On Thu, 15 Jul 2004 16:34:27 +1000, "Phil" wrote:

I'm think of buying the Mongoose for touring with full camping gear.
Does anyone out there with one care to coment on it's suitability?

I use one for commuting. Some thoughts...

- The standard gears don't go low enough for hilly, loaded touring.

- The compact frame means that you'll probably have to use
"extension" brackets to fit a normal rear rack, which might be a bit
weak for heavy loads.

- For greater strength, you'd probably want to get the wheels
re-built by hand. My rear wheel busted a spoke after several months.

- There isn't any micro-adjustment of the brakes, which is a minor
hassle. You can get barrel adjusters fitted though.

- Also, make sure you get one with good brakes (eg Shorty 4's) - the
model a couple of years ago had crap ones.