Thinking of getting a gravel bike - tips needed!
Discussion
I’ve been thinking about getting a gravel bike for a while. I currently have a Specialized hard tail that I’ve had for quite a while and fancy something different that will get me out exercising more on and off road.
I popped into a local cycle shop on Friday and saw a few Cube bikes I liked the look of but I’ve done some research this afternoon and found a huge number of negative reviews regarding quality and poor customer service. I am considering Boardman but am aware there is a shortage of bikes at the moment. Recommendations please for brand/models that are well regarded for handling, quality, availability of spares and aftersales.
Current budget is £1k-1.5k but happy to go to 2k if I get a real improvement.
I’m thinking alloy frame with potentially carbon forks (although I have concerns with carbon failing). Regarding comfort I know it’s all personal but some frame styles suit different body shapes and postures better than others so I’ll include that as it may affect brands / models being recommended/ I’m 6ft1” and pretty lean (I used to be pretty athletic but don’t do as much exercise as I used to and am keen to resolve that).
From what I’ve read regarding drivetrains I am thinking Shimano 105 or GRX but open to opinions. Am I right in thinking hydraulic disc brakes seem to be the route to go?
I popped into a local cycle shop on Friday and saw a few Cube bikes I liked the look of but I’ve done some research this afternoon and found a huge number of negative reviews regarding quality and poor customer service. I am considering Boardman but am aware there is a shortage of bikes at the moment. Recommendations please for brand/models that are well regarded for handling, quality, availability of spares and aftersales.
Current budget is £1k-1.5k but happy to go to 2k if I get a real improvement.
I’m thinking alloy frame with potentially carbon forks (although I have concerns with carbon failing). Regarding comfort I know it’s all personal but some frame styles suit different body shapes and postures better than others so I’ll include that as it may affect brands / models being recommended/ I’m 6ft1” and pretty lean (I used to be pretty athletic but don’t do as much exercise as I used to and am keen to resolve that).
From what I’ve read regarding drivetrains I am thinking Shimano 105 or GRX but open to opinions. Am I right in thinking hydraulic disc brakes seem to be the route to go?
Edited by W12GT on Sunday 25th June 15:25
I bought a ribble gravel sl last year through cycle to work scheme.
I also have a canyon ultimate bought 4 years ago.
The ribble is (was) a nice bike, I’ve sent it back as the frame cracked. Ribble customer service is terrible. Over promising and under delivering on a gigantic scale.
Also worth considering are cyclo cross bikes, notwithstanding my above comments the ribble cgr looks a good, versatile bike. I’ve bought a spare set of road wheels for mine.
Canyon do the grizl, grail and inflite. I think these would be good to look at.
I’m a bit like you OP, fallen off the wagon a bit fitness wise, people still consider me athletic but I think I’m clinging on a bit too much for my liking.
I found a good app called kamoot, which, coupled with a garmin gives me the opportunity to look out routes wherever I am. Some are a bit sketchy but I’m building my mileage and speed up reasonably.
I also have a canyon ultimate bought 4 years ago.
The ribble is (was) a nice bike, I’ve sent it back as the frame cracked. Ribble customer service is terrible. Over promising and under delivering on a gigantic scale.
Also worth considering are cyclo cross bikes, notwithstanding my above comments the ribble cgr looks a good, versatile bike. I’ve bought a spare set of road wheels for mine.
Canyon do the grizl, grail and inflite. I think these would be good to look at.
I’m a bit like you OP, fallen off the wagon a bit fitness wise, people still consider me athletic but I think I’m clinging on a bit too much for my liking.
I found a good app called kamoot, which, coupled with a garmin gives me the opportunity to look out routes wherever I am. Some are a bit sketchy but I’m building my mileage and speed up reasonably.
W12GT said:
although I have concerns with carbon failing
I wouldn’t worry about that. Anything has potential to fail, carbon is well established as a material for bikes…. I’ve ridden a carbon framed bike for nearly 20years, just had it repaired as cracks became apparent in the head tube but otherwise fine. I’m sure a metal frame would have had potential to be problematic over that time period too…Bought one last year, a Kona Rove which is steel framed after 12 years of solely road riding. Loving riding some of the river, canal and bridleways we have around here on it without having to worry about cars! Still road riding, but getting off the tarmac from time to time has been brilliant!
