Gravel / Gravé / Gnarmac / Groad / ATB

needs a few tweaks before grinduro next week

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And Bartape

upcoming new bombtrack hook ext adv
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bk7po6UhJ0W/?utm_source=ig_share_sheet&igshid=1ofkjndiimljx

Stem ID one this one, anyone?

It's the no longer manufactured Cielo Racer.

Cheers...nice, but pricey (and now no more)

There are some good tyre deals at Planet X currently, thinking about making some stock for my future plans. My Pickenflick currently has Vittoria Adventure Trail 700x38c, thinking about either buying a pair of Gravelking SK 700x43 for later replacement and continuing with a single wheelset, or investing into second 650b one, then using 700c with knobblies like Crosswolf I have stocked and 650b with slick/file tread for hardpack and tarmac. I like to sometimes join road group rides so I need something not too draggy on road.
Would you advise me to invest into second wheelset? If yes, should I go for 1.75 Clement Strada (PX has it for 13 GBP) or 1.9 Gravelking (for 21 GBP)?

so a friend of mine is really short and is looking for a gravel bike. her budget is $2k but can maybe go a bit more and i think would be happy to buy a bunch of used parts.

she is about 5' and currently rides a surly lht with 26" wheels (2" tires). her seatpost is all the way inserted and she is still pedaling on her tip toes. i think the cranks are 165mm. stack and reach are ok (with the normal gigantic surly spacer stack).

she does pretty gnarly groad type stuff on it (including mild singletrack) plus a lot of road riding.

any frame recommendations? i like the norco search xr but is probably a bit too pricey. ideally i'd find one that has flat mount, ta, and clearance for 650b x 47 w/ mudguards (which she hasn't realized are necessary yet!).

naturally i looked at the arkose but evan's says they've discontinued the women's small and all i could find available (in the US mind you) was the special edition which apparently is only setup for di2 which isn't in the budget.

This does all those things and is a seriously good price. HT angle is nice and relaxed and you have stack and reach dimensions on the page. Plenty of budget left over for her to get it exactly right

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/verenti-substance-ii-apex1-2017-adventure-road-bike-oran/

Too big at 50cm? My other half is 5'5" and finds her 50cm Cross Check a bit large.

An XS 650B Straggler?

yea she is on a 46 lht now and it is too big. at least the seattube dimension is. @youramericanlover that 50cm will be too big. she'd need < 48cm ideally.

@Aroogah yea she is keen on the straggler. i dislike the lack of thru axles, the horizontal tt which means standover isn't as good as it could be, and i've heard that this fork shudders w/ discs.

unfortunately most bikes don't seem to have a women's xs size. i also feel pretty strongly that having 700c wheels on a bike this size is silly.

5'5"

at 2" taller than her I am perfect for 52cm 650b so I'd say a 46cm, the reach diff are minimal.
So a 46 with Cane Creek 40 headset will give 546 stack plus spacer(s) and maybe a 90mm stem.

Annoyingly, at smaller sizes there are so few choices. You will have to make some compromises. There is a thread here about bikes for shorter riders - there may be some alternatives/ideas that you can consider. (can't find it right now - maybe someone can post a link).

Maybe look at Fuji? They often do smaller sizes.

Canyon Grail 2XS? wait till they are on sale? Though US availability an issue.

thanks fuji wasn't on my radar. the jari frameset might work. i'll have to see if i can figure out the 650b clearance.

@cheekysnaker the grail is way too ugly . i am pretty bummed canyon did that actually. if they'd made what the new warbird looks like i'd have bought one.

Possibly selling this soon to fund something with a dropped chainstay I can fit proper MTB tyres on. Full build. Could possibly sell FF for the right price.

Effective TT is 535mm from memory. I think max BB - top of saddle height is around 755mm.

Columbus DT & TT, Crossman Composites Carbon DT. Custom mandrel bent stays. Enve GRD fork.

Hit me up for any more info.

If she's got $2k she can get a custom steel frame at that price, no? Then go relatively cheap on the components (second hand or just not top-end) to stay in budget

The tiny Isen?

There is a build thread here if it helps with research

https://www.lfgss.com/conversations/318075/

yea i've suggested that as well. would be worth it imo. lots of framebuilders around where i live

thanks!

super cool but that is the whole budget!

What about the Canyon inflite? It comes in 3xs and 650b wheels. Not sure on max clearance or if it can take guards. It's also more of a cross race bike. They used to a commuter style one that had guards but i guess the grail has taken over for that. Shame they don't do one without the dumb bars. https://www.canyon.com/en-ie/road/inflite/2019/inflite-al-slx-6-0-race.html

If she's not set on drops they do also these fancy hybrids things that come in small sizes and look like great value, also doesn't say about guard mounts. https://www.canyon.com/en-ie/fitness/roadlite/ https://www.canyon.com/en-ie/fitness/roadlite/

Yeah I think drops for sure. That inflite isn't available in the us and it also has 700c wheels even in the xs. Thanks though!

I'm on a 46 straggler at 5'5" and i'd say it would be hard on someone at 5'

kids bikes? islabikes?