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So, I need/want a mountain bike/adventure frame with pannier mounts, mudguards, discs...some thing like an Escapade or Tripster, or Camino...But I want to build it with a flat bar, so I don't want to have to size up so I'm riding a gate to get decent reach or not to have to use a stem that's 150mm long...I need a frame that's as versatile as possible so I can ride into town with panniers, but stripped back will be a half decent HT mountain bike...Don't care about what it's made from, don't care if it's rigid front or sus fork corrected. I've got up to £800 to play with.
Am I just going to have to get a frame builder to make this for me and pay considerably more, or is there anything of the shelf out there that will fit the bill?
Genesis Longitude?
Trek 1120?
Genesis Longitude
On One Boot Zipper
*both rigid only.
Isn't there a flat bar Camino?
Isn’t there a flat bar Camino?
Yup. Pre-order only at the mo. Deliveries mid-July onwards I believe.
Thanks for the suggestions I'll go away and look at those. Yeah, the Camino does come with a flat bar option, but I'm looking at with slightly squinty eyes as lots of bikes for drops obvs have a much shorter TT, so fitting a flat bar often involves long stems and lay back posts and/or sizing up, so you end up riding a bit of a gate with shit handling...
Voodoo Marissa when they come back into stock and then upgrade bits? Takes at least 50mm tyres.
i have precisely that. a planetx tempest with flat bars. i just upped one size, lengthening the effective top tube and then used a slightly longer stem.
I'm 6 foot tall, went for an XL and it fits and handles great. its not a gate and it doesn't handle shit !! i suggest you use a bike fit calculator or take the measurements from your own bike if its comfortable, and then sift through the geometry stats on the various makes and models. for a flat bar bike the effective TT + stem needs to be about 30-40 mm longer than that of a dropped bar bike
That Orange thing, Speedwork? Or the Saracen Levarg flat bar?
Worth remembering that flat bars are usually a fair bit wider than drops, so will somewhat negate the lack of tt length.
My mate has a genesis day one, correct size for him, but he never felt comfy on drops, so he whipped them off and stuck flats on it. Best thing he ever did, he says he enjoys riding it more than ever.
The point is, don’t automatically rule a bike out just because of the drop bars.
Edit: when he changed to flats, he shortened the stem from 100mm to 80mm.
Everyone is different, what works for one may not work for another.
Ribble do a flat bar option of the CGR
Genesis Longitude or Brother Big Bro both within your budget and available as framesets.
Thorn do bikes in 2 top tube lengths for flat and drop bars. Might not be mtb enough
https://www.thorncycles.co.uk/bikes
Or a sonder Frontier rigid £299 frame and fork
https://alpkit.com/collections/sonder-mountain-bikes/products/sonder-frontier-frame-and-fork
Stooge scrambler (when it lands).
I have a Longitude for that and it’s super-comfortable. Doesn’t break the bank or bag a KOM, yet carries a ton without blinking and functions well as a decent gravel-MTBeast all day long.
Rigid 29rs are basically flat-bar’d adventuregravelmountainbikes
Bombtrack Beyond, Kona Unit, On One Boot-zipper etc
Not cheap but a Niner Sir9 in recent years does this.
Shand? They do adventure bikes with flat bar. Is not what you are describing tho what used to be called a hybrid?
I looked into this and changing a Trek checkpoint or crockett to flat bars then looked at Genesis CDF all sold out to get a flat bar commuter then the orange speedworks all sold out never bothered in the end stay on drop bars far less hassle good hunting.
Rigid 29rs are basically flat-bar’d adventuregravelmountainbikes
True to an extent, you'd be surprised how many come without useful frame mounts though. How does the Longitude ride? I must admit when I saw the 13kg weight of the build bike, I did groan. (Yes I know iy shouldn't make a difference, but we'd all be lying if we didn't admit we all look at the weight...)
I love the Trek, but this bike has got to be able to be left locked in Manchester city centre, so I think it's a non starter...It is nice though...That Brother looks lovely never heard of them before, what's the story there?
Can't find a Speedwork for love nor money, all sold out. Are they making more, does anyone know?
Is not what you are describing tho what used to be called a hybrid?
Yeah, sort off, I think i'd like it be able to be turned into an OK mountain bike though, rather than just commuting/ hauling duties, and that's beyond the scope of what most bikes calling themselves "Hybrid" can offer, it seems. Hence I think I need a mountain bike than can change, rather than the other way around. (if that makes sense)
Shand are lovely, but waaay too much money*. (get behind me Satan)
* honestly, I'm supposed to be buying a house, don't wave expensive (but lovely) frames under my nose... 🙂
I'd suggest a Sonder Frontier as that's what I have. Only recently built it u pand not done many miles on it yet but I love it. loads of mounts on frame & fork, and if you want to fit a bit of bounce sometimes the geo is designed for a 100mm sus fork. I love it in it's full rigid format though.
I'm running mine with a low riser but a completely flat bar would be fine I'd have thought.
I have a Specialized Chisel - fantastic old school xc bike, light and sprightly. However no rack mounts, but there are ways around that. Not much new stock about but they come up second hand.
How does the Longitude ride?
As Malvern Rider said above, you're not going to win many races on it, but I feel it rides a lot lighter than the weight suggests. Without racks or bags on it is super fun on trails/singletrack, being rigid you have to be more careful with line choice but it's super stable at speed. I mainly use mine for bikepacking with 27.5 by 3.0" tyres and various types of luggage. I also run it in the winter with full guards (requires a bit of bodging) and either 29er touring or studded tyres for my 10km work commute. Horizontal dropouts aren't my favourite but do give the option of singlespeed/hub gears.
