Gravel / Gravé / Gnarmac / Groad / ATB

I don’t get this at all, I would call £300-400 cheap to be honest... and at that price i don’t look for “special” just good enough and fairly smart.

What’s special about a surly at £700?

Tend to agree... all these frames are just picked from a catalogue of parts and made in Taiwan, the notion of any sort of R n D past giving a prototype a ride is a bit of a stretch....

The name?

Surly have always been innovators, trying to offer something that the giant brands don't eg they've been doing clearance for fatter tyres for years before it's become the norm. OK they're not pushing the boundaries of technology but it's unfair to say that they're not trying different things and offering something a bit niche. And as has been said, you pay for smaller production batches. The whole market has sorta invaded their space with gravel bikes and ever wider tyres becoming the norm now but for me the midnight special was still the only frameset I could buy (without waiting an eternity for custom) that ticked all my specific wants. So for me it offered good value in terms of my immediate need for a bike (having been dicked about royally by another manufacturer) and also price.

But if its not for everyone, that's fine too. You pays your money, you takes your choice.

I love riding mine.

Why wouldn’t you just get this...

￡408.96 | Seaboard Tsunami Chromoly Steel Road Bike Cyclocross Frameset Frame Carbon Fork Thru Axle Cr-mo Steel CX Gravel 700C Frame
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/6QKUzzI

£470 and you get a frame and fork ready to go

Yes, can’t deny any of your comments about Surly and I always take a look at what they doing because it is normally a little different to everybody else. The midnight frame is nice, but from me that fork you so ugly I couldn’t pay any more than 500 quid and take a fork is a throwaway item to swap out for some carbon fibre

And yes individuals choose what they buy and if you’re happy with it that’s all that matters!

https://www.fearlessbikes.com/vulture/

Throwing this into the mixer for a shade under 500. Got one late last year and built it up.

That is cock on, love the seatstays, all the specs tot up, impressed by the choice of Reynolds at the front for the price and the headtubed tapered not just a straight oversized, would happily buy that

OHHH just reading their FAQ and you can run QR in them with washers... hmmmm... still need 100 quid or so on a carbon fork though.

That is somehow worse. Surly at least ‘designs’ their bikes.

@chrisbmx116 another one for you; all city gorilla monsoon

Crust bombora

The gorilla monsoon would have been my first choice (based on prior experience of the excellent macho man disc) but it only takes mtb chainsets and I wanted to use a road chainset I already owned.

Also non tapered 1 1/8" steerer limited potential fork upgrades at a later date.

Flat crown forks can jog on. This ain’t a 2009 track bike!

can’t get tyres off - never had this issue before. can tell this is going to be fun...

edit: got them. get it round ye !

I'll never understand why people try to act like they don't understand why people want things with a certain name/colour scheme/brand/vibe and that they're willing to pay more than bare minimal material cost for it.

I'm yet to meet someone who lives their entire life on strict utilitarian principles and I suspect that when I do meet them they will be

A) Not interested in gravel bikes in the slightest and
B) A raging dick head

A) Not interested in gravel bikes in the slightest and
B) A raging dick head

Thats literally me!

Ditto.

I put a deposit down on one of those vo mini velo's btw. Your passionate argument as to why they're worth a zillion pounds swayed by cold, analytical heart

I'm yet to meet someone who lives their entire life on strict utilitarian principles

Pleased to meet you, how do you do?

fuuuuuuuuck .. I am so broke atm having to pay for normal adult things :((

when is yours arriving? are you in London? can I have a go?

So much nicer than the horrible uni crowns!

Why do current Gravel bikes have such long top tubes?

Small Kona Libre is 56cm?!

Bike shop said November (it releases in oct) which gives me lots of time to spaff on build choices

So you can use an stubby stem to compensate for the slack geometry. A bit like mountain bikes

I've got two gravel bikes both 55tt same as my roadbikes. The thought of riding a 2 or 3 cm longer tt and stubby stem just feels weird.

I get that for an mtb you need that slackness for the nadgery wet rooty singletrack but on a bike that rides on fire roads I want it to feel familiar.