Ashchest Posted August 15, 2019 Share Couch pics please. So I took her out for a quick 36 km ride to get a feel And ......Awesome! The bike responds so well and felt very good overall and especially when cornering. I pumped the X-plor tyres to 75 Psi front and back, but think I will drop it a bit to 65 and see how it feels on the next ride tomorrow as it was a bit bumpy on some of the rocky gravel sections and some speed bumps. The Sram Double Tap and 1 x 11 works so smooth and easy and I am very glad that there is only 1 x chainring in the front. The Mechanical Tektro Spyre brakes are more than sufficient. I will increase saddle height by 1 cm and perhaps take the handlebar down a notch. MDJ, PhilipV, BSG and 6 others 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashchest Posted August 18, 2019 Share Last Sunday I did my "last Sunday morning 75km road loop" with my dual suspension MTB and I thanked her for the "Road / Gravel" service she gave me, and I also promised that moving forward I will only ride her on proper trails where she was meant to be used. This morning I took my new GP300 ride on the same loop for a proper feel on the longer ride. It was a bit windy, but to my surprise I took a full 21 minutes off my previous MTB time with an average speed increase of about 1,4 km / hr. MTB time was 3hr 22min and GP300 time was 3hr 01min. I also felt much more comfortable during the entire time and by the end of the ride I felt that I could easily go further and was tempted to ride another 20 km - but decided to rather stop so that I can have a proper comparison on the exact same route. (I will push it another 20-30km further on next Sunday ) I have forgotten how much work the front and rear suspension on a MTB actually do, although I have ridden it locked out, but the rigid frame on the GP300 does require much more rider input to help deal with the unevenness of some off road / gravel sections - more on the front than on the rear - But this is something I have to get used to - or maybe look at a Lauf or Redshift front system in the future to help with more comfort for my hands and arms? The X-Plor tyres that comes stock with GP300 are very grippy and corners extremely well, But they are not the TL versions. The Weinmann rims are Tubeless Ready rims, so I will probably have to buy TL tyres if I want to go Tubeless and run lower pressures for more comfort. I have dropped the pressure from 75Psi to about 60 and although it did provide a bit softer ride, I know that the ability to go down to around 40 will make it even softer. I will try to drop the X-plor pressures a bit more, perhaps to 50 psi? But don't want to go too low because the specification on them says min pressure of 55Psi ?? Overall, I am extremely impressed and so happy with the new GP300 ride - it is a whole different experience and it is so nice! I feel like I am flying even though there is a lot for me to get used to with the new geometry, drop bars, rigidness and all - but it is awesome!!! lechatnoir, gogo@ and Mopkop 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lechatnoir Posted August 18, 2019 Share So I took her out for a quick 36 km ride to get a feel And ......Awesome! The bike responds so well and felt very good overall and especially when cornering. I pumped the X-plor tyres to 75 Psi front and back, but think I will drop it a bit to 65 and see how it feels on the next ride tomorrow as it was a bit bumpy on some of the rocky gravel sections and some speed bumps. The Sram Double Tap and 1 x 11 works so smooth and easy and I am very glad that there is only 1 x chainring in the front. The Mechanical Tektro Spyre brakes are more than sufficient. I will increase saddle height by 1 cm and perhaps take the handlebar down a notch. Lekker pic. Thanks for sharing. Try rotating the bars forward to get the tops and brake hoods level. Or don't. I find it puts my hands in a more neutral position and is comfier. Ashchest 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashchest Posted August 18, 2019 Share Lekker pic. Thanks for sharing. Try rotating the bars forward to get the tops and brake hoods level. Or don't. I find it puts my hands in a more neutral position and is comfier. Thanks, I actually did that since the pic was taken and it is better. lechatnoir and Pure Savage 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pure Savage Posted August 19, 2019 Share Thanks, I actually did that since the pic was taken and it is better.Great, otherwise you may not have been able to grab the brakes in the drops. Ashchest 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashchest Posted August 19, 2019 Share Great, otherwise you may not have been able to grab the brakes in the drops. I also adjusted the reach of the brakes and shifter. It has been a very very long time since I rode with drop bars. Pure Savage 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne pudding Mol Posted August 19, 2019 Share A lauf fork, tubeless tyres and your ride will be perfectI really like the look of that bike and for that price too Edited August 19, 2019 by Waynemol Ferro and Ashchest 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferro Posted August 19, 2019 Share Quite an interesting solution mentioned by the OP:https://redshiftsports.com/shockstop-suspension-stem Anyone with some experience with these? Ashchest 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fat Boab Posted August 19, 2019 Share Quite an interesting solution mentioned by the OP:https://redshiftsports.com/shockstop-suspension-stem Anyone with some experience with these? Yip. Have one on my gravel bike. I also use that bike for road touring. And I like the stem. Noticeable dampening of road noise and improved resistance to road fatigue. On gravel, if I ride on the tops on anything apart from corrugations, then my saddle tells me more about the road condition than my hands. A good thing? But on corrugations I still get the stuffing knocked out of me at both ends. I do have quite stiff inserts in the stem so maybe I could soften things up more but I tried that and didn't like the feeling of the bars moving too much when I rode out the saddle. As I said, I like it. And on multi-day tours I am