True to an extent, you’d be surprised how many come without useful frame mounts though. How does the Longitude ride? I must admit when I saw the 13kg weight of the build bike, I did groan
As pictured (except with the Phenom Comp seat fitted as opposed to the Brooks) mine’s 11.77kg on paper (2x10 with tubes)
Quite a pricey build though. It rides great, but not as fast as my old CAAD4 MTB, more like a slightly-overbuilt steel Kona of yore.
I could spec lighter wheels and go tubeless, and may do one day, but the point of it isn’t weight-weenie it’s to carry big old me and some gear in comfort, or just to have some fun on any terrain I choose. It climbs nicely, tracks nicely with flat bars and 110stem, bar ends. I like it a lot, it’s my ATB, but it won’t set the world on fire like a 3-4k carbon or Ti road bike with tubeless 35cs. Neither would I 🤣
Once loaded up with loop bars water bottles, racks, bags etc the last thing on my mind is that 11-12kg that long since disappeared as soon as I filled the bottles!
I wouldn’t be leaving it or (any gravel/adventure bike) locked in a city centre tho. I left the Longitude locked outside a supermarket once but it’s taken me years to save for the bike and so I sweated the whole grocery shop! Now it doesn’t leave my sight when locked for more than a few minutes max if it all
That’s what a beater is for? Last year bought a 1980s touring bike for £80 for those jobs, which itself replaces a dutch utility bike I bought 10 years ago for £100. Shopping/commuting bikes IMO are bikes that tealeaves don’t even grok when in full-view. It’s not too difficult to maintain a beater frugally so it runs/rides well yet remains ‘invisible‘. Of course if storage space is an issue then one bike has to be washed all the tine and live on the wall 😬
The new/old (531) touring bike is getting too much love from me now though (rides like a dream), so my antsy-meter is rising again when I lock it up to shop 🤣 it’s fast becoming indispensable.
(Time to fix up the pre-beater-bike, er beater-bike...)
How about this? https://nordestcycles.com/en/product/sardinha-2-kit
Plenty of pics reviews on-line for version 1, this looks pretty much the same, which is good as the original looks absolutely bob-on
or if you only want frame without forks in a large... https://nordestcycles.com/en/product/sardinha-frame
You've described my Salsa El Mariachi, but they don't make it any more. Closest thing I know of is either something from Surly or a Brother Cycles Big Brother. Or as said, Genesis Longitude. Or the Shand Bahookie if you have the wonga.
I would choose somethign with steeper angles if possible as I belive they ride better on-road.
Is not what you are describing tho what used to be called a hybrid?
Hybrids always had tiny tyres, not fat MTB sizes, even if you could get one with decent geometry. My bike can take 2.4 rear and 3.0 front, which is good for rough ground obvs. The kind of bike being talked about here is more like a traditional late 90s MTB, however improved with big wheels, carbon forks, and discs.
^ That Nordest Sardinha looks like the kind of thing. But how do they manage to build it over a KG lighter than (say) a Longitude? (Med Longitude = 3.88kg with headset)
Something doesn’t quite add up. Nordest Sardinha spec lists:
- Frame Weight for M/L size: 2.450kg (5.84 lbs)
- Weight (for frame and forks) M/L size: 2.750kg (6.06lbs)
300g steel forks seem awfully light?
For example a pair of £600 Enve carbon road forks (disc) weigh 125g more than that! 🧐
So let’s say the fork weight is a typo. Take the frame (2.450kg) and instead add a pair of steel 29er bikepacking forks ie a Surly ECR fork that we do know the weight of.
Surly ECR Fork Weight: 3.1 lb (1.4kg) uncut
Nordest Sardinha frame (2.450kg)
Approx 3.55kg. So still a few hundred grams lighter than the Longitude? Could be worth the extra £200 for the grams saved? The Sardinha also has Boost and thru-dropouts where a Longitude is old skool QR
I have just bought a Fustle Causeway frame and built it up as a flat bar. Wanted a gravel bike, didn't want drops, similar budget to you. It has a longer front centre than most as it's designed around a short stem and has a slack (for gravel) head angle. I think it's c.69 degrees. It feels road bike like on the roads but still decent fun off road. Works well for my requirements.
300g steel forks seem awfully light?
That does look like a typo, the version 1 forks were 1180g and this looks pretty much identical
Surly Bridge club sort of fills that flat bar touring / non aggro mountain bike thing. Well reviewed and I'm curious as it may be what I'm looking for when I can justify the cash.
https://bikepacking.com/bikes/surly-bridge-club-review/
That looks like it's designed around drop bars - if the OP wants to put flat bars on it would need to be a bigger frame to get the top tube length, then you start running into standover issues with the higher top tube. Nice looking frame for the money though!
They sell it as a complete bike with risers. No idea why it's got drops on the frameset photos
Giant Toughroad?
Surly Bridge club sort of fills that flat bar touring / non aggro mountain bike thing. Well reviewed and I’m curious as it may be what I’m looking for when I can justify the cash.
Same, only I'd be going for a full build meaning a longer wait!
I’d suggest a Sonder Frontier as that’s what I have
I came to suggest Frontier but Pinkster got there first. Im after similar and, after doing the searching, narrowed it down to the Frontier.
I've seen Postierich's newly reconfigured bike on a social medium and it looks just the job.
Any of the surly adventury bikes would do. ECR, Karate Monkey, Bridge Club, Krampus. Could also just get something like an Inbred 29er, they come up cheap often