Reply With QuoteWhat bikes do you have already, and how much do you ride them (and on what kind of terrains) ?
So I'm looking to try a gravel bike instead of mountain bikes, something to do the local gravel tracks around me and something that can be half decent on the road unlike a mountain bike?
Any tips or pointers on what to look out for in a bike, have seen a decent Merida Silex 200 near me and thinking about trying it out.
What bikes do you have already, and how much do you ride them (and on what kind of terrains) ?
I’ve got a Ribble Gravel Al. It’s fine on the road and pretty good off it but it’s no mountain bike. I use it all year round, on 37mm off road tyres in winter and something narrower in summer. What else do you want to know?
I'm on my third gravel bike, have had a Pinnacle Arkose (brilliant), Cannondale Topstone (OK) and now an Orro Terra C (too early to judge).
I use it as a general purpose bike, bit of light off road, bit of gravel/towpath, bit of touring. I think they can be a great do-it-all bike but as above its not a specialist mountain bike or a fast road bike.
I first started riding the tracks and trails on a cyclocross bike before gravel bikes came along. I now use my gravel bike more than my mountain bike. It’s a great way of riding from my front door onto the local tracks and trails, and opens up longer rides on the hills linking up tracks between the lanes.
As for tips- the biggest game changer for me was going tubeless. I used to expect a puncture virtually every ride, from a thorn or getting pinched on a rock, i barely get one a year now. And it means you can ride at lower pressures for improved grip and comfort.
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Last edited by Bobbyf; 6th February 2024 at 14:48.
Huge choice these days, have a think if you're edging towards more road and gentle tracks or more serious gravel for the majority of your riding, racing or touring etc
This will then impact what spec you need eg. Tyre clearance, 2 by or 1 by, loading capacity etc.
By own bias is for a steel or aluminium frame. I (no doubt irrationally) worry about CF standing up to off road abuse.
.....that said there is a very nice one on SC at the minute, could do a lot worse than that if it fits!
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Thanks, I'm not going out on the mountain bike as much as its a chore, packing the bike into the car, then driving to the nearest place (50 mins away) where I can get amongst the country and hills and also paying for parking and finally its not the best bike for popping the local post office a few miles away if I need to go on the roads.Originally Posted by Bobbyf
I'm thinking a gravel bike as I do have some great trails and gravel runs about 15 mins away and I could just ride there and also I'd have a bike thats more suited to the roads if I did decide to pop the post office etc etc.
If it’s a hard tail (or short travel) mountain bike, have you considered just slapping on some faster tyres ?
I guess it depends on the type of riding you plan to do. I’m
Lucky as I live in the foothills of the Pennines with great mountain bike trials from my front door.
I have a gravel bike but rarely use it. It’s effectively the worst of all worlds for me. Off-road it’s like going back 30 years to fully rigid, wrist breaking, PITA. Definitely type 2 fun! On road, it’s slow and cumbersome but comfy.
On the plus side, if you have good gravel tracks near you, they are actually very good on them. Mine gets used most for trips to the cafe, along the canal tow path.
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I'm probably mostly a road rider at heart but do have a hard tail MTB also. I built myself a gravel bike from parts during the first lockdown when whole bikes where hard to obtain. I simply love it! It has become my most used bike. The ability to change out wheel sets it's great as I have two sets but to be honest I usually just stick with the fat tyres most of the time. I feel like a kid again whizzing along in a roadbike like position on a light enough bike (no suspension and all that) but with wheels/tyres that absorb most that roads/trails throw at me. I'm a convert.
The bike I built was pretty much this from Alpkit, very reasonable and now available to buy complete.....
https://alpkit.com/products/sonder-c...31072399032425
I’ve a Specialized Diverge and have been using it all winter as my training bike. It’s decent on the road and nearly as quick as my road bike, about 5% down on pace overall with a very endurance focused setup.
It’s also decent on trails, but not when overly wet or boggy so I tend to stick to Spring-Autumn for trail riding on it. I’ve also ridden a number of tow paths, bridal-ways etc and it’s very capable - good brakes, nibble and responsive.
As a do everything, if you aren’t into MTBing, I think they’re a great option. At under £1000, the Diverge is a fun, quick, dependable bike and I’m enjoying it a lot.
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I have a diverge too and although I don’t use it much it is good on the road vs a hard rock, quite a decent do it all.
My only regret was getting the carbon frame as I’m always scared of it cracking due to my top TZer weight.
These guys organise some good events which may well extend your knowledge and skills in you local area
https://gloriousgravel.com/2
We managed to come across two of their events, N. wales and Ribble valley in 2022. The tracks they use are nice graded paths with some small technical sections. If you are used to mtb’s then you would smash it.
So are these type of bikes best to have a metal frame and carbon fork or carbon frame.
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Last edited by Martylaa; 6th February 2024 at 21:01.
