The 3mm aluminium feels super beefy! Can’t tell for sure, but I am fairly certain you would get away with just bending. It’s not like you can put tons of load there anyway

Thanks :)

Interesting thought, but I never considered it. It’s not for me but I am sure it would have some benefit to someone. This would make for some unique cages for sure - have not seen anything like that out there yet.

I was wondering: is there something like cross posting? Would’be liked to post it in a bikepacking community as well, but the only way I found was recreate the same post. Or make a post with just a link I guess

Like stated above: I have no idea what I’m doing, so take this with a grain of salt.

Regarding welding, I am lucky enough to have someone close by that does it for a day job. Therefor I have the chance to get some educated input, as well as access to professional equipment. This is how I ‘learned’ MIG welding. I am sure there are courses around (at least where I live, but you would have to google that yourself), but I just went ahead with a project in mind and it worked out. In contrast to wood, you get plenty of chances to ‘make it right’. The saying “filler and paint make me the welder I ain’t” has some truth to it. Just prepare for lots of grinding and sanding and you should be alright.

With all that said: I don’t like welding very much. It smells and I would always make sure to have proper ventilation. Also make sure you are well covered to avoid burns from weld spatter.

Thank you very much!

Oh wow, that looks very promising! Will deploy it on my server and have a good look!

It’s a Naturehike Cloud Up 2. Yeah I did some research about tents, and there is quite some money to spend. When I discovered this tent I just went with it and did not regret it! There is a channel on YouTube that does some nice tent reviews - you should be able to find it when looking for naturehike tents.

Thanks for the tips! Pour over could be just the right thing for me.

Sandals with sock… glad so see I’m not the only German here 😂

All the best for your next trip!

Great write-up, thanks. Northern Germany in the dregs of winter. You are braver than I am.

Had some leftover vacation to get rid of. Would have preferred a bit later as well 😀

Dries quick after washing? And solid? I’ve got this idea that wool is less resistant to abuse than synthetics but maybe it’s wrong. Would love to ditch plastic socks.

Regarding the merino socks: I did not wash them on the trip. The socks are a blend, so not 100% merino. More like 40% I think. That’s meant to make them more durable (as far as I unterstand). Got mine at decathlon - no dedicated biking socks or anything, just some random merino hiking socks. The merino shirt I have is also a blend and it holds up very well.

But inaudible because of wind when going much over 15 kmh, I imagine?

Also with large vehicles coming by, yes. Didn’t want to wear earbuds though.

As in high or low? 🙈 I know what other people bring kind of, but don’t have a feeling for the weight