Coming for MTB (own a full suspension Trek cross country mountain bike), and I want to get into gravel biking.
My usage will likely be:
1. Mostly gravel maybe some easy single tracks here and there. It can range from 20-30K and sometimes longer one-day trips.
2. Commuting to work on tarmac paths.
3. Very little road.
For now, I don't have any plans for adventure kind of trips (multiday, attached equipment, and so on), but who knows what the future holds.
The options available in my country are quite limited, here they are (converted the price to USD):
1. Niner 2019 RLT 9 Steel 3-Star - for 2,896 USD
2. Cannondale 2020 topstone carbon 105 - for 3,183 USD
3. Orbea 2019 TERRA M20-D - for 3,183 USD.
Edit: Found another bike that might fit: 4. MERIDA SILEX 7000 2020 - for 3,287 USD
The way I see it:
Comfort levels: The Niner is made of steel while the other 2 are carbon. Supposedly that means greater comfort? (Coming for MTB I don't know much about steel frames). On the other hand, the Canondale has pseudo suspension (KingPin) which I hear works quite nicely.
Gearing: Both the Niner and the Cannondale uses 105, which I understand is quite good while the Orbea uses ultegra which AFAIK is much better (but is it critical?).
Geometry: I really don't know. I'll be happy to hear from you guys what are the big differences (if there are any) between the frames. All I know is that I don't need a racy machine, I prefer comfort over speed.
Tires width: the Niner comes with 38, Cannondale with 37, and Orbea with 40. Does this hint that the Orbea is more focused for off-road?
Coming for MTB (own a full suspension Trek cross country mountain bike), and I want to get into gravel biking.
My usage will likely be:
1. Mostly gravel maybe some easy single tracks here and there. It can range from 20-30K and sometimes longer one-day trips.
2. Commuting to work on tarmac paths.
3. Very little road.
For now, I don't have any plans for adventure kind of trips (multiday, attached equipment, and so on), but who knows what the future holds.
The options available in my country are quite limited, here they are (converted the price to USD):
1. Niner 2019 RLT 9 Steel 3-Star - for 2,896 USD
2. Cannondale 2020 topstone carbon 105 - for 3,183 USD
3. Orbea 2019 TERRA M20-D - for 3,183 USD.
The way I see it:
Comfort levels: The Niner is made of steel while the other 2 are carbon. Supposedly that means greater comfort? (Coming for MTB I don't know much about steel frames). On the other hand, the Canondale has pseudo suspension (KingPin) which I hear works quite nicely.
Gearing: Both the Niner and the Cannondale uses 105, which I understand is quite good while the Orbea uses ultegra which AFAIK is much better (but is it critical?).
Geometry: I really don't know. I'll be happy to hear from you guys what are the big differences (if there are any) between the frames. All I know is that I don't need a racy machine, I prefer comfort over speed.
Tires width: the Niner comes with 38, Cannondale with 37, and Orbea with 40. Does this hint that the Orbea is more focused for off-road?
The only bike I can demo is the Niner.
In the "for what it is worth" category, I think that you have identified three nice options. If I may suggest, take a look at the Ritchey Outback - a steel frame gravel bike. I own one and really like it with the frame geometry, stiffness of it and also lively feeling of metal vs carbon. I own two road bikes, one Ti and one carbon and the Outback has me thinking of building one of his road bikes for my next bike. Build out with Rival 1x and Ritchey WCS components, it will be about $3300 so it is in the same price range that you have identified for the others. I was torn as I was also looking at the Ibis Haka, having ridden and loved their full suspension mountain bikes. The Ibis accommodated bigger tires and 650 wheels, which the new Ritchey does as well, but I had to go with my original desire for a TR bike.
In the "for what it is worth" category, I think that you have identified three nice options. If I may suggest, take a look at the Ritchey Outback - a steel frame gravel bike. I own one and really like it with the frame geometry, stiffness of it and also lively feeling of metal vs carbon. I own two road bikes, one Ti and one carbon and the Outback has me thinking of building one of his road bikes for my next bike. Build out with Rival 1x and Ritchey WCS components, it will be about $3300 so it is in the same price range that you have identified for the others. I was torn as I was also looking at the Ibis Haka, having ridden and loved their full suspension mountain bikes. The Ibis accommodated bigger tires and 650 wheels, which the new Ritchey does as well, but I had to go with my original desire for a TR bike.
I contacted a few more shops. While Specizlied and Giant don't import gravel bikes that fit my budget. I did found out the there is a MERIDA SILEX 7000 2020 for 3,287 USD. From the information I was able to gather, it has a more upright position, GRX 800 and can fit up to 42m tires which is nice (comes with 38). Even larger on 650b but I don't think I'll go there.
The fact that you can demo that Niner is nice. Try and see what you think. Tire capacity is a big consideration though. If this is going to be a dedicated gravel rig then bigger is better. It doesn't really matter what size tires the bike comes with, find out what their limit is. And don't count out 650b. I run 650b with 47mm tires and it makes for a plush ride that's still plenty fast.
I got my first gravel bike a few months back, also have a more mountain bike oriented history. You've got some excellent options listed. I considered the first 3 you mention, and ended up going with a topstone AL 105, and quite like it. I agree with the previous comment on bigger tire capacity being a good thing, it's also one of the biggest contributors to comfort. Also, tubeless capability makes a world of difference, so tubeless compatible wheels might be something to verify. I normally run 35mm, which is a good all around diameter for an 80/20 road to gravel ratio. Though I prefer at least 42mm when there's more gravel riding.
A few other options that I considered and might be broadly available internationally are the Norco Search, Bianchi Orso/Impulso, Fuji Jari, Trek Checkpoint and Canyon Grail. A couple other options are the Otso Waheela/Warakin and Bombtrack Beyond, though I'm not sure how broad their global availability is.
As far as componentry goes, ultegra is a bit better and somewhat lighter than 105. Whether that's worth any cost difference is up to you. I've tested both, and found the main benefit of ultegra was better shifting performance under load. FWIW, I do tend to prefer the ultegra cassettes. They seem to help some with shift performance, so you can get some benefit without the cost of a full ultegra setup. The GRX800 is essentially the gravel oriented relative of ultegra.
In terms of geometry, much of that is personal preference. The things I was looking for were a somewhat shorter seat tube (more room for post adjustment, and theoretically more post flex with more exposed), a longer wheelbase (a bit more stable, potentially more comfortable), and a moderate head tube angle (~70 deg., a bit more responsive than an mtb, but not racy). Another thing to consider is bottom bracket height, a bit more clearance here can be helpful (especially if you decide to try 650b down the road).
Here is my 2 cents: The appeal of the gravel bike is its speed, especially on tarmac. If I am not doing any tarmac I might stay with a hard tail 29 er.
For dirt road leisure rides and city commutes a "gravel" bike might not be your best choice. Hopping onto a gravel bike is signing up for a lot of changes at once versus your current ride. Have a think about which aspects of your full sus are letting you down somehow, I reckon something closer to a lightweight mountain bike or even a (gasp) hybrid type thing may suit the uses you describe better. Drop bars really are made for speed, not comfort, and the gearing on those gravel bikes is always really high, 50/34 x 11-32 is definitely racy. At that price point you could totally build a custom bike up from parts and with some experimentation settle on something that really suits you.