Mine is a metal (Ti) frame and carbon fork. When I built it up I thought it would get more use on genuinely off-road/MTB lite trails. Having broken a carbon MTB frame only a few months earlier, I decided I didn’t trust it anymore! Had I have known then how little I’d go off-road properly, I might well have been more confident to go with carbon.
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It's not simply metal or CF. Steel (is real), Aluminium (cheaper) or Titanium ($$$).
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Its all about your budget , in decending order of ££ is
Bespoke Carbon
Titanium
Carbon
Steel
Aluminium
High Street Aluminium
Titanium is not as light as people expect, it does however have a springy ride if coupled with a carbon fork and seatpost.
I was never comfortable with the rattling sounds of stones and rocks hitting the downtube and fork stays on a composite frame so I steered clear of carbon on mtb and gravel.
As Ncc says above , however if your local area is graded trails and hard pack then a Carbon bike will fly along the trails and also be a fairly good road / winter bike.
If you are looking to invest , look at the whole package , a great frame and group-set specced with budget wheels will always be a compromise. In order, buy the best frame wheels you can afford. Group-sets are all fairly similar as last years halo model is this years mid price. Also group-sets can be upgraded easier than a frame.
The mid range bike market is having a tough time at present , savings of 40-50% are possible. The high end stuff eg £7k upwards is holding and the sub £1k is stable, but in between there are bargains to be had.
Thanks, ideally looking to spend up to £1400, I see the Boardman Adv 8.9 getting amazing reviewed, also seen a Ribble Gravel AL and a Orbea Terra H30 and they get good reviews as well.
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I solely use my gravel bike now. Live in rural Berkshire where the roads are terrible and travel into Oxfordshire (even worse) and Wilts with some off road trails.
mine is a Canyon on tubeless (43mm, a bit too big for the summer rides but comfy as f) and is fine on trails, but not up to the extreme MTB terrains. We also go occasionally to New Forest and combine road and off road and this thing is ideal.
some reasonable deals popping up from Orro and similar at the moment after years of bike shortages and top prices
As I mentioned in post 2, I have the Ribble Al which I rate highly. Unless you catch them at sale time or are looking second hand, you might need a couple of hundred more to get one of those new and by the time you add carbon seat post and a few other nice to haves like an upgraded groupset you are probably nearer £1,800. I do note that they have a steel framed model with the nicer 1x12 Shimano setup in their outlet section right now at £1,600, and the titanium equivalent at £2,400, both are quite decent savings over the normal price. A lot of my pals ride steel gravel bikes as though fractionally heavier the material is stronger and more forgiving of rough surfaces so I would consider it seriously.
Last edited by Padders; 7th February 2024 at 12:04.
At that budget I'd be looking second hand - eBay, PinkBike, etc. lots of bargains about. I got a "used" Orro Terra C for £1k and it can only have been used about once. From the Wiggle eBay outlet, it was marked as "front derailleur rubbing" ... it needed half a turn on the limit screw.
Classic! No wonder they are down the swanny
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I’m going too mate, missed a nice one last night on eBay as I was still researching it and just put a low bid in, if I’d have seen it earlier and realised exactly what it was I would of went significantly higher and likely won it.
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Pal of mine bought a Specialized Allez off Ebay, less than half price. Bike came with a cycle computer. It had done 35 miles !
Bargains to be had, folk buy on ride to work scheme , then don’t, then sell cheap and use the money as an interest free loan.
How do you find the comfort on the Ribble then? Talking to someone and I might be able to get a deal on his new unused Ribble AL Enthusiast saving loads of the RRP, only thing is the Ribble website shows the exact bike but for my size (6ft 1”) it states I should be getting an XL yet the Ribble AL Soort says I should get a L?
Torn between the Ribble or the Obrea Terra which also has a massive discount on RRP.
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Answered directly.
Well, I went and bought myself a new Gravel Bike. Purchased off a lad from Leeds who happened to win this bike from Ribble and decided to sell it.
A Ribble Gravel AL Enthusiast Limited Edition one? I’ve managed to save a heap of money on buying a new one, comes with amazing spec, more than enough for me. Collected this morning and quickly built up, hopefully I can get out on it on Monday depending on a few things.
Looking forward to getting some miles on this on the local tracks and paths nearby in the sticks.
Will order some proper pedals and bottle cages and away we go.
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That looks cracking. Plenty of good cycling in our area. Just need for the weather to fair up now.
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Agreed, just got back from walking the dog and the rain is now running off the fields, I've never seen as much standing walking in years.
Looking forward to trying it out next week...
Nice work. Looks good with what looks like Shimano GRX stuff so a cut above the basic version. A similar in fact better spec than mine. You need to strip off that demoralising sticker though in case passers by think you are sponsored by them!
Yes it’s got GRX 600 spec on it, agreed about the branding, think they did 20 bikes in this colour sponsored by them for a competition, the lad I bought it off won one then decided to sell. If it’s a sticker it’s coming off.
Looks great. Nice one. Happy cycling.
Bars look nice and wide, which is a good sign if your going off road
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Last edited by xxnick1975; 12th February 2024 at 00:18.
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