Dawes seem to be making an effort

[Crepello]

Awe, they mess around the formula so much from year to year , just like so meny other companies (at least brands like Thorn stay the same for a good few years). It's as if they never find the right combination. Then sometimes they do, only to change it again the next year - duh!

They've put uni-crown forks on all the Galaxy's - yuck. I always think cast crown forks look at lot classier. And there's a reinforcement gusset at the down/head tube. Should that really be needed on a well built steel frame? Ugly or what.

[Bledlow]

I always thought there was something classy about the old Galaxies - BRG, skinny yet sturdy 531ST (or whatever it was) tubes

Certainly was 531ST in the mid-1990s, when my then girlfriend bought one new for about £500. Below list price because last years model - & the cheapskate shop had swapped the tyres for cheaper ones! Michelin World Tours, which had such a soft compound they lasted about 3 miles. Bloody good grip while they lasted, mind.

[clarion]

Butterfly's 1990s Galaxy is lovely, as is TGL's 1980s model, and my 1970s one.  Back in the 80s, I used to try to make my tourer 'better than a Galaxy' as a standard, which was quite hard to achieve.

More recent ones I can take or leave.  Unicrown forks are just ugly, I agree, Crepello.

[Cudzoziemiec]

They've put uni-crown forks on all the Galaxy's - yuck. I always think cast crown forks look at lot classier.

I agree totally. I've never had a bike with a unicrown fork, they really do look ugly IMO.

[Crepello]

When Unicrowns are made by Roberts and the like and the joins are filed neatly, they are acceptable on a MTB or exp bike, but oh, those welds 

The original Ultra Gal is probably the best looking of the new style frames. The rear dropouts were cast and lugged; recent ones look like the stays are just nipped over the dropout. Not nice IMO.

[Crepello]

When I had dealings with Dawes a year ago over a warranty Galaxy frame replacement, they were interested in what I thought about there bikes, which is nice to be asked. I said that they really should hone their fixed wheel bike (The Mono?). I suggested that they should accentuate the retro feel, by using a nice clean lugged frame, with an appropriate paint job. Looks like their paint jobs are strongly retro this year. Just a shame they couldn't source  lugged frames for these models.