falcon explorer

I brought a falcon explorer last year,and i am thinking of going touring around Europe on it,camping gear ect,the bike seems ok 18 gears,light,well made ect,i am just worried about the wheels being not able to manage under the weight of the pannier bags as they are thinner than mountain bike wheels and are made of alloy,has anybody else used thinner wheels under weight,any pros or cons most welcome,thanks

I've toured and raced on the same bike for over 25 years and never had a big problem. 700C rims and tires no bigger than 28C. Broken spokes here and there but that's from extended wear and tear. If it's a quality rim and the wheel was built by a professional, it'll handle anything reasonable on paved or well maintained tracks which is mostly what people will use in Europe. The pros of course are that it's a lot more efficient than a mountain bike. The wider the tires, the more friction you get. One could argue that the tire being wider, you have more chances of catching nails or glass on the road... The pros of wider tires is added stability, more comfortable ride and you could ride on more rugged terrain.

You have to look at your itinerary and decide what's good for you. I like to ride fast and hard at least part of the day and I mostly stay on pavement so what I have works for me. I am not happy riding touring and mountain bikes as they feel very sluggish and uncomfortable to me.

Falcons don't have a particularly good reputation for quality - I doubt if the wheels are built to withstand a long camping tour in Europe. Quality of build is more important than the type of wheel - most likely they are cheap factory made wheels. Virtually all bike wheels now are 'alloy', this doesn't have anything to do with strength.

Bring the bike to a reputable wheelbuilder (if you are in the UK, go to the forum at www.cyclingplus.co.uk where you will easily get advice on good wheelbuilders in your locality) and get him to check them out/rebuild as necessary. Its quite likely he's say you should get new wheels if you want a trouble free tour and you aren't willing to tour ultra-light.