[Gar_Richards]

Hi all,

I’m looking to build a gravel/do it all bike bike for linking up road and bridal ways.

Material and geometry: I’m thinking old school steel, mostly because I’ve always wanted a steel frame. It will need to be something like Reynolds 531 butted or similar to keep the weight down. I want it to be relatively slack to handle the rough stuff but I don’t understand the dinner point of a geometry diagram
I know what feels right to me but will probably buy online. I will be using some tiagra 4700 that I have in my bits box so may have to cold set the seat stays but I’m prepared to do that. Wheels and tyres I’m thinking wide like hunt 4 season or similar and some fat rubber.

Braking: bosses would be preferable so that cantilever or long reach options can be used.

Price: I don’t have the deepest pockets (twins have reduced my bike funds) however I do have a bit of dad points from upgrading the wife’s bike to 6800.

Parts: groupset is mostly 4700 but might swap the cranks for 1x or put a smaller inner ring.

Please give me some advice on frames and bargains you might of seen. Also the pros and cons of cantilevers and long drop brakes.

Topic

[ktache]

I think a brake booster can

I think a brake booster can work wonders too, 

[IanEdward]

Yeah, I had similar judder on
Yeah, I had similar judder on my Charge Plug, is a consequence of cantilever brakes with cable hangers too far from the straddle wire.

Easily fixed.

[mattsccm]

Can’t remember what the

Can’t remember what the judder was all about but I do remember that my bike had the set up that was sure to  vibrate under breaking. 100% defo the internet said. Mine didn’t .  Worth checking though. It was a doddle to fix I remember, just an “uphanger” in the mudgaurd mount hole. 

[antigee]

might just check year and

might just check year and exactly how the front canti’ is set up….of course people are sometimes wrong and the internet is full of people that didn’t seek the advice of a qualified mechanic or failed to retain the packaging but maybe google     specialized tricross brake judder     and check what you are thinking of buying is set up ok or if you go for it be aware may need some care setting up

 

 

[mattsccm]

I used a single speed

I used a single speed Tricross for years for banging round the local forestry gravel and easy MTB stuff. Nice bikes. I got through a front rim a year (4000+ miles pa) . Cheap and easy enough to replce though.  It took 38mm tyres with a bit of space so more than enough. 

Wish I hadn’t sold it now.

There must be stacks of rim braked CX bikes out there which do the job nicely and don’t have the slow handling that modern “gravel” bikes have. 

[IanEdward]

Have just spotted a near mint
Have just spotted a near mint Specialized Tri-cross with Cantis on Facebook marketplace, wondering how fast and light that would build up…

[Miller]

You can find the Kinesis

You can find the Kinesis Tripster alloy frame at sale prices at the moment, I know cos I just bought one. But canti brakes on a new bike this year? That’s a very limiting choice.

[armb]

531 frame with wide tyres and

531 frame with wide tyres and cantilevers sounds like a traditional tourer to me. I guess you’re looking for something lighter weight though? Not all 531 tubesets were the same.

(But if it is the sort of thing you are after and you want a new frame, as someone else said, look at Spa
https://www.spacycles.co.uk/m2b0s143p2984/SPA-CYCLES-Steel-Tourer-Frame-and-forks- )

[Jimthebikeguy.com]

Any older cx frame with brake
Any older cx frame with brake bosses and a threaded bb. Stick a set of flat bars and a 10spd deore groupset on it with the 11-42 cassette. V brakes and a set of levers. Then a nice set of clinchers and some 35mm cx tires. Theres your gravel bike.

[pasley69]

You could do what I did:-

You could do what I did:- disc brakes on the front and canti’s on the back. Works well even heavily loaded – adter all, in a hard stop most of the braking is at the front anyway.

Good luck with the build.

Cheers

Adrian

[CXR94Di2]

Jackson wrote:

Jackson wrote:

I built a gravel bike out of a 2nd hand Kona Jake the Snake alloy cx frame with cantis and rack mounts, 10 speed compact 105 groupset (50/34 chainrings), and a derailleur hanger extender to get an 11-36 cassette working (should work with up to a 42 but I haven’t tried). It fits 38mm tyres and potentially a bit wider but it would be tight and I haven’t tried.

It cost me well under £500. I never felt like the rim brakes were a problem, but I would like more tyre clearance.

Funny, my Jake the Snake, 3 or 4yr old is disc brakes with wide tyre capacity

[Jackson]

I built a gravel bike out of

I built a gravel bike out of a 2nd hand Kona Jake the Snake alloy cx frame with cantis and rack mounts, 10 speed compact 105 groupset (50/34 chainrings), and a derailleur hanger extender to get an 11-36 cassette working (should work with up to a 42 but I haven’t tried). It fits 38mm tyres and potentially a bit wider but it would be tight and I haven’t tried.

It cost me well under £500. I never felt like the rim brakes were a problem, but I would like more tyre clearance.

[CXR94Di2]

Disc brake bike frame allow

Disc brake bike frame allow without issue, larger tyres upto 50mm on gravel bikes.  Then there is the braking-but we will put that aside.  Most frames for gravel type bike will have disc brakes because that is the norm now.  

Whether a national squad use rim or disc is immaterial, the market is predominantly disc now.

The OP wants big tyres, sure he could go rim but is reducing options. 

 

[Anonymous]

CXR94Di2 wrote:

Look at the Kinesis AT or Ti ATR V2  both have relaxed geometry around 70deg head angle.  Wide tyre capability.  Disc brakes are it, forget rim brakes on a do it all bike.  Frame material isnt relevant on large tyre  bikes-all suspension is handled by the tyres. Its about function and fit.

https://www.kinesisbikes.co.uk/Catalogue/Models/Adventure/Tripster-AT

or complete new bike https://www.kinesisbikes.co.uk/Catalogue/Models/Adventure/Tripster-AT-BIKE

 

Also look at Fairlight, Mason, Boardman and Kona for steel do it all bikes.  The kinesis won for me because of head angle and material.  My Tripster ATR V2 is super planted at high speed descents, but also steers beautifully at slow speeds.

This review of steel frame bikes might help https://road.cc/content/buyers-guide/194720-20-best-steel-road-bikes-and-frames-great-rides-cyclings-traditional#comments

Why, there’s no need to have disc brakes for do it all bikes and rim-braked bikes work perfectly well even for those of us who like to chuck it about in all weathers and have been doing so in safety for decades. There are plenty of good and cheap rim braked options out there both new and second hand that work and work very well.

Maybe your thoughts on rim brakes are more informed than the GB cycling team with respect to csntilever brakes for world championship level events??

[CXR94Di2]

Look at the Kinesis AT or Ti

Look at the Kinesis AT or Ti ATR V2  both have relaxed geometry around 70deg head angle.  Wide tyre capability.  Disc brakes are it, forget rim brakes on a do it all bike.  Frame material isnt relevant on large tyre  bikes-all suspension is handled by the tyres. Its about function and fit.

https://www.kinesisbikes.co.uk/Catalogue/Models/Adventure/Tripster-AT

or complete new bike https://www.kinesisbikes.co.uk/Catalogue/Models/Adventure/Tripster-AT-BIKE

 

Also look at Fairlight, Mason, Boardman and Kona for steel do it all bikes.  The kinesis won for me because of head angle and material.  My Tripster ATR V2 is super planted at high speed descents, but also steers beautifully at slow speeds.

This review of steel frame bikes might help https://road.cc/content/buyers-guide/194720-20-best-steel-road-bikes-and-frames-great-rides-cyclings-traditional#comments

[Author]

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