

[drevil]

@hozn 159907 wrote:

Yeah, I’m sure it’s much easier to pack in a full-size box My primary concern is fitting a full-size bike box in the back of a European car along with two suitcases, carry-ons, … kids. I don’t see that happening. My secondary concern (“while I’m at it”) is that if I can save $300 per trip in baggage costs, that’d pay for the cost of the couplers after 2 trips.

Just an FYI, Crateworks coroplast bike boxes can be broken down flat and folded to take up much less space in a car. Five friends took advantage of this benefit on a Colorado mountain bike trip in a 15 passenger van rental.

Your example above is a perfect one for a S&S-coupled bike though. (Now wondering if I should have kids and take a trip to Europe to justify an S&S bike…)

[vvill]

I use velcro zip-ties a bunch of a lot of things. They can be a little more fidgety than regular zip-ties if it’s a small opening, and tougher to get them quite as tight if you need that.

But otherwise I prefer them – mostly because they’re reusable, and you don’t need clippers/cutters. They can pick up dirt a bit too over time which may eventually lead to them not being reusable I guess but so far I haven’t had any failures with them.

[hozn]

@vvill 159909 wrote:

I use velcro zip-ties a bunch of a lot of things. They can be a little more fidgety than regular zip-ties if it’s a small opening, and tougher to get them quite as tight if you need that.

But otherwise I prefer them – mostly because they’re reusable, and you don’t need clippers/cutters. They can pick up dirt a bit too over time which may eventually lead to them not being reusable I guess but so far I haven’t had any failures with them.

Cool — do you know if they make these small enough to fit the cable bosses for zip-tie mounts on bike frames?

[ginacico]

Currently I use tiny little zip ties (3 of them) for my rear brake cable, and carry spares plus a little pair of snippers in my travel tool kit. (A Swiss Army knife also works, which I generally have anyway.) Having a reusable velcro option could be nice!

My two derailleur cables are coupled with little barrel splitters.

[drevil]

@ginacico 159913 wrote:

Currently I use tiny little zip ties (3 of them) for my rear brake cable, and carry spares plus a little pair of snippers…

LPT: nail clippers are an excellent zip tie cutter, and can prevent those sharp corners that always, somehow, end up cutting your leg

[vvill]

@hozn 159911 wrote:

Cool — do you know if they make these small enough to fit the cable bosses for zip-tie mounts on bike frames?

Sorry, don’t know. I’m sure I have a few you can have to try if you like. I have these (0.5 inch): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000F5K82A

I’ve mostly used them for Garmin/camera mounts in odd places, or weird stuff like securing a pump to an old sagging seatbag, or for a spare tube since it’s not as flimsy as the rubber bands that come with tubes, or even temporarily securing a hard-to-mount tire to a rim. You can fold them over to make them narrower (or perhaps trim them with scissors, they’re quite soft) but then you’d lose some strength from reduced hooks/loops, not that you need a ton of strength for cables. I guess you could just keep wrapping the wider unfolded part around the whole tube to keep it in place although down/toptubes may need an extra one since they’re wider.

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