  We describe the realization of a magnetically guided beam of cold rubidium
atoms, with a flux of $7\times 10^9$ atoms/s, a temperature of 400 $\mu$K and a
mean velocity of 1 m/s. The rate of elastic collisions within the beam is
sufficient to ensure thermalization. We show that the evaporation induced by a
radio-frequency wave leads to appreciable cooling and increase in phase space
density. We discuss the perspectives to reach the quantum degenerate regime
using evaporative cooling.
