THE BIKE SON TEST ...

FOR ME MONYASH 2 £899.99

Forme’s Monyash 2 promises a balance of comfort and performance from its aluminium frame, carbon fork and 28mm tyres – with room for 35mm tyres. Its all-round and commuting credentials are boosted by three sets of bottle bosses and rear rack mounts. It has internal cable routing, cable disc brakes and an eight-speed Claris groupset, and its handmade wheels are paired with Schwalbe tyres.

SPA CYCLES WAYFARER £1400

This is a full-on tourer with a handmade Reynolds 725 chromoly steel frame, a triple chainset – rarely seen outside the touring firmament – full-length mudguards and front and rear Tubus racks for trips away. Shimano Sora is at the heart of the gearing and TRP’s familiar Spyre C cable disc brakes do the stopping. Handbuilt wheels and wide Panaracer GravelKing tyres can handle unsurfaced roads.

CANNON DALE CA AD OPT I MO 1£1200

Cannondale has been making its CAAD – Cannondale Advanced Aluminium Design – bikes since the early nineties. This model comes with a slightly sloping top tube, dropped seatstays and an 11-speed Shimano 105 groupset with an 11-30 cassette. But traditionalists can take heart from the calliper rim brakes, cabling that isn’t all internally routed and tyres that are a fairly modest 25mm width.

OXFORD BIKE WORKS MODEL 1E £1440

This simple, commutercum-light tourer has an elegant, handbuilt steel frame with super-smooth brazing, a powder-coated finish and internal rust proofing. Gearing comes courtesy of 1x 10-speed Shimano Deore with a bar-end shifter while braking is via Shimano V-brakes. This promises comfy commuting over poor roads with some added touring chops.