Carbon bike for bike packing?

[michaelbiker]

5 hours ago, ChrisF said:

 

Any recommendations on wheels ?

 

Must be a bit of a juggling act to keep the wheel weight in check, while getting something strong enough for a loaded bike packing trip over corrugations ....

Again for bike packing, weight should be the least important thing. Get something that is well within your total weight limit (bike, human, luggage) - that might even mean an mtb wheel. Don’t go exotic - in other words how easy is it to source spares. Make sure it’s compatible with as wide tires as you can safely fit in your frame. The tires will make more diff on corrugations than the wheels. 

Oh and make sure sealant is topped up and tire pressure is checked at the start of every day. Most sh*t happens when you ignore maintenance. I just did 8 days through Northern Laos and it was a ritual for our group to do maintenance every evening. Clean and lube chain, clean off mud, check pressures, check brake pads etc. There are no spares in Laos and the roads were atrocious, if your bike breaks and you can’t fix it you’ll need to get on the next bakkie / train / flight home. 

[EddieV]

On our last trip through the Karoo our bikes weighed between 30kg and 35kg, we had to carry lots of water and food since the roads we took hardly had any places to fill up for at least the first 3 days.

The corrugation of the roads cause lots of stress on the bikes and carrier loadbearing points ... so not just 35kg, but proper bike-breaking thumping with load ....
Being able to use 29 x 2.4 tyres is great for the thick sand too.

Wheels - I had a sp-dynamo front on a 32H-FRM rim and DT Swiss 240s 32H rear.

We used steel bikes (Kona Unit and Momsen Str) with rigid forks. I've only ever used steel. Steel bikes in general is a bit more flexing? And easier to repair.

Edited November 19 by EddieV

[Anthem24]

For a trip of a few days that only happens once a year, you can make do with any bike you have. I keep my +20 year old aluminium 3x9 hardtail for these trips.   

[PhilipV]

The ideal bike for bike packing is the one you have.

I can confirm that my carbon hardtail was effective for bike packing. 

[Mook]

1 hour ago, EddieV said:

On our last trip through the Karoo our bikes weighed between 30kg and 35kg, we had to carry lots of water and food since the roads we took hardly had any places to fill up for at least the first 3 days.

The corrugation of the roads cause lots of stress on the bikes and carrier loadbearing points ... so not just 35kg, but proper bike-breaking thumping with load ....
Being able to use 29 x 2.4 tyres is great for the thick sand too.

Wheels - I had a sp-dynamo front on a 32H-FRM rim and DT Swiss 240s 32H rear.

We used steel bikes (Kona Unit and Momsen Str) with rigid forks. I've only ever used steel. Steel bikes in general is a bit more flexing? And easier to repair.

Have done a few myself. The Tankwa-Karoo was particularly brutal on equipment. It depends on the load you intend carting along. Bikepacking per se should be OK on a carbon setup, BUT a self supported touring setup where you carry water, food, house, spares and clothing is a totally different story. I use a very basic outfit built on a steel frame. This thing is indestructible given 34kg total loaded weight + 85kg rider. I have had no breakdowns whatsoever. My panniers, racks, frame etc are still in good shape.

Hell, my cantilever rim brakes even stops me effectively on Franschhoek pass, Bainskloof pass, Du Toitskloof pass, Bo-Swaarmoed pass.

Steel or Ti for sure 🤙

 

[Lynskey]

There are 2 things I know. Any bike will do. Anything can be converted and made to work. For short trips like you are planning you should be fine. The issue with carbon is, it just snaps when it has had enough. Metal gives you a bend first before failure. Guys doing big trips use steel or titanium for the strength. This is because they carry upwards of 35kgs extra. Also if it breaks even in darkest Africa you can weld a steel frame. Get yourself packed. Then take away 50% of that stuff. You need very little on short trips. Take more pictures than stuff. That area is really beautiful. 

[Lynskey]

There are several FB groups. Join them. Their information is a lot more concentrated on what you are looking for. 

[Bub Marley]

Why do people always assume carbon is weak?

[NickGM]

On 11/18/2024 at 9:29 AM, stillerjudith said:

Just a question, is a carbon bike strong enough for bike packing?

For it's weight, carbon actually has a higher tensile strength than steel (a more traditional frame material for heavy load carrying). But steel gives you the peace of mind that it is easily repairable. Carbon tends to fail catastrophically and irreparably if it does fail. I doubt either of these are factors in your decision though. More importantly:

What is the bike and what is the weight you intend carrying? Is it a bike you already own or is it one your want to buy?

Weekend getaway with 10-15kg on a purpose-built carbon bikepacking bike (Canyon Grizl, Cannondale topstone, etc) then the answer is 100% yes.

Transcontinental tour with 35-40kg on a specialized Aethos? Then the answer is 100% no.

Provide those details and people here might be able to help out more.

For what it's worth, my partner has a specialized awol that is steel from head to toe. We used it on a 3-month tour. It is like an armored tank. It was brilliant on our tour and could carry very heavy loads without even flexing. But at the same time she never rides it now because it, well, it rides like an armored tank. She'd much rather have a nimble carbon gravel bike now. So if that will work for your trip, then do that.

