Gravel bike, worth getting or just a fad / marketing?

gn3dr

Howdy. I've been toying with trying out a gravel bike recently. Was thinking about it last year also but bought a Fixie instead.

I typically ride road bikes (Giant TCR in summer and a similar geometry titanium bike in winter ) but occasionally I ride my Giant Mountain bike also. (Hardtail with 26" wheels)

I generally find the drag from mountain bike tyres annoying and I think I prefer dropped bars for comfort.

Is a gravel bike worth looking at? What kind of decent price should I be aiming for a budget 2nd hand one with hydraulic brakes? This is yet another N+1 so hard to justify. Browsing done deal and adverts cheapest I can find is about €450 / 500 (although one of these has mechanical discs)

Or are there cheap gravel frames available?

Is a cyclo cross bike just as good? Does the higher BB and different head angle really make a difference.

Are there really enough suitable gravel routes available in Ireland.

Thoughts.

Tombo2001

I love it; use it all the time. Main downside is the amount of cleaning it needs.

Am dublin based so doing trails in phoenix park a lot. One plus, when its frosty you can still cycle the trails.

Macy0161

I'd say "it depends" - where are you based/ how easy can you access them?

Personally I love gravel, and this time of the year I'd get out on my gravel bike more than my road bike - rubbish weather seems less out in the forest, and obviously less interaction with people driving cars (who I find more problematic in autumn and winter (or maybe I'm just more worn down)). But I have decent gravel on my doorstep. While icy weather is less of a problem off road, I have come off on ice on a fire road. They're not immune to puddles!

Hard to see it being a fad unless (and I wouldn't put it past this State), using the trails and fireroads becomes an issue. Plenty use CX bikes - I'd say grand for normal spins but longer events you might want something more relaxed.

gn3dr

In Killarney so have access to some trails but a lot are more mountain bike suited

longford76

I bought the Cube one below for occasional gravel and some commuting. In contrast to the others, don't really use it (but maybe this is just me).

I used it on gravel once but prefer the roads for fitness and not commuting anymore as working at home.

Have considered selling it as it is in mint condition but never got around to it.

https://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=163325

cletus

I only have a gravel bike, no road bike. I do all my miles, road and off road, on it.

I'm not racing, and I don't do group rides, so the slight speed penalty I get on the road makes no difference.

The big advantage is when I'm out on the bike, if I like the look of a boreen, or unpaved road, or bit of forestry, I can nip down it without a second thought.

When I cycle with friends who are on road bikes, I can keep up with them easily (but that might just be because we're all as bad as each other)

Alkers

I have one as my all round bike including commuting as I come from an MTB background and I find the fit and geometry more comfortable than an all out road bike. They also seem more robust than most road bikes.

It's great for light mud or fine gravel on trails but the odd time I've been on loose fire road I've found it incredibly sketchy as I'm used to 2.7" tyres on that kind of surface.

If you have a road bike and MTB already it might not get much use for you but they're definitely not a fad.

CramCycle

Get some drop bars for your MTB and get 26inch gravel tyres. You get to mess around with your bike and all in well under 150euro.

cletus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121467918#Comment_121467918

Mate of mine is currently doing this with a 2009 Rockhopper

CramCycle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121467938#Comment_121467938

I done it with a basic 29inch a few years ago and it was good craic. Just slipped the brakes onto the top so it was like old school CX brakes.

gn3dr

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121467918#Comment_121467918

I was considering building something like that alright rather than convert my mtb but it would be a bit more than 150 by the time you added the sti levers I'd say. Picking up an old mtb frame would b3 handy enough and even if it didn't have disc mou ts I could sort that with a bit of machining and tig welding myself, but when I add up the costs now in my head as I write this it probably makes more sense to buy something complete and 2nd hand

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121467577#Comment_121467577

One of the bikes on my watch list is a Nuroad also but the older version. (Without the dropped stays which are a pet hate of mine)

What size is yours and how much would you be looking for it?

longford76

Mine’s a size small 53cm. Would let go for half what I paid since not using it. Bought from CSS, not on BTW scheme and could probably dig out receipt given time ;)

gn3dr

https://youtu.be/vD1pH86wCrU?si=a7QIaFEIoC9LzRvl

This turned out ok

CantGetNoSleep

I alternate between not using my gravel bike for six months and thinking gravel is the only type of riding I want to do (also have a Giant TCR for group rides at the weekend).

I think you need to plan routes much better on gravel, especially in rainy times. Not fun at all if you end up walking or with too much mud. Other gravel routes I've been on were much more suited to a mountain bike.

I rarely ride solo these days but if I do, it is almost exclusively gravel. With a well planned route and traffic free there is nothing better.

I also see a lot more organised gravel rides and events.

If you are planning to buy second hand I'd go for it to try it out, you will get your money back if you sell in 6 months because you don't like it. I'd just make sure you have enough tire clearance (at least 45mm ideally).

I was looking for a gravel bike for a friend around black Friday and saw a lot of good deals on new bikes too (well known brands, hydraulic disc brakes and GRX 400 or 600 groupsets, all in the 1000-1500€ range)

Mefistofelino

http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/tech/2002/features/frankenbike.shtml

Did this years ago to a 1980s steel Kona.