noticeably less fatigued in the arms, shoulders and neck. Ashchest and Ferro 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashchest Posted August 21, 2019 Share So Sunday I rode with the pressure at 65 Psi but the ride was still very rigid and bumpy. Yesterday and today I rode at 45 Psi front and 50 Psi back and it is perfect! They still roll nicely and fast, but the 50 Psi gives it a very nice plushness and I do not see any chance of pinched flats or other problems at this pressure. I assume the 55 Psi low rating on the tires are for bigger people and that my 78 kg weight could probably allow for lower pressures (with tubes) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bub Marley Posted August 22, 2019 Share So I took her out for a quick 36 km ride to get a feel And ......Awesome! The bike responds so well and felt very good overall and especially when cornering. I pumped the X-plor tyres to 75 Psi front and back, but think I will drop it a bit to 65 and see how it feels on the next ride tomorrow as it was a bit bumpy on some of the rocky gravel sections and some speed bumps. The Sram Double Tap and 1 x 11 works so smooth and easy and I am very glad that there is only 1 x chainring in the front. The Mechanical Tektro Spyre brakes are more than sufficient. I will increase saddle height by 1 cm and perhaps take the handlebar down a notch. Lovely bike that. Great colour as well. I would definitely rotate those shifters down though. That angle just looks weird and out of place to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashchest Posted August 24, 2019 Share So on Thursday I picked up a ShockStop suspension stem as an addition to my Gravel bike and to smooth out some of the bumps and make for a more comfortable ride when going for some adventure "go anywhere" rides. I replaced the stock elastomers for the next level up that is recommended for my weight when I installed the unit. After installation the first natural step was to press down on the handlebars to feel the effect - my immediate thought was that it felt like my MTB front FOX fork when locked out - giving that short stiff travel on a locked out FOX to still take the edge off minor bumps. Yesterday I took my GP300 out for a 35 km ride - when I got onto my bike to ride out on the brick driveway ,things immediately felt different - then I remembered the ShockStem. The stem works very well and it makes the ride very smooth on tar roads - but it is when you hit Gravel at high speeds when the real effect is felt - it does what it says and it is good! I am glad I made the investment. The Stem does not remove the large bumps, but it does take the edge off them. I will test the different available elastomers and on a next ride test the lower options that should give even more suspension than what I currently have on - I think the next lower option will work perfect for me because I felt nothing strange or any compromise when riding even when riding out of the saddle. During my ride I definitely felt more confidence to hop off and onto the side of the road "MTB style" to side-step normal traffic and take shortcuts Edited August 24, 2019 by Ashchest Wayne pudding Mol, Ferro and Farrnus 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashchest Posted October 2, 2019 Share I now reached 1000 km's on my GP 300 and it has been great! I cannot fault the bike or components and just love riding it! The Sram 1 x 11 is awesome. The Tektro Spyre Mechanical brakes works very well and I feel no desire to have hydraulics in it's place. The only "upgrade" I foresee is to put some Tubeless tyres on it but will probably ride another 1 or 2 000 km's before doing so. It was a learning curve to ride with tubes again after so many years and I did get some punctures, but have learned how to prevent them for now. I have been playing around with the setup by making minor tweaks and then taking it out for long rides to test and feel and I think I am now close to a near perfect setup and only have a few more adjustments that I want to play with - amazing how much difference 1cm this or that way can make.I am going to Magalies tomorrow for the weekend to go camping and look forward to explore some of the Gravel roads in the region. So 100% happy with this purchase and what a bargain!! ChrisF, BSG, MomsenBikes SA and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomsenBikes SA Posted October 3, 2019 Share I now reached 1000 km's on my GP 300 and it has been great! I cannot fault the bike or components and just love riding it! The Sram 1 x 11 is awesome. The Tektro Spyre Mechanical brakes works very well and I feel no desire to have hydraulics in it's place. The only "upgrade" I foresee is to put some Tubeless tyres on it but will probably ride another 1 or 2 000 km's before doing so. It was a learning curve to ride with tubes again after so many years and I did get some punctures, but have learned how to prevent them for now. I have been playing around with the setup by making minor tweaks and then taking it out for long rides to test and feel and I think I am now close to a near perfect setup and only have a few more adjustments that I want to play with - amazing how much difference 1cm this or that way can make.I am going to Magalies tomorrow for the weekend to go camping and look forward to explore some of the Gravel roads in the region. So 100% happy with this purchase and what a bargain!! awesome to read this - would love to see a pic of the bike with the ShockStop stem fitted etc. Ashchest 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BSG Posted October 3, 2019 Share Last night I told my wife about me looking at this bike seriously, the answer I got "I think we might rather be looking at a divorce." [emoji848][emoji2955][emoji3166] MomsenBikes SA and BigDL 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisF Posted October 3, 2019 Share Last night I told my wife about me looking at this bike seriously, the answer I got "I think we might rather be looking at a divorce." [emoji848][emoji2955][emoji3166] wanted to comment .... does she read the Hub ? MomsenBikes SA 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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