So I’ve been kicking around the idea of building a touring bike for sometime now, i was pretty much all sold on the surly long haul trucker until i saw the cinelli hobo when i was down in santa barbra at crankys bikes on state street, they are the only cinelli retailer between LA and SF, and living in san luis obispo half way between the 2 taking a day trip to check out this bike was well worth it.
Cinelli came out guns a balzin’ on this one, you really get a lot of bike for the buck! The hobo come stock with tubes front and rear cargo racks as well as front and rear fender and wellgo platform/spd pedalsWhich means that this thing is ready to go out of the box! Just slap on which ever panniers (chrome industries make some cool ones) and some lights and your ready to hit the road and at a price of around $1549 its basically a steal!!
For that price you not only get the legendary cinelli name you also get a Columbus steel frame, the surly LHT uses 4130 chromoly which is a great material but nothing beats Columbus steel tubes in my opinion.
Cinelli really hit the nail on the head with this bike, they paid great attention to details with the spoke chainstay protector to the moleskin hobo journal with embossed logo and hobo symbols on it. With a mix of shimano deore and tiagra parts this is a stout build. weighing in at just under 30lbs its a bit of a beast but if your concerned that much about weight touring is not really for you.
There isn’t much i would do to this bike if i was setting it up for a touring excursion with the exception of adding a brooks B17 or cambium saddle to grind out those miles on. cinelli in my opinion really out did their selves one this one, i have been on a mission for a while to own a cinelli frame and touring bike for some time and this meets both requirements, this will be my next bike purchase for sure, i was hoping to build a bike from the frame up but why mess with perfection this bike is awesome! good news for 2015 the hobo remains unchanged, so go out and pick one up today!!! click the link to check out the new hobo (cinellibikes)
fatbeardedandtattooedcyclist's Blog 
Love Cinelli and seems to be good real good value in this case. You can always upgrade parts as needed… if needed? Touring is great and the feeling of not needing to crush it is sooo welcomed…slow down enjoy the view : ) I love my Surly LHT Deluxe but there are so many good choices out there for touring http://www.rivbike.com/. Waterford bikes makes their bikes. Also there is Gunner also made by Waterford and there is Soma http://www.somafab.com/. Welcome to touring … Tons of choices for panniers too. Nitto makes great racks but others are nice too. Cheers : )
Indeed I was pretty much sold on the trucker till I saw the hobo, ortlieb makes super nice panniers too more suited for long touring chrome ones are for more suited for commuting, hope to do a long trip next summer
IF I needed a touring bike, I’d either start with a frame or a bikes direct fantom cross and build up from there. I would be looking at disc brake tabs (I’ve grown to love disc brakes) and a fork for low rider mounts. A shimergo shifter/drivetrain would be a must. For about the same price ~$1500, I could have what I want with high quality parts that I know are reliable. I also get that many people don’t go to the painstaking steps I do to drive the reliability I desire, in which case a trucker or hobo off the rack at an LBS is a fine choice. For sub $500, the fantom cross is a good choice to get rolling right away and upgrade as money allows.
I find the ortlieb panniers to be the “bees knees.” I love not having soaked clothes when I get to work!
I have a Novara Randonee which is a really nice touring bike but I really like everything about this Cinelli. Go for this one and get yourself on tour.
That’s the plan, it’s pretty much everything I’m looking for straight out of the box, just add a brooks saddle, lights and panniers and I’m good to go
Will they ever build it with Disc Brakes???
maybe down the line its only in its second year last year was its rookie year, but still for $1500 you get a lot of bike for the buck
Awesome ride buddy! Very cool…wishing you many happy miles!
How’s the bike doing? I hope you’re having happy holidays on your bikes!
Wow. That’s a lo of bike for the price, really awesome. Only thing missing IMO is disc brakes.