Peter T

I was having the same thoughts a few years ago. Mainly rode Enduro but enjoyed going for a longer spin every now and again with a mix of gravel etc. For a middle ground I bought a rigid fork for my hard tail and some Schwalbe smart sams. I dont get to ride as much anymore but its actually the bike I nearly always go to when I can pop out for an hour or so. Think I bought the fork for 150 off bike24 or the likes.

pairofpears

@Longford76 PM sent about your bike

Large bottle small glass

For the most part there is no such thing as Irish gravel; you'll get the odd summer spin with dry fire roads and the like but for the most part there will be muck and sh1ite.

Cheap to replace components would be top of the list for any Irish gravel bike imo. Having a bike you don't give a **** about is a good idea. Grx 400, tiagra would be my thinking if going new.

An old rim braked cross bike would be the cheapest way to test the water.

If you like to wander around and discover new roads or places and then it might be for you; from a base in Killarney leaving aside the obvious stuff would will know, you would probably have a lot of fun if you based a spin out of Knocknagoshel, Rockchapel, Coum/Ballymakeery, Millstreet and the like. Not very fashionable places but lots and lots of quite boreens and gravel and would be great riding

You will need to happy to plot routes along with figuring it out as you go. Irish forestry is a thing with roads that disappear overnight.

You don't need a lot of off road for it to make a great route.

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/37679099

gn3dr

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121469491#Comment_121469491

Any chance you could say where the good deals were on hydraulic equipped bikes. I had been doing a bit more thinking about this and it struck me that I've never availed of the bike to work scheme so if I decided to go ahead that would open up my scope a good bit.

DJB030244

Gravel bikes make perfect sense in Ireland for the winter especially , although we don’t really have that American race scene unfortunately ,or the gravel roads they have that go on for miles

I've a very nice carbon giant revolt im about to list to upgrade again l wouldn't be without one

gn3dr

I'm a big Giant fan but in general but I have a big hang up about dropped stays of which the revolt seems to have an exaggerated case of.

Did you have any concerns re a carbon frame and the rougher environment of "gravel".

CantGetNoSleep

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121476873#Comment_121476873

I was looking mostly online - Bike inn, Bike24, Bike Discount, Sportler all had decent brands with 10/11 speed Shimano under 1400 and even close to 1000 (e.g. Ridley Kanzo, Cube Nuroad, Cannondale Topstone, even Specialized Diverge).

All seemed to be extra 10-15% discount codes on top of already reduced prices. All seem to be over now but I'd imagine you would get the same in post Christmas sales

Tenzor07

Wouldn't bother with Gravel bikes for general sort of use in Ireland, like someone says we don't have vast amounts of unpaved gravel roads as they do in the United States... Ok there's plenty of bog roads and boreen's but for those I'd rather have a CX bike with bigger tyres and at least I could use that if I wanted to attend one of the many races around the country in the winter.. As well as the fact that a CX bike is generally lighter and snappier to ride..

cletus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121482143#Comment_121482143

That's all providing, of course, that the person wants to race CX. There's posters on here who have said they moved on CX bikes because the geometry meant that long spins were uncomfortable

Macy0161

I think it's still a bit of a debate (well is for me) whether 1x or 2x for gravel here. I like the idea of 1x, but for those long days and/or tarmac linking sections of gravel, 2x seems like it might be more appropriate.

df

"For the most part there is no such thing as Irish gravel; you'll get the odd summer spin with dry fire roads and the like but for the most part there will be muck and sh1ite."

I would strongly disagree with this statement. Sure the gravel tracks might be damp in the winter but they hardly disappear under a layer of mud. Ireland has literally thousands of kilometers of gravel roads. I think Coillte have 3000km. Plus all the rough back roads and boreens that would be considered 'gravel' in other countries.

pairofpears

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121482418#Comment_121482418

1X is fine as a GRX 812 derailleur gives you 11-42 which covers you for most all terrain. I have a 40T 1X and was sitting at 40kmh on cx tyres so you can still match a lot of top end speed in a group on the road.

If I had road tyres this would have been faster for sure.

CJay1

Are most using tubeless tyres on gravel bikes?

07Lapierre

Mine came with tubeless setup. First thing I did was remove the 42mm off-road tyres and fit 32mm road tyres and tubes.

Macy0161

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121484670#Comment_121484670

Well most people I know are, if their wheelset is capable. But it's not a necessity - I did a year with tubed original gravel kings on my original gravel bike with no punctures, and tyres have come on in terms of puncture resistance since then.

Large bottle small glass

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121482433#Comment_121482433

My comment was in the context of a suitable groupset/components for riding Irish gravel.

I have an extreme photo or two added, but in general terms nearly every gravel spin I ride will certainly have some muck/shite/unavoidable puddles.

It would certainly qualify as damp.

Whether it's 100m or 10km it hardly matters, drivetrain will be filthy with the ensuing wear.

I don't know about you but I've never seen photos like above in any of the gravel bike adds.

People can make up their own minds but imo it's no place for push fit bottom brackets(is anywhere 😕) or ultegra/dura ace and the like