[michaelbiker]

7 minutes ago, Bub Marley said:

Why do people always assume carbon is weak?

Nobody assumed it was weak. I just don't think it's the right material for this use case.

[ChrisF]

2 hours ago, Anthem24 said:

For a trip of a few days that only happens once a year, you can make do with any bike you have. I keep my +20 year old aluminium 3x9 hardtail for these trips.   

 

They were built STRONG back then ....

[ChrisF]

1 hour ago, Bub Marley said:

Why do people always assume carbon is weak?

 

I certainly dont have the bicycle experience to answer that question.

 

Which is why I was asking @Prince Albert Cycles to jump into the fire .... Skuus ou maat.

 

As a person that rides those roads daily, and regularly take out tourists, he must have seen what WORKS.  Sadly, also should have an idea of what best to avoid (even though it might be anecdotal and subject to a million other factors).

 

@michaelbiker must be one of the very high miler bike-packers on this forum, and with that comes a wealth of experience, of good and bad .....  His comment on MAINTENANCE obviously is at the route of so many issues.  And all too often it is not the lack of maintenance but the bike/brand/material that gets blamed ....

 

 

PS - I am toying with the idea of getting a gravel bike (not bike packing, then the scale might differ ... the more I gym the worse the scale is towards me) ... thus following these threads, and trying to learn as much as possible.  

[michaelbiker]

3 hours ago, ChrisF said:

 

@michaelbiker must be one of the very high miler bike-packers on this forum, and with that comes a wealth of experience, of good and bad .....  His comment on MAINTENANCE obviously is at the route of so many issues.  And all too often it is not the lack of maintenance but the bike/brand/material that gets blamed ....

Thanks Chris. I don’t bike pack that much but I do pack my bike a lot and visit some off-the-beaten-path places - Laos, Thailand, Northern Greece etc. So bike frame material is actually quite important to me from a traveling perspective (light and strong which is why we picked Ti bikes).
 

Off topic but before my last flight I watched a baggage handler literally throw my bike bag on top of my wife’s bag in front of us (each bag weighed 25kgs). I was pretty certain it wouldn’t have survived but there was not a scratch on either bike. Titanium and Evoc cases FTW!

[ChrisF]

1 hour ago, michaelbiker said:

Thanks Chris. I don’t bike pack that much but I do pack my bike a lot and visit some off-the-beaten-path places - Laos, Thailand, Northern Greece etc. So bike frame material is actually quite important to me from a traveling perspective (light and strong which is why we picked Ti bikes).
 

Off topic but before my last flight I watched a baggage handler literally throw my bike bag on top of my wife’s bag in front of us (each bag weighed 25kgs). I was pretty certain it wouldn’t have survived but there was not a scratch on either bike. Titanium and Evoc cases FTW!

 

I do follow your ride posts.  You two certainly make the best of the opportunities life have presented you.  Please keep posting those stunning pics.

 

 

 

Packing a bike ... actually did my first one this weekend.  Neighbour's kid is flying up to Joburg for bursary work.  Thanks to Chris Willemse cycles for giving us a bike box for free.  Turned into a mini training session ....

. Wheels off ... check the bearings, and just as well as the rear one was just too loose.

. hold chain out the way and check the BB bearings.  Lubed the chain.

. check brake pads

. They wanted to fit tubes with slime ... got a nice deal at CWC.

. Driving back we spoke about swopping out tubes, and I picked up that he had done a tube swop before ....

. Thus the training started.  Explained how to use the low part of the rim to drop the tyre bead to help get the tyre off .... worked so well I could get off without tyre leavers.   I quickly put it all back .... now let him remove it.  I like to put the smallest bit of air in a tube before fitting it, then let him fit it.  Second wheel I stood back.

. Now to remove the pedals .... he certainly learnt that L and R is not the same thing, and that fasting happens in different directions (spanner to the top, turn to the front)

. Only put in a bit of air in the tyres, not sure if one may load the bike on a plain with fully inflated tyres ....

. Made sure he had a toolbag for a spare tube and a few basics.

. Packing the bike in the box went easy enough, even though we had to loosen the front clamp to slide the bar about 40mm as the box was just that bit too short.  Makes for a nice snug fit.

 

Will hear soon enough how well our packing efforts lasted the flight to Lanceria, think it will be with Safair.  

[Prince Albert Cycles]

I’ve been asked for my opinion but will rather share my experience of running a small workshop in Prince Albert for the past 8 years .

i am sorry I have never kept track and recorded bikepacker and bike tourists coming through. It would have made a nice book. In addition to those all the Freedom Challenge riders and similar races pass through. 
the European cycle tourists use much simpler bicycles that us locals do  . I see lots of 26” hard tail rigid fork cantilever bikes with 3 x9 or 2 x10 drivetrain. Which is sensible if you are going to cycle through Africa . 

with a single exception not a single broken frame . The exception was a friend of Stan E from Scotland whose 20 year old steel 26” frame developed a crack at the BB caused by Scottish rust from the inside . And was welded expertly by our local handyman.

I think we all make too much about frames breaking. If you look after your frame it will look after you whether carbon steel titanium or alu.

what causes problems are wheels . Spokes hubs tyres and freebodies . And brakes . The odd BB .

My 2C