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A couple of questions about a few bikes that are on my radar, mostly because of price. On One Rugio. Is it made from gas pipe? Generally anything with a brands own label steel is. Had On Ones Kaffs in the past which were and got really bitten by a Cotic X which feels like the tubes are bar not tubes. Also what sort of tyre clearance does the Rugio have? Same last question for Orro Terra X and Sonder Camino.
Any other pointers towards good deals at the moment?
Scotby still have the carbon GT bikes in. £1300, or £1000. Link to the £1300 one:
(I was talking to the Scotby Boss about these, he bought the whole stock from the Importer to be able to sell at this price, 140 bikes he said, he also bought the full stock of one of the GT FS MTBs, but they all sold out pretty quickly).
https://www.scotbycycles.co.uk/products/gt-grade-carbon-expert-gravel-bike
If you fit a smaller frame, this is a bargain from Evans currently. https://www.evanscycles.com/brand/specialized/diverge-e5-elite-2022-gravel-bike-917060#colcode=91706008
Other versions are available with better size options but not such a discount.
Sorry, thought the link would show a preview. It's a Specilized Diverge Elite for £1100.
On One Rugio (Rujo) Is it made from gas pipe? Generally anything with a brands own label steel is. Had On Ones Kaffs in the past which were and got really bitten by a Cotic X which feels like the tubes are bar not tubes. Also what sort of tyre clearance does the Rugio have?
The missus has a Rujo, which she picked up for £1k during one of On One's price-slashing moments. She's currently running 42mm Tuaregs plus mudguards with shedloads of clearance. It's not the lightest of bikes, but she says it rides really nicely with a supple, unstoppable sort of feel, though not super spritely off the lights. A mate who recommended it in the first place likes it a lot and has ridden a stack of bikes over the years.
I haven't ridden it - too small for me, though I really ought to pop out on it for a short spin some time - so I can't testify to the ride quality myself, but she has ridden a nasty Vitus ( I think) gas pipe special before, so she know what really basic steel feels like and says this is nothing like that. Edit: not made of gas pipe, triple-butted tubes according to On One and, you know, despite the occasional hatred on here, they have made some pretty good bikes over the years.
A mate had a Camino and liked it, but sent it back because - he said - the wheels were leaking. He now has a Fairlight Secan which he absolutely loves, but doesn't have the slacker, more stable geometry of the Camino. I think the former is/was better on off-road stuff, but again, haven't ridden either as they're way too big for me.
Dunno if that's much help. I have ridden a Cotic X in the past and didn't like the slightly sluggish steering at the time, but it's also personal. Soma Double Cross DC was nice and springy, but I don't even know if you can stil buy those in the UK.
I looked at a Rujo frame a while back but couldn't get past the price - £880 and that doesn't appear to include the fork (Ragley's Trig is £650 for a similarly double butted 4130 frame but includes ED plating against rust and a full carbon fork).
I'd assume that the cost would transfer across to full builds but Planet-X do do some whacky pricing so you might get a bargain.
This looks interesting at Merlin - https://www.merlincycles.com/merlin-malt-g2x-grx-gravel-bike-2024-197443.html
They also have some big discounts on Orro Terra bikes - https://www.merlincycles.com/orro-terra-c-grx-600-limited-edition-gravel-bike-302009.html
This looks interesting at Merlin
Very much at the road end of things. 35mm tyres and guards maximum. A few quirks of geometry and mine (g2p model) was missing a few mounts from the factory.
I liked it, did a lot of miles on it, but it was my first foray into drop bars and there's better out there if you want to go off-road.
I built up a Camino with a mixture of bits and new Hope Pro 5, DT GR531 rims with 45mm wide tyres.
Works a treat on and off road with still great tyre clearance for mud.
Boardman ADV 8.9 was on offer recently.
Ribble CGR? Decent wheels on the base model
If you can afford it, the Tempest is probably worth the stretch.
mattsccm
Also what sort of tyre clearance does the Rugio have? Same last question for Orro Terra X and Sonder Camino
My Camino has 45s and there's still loads of room (that's on 700c rims).
