dvdslw45 wrote:Great options there but unfortunately the Niners are out of stock in my size (every other size is available), the Pivot Vault looked appealing until I found out it has some weird rubber isolation thingie for the seat post, and I didn't care for the fit & feel of the Diverge.
I've been tempted on a new build as well. Some great options listed as well as suggestions in the thread. Interested in the final decision! (Personally in between a new CruX, Open WI.DE or one of the Salsa frames)
I've been tempted on a new build as well. Some great options listed as well as suggestions in the thread. Interested in the final decision! (Personally in between a new CruX, Open WI.DE or one of the Salsa frames)
I would be interested in the Crux but there's none to be found at this time. I'm thinking more about the 2022 Revolt Advanced that is available as a complete bike for less than all of my other options. Now I'm just trying to figure out sizing. I know I'd be an XL on this bike @6'4 but it has a short seat tube with dropped stays so I don't want a bike with an overly long seat post. Maybe it'll be just right, who knows? With none in my area to be test ridden I'd have to travel to Detroit form Orlando to buy it and have it shipped or get it on the plane with me because Giant will not allow shipping on their bikes. Round trip tickets are less than $100 so no big deal. Or buy the Santa Cruz frame. Or something else?
stu wrote:Steel and titanium don't have to be harsh. That depends on the tube dimensions (diameter, thickness, length) as well as the material.
Both can be lightweight but carbon has a better stiffness to weight ratio.
Both are durable and repairable.
Both can be made to your personal requirements.
Titanium costs more than steel and you'll find fewer builders working with titanium than steel. However for a given weight and stiffness titanium is stronger. Titanium also has better much corrosion resistance than steel.
This is all very true. I've had both steel and ti custom mountain bikes. The ride quality is very similar and if you get XO steel,the weight penalty is negligible and the ride is fantastic. I'm a steel fan for life. The vibration damping on both are excellent. There are a lot of great custom builders out there that will work with you to get exactly what you want and it's not as expensive as you'd think. Matt at Samsar, Jeremy at Sycip are two that I had extensive conversations with. Both incredible knowledgeable and passionate about what they do. They build incredible bikes. The lead time is usually around 6 weeks which isn't bad at all for a custom frame that fits you perfectly and one that you will have the rest of your life. All that said, I admit that I'm biased to steel. 😃
Beyond tire size, you should be asking yourself other questions. 1.) What are your fit needs? Tall from end or low? Long toptube or short? Do you need a slack seat angle for position? 2.) How do you like a bike to handle? Slack or a bit more nimble? 3.) What kind of gearing do you want- Some bikes only take 1x 4.) Where do you ride? Do you need the big tires and low gears? Or not so much? Do you need a bike that is as much a road bike as a gravel bike?
Geometry is important. I’d had a professional fit on my road bike that eliminated some pain points and so had a good idea of what I needed — and what to avoid. A lot of nice bikes had “racy” low stack heights that wouldn’t work for me. The Niner had stack, reach and seat angle very close to my existing bike so I knew it’d fit well. Ended up finding one used online and buying it without riding it.
Some newer gravel bikes are going to the “longer front center with shorter stem” geometry that’s current in mountain bikes, so you need to be aware of that when looking at top tube lengths and/or reach.
As a side note, the fit was probably the best investment I’ve made in cycling.
Thank you everyone for the replies and insight. I just pulled the trigger on a 2022 Santa Cruz Stigmata frameset to build up. It appears to have everything I'm looking for other than price but at least I know I'm getting a top notch product with an outstanding lifetime warranty. Picture shown is of a members bike from another page that shows the 2022 Brut (Champagne) color frame with green lettering that I just ordered. Might not have been my first choice for colors given more options but the other choice was a bright pastel lavender so no way on that one.
