Hello, I’d like to go bikepacking this year. For that, I want to get a dedicated bike, but I like older bikes and also don’t want to spend a huge amount of money. So I looked around on classified ads and found the following two bikes:
About the Patria Falcon:
As far as I understand, Patria is the Lamborghini among trekking bikes. The bike in question is a Patria Falcon with 28-inch wheels. The seller is asking €500 (negotiable). A plus point is the threaded eyelets on the front fork. It is equipped with an Alfine 8-speed internal gear hub, where I’m not sure whether a regular derailleur drivetrain wouldn’t be better, and with Magura HS33 hydraulic brakes.
About the Giant Escape:
The Giant Escape is a 26-inch mountain bike from the 1990s (?). According to the seller, everything works perfectly; it looks very good in the pictures, and the seller is asking €69 (negotiable). It is equipped with Deore LX components.
Which bike should I get? According to ChatGPT, the threaded eyelets aren’t ultra-important yet and only really become important on very long tours with camping equipment. So I could initially neglect them. Both bikes should fit me in terms of dimensions, but I will of course test that on a test ride.
Please refrain from messages like: “Just buy a new XXX, it only costs €800.” I like old bikes, I enjoy tinkering with them a bit, and besides, a new, modern bike wouldn’t fit my style anyway.
I’m looking forward to your opinions and recommendations!
by Skillipp