Best cyclocross bike under £1000 and other CX chat

I'm probably wrong.

yeah, its quite a nice route. the lanes round here in rush hour are crazy so best to keep off them as much as possible

hell no, I work from home 2 days a week anyway and I highly doubt i'll be getting out of bed early enough to ride in on the other 3. I'm aiming for 2 days a week.

better pic, still needs a few things sorting/swapping out but i'm pretty happy with it.

Tyres too skinny for road use.

Tyres too skinny for road use.

Ed having a new road bike tyre delivered earlier today.

Tyres too skinny for road use.

Are you sure? 25mm seems to be the best that even teams are using now. I used 25's for a few years, but had to go to 23 on both road bikes as there wasn't mudguard clearance on the Focus I had.
I used 23mm with no problems on the CX9 until I sold it. Very good actually as if I had a flat in the morning I could just swap wheels.

DRY. I had the CX9 for my commuter, best/most comfy bike I have owned. One bit of advice I can offer is change the brakes to TRP EUROX. They were almost as good as the Ultegra 6700's on my c/f road bike. Also, I bought a second pair of shoes with SPD cleats to use. Getting of road pedals in the wet is lethal.

Well, as you may know, I have been to "Cyclocross" land, or Belgium for those who weren't sure.
I went in 6 different bike shops in Flanders around Ieper, Menen, Ploegsteert, Passendale and Poperinghe.
How many cross bikes were there? Just ONE, without discs and €3000, ouch.
Discs aren't really a European thing as they still prefer cantilevers and Mini V's for some obscure reason.
Almost got a Focus AX 4 Disc at £750.00 in Canterbury, but in grey it really is bland. Hey, I know it's just a commuter, but it's more dull than a dull thing. Even if Jeremy Powers rides one with the same geometry it still can't quite tempt me, despite being fitted with mudguards.

So, it's back to hunting for one. The Merida CX 4 Disc and Boardman still seem favourites, but Wiggle do have Charge filters for £780

Grey is classy rather than bland....

I don't think my Boardman is boring, especially for a bike with full guards.

Merida looks nice, but having had the pleasure of riding the Boardman, having sorted the couple of teething problems, I would recommend it without hesitation.

i had a blast on the commuto x bike riding along the thames today

32mm slick tyres were fine for the job, just two slippery moments

rack and mudguards all did their job though possibly the front mudguard needs to be brought in a little tighter to the wheel

hydraulic discs are awesome, would thoroughly recommend them to anyone

Ahhhh, that's a lovely metallic grey. Have you seen the bland battleship grey for the Focus?
http://www.bikeradar.com/gallery/article/focus-mares-ax4-just-in-31816/3

^

So glad I talked you into getting them, while I can't afford them myself /:

Although I would be interested to do a direct comparison between our brakes, mine are pretty damn strong now.

The Boardman still seems favourite, speshully wiv 10% off
I'm just a Shimano fan, that's all.

The SRAM is good, real good. Looks good, shifts good, feels good.

Are you sure? 25mm seems to be the best that even teams are using now...

D'oh!!!

Bloke at work likes it. He's had his a year now and the only failure was the rear freewheel pawls going west. My local Halfords has one, so, much as I hate buying from them, I may well pop down tomorrow, unless the LBS can match the price of it with the Merida. Currently at £999, but most shops I have contacted will do it for £899, one for £850.00

But I need a new commuter as the CX9 has gone and I don't like using a £2K road bike.........................

But then, who make Boardman, Cannondale and a miriad of other frames anyway? Yup, MERIDA.

3,000 miles on my Boardman now.

^ would, this thread needs moar SSCX talk

:) No it doesn't.

^ would, this thread needs moar SSCX talk

:) No it doesn't.

Oh yes it does ;-)

Mmmmmmm! Orange.

^ without UTFS is there a swap out thread/discussion?
are they a good idea? I am thinking to get a frame like this: http://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/FRPXKV2/planet_x_kaffenback_swap_out_frame for an SSCX build.