All reasonable options suggested so far
Adding in another option, that I chose, the Vitus Substance VR-2 - well priced, grx, hydraulic brakes, carbon forks, good wheelset. Only downside is that the flat bar top profile leaves little room for accessories - a small round section near the stem. Fully occupied on mine by a quad lock mount, a knog oi bell and a 'be seen' light.
https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/p/vitus-substa...
Adding in another option, that I chose, the Vitus Substance VR-2 - well priced, grx, hydraulic brakes, carbon forks, good wheelset. Only downside is that the flat bar top profile leaves little room for accessories - a small round section near the stem. Fully occupied on mine by a quad lock mount, a knog oi bell and a 'be seen' light.
https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/p/vitus-substa...
We bought Giant Revolt 0’s in covid - Aluminium with carbon forks and the GRX groupset. They’re fantastic bikes and hugely versatile - I now think hydraulic discs are a must and made me realise how bad the brakes on my road bike are. Come ready set up with tubeless tyres too.
They were about 1.6k from memory but I expect they’re north of that now.
They were about 1.6k from memory but I expect they’re north of that now.
Couple of pointers, from experience, wrapped in the caveat that my bike is heavily compromised by the wide range of riding for which it’s used…
Norco Search, carbon frame - excellent vfm - has taken a bashing over 7 years and about 20,000km - rooty, rocky singletrack to smooth tarmac often in the same ride. Carbon frame is fine and has proven durable. You’ll be OK on fire roads and towpaths.
Hydraulic brakes are a must - consistency of modulation, esp in the wet.
Mine is equiped with 105 group set and that has been absolutely reliable for my use. GRX might be better suited to off-road but I’ve had no probs with 105.
Also, mine is a 2x11 set up which I like for the wide range of gears available without the big gaps. It gets used off road and also for keeping up with roadies.
Tyres are 38c - not the plushest but at around 50psi they give a good range of ability.
In other words, bikes are v capable with decent kit, don’t worry about being too precise unless precise use is what you have in mind.
Norco Search, carbon frame - excellent vfm - has taken a bashing over 7 years and about 20,000km - rooty, rocky singletrack to smooth tarmac often in the same ride. Carbon frame is fine and has proven durable. You’ll be OK on fire roads and towpaths.
Hydraulic brakes are a must - consistency of modulation, esp in the wet.
Mine is equiped with 105 group set and that has been absolutely reliable for my use. GRX might be better suited to off-road but I’ve had no probs with 105.
Also, mine is a 2x11 set up which I like for the wide range of gears available without the big gaps. It gets used off road and also for keeping up with roadies.
Tyres are 38c - not the plushest but at around 50psi they give a good range of ability.
In other words, bikes are v capable with decent kit, don’t worry about being too precise unless precise use is what you have in mind.
Alternative take.
With the rush to hydraulic disc brakes, the prices of really nice rim-brakes bikes S/H have plummeted.
You could get an excellent used cyclocross bike for £400-£500 that’ll do the job, if you’re patient and spread a wide net in your search.
Add a matching wheelset with 622/28 road tyres and you have in effect two bikes in one.
With the rush to hydraulic disc brakes, the prices of really nice rim-brakes bikes S/H have plummeted.
You could get an excellent used cyclocross bike for £400-£500 that’ll do the job, if you’re patient and spread a wide net in your search.
Add a matching wheelset with 622/28 road tyres and you have in effect two bikes in one.
A little research on Canyon has revealed quite a few disgruntled customers with sub-standard bikes. From what I can see in the UK, all bikes have to be ordered directly from Canyon and there’s no middlemen? Apparently Canyon are impossible to get hold of on the phone. Is this just the usual thing of disappointed customers shouting the loudest?
Between myself and the wife we've got 2 canyon road bikes and 2 canyon mountain bikes, all now nearly 10 years old all have been faultless. However on the gravel bike front I went for a Sonder Camino (it was a CX bike back then till marketing decided there was yet another bike type they could sell you) I bought a titanium frame and built it all myself. Before buying I did test ride an alloy version, just as much fun but a little heavier. Lots of choice in your budget.
https://alpkit.com/collections/sonder-camino
https://alpkit.com/collections/sonder-camino
Cyclocross bikes and gravel bikes are very different beasts whilst appearing superficially the same.
