Framesets & Forks For Expedition Touring Bikes
As a starting point for the expedition bike, I chose the Oxford Bike Works expedition touring frameset in its V‑brake-compatible incarnation (there’s also a disc version).
This purpose-designed expedition touring frame reminded me of the old steel-framed mountain bikes I used to ride as a teenager, such as the Specialized Rockhoppers of the ’80s and ’90s used by many of the round-the-world riders who inspired me to try cycle touring in the first place. My beloved Kona Explosif also came from this pedigree.
As such, the Oxford Bike Works offering could be described as a classic expedition touring frame.
The Oxford Bike Works frameset is built from Reynolds 525 chrome-molybdenum (aka: cro-mo or cromoly) steel alloy tubing. There are lots of good tubesets out there; Reynolds 525 is one of them, prioritising strength rather than lightness for longevity and resilience to denting (both when riding and when transporting the bike).
You’ll hear many framebuilders recommending 525 for heavy-duty touring bikes instead of other ‘better’ – i.e. more expensive – tubing lines.
In terms of frame features and compatibility with the panniers I was planning on fitting, the Oxford Bike Works frame ticked all the boxes: front-triangle eyelets for three bottle cages, standard rack mounts on the rear dropouts and seatstays for a bombproof Tubus expedition pannier rack, fork mounts for a front low-rider, and external cable guides for easy maintenance and replacement of brake/shifter cables.
These are features you’ll find on any purpose-built expedition or touring frameset designed with a traditional 4‑pannier luggage setup in mind. Without them, you’ll either have to find workarounds for adding racks, lowriders, and other frame-mounted accessories, or have them added to your frame by a specialist framebuilder (at considerable expense).
In terms of fit and riding position, I’d reviewed a bike built on the Oxford Bike Works in-house frameset the previous year, so I knew that it’d be a good fit for my body shape and riding style, and that I got on well with its upright geometry and reassuring handling characteristics.
After spending a day at Richard’s workshop near Steventon in Oxfordshire, we determined that the medium (19-inch) frame with 26 inch wheels would fit me best (700C/28″ wheel-compatible frames are also available; a detailed discussion of wheel size for touring bikes can be found here).
For the colour, I chose a neutral shade of beige. OBW stock colours vary depending on the manufacturing batch; Richard also does custom paint-jobs.
Did I consider other frames?
Of course! I also considered the (now discontinued) Surly Long Haul Trucker and the Spa Cycles Steel Tourer, and spent quite a while looking around for a suitable second-hand steel mountain bike frame.
Ultimately, though, I chose Oxford Bike Works because of the personal nature of the business, the fact that the workshop was UK-based and I could easily visit it, and because I wanted to support a small, independent, local bike builder.
These, of course, are all off-the-peg framesets, which won’t necessarily suit every body shape, riding style, and specific set of touring needs, of which there are as many combinations as there are riders! If you’re struggling to find an expedition touring frameset that suits you, my advice would be to seriously consider having a bespoke frame built to measure.
More advice & retailers
- There are many expedition-ready framesets available around the world from this massive list of expedition touring bike builders. Some of them also deal in bespoke framebuilding.
- Read more about frame material choice for touring bikes here.
- If you’re in the UK, you might be able to get the stock Expedition frameset direct from Oxford Bike Works if you ask nicely, though Richard’s primary business is complete, custom-built bikes.
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