Gravel bikes - what do you have and where did you buy it?

[Underachiever]

1 hour ago, Help.Me. said:

I think I have read this whole thread about three times , there are some beautiful bikes on parade here and I was also thinking of going the Gravel Grinder route, I do 95% of my cycling on the normal district roads on my Giant FS 29 er. Last Saturday  doing my normal route and chatting with my friend the conversation lead to this topic again. Then whilst chatting we hit a corrugated patch which nearly threw me of my bike......The thought of getting a Gravel Bike took a sudden and huge nose dive again !! Now back to my choices. I do have an old Road bike which I am to scared to use because I think the wheels will just disintegrate underneath  me , due to metal fatigue or just old age( the wheels not me) I do the occasional road race but less so because of my old Road Bike, I am playing with the idea of getting a Gravel Grinder which can do duty as my road bike when the need is there and also do some Gravel Grinding on weekends. Now for some advice , by the way I was looking at the Rook Bikes and the 11 speed is due end off April and it fits into my "budget" I am on the heavy side 95 - 100 kg and wants to enjoy my cycling, if I feel my body aching after my weekend cycles on my Mountain Bike how much worse will it be on a bike with no suspension at all , am I just wasting my time about dreaming of a Gravel Grinder? Please talk to me clever people!!

A Giant Revolt might be a good option...

[lechatnoir]

5 hours ago, splat said:

Smooth ground (deluxe) welds with Midnight Pearl powder coat

Internal routing for the rear brake with external mounts for the gear cables
Flat mount disc (I need an adapter to run a 160 rotor)
3 x bottle mounting points with a top tube mount
Front mech tab
and a spare hanger

 

of all the posts on BikeHub, I regret looking at this one the most!!!

Sweet glory, the envy is massive looking at this beautiful thing. Just wonderful. I feel like throwing my carbon monster in the fire!

Edited March 17, 2022 by lechatnoir

[Beesrib]

24 minutes ago, capediver said:

New Bike Day.....

Pardus Uragano full carbon with GRX 2 x 11 running 45c tyres for much appreciated comfort!!! Bars to be changed soon...

 

Stunning

[Help.Me.]

8 minutes ago, Underachiever said:

A Giant Revolt might be a good option...

They are a bit out of my budget....nice looking bike though.....

[Sepia]

6 hours ago, mecheng89 said:

Morning gravel grinders.

Has anyone ever fitted MTB wheels to their gravel steeds? I currently have the stock Shimano RS wheels with some 42mm WTB slapped on, but when I feel like busting the mould and attending a "MTB" event, I want to fit some beefier wheels (read wider tyres) to take some of the brunt.

What do you guys recommend? I understand that I'll probably lose speed with the wider tyres, but on balance, it may be faster. 

I only use MTB wheels on my bike.  I am currently on a set of RS wheels with 38 tyres for the gravel.

 

[Wayne pudding Mol]

14 minutes ago, Sepia said:

I only use MTB wheels on my bike.  I am currently on a set of RS wheels with 38 tyres for the gravel.

 

Skinny road tyres !!

[NotSoBigBen]

6 hours ago, splat said:

As boasted on the other thread, I collected this beauty from David yesterday.

Now to try and get it built up by the weekend...

Bloody hell, that is stunning!

[El Duderino]

6 hours ago, Help.Me. said:

I think I have read this whole thread about three times , there are some beautiful bikes on parade here and I was also thinking of going the Gravel Grinder route, I do 95% of my cycling on the normal district roads on my Giant FS 29 er. Last Saturday  doing my normal route and chatting with my friend the conversation lead to this topic again. Then whilst chatting we hit a corrugated patch which nearly threw me of my bike......The thought of getting a Gravel Bike took a sudden and huge nose dive again !! Now back to my choices. I do have an old Road bike which I am to scared to use because I think the wheels will just disintegrate underneath  me , due to metal fatigue or just old age( the wheels not me) I do the occasional road race but less so because of my old Road Bike, I am playing with the idea of getting a Gravel Grinder which can do duty as my road bike when the need is there and also do some Gravel Grinding on weekends. Now for some advice , by the way I was looking at the Rook Bikes and the 11 speed is due end off April and it fits into my "budget" I am on the heavy side 95 - 100 kg and wants to enjoy my cycling, if I feel my body aching after my weekend cycles on my Mountain Bike how much worse will it be on a bike with no suspension at all , am I just wasting my time about dreaming of a Gravel Grinder? Please talk to me clever people!!