Well you can switch between SS and geared for £15... Which is about the price of a cheap chain tensioner and you (presumably) have the advantage of not having something to get knocked off or damaged.

Also 135mm spacing means you can use normal road wheels with a spacer, or discs.

I'm not really sure if there are any disadvantages... maybe getting the placement righ if you're using discs?

Took the plunge at last today.
Went into the Merida stockist. £999.99, they wouldn't budge and to be fair they explained they true and pre tension the wheels/spokes, machine the BB, set it up for you and do the first 6 week service which they normally charge £100.00 for...........................which I can do myself anyway.

So Halfrauds got my £850.00, they said I couldn't use 2 discounts, which seems fair to me in a way, only I bet the "£70.00 off when spending more than £700.00" offer returns next week.

Still, I have a day to tinker with it to get it ready for work on Monday.

^ without UTFS is there a swap out thread/discussion?
are they a good idea? I am thinking to get a frame like this: http://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/FRPXKV2/planet_x_kaffenback_swap_out_frame for an SSCX build.

I'm not sure the clearances are great on the Kaffenback.

First impressions on the Boardman.
Comfortable.
Seems quick enough
Disc brakes, in the pouring rain this morning, superb................why do people still use cantilevers? There is no comparison. No rubbing, easy to set up, can't wait to upgrade to BB7's
Gearing too spaced compared to my usual Shimano stuff.
Double tap gears??? Hmmm. Can't say just yet, no botched shifts, but the left (front) is VERY stiff. Already looking at 105 to replace it lol.
Mudguards worked a treat on the 28 Gatorskins.
Slight bit of rub on the guards when out of the saddle due to wheel flex I daresay and it was the first trip out so to be expected.
Weighs about 9 tonnes with the full commuting kit on though (Mudguards, lights, rack, panniers, different pump). OK, 13.5KG, which was a shock after using the 8KG (with mudguards) Ribble last week.

Well worth it and glad I chose it over the Focus Mares.....................I think as I could have got the Mares for £100 less, and got the 105 shifters for £150 and whatever I could get for the Tiagra.....................hmmm. Guess you NEVER stop tinkering.

Those front mechs are crap- it's a Microshift unit. Bin it and replace it, I went for Force.

36/46 rings work much better than the 50/34 that they come with.

Slight bit of rub on the guards when out of the saddle due to wheel flex I daresay and it was the first trip out so to be expected.

If there's rubs, adjust it again, there should be no rubs whatsoever.

Edscoble, I had cut the stays and pushed the plastic covers on the guards all the way down. I cut the stays to be able to fit the 35 tyres back on if it snows or I go off road. I simply ran out of time yesterday and didn't adjust them properly, plus the wheels flex about 5mm or more under power, both front and rear, causing disc rub and the mudguard rub. Mudguard rub now sorted, I will tighten the spokes after a week to sort out the flex. I have been used to mid to top end wheels over the last 5 years on road bikes that hardly flex at all.

Dammit. Definately considering changing the front mech and possibly the whole groupset to 105 as it's cheap at present. I had 46/36 on the CX9, what a superb ratio, it felt so smooth and like changing down/up 1 or 2 rear ratios. I just ran out of gears on the odd downhill section. I have a "proper" 53/39 on the Ribble after a year of compact so I'm just trying to get used to it again and may fit a 46 big ring again
As you say, Microshit and very poor with it. There is far too much lever movement on the left hand shifter to do it smoothly when compared to even 10 year old Shimano stuff. More harsh than Sora and clunky.
Rear is very precise and I had no missed shifts today at all, even with waterproof winter gloves on. Ratios on the rear are a bit far apart, but I have an Ultegra 11-25 to fit which is betterererer.

Not really criticisms as this is the first totally new bike I have had since 2007 and like all new vehicles it needs bedding in. All my others are built up from new and used items so I get used to each new item as I upgrade..