Question for all the CX perverts out there

LazyBoycp

You know who you are!

As mentioned in another thread, I quite like the idea of something CXish for commuting, i.e. racy but with enough room for proper mudguards if needs be and with nice strong wheels. (And for all the road bike users (espacially DDD!), yes, I know road bikes aren't so fragile they fall apart if you look at them - I have one already).

Anyone got experience of BMC? I think they look nice, in a unique kind of way...



Bit expensive to get on C2W though, even if I can persuade work to set up the scheme.

downwardslide

Can you buy the frameset seperately? If so, you may be able to do a custom build. Don't know if all shops will do it, but I got a kinesis crosslight through cycle republic in york (as I had to buy through halfords group). As it all had to be ordered seperately as frame / forks / groupset etc it had to be rung through the till as seperate items, meaning that it could be done as two seperate transactions, one with bits totalling the £1000 covered by the voucher, the rest purchased seperately with my own cash.
Or of course you could downgrade the spec of some of the components if you wished to get within the £1000 limit.

salsajake

The Kona Jake range offers plenty of options, I came in on the first rung of Jake (with the intention of upgrading as things wear out), but there is a Jake the Snake and a Major Jake - all have a very good reputation as far as I can tell. Seen good things about the specialised Tricross too, but I can't get excited about specialiseds for some reason.

There was a concept Ibis Hakkalugi CX bike (kerrrrrschpitttt) on display this winter and it looked awesome.

Whilst I agree road bikes are hardly fragile, I had assumed that a CX bike is probably a bit stronger at least around the headtube area and possibly seatstays too, which must help with holes and ruts a bit, or am I misguided? Then again, I haven't heard of a road frame snapping after going through a hole. If its all about the wheels, then that's ironic, because I want to upgrade my CX wheels to something like Fulcrums! Ah well, at least when I do I can stick some CX knobblies on my 'old' wheels and swap them out for trips with the little 'un on the back down the canal paths and forest tracks, plus I can save my roadie for nice summer rides instead of the daily grind

Rudd

I've got a BMC team machine, great bike couldn't reccomend it more highly. Of course across the range the bikes differ loads but they all seem to be supremely well made, plus you don't see to many on the road. In my opionion they are so much more desirable compared to the hundreds of Cervelos for example. A good resource for dealers is their own web site (google BMC racing) plus the importer often has some sales deals direct. Right now there is across bike in a 56 for a grand. I'm sure you could make an offer for frame only.

bratboy

Be a ware that all cross bikes are not equal.

There some that are just pure race machines in that they have no bosses for mudgaurds, tho p-clips do the trick, and no bosses for bottles etc.

But if you want a utility bike then most of the lower range cross bikes have all the bits and pieces for mudgaurds, bottles, racks etc

No personal experience of BMC, but as you say they have a certain unique appeal.

I currently race, commute, go out with the family and will be touring on my Planet-X Uncle John and have done for the last couple of years with no grumbles.

Jamey

When people talk about CX bikes being stronger I think it's a bit of a myth, certainly where the frame is concerned. If you're doing things that would damage the frame (be it on a road bike or a CX bike) then you're doing something wrong, IMO.

The stock wheels that come with the bike, however, may be a bit stronger than the road bike equivalents but not by very much. I had to change my original rear wheel as it wasn't up to the task of carrying my weight plus panniers over pot-hole strewn roads.

So I think you can ignore strength when you're compiling your list of reasons to buy a CX bike but that's not to say there are no good reasons to buy one, just that strength isn't really one of them.

Good reasons to buy a CX bike for commuting are:

- Full set of mudguard, rack and bottle cage mounts (but watch out for the more expensive models as they sometimes don't have them due to being more race-oriented, as mentioned previously)

- Extra brake levers on the flat part of the (drop) handlebars. Opinion is sometimes divided on these but personally I like them a lot.

- Lower gearing, usually with a MTB-style (long cage) rear mech. This may or may not be a high on your list of priorities but for me, cycling with two full panniers means I like having the massive range of options you get from an 11-32t cassette and a 30/39/52 triple.

- All of the above together means you can use the bike off-road and in all weather conditions a bit more comfortably than you could with a dedicated road bike. I know this isn't really a proper point but I think it's a case of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. Those things come together and deliver a great commuting bike.

salsajake

Hallelujah!

Roastie

BMCs are lurvely.

Manxman_Ste

The BMC is certainly a good looking thing, no experience with it though.

Ive just purchased a Giant TCX 1 CX bike for around the grand mark and am having lots of fun with it. No mud guard bosses but a set of crud catchers works for me, there are bosses for your bottle though.

I commute the sustrans 5 route from oxford to didcot, which is a mix of roads and trackways and the bike goes from one to the other effortlessly. Not as fast as a roadie, though fast enough for me and the more robust tyres/wheels give you much more confidence on the dirt tracks than you would ever have with road tyres. The main difference in terms of frames between road and CX bikes are subtle though CX bikes typically allow for more efficient mud clearing and more ground clearance i.e higher bottom bracket.

CX it all the way my friend, great fun and fast on all surfaces.

Kieran_Burns

Quick question: what kind of average speed are people getting out of their CX commuters?

I tend to hold somewhere between 17-19 on a good day (most often 16 is the usual figure!) with peaks in the low 20s but I can happily hold 21-23 on the shallow downhill stretch of my bridleway section home

Manxman_Ste

I peaked at 25 yesterday on a slight down-hill stretch of road, though think the bike's definitely capable of more......once i get some strength in my pins and don't bottle out.

Will typically hold around 15 on the dirtier parts of the route, but am failry new to cycling so think is more of a confidence thing than i bike think dictating my speed.

Kieran_Burns

i just checked my cycle comp and somewhere today I peaked ay 25.4 which ain't bad as basically my commute is flat....

salsajake

I average about 15.5mph, over 17.5 miles that finishes right in the centre of brum, so lots of stops for junctions, roundabouts, traffic lights etc

I do cheat though, I have full slicks on it.

Peak recorded GPS speed so far, 44 mph (downhill obviously) but it will sprint past 30mph on the flats

il_principe

I'm becoming increasingly tempted by the idea of a CX bike. Not sure where/when I'd use one, but this offering from Pinarello is rather lovely:



Or this from Colnago:

http://www.winstanleysbikes.co.uk/images/prod_19327.jpg

itboffin

Damn that's a thing of beauty - I need one

DonDaddyD

LazyBoycp wrote:

(And for all the road bike users (espacially DDD!), yes, I know road bikes aren't so fragile they fall apart if you look at them - I have one already).

Got nothing against Cyclocross bikes. Would use one (possibly single speed) in the harsh siberian London Winter and subsequent potholed January - March months...