A cyclocross bike has steep angles and short wheelbase for faster steering, clearance only for up to 35mm tyres as the UCI limit is 33mm, and a higher (generally flat) top tube to make shouldering the bike easier. They’ll have one bottle mount and no mudguard mounts. They’re unsurprisingly great for fast racing on a tight cyclocross circuit, but not so good for a long day out in the saddle over mixed terrain.
A gravel bike will be the opposite. More relaxed geometry for comfort and stability, loads of mounting points, huge tyre clearance for big comfortable tyres and mudguards.
Just because they’ve both got knobby tyres and drop bars doesn’t make them the same.
In terms of what to buy…. Avoid aluminium, it can be harsh and buzzy off road. Carbon is in your budget and will be more comfortable. Steel can be surprisingly nice, and titanium is lovely but will be way out of your budget. Everything comes with discs but hydraulic are a must. Anything with 105, or equivalent GRX, SRAM offering or above will be fantastic.
A cyclocross bike has steep angles and short wheelbase for faster steering, clearance only for up to 35mm tyres as the UCI limit is 33mm, and a higher (generally flat) top tube to make shouldering the bike easier. They’ll have one bottle mount and no mudguard mounts. They’re unsurprisingly great for fast racing on a tight cyclocross circuit, but not so good for a long day out in the saddle over mixed terrain.
A gravel bike will be the opposite. More relaxed geometry for comfort and stability, loads of mounting points, huge tyre clearance for big comfortable tyres and mudguards.
Just because they’ve both got knobby tyres and drop bars doesn’t make them the same.
In terms of what to buy…. Avoid aluminium, it can be harsh and buzzy off road. Carbon is in your budget and will be more comfortable. Steel can be surprisingly nice, and titanium is lovely but will be way out of your budget. Everything comes with discs but hydraulic are a must. Anything with 105, or equivalent GRX, SRAM offering or above will be fantastic.
Edited by CheesecakeRunner on Monday 26th June 07:48
Don’t ignore aluminium frames, they are not ‘buzzy’ off road. An aluminium gravel bike with 40mm tyres will be anything but ‘buzzy’. Even aluminium road bikes ride well, my CAAD10 and CAAD12 bikes were very comfortable, couldn’t fault them
Back to gravel, have a look at Cannondale Topstone 1, it’s in your budget, well spec’d and is a great bike.
Back to gravel, have a look at Cannondale Topstone 1, it’s in your budget, well spec’d and is a great bike.
Evanivitch said:
Quite a few people use their gravel bike to double as a road bike too. Which means you could consider buying a second set of wheels which you can put road tyres on. Otherwise you find yourself compromising with light-gravel tyrel tyres like G-One Speed.
Depends how seriously you take it, my gravel bike isn't exactly slow on the road on its standard tyres. It's a lot of faffing about for a few mph if all you're doing it for is to stay fit. Appreciate if you're really into the road biking then it may make sense. What I love about my gravel bike is I can ride it very comfortably at speed on the road to my local park then next minute I'm buzzing through off the beaten track in-between trees and all sorts on stuff you could never do on a road bike. It means I can leave my house without too much of a plan of where I am going and not feel like I need to bring stuff with or in the case of the MTB actually driving it somewhere to use it properly.
I often completely overlook my mountain bike now as a result, and will only use it if I plan to go on any aggressive terrain because it's not very nice to ride on the road.
But I will caveat all the above by saying that for me I got back into bikes to try and stay fit (ish) and keep some weight off, and ultimately have a bit of fun while doing it. So nothing remotely serious.
Edited by Yazza54 on Monday 26th June 08:50
Yazza54 said:
Depends how seriously you take it, my gravel bike isn't exactly slow on the road on its standard tyres. It's a lot of faffing about for a few mph if all you're doing it for is to stay fit.
It's not a lot of faff to swap wheels. I've ridden G-One Speeds for a while, and they're great on road and decent on dry forestry gravel roads. They're not so great one things start to get muddier or if you're riding with roadies.Years ago my wife and I did the London to Brighton on MTBs, we did all our on road training on off road tyres because the resistance actually helped (think of it in the same way as weights are used to handicap a horse). For the last session I changed over our tyres for road. We blitzed it and even got up Devils Dyke. IIRC we did the whole run in 4hr15mins and that was with a 30min break whilst chatting with others in our group.
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