Genesis Croix de Fer

snipsnap

Hi all,

Close to pulling the trigger on one of these as a general work horse / commuter bike to give my Sensa Romagna a break from the rigors of a winter commuting.
Also, hoping to up the commuting miles from 15 a day to a full return journey of 45 miles. Therefore after something a bit more relaxed and suitable than the out and out race machine that is the Romagna.

The genesis seems to fit the bill perfectly; steel frame to soak up road buzz, discs for poor weather, clearance for full guards and I love the look of it.

Anyone got one and offer up any views. I'd be picking one up on the cycle to work scheme so wouldn't be paying the full 1150 RRP in the long run.

Thanks!

Wobblehead

Got a Vapour disc and it's great as a winter hack. Comfy as anything and takes all the crappy winter roads in the dales can throw at it

ugo.santalucia

I have as one for three years.have changed most components... Basically I only have the frame of the original bike. No drawbacks, except it is a heavy bike... For commuting, it works brilliantly and it does a lot more. I suggest you fit 28-32 mm road or touring tyress, as the CX tyres are incredibly slow on the Tarmac. A simple upgrade that goes a long way

Have a look

viewtopic.php?f=40044&t=12897852

petemadoc

Lovely bike that's perfect for your requirements. Pull that trigger!

mikenetic

I agree with Pete - great all rounder.

Get a pair of Conti 4 Seasons in a 28mm on there and you'll still have a nice plushy ride but it'll roll along as happy as Larry.

snipsnap

Thanks for the views guys. I'm pretty sold on this.

will see if the bike shop will swap the tyres for the 4 seasons, have those on the Romagna also.

bendertherobot

I love mine. But, here it is, it's not actually that well equipped IMO. And not all that well priced.

You can get the F&F for about £325 ish, Tiagra is about £350. So that means they're asking quite a lot for the wheels, BB7's (these are less than a ton) and finishing kit.

To an extent they're asking full retail for what it might cost you to put it together. More or less.

So, I was wondering what an LBS could do in terms of putting all the components together on cycle to work?

So, £325 F&F.
Apex Groupset £389 or so.
BB7's about £90?
Finishing kit? Less than £100.

So that takes you to £900 or so with your own choice.

Then I'd dip into my own pocket for wheels and ask Ugo to build some.

You'd get a bike which was better and lighter than the original.

Don't get me wrong, it's a lovely bike.

bjl

Interested in building one of these, where can you get frame for £325, best I've seen is £375.

bendertherobot

http://www.simpsoncycles.co.uk/product. ... _fer_frame

ugo.santalucia

When I bought it three years ago was pretty much the only cross bike with disc brakes... now there are a number of them and I think some offer better value for money... Planet X Kaffenback above all

snipsnap

ugo.santalucia wrote:

When I bought it three years ago was pretty much the only cross bike with disc brakes... now there are a number of them and I think some offer better value for money... Planet X Kaffenback above all

Wow, these do look good but out of stock in my size (large). Worth waiting for?

I was attracted to the Genesis due to the quality of the frame, but the overall spec and inclusion of SRAM force on this is impressive for the cost.

snipsnap

bendertherobot wrote:

So that takes you to £900 or so with your own choice.

Then I'd dip into my own pocket for wheels and ask Ugo to build some.

You'd get a bike which was better and lighter than the original.

Don't get me wrong, it's a lovely bike.

Thanks @bendertherobot, I get what you're saying here. The bike is on offer though currently below the grand c2w limit, so I'm be good to go right away. I could always look at throwing some better wheels on there a bit further down the line.

The advice on here has got me thinking though, I appreciate that there may be better offers out there for the cash, but at the sub 1000 c2w limit, and being seemingly a perfect fit and such a good looking bike, it's currently satisfying head and heart.

snipsnap

trigger pulled!

Shop (Cycle Gear, Halifax) will be fitting 28 road tyres (not specified type but I've requested decent p******e protection) so what guards you lot using?

zx6man

SKS on mine, fit perfect right and don't look bad either, would post a pic but never able to....

zx6man

It worked :-)

mikenetic

SKS on mine too. They're the bestest

snipsnap

Chromoplastics?

bendertherobot

Enjoy!

Now get Ugo to build you some wheels!

snipsnap

bendertherobot wrote:

Enjoy!

Now get Ugo to build you some wheels!

Thanks!

All in good time!!!

rjprey

Coincidentally, here's a croix de fer sporting some ugo wheels - hope pro 2 evo hubs with mavic op cds! for touring and waking up the neighbours!..

Single Speed for the winter, will be nice to get some fast tyres on them once the days get a bit longer, plus more time to think about what crankset I want.

tis my only road bike but glad I built it myself because the stock build isn't all that good value imo..



and I don't like the bar tape either, natural cork my censored - more like beige.

ugo.santalucia

rjprey wrote:

Coincidentally, here's a croix de fer sporting some ugo wheels - hope pro 2 evo hubs with mavic op cds! for touring and waking up the neighbours!..

Single Speed for the winter, will be nice to get some fast tyres on them once the days get a bit longer, plus more time to think about what crankset I want.

tis my only road bike but glad I built it myself because the stock build isn't all that good value imo..



and I don't like the bar tape either, natural cork my censored - more like beige.

I can't see the wheels!!!!!

rjprey

Can you click the pic and see the whole thing through the link?

Not sure what happened there.

ugo.santalucia

rjprey wrote:

Can you click the pic and see the whole thing through the link?

Not sure what happened there.

How cool... They are like mine... Good idea the single speed conversion... Who needs gears anyway..?.. 8)

bendertherobot

Excellent idea, can you post what's needed?

ugo.santalucia

bendertherobot wrote:

Excellent idea, can you post what's needed?

You just need a single speed conversion kit for Shimano free hub and a chain tensioner... then if you want you can replace your STI levers with some normal brake levers, although this is not compulsory
You can replace your chain set with a single speed one too and fit a single speed chain

Duty Druid

Hi,

@snipsnap

Just stumbled upon this thread whilst researching the Croix der Fer.

I'm local-ish to H'fax and it sounds like I have the same requirements as you.

How're you finding the new bike?

How do you rate Cyclegear?

Cheers!

snipsnap

Seemingly good so far but don't get the bike till Monday as I'm busy this week.

pay em a visit - cheapest I've seen the bike for in UK

Duty Druid

Thanks, went along this afternoon.

Really like the look if the bike. The guys in the shop were very knowledgable and helpful too.

Duty Druid

Very chuffed! Got my 60cm Croix de Fer, 32 mm Conti Tour tyres, full guards. Now for a name for her...

snipsnap

From cycle gear?

what guards u end up with?

Duty Druid

Not sure what they are. They look good to me. Fitted for £30. Having a job uploading a pic.