Kinesis GX race is my dream frame in this category, but they're fairly spendy for an alu frame and seemingly never on offer.
Got 700x50mm in my Camino, it'll fit 2.1 MTB tyres too at a push if the rims are not too wide.
Marin Gestalt XR. Proper geometry for a bike that can ride off road. I’d be tempted to get one if I had the money.
Heading towards a Camino although a Cinelli Zydeco is rather attractive. Not sure of the spec though. Really want 2x11 but that aint an option.
Good deals on Orros at the moment. Anyone got one? I can see my Dirty Disco becoming my commuter and the new bike being the fun bike.
Really like my camino. Big fan.
Good deals on Orros at the moment.
They're selling loads of groupsets in OEM variant, obvs bought too much stock and now trying to empty the warehouse....
NB OEM groupset kits are very interesting, SRAM ones come bled, but with the lever separate to the brake caliper and pulling eyes inserted into the hydraulic cables. Makes install so much easier than with the consumer groupset version...
Another Camino fan here.
Bought mine through cycle to work in 2019. It's done just under 8,000km. Use it for commuting, going to meetings, picking up the shopping, once for going to jersey for a week and, occasionally, just riding.
Mine takes 37mm tyres inside full mudguards. I run it with a pannier rack, usually with bags on.
It's almost never put a foot wrong, and almost never the wrong bike wherever I take it.
Can't rate it highly enough.
They’re selling loads of groupsets in OEM variant, obvs bought too much stock and now trying to empty the warehouse….
Quite a few roadie brands offering 30-50% off, including Cannondale.
The only reason I don't have a CAAD13 already this week is they're presumably still trying to shift old 11s groupsets ordered during covid. Mechanical Ultegra feels like it's been a long time obsolete!
Cotic have a deal on the Cascade, definitely not made of gas pipe. https://www.cotic.co.uk/product/cascade#bike
Cheers, keep them coming. Not keen on that Cotic. Rather cluttered looking but I guess that's one way things are going. Also customer service left a bad taste. My X wasn't as advertised and I was told, tough luck, thats how they come to us.
A smaller brand is a nice idea as who wants to be the same as your mates .
Must not be black/grey/silver!
42mm wide for the Terra on 700c wheels. I've a Ti version and it's a really comfy ride. The stock Continental tyres are rather good too.
I was rather tempted by the canondale badboy 2 on sale at Evans (near half price) for a new commuter until I realised the lefty vs full mud guard issue. A full mud guard fitting could possibly be bodged but, over rough ground, not so sure.
I don't know what stock is like now, but Ragley Trig is a nice but relatively budget (probably similar price to Planet X/On-Ones) all nicely finished and ride really well with their carbon fork.
Ah Ragley! Was looking at Orro but by gum they are dull paint wise.
Ta. Anyone put a big rear tyre in a Ribble CGR?
Has ridden the Orro Terra steel? Are they comfortable? I would be tempted by the carbon version but very limited weight on the loading points (5kg) and David Arthur reckoned they were a bit stiff. I don't know how much his videos are to be trusted.
From personal experience, I can recommend the Whyte Glencoe
https://whytebikes.com/products/glencoe-my23?variant=40308079132741
Seems to be discounted to £1300 at various places though sizes may be limited
There's £500 off the Rujo Force 1 at the moments (although with Plant-x's variable pricing there's no guarantee if won't drop lower in the future - https://www.planetx.co.uk/products/on-one-rujo-sram-force-1-gravel-bike
I don’t know what stock is like now, but Ragley Trig is a nice but relatively budget (probably similar price to Planet X/On-Ones) all nicely finished and ride really well with their carbon fork.
I'm building one up now and it looks a very well made product, but there will be concerns over warranty in the future as Ragley's caught up in the Signa Sports collapse (owned by Wiggle I think).