Giant Revolt is an excellent option.

Edited March 17, 2022 by El Duderino
Did not actually insert my comment.

[Sepia]

18 minutes ago, Wayne pudding Mol said:

Skinny road tyres !!

Yip, spare Rapide wheelset with 28 road tyres in my garage👍 

[splat]

2 hours ago, Wayne pudding Mol said:

What saddle is that ? Love it

It's a Charge Spoon, but will most likely be replaced by a Brooks C15 carved.

4 hours ago, JulienR said:

Wow...frame looks very, very pretty. Love the paint and the Mercer logo/writing

Only thing i would change is the bar tape - the Deda tape looks great but does not feel very good and does not have much padding 

I will double wrap the tops.
But I am worried that the Deda tape will be too short on the 46cm wide flare bars + double wrap.

[openmind]

7 hours ago, splat said:

Smooth ground (deluxe) welds with Midnight Pearl powder coat

Internal routing for the rear brake with external mounts for the gear cables
Flat mount disc (I need an adapter to run a 160 rotor)
3 x bottle mounting points with a top tube mount
Front mech tab
and a spare hanger

 

Absolutely stunning, congrats and enjoy the build!

Would you please post the geometry numbers on this frame, and explain a bit how you decided on them? This post has got me a lot closer to giving Dave Mercer a call for my next build!!

Edited March 17, 2022 by openmind
Clarity.

[Comrade J]

I started off with a Momsem GP500, then the upgrades started (I have taken of just over a 1kg off the original specs)

#1 ICAN  40 mm Carbon Rims with DT Swiss Ceramic Hubs

# 2 SRAM RED Carbon Cranks

# 3 FARR Carbon Bars

# 4 Powerstages Crank

# 5 Pannaracers

# 6 ProLogo saddle

# 7 44 T Chainring

# 8 Shimano Centre Lock Rotors

Comming upgrades

# 1 Helix  R11 speed cassette

# 2 46 T Chainring

# New Carbon Frame 

[Wayne pudding Mol]

45 minutes ago, splat said:

It's a Charge Spoon, but will most likely be replaced by a Brooks C15 carved.

I will double wrap the tops.
But I am worried that the Deda tape will be too short on the 46cm wide flare bars + double wrap.

Let me know when you replace, I’ll buy that just because it looks cool - I have the brooks cambium and love it 

[splat]

22 minutes ago, openmind said:

Absolutely stunning, congrats and enjoy the build!

Would you please post the geometry numbers on this frame, and explain a bit how you decided on them? This post has got me a lot closer to giving Dave Mercer a call for my next build!!

David has a 'Signature Series' frame with his geometry set in various sizes and then his full custom bike with your geometry. Mine is the former in a small, which I haven't test ridden, so I am very interested to see how it works for me.

Either has various options in terms of the welds, internal cable routing, badges, mount points, paint work etc.

Dealing with him was a great experience. The whole process was very pleasant and we spent ages talking about options and geometry and comparing against other brands (vs my own road bike and gravel bikes that I had test ridden). He was very patient with my silly questions, kept me updated with the progress and sent photos along the way. 

I phoned him to ask price, was pleasantly surprised and things progressed quickly from there.
Give him a buzz, and before you know it you will be posting your pics here.

[ChrisF]

10 hours ago, mecheng89 said:

Morning gravel grinders.

Has anyone ever fitted MTB wheels to their gravel steeds? I currently have the stock Shimano RS wheels with some 42mm WTB slapped on, but when I feel like busting the mould and attending a "MTB" event, I want to fit some beefier wheels (read wider tyres) to take some of the brunt.

What do you guys recommend? I understand that I'll probably lose speed with the wider tyres, but on balance, it may be faster. 

 

There was a gravel bike at the CTCT Expo ... looking through the crowd I first saw a set of very nice aggresive MTB tires ... then the slender hardtail frame ....  only then did the view open up and I saw the rigid fork .... and the twisted bars ....

 

With flat bars that would have been a rigid MTB.

 

 

So you are certainly not the only one wanting this combination.

[Spinmaster]

My Momsen Str drop bar conversion.. Heavy but love the ride..