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There are many types of bike: racing bike, mountain bike, cargo bike or touring bike, for example.
In the slipstream of diversity, there are two bike types that have been the most popular for years in terms of sales figures: the city bike and the trekking bike.
The city bike should be comfortable and safe for everyday use.
As a so-called low entry level, it enables quick ascent and descent, its hub gear is low-maintenance.
The trekking bike, on the other hand, extends the radius of action from the city towards the country, it should be more versatile, sportier and more suitable for touring.
Sometimes, however, the class boundaries are blurred - as with the Traveler 3.0 model from the aluminum wheel manufacturer Kettler.
How do you go out with such a trekking bike?
A driving report.
The purpose of the Kettler Traveler 3.0
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Actually, one should speak of purposes in the plural, because the Traveler 3.0 is designed as an all-rounder.
According to the manufacturer, it is suitable for trips, for example in hilly cities, as well as for tours.
It also appeals to commuters who live on the outskirts: “A bike for frequent travelers,” says company spokesman Ole Honkomp.
Contrary to what the name suggests, the Kettler Traveler 3.0 is not a touring bike, but as a trekking bike it is definitely suitable for tours outside the city limits
Source: dpa-tmn
Whether asphalt or gravel: the aluminum bike can get through comfortably.
However, the product name Traveler is misleading.
Because the bike is not a touring bike.
Luggage is limited, designated touring bikes typically have pockets for bags on the stem as well as a steel frame - neither of which is available.
The technology of the Kettler Traveler 3.0
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To expand the radius of a city bike, Kettler installed a derailleur.
City bikes are usually equipped with seven or eight-speed gear hubs.
However, with a triple derailleur with 30 gears, the Traveler not only offers a wider range of gear ratios, but also finer gradations.
This makes it easier to master climbs - be it in hilly cities like Stuttgart or on bike paths through German low mountain ranges.
The Shimano Deore gearshift was originally used on mountain bikes, says Honkomp, "that's where it comes from".
The power transmission runs via a 30-speed derailleur (Shimano Deore), which provides a wide range
Source: dpa-tmn
The load-bearing construction also shows that the aluminum wheel is designed for greater resilience.
The 3.0 differs from the cheaper version Traveler 2.0 by two tricks in the frame construction.
The down tube is manufactured by means of hydroforming, a process that is supposed to enable increased rigidity.
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The head tube guides the fork and is one of the most stressed areas on a bike - on the Traveler 3.0 it has been reinforced and enlarged to accommodate a “tapered” fork with a larger shaft circumference in the lower area.
This was also previously implemented with mountain bikes.
Driving impression of the Kettler Traveler 3.0
On a few hundred kilometers with the Traveler 3.0, no part came loose, there was also no flat tire despite some bottle splinters on the way, almost nothing broke.
Only the two-part chain guard lost a screw and came off - a trivial matter.
Otherwise, you already have the feeling of sitting on a robust bike on the first ride.
Thanks to the long wheelbase and the large 28-inch wheels, the handling is stable and quiet, the bike steps quietly, and the chain drive only makes subtle operating noises when operating the precise Deore gearshift.
Even on a rooty path, no component rattled on the bike, but the detour showed the model its terrain limits.
The suspension fork increases comfort even when driving over thresholds and flat curbs - this makes sense for a bicycle made of stiff aluminum, which has a less damping effect than steel.
The spring travel is 63 millimeters.
That's enough for commuter routes and ailing bike paths, it would be too little for a mountain bike.
The Suntour suspension fork provides 63 millimeters of travel and thus comfortable riding
Source: dpa-tmn
Compared to a pure city bike, you sit less upright, the upper body is slightly bent forward, the posture is sportier.
Thanks to the angle-adjustable stem, the handlebars can be adjusted in height and also close to the upper body.
But you are never out and about with your back straight, there was no Dutch bike feeling.
The test bike with full roadworthy equipment weighs in at more than 16 kilograms for an aluminum wheel specialist as a manufacturer, and comparable bikes are also two kilograms lighter.
Depending on the frame size and texture, the model even weighs up to 17.5 kilos.
The Traveler is built with frame heights of 45, 50 and 55 centimeters and, in addition to the low-entry model, also with a so-called diamond and trapezoidal frame.
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In everyday life, when there are often a number of additional kilos on board with packed bags and purchases anyway, this is literally less important: the permissible total weight for the bike with bag and pack and driver is 135 kilograms.
Equipment, accessories, peripherals
In the literal sense of the word, a load-bearing part is the robust luggage rack, designed for up to 25 kilos, which showed a little rust during the test.
Equipped with a strong clamping bracket, some loads can be safely carried on board without lashing straps;
Designed as an I-Rack system carrier, compatible bags, baskets and boxes can be attached without any problems.
Especially with popular bike bags you have a veritable trunk ready.
The two-piston disc brakes really come into their own when the load is packed.
It only takes a little force in the fingers to provide adequate deceleration, even when the permissible weight has been exhausted.
In everyday life it is at most annoying that the bicycle stand, which is screwed to the back, is difficult to reach with your foot when bags are attached.
Two-piston disc brakes from Shimano provide deceleration
Source: dpa-tmn
The entirely analog bike dispenses with connectivity, such as app-supported functions such as GPS location. Instead, unlike some networked smart bikes, it is safely equipped in accordance with the road traffic regulations: with lighting, the prescribed reflectors and everything that goes with it - including Fenders.
Only those who feel carefully will notice that the hub dynamo brakes the front wheel slightly.
But the advantages of lighting that is always ready for use predominate on everyday bikes, with which you don't aim for lap times, but sometimes commute home in the dark.
The price of the Kettler Traveler 3.0
The Traveler 3.0 costs 1049 euros, which is 250 euros more than the 2.0 model, where the manufacturer saves on equipment.
An I-Rack II shopping basket costs 30 euros extra.
Conclusion:
The well-made aluminum bike rides like a single piece.
Thanks to the derailleur system, suspension fork and system luggage rack, it also conquers terrain outside of the city with its distinctive trekking genes, which qualifies it as a light touring bike.
For longer tours, however, you would prefer to use a real touring bike.
And there are trade-offs for the unexpectedly high weight
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The hub dynamo generates the electricity for the front and rear lights.
You no longer have to worry about switching on the lights
Source: dpa-tmn