Aluminium frame not suitable for touring ?

tomjw said:

I am planning to tour in Europe next year on a MTB with an Aluminium frame.

Advice/opinions would be appreciated.

The repair isnt the only issue, its wear. Ali is very soft, and in transit, a lot of damage can be done to a frame by simply having it rub. You can forget field repair of ali, its way too hard.

I cant imagine why anyone would need a suspension fork on a MTB to tour europe. Im told that ali bikes can have a pretty harsh ride, but I toured laos, cambodia and china on a steel MTB with no suspension fork and it was fine 99.9% of the time

Now I wouldn't be an expert by any means, but when I had my bike made (aluminum too, by the way - I guess I'll just have faith), I was able to choose between a plain and a suspension fork. The suspension fork weighed about as much as the entire rest of the frame put together! So if you're worried about weight, non-suspension might be the way to go. Just my two cents. Anyone else have an opinion?

tomjw said:

I am planning to tour in Europe next year on a MTB with an Aluminium frame. I keep reading that it is better to use a steel frame because it is hard to get aluminium welded. Is aluminium more fragile than steel (on my frame it states that it is "heat treated"😉? Is it impossible to repair or does this just apply to very remote places where the technology is not available?

Yes, steel is much more repairable. On a trip through Europe though, unless you're planning a REAL long one (like a few years!), or you decide to ride into something, you should never get into the situation where your aluminium frame needs repair.

Al is not more fragile, and I would argue that it is no more susceptible to denting than steel, however the impact of a dent on the integrity of on Al frame is likely to be more than on steel (depending where the dent is, of course). Just look at the number of Al mountain bike frames out there - you'd be hard-pressed to find a steel MTB frame these days - so there isn't really an issue with aluminium durability.

Quoted post said:

Also I have front suspension which I like but most tourers seem to use ordinary forks. I was intending to invest in an expensive Tubus "swing" rack which can be used with front suspension. Would I be better off converting to non-supension forks and getting a cheaper rack?

I don't see the point of front suspension on a tour in Europe where you'll be on good surfaces almost all of the time. Front suspension adds some weight, but most importantly it robs you of some efficiency too.

Thanks for the info. You have confirmed what I was thinking about aluminium frames - if they were really fragile they would have had to stop making them. Unfortunately I can only afford about 2 weeks touring this year and while I would like to be able to go off road when necessary - dirt tracks etc - I will not be doing anything "radical" (not capable of it anyway). I was hoping to use my daily bike as it is for this trip but if it is not too expensive or difficult I will convert it to rigid forks. Thanks again for the help.

I understand it aluminium frames can't be repaired whereas steel ones can be welded back together by most small workshops, but this advice is really intended for the more remote countries where a broken frame could happen a great distance away from much help, and be a real disaster. A welded tube isn't going to be more than a temporary fix, and when you get home you'll need a new tube brazed in. Probably cheaper, for most bikes, to buy a new frame.
In the unlikely event of breaking a frame in Europe then you'd probably take a taxi to the nearest train station and enjoy the rest of the holiday as best you could without a bike.

Unless you are cycle camping I do not think you will need front panniers, you should be able to get enough in the rear panniers. plus perhaps a bar bag.

Therefore I don't think it matters much if the bike is aly or steel, just enjoy your holiday.