I want that one... oh, er actually that one is quite nice. Then again...

XTC2009

Oh dear. I appear to have created myself a problem. I have sold my MTB for spares. It cost too much to rebuild after a hard winter in the shed, and besides, I hadn't ridden it for a year anyway, due to family commitments. My road bike, too, is up for sale. The idea being that with the funds raised I can get a b'tard child of the two, something with the speed of the road bike and the capability to go off piste when the mood takes me. I ride mostly roads now, and I haven't been to a trail centre for a couple of years. Ok - three years.

Cyclescheme? Possibly the best bet.

Enter the Specialized Diverge. Ticks all the boxes. Bit expensive though. Oh well - it is a good bike, and has some great reviews. Maybe I'll plump for the basic A1. It's quite a lot cheaper than the smartweld version, the most neutral colour, which I like, and I can upgrade it too. Straight away in fact, with a Tiagra 4700 gearset and an 11-34 cassette for climbng, a cobl goblr seatpost for more comfort, and in the near future some cross tyres. That settles it then.

But hang on, look at the 2016 Boardman CX Team! It has everything I would possibly need - and hydraulic discs, and a SRAM Rival 1x11 groupset similar to what I had wanted to upgrade my MTB with before it became too expensive. It's stunning - perfect, almost! Better value than the Diverge. Oh, Halfords don't do cyclescheme. Can I raise that much cash? No. Oh well. Damn.

Ah, but I can afford the 2014 Boardman CX Team now. I've been drooling over that one since it came out, and now it's reduced to clear, making it even better value! Mind you, it does come with Avid mechanical discs, and the TRP Spyre's on the Diverge are supposed to be much better. I could always swap them out if I have any spare cash. Maybe. I've never been sure about the extra brake levers though. They might have to go too. So the 2016 version is a much better bike then. Fiddlesticks! I promised myself I wouldn't accept second best this time. Hmm.

What's this - the 2014 Boardman Team HT 650B is also reduced to clear. It's a good looking bike, it's specced about the same as my old MTB was before it died in the shed. I miss those fat tyres. Most of my best days on a bike were on a MTB, flowing down singletrack, away from traffic, away from it all, heart pumping, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die, I didn't die, I cleared it! Those Whyte MTB's I saw at my other LBS were tasty too... Hang on. Wasn't I looking for a cross/gravel/adventure bike? A MTB can do all that and more! Sure, it's not as fast on the road, but it's much more fun just about everywhere else...

Aaaargh!

So, my dilemma, simplified, is this:

My head says cross bike - when am I realistically going to get time to go to a trail centre or do a MTB marathon any time soon? I'm not, I've got my hands full with the kids, and I'm lucky if I get an hour or two free for a ride at the weekends until the kids are old enough to join me. So local roads with the opportunity to explore towpaths and bridleways, that's my new scope. Not forever, but for the time being. And low maintenance is key.

My heart says MTB - it's in my DNA, it's the most fun, and one day, maybe just one day soon, I might be able to get a free pass to visit a trail centre again. Just for a day.

If you stuck with me to the end - what would you do? (I can't have both).

ugo.santalucia

you mean this?

bobmcstuff

Don't let MikeBrew see you posted that Ugo...

fenix

If I could only have one bike - it'd be a cross. Plenty of clearance for big tyres for offroad. Bung on some skinny ones for the road. It does everything.

MikeBrew

Hey that's unfair, Bob. I saw these the other day and actually think that they look very nice. Just goes to show how a quick lick of paint can breath new life. Also it's good that PX are supporting another British company by - presumably - spending most of their R+D budget with Dulux ...

I wonder if the Gulf racing one is tribute to this guys On-One Dirty Disco https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNbvEUDKeRk

Joking aside though, they do look nice.

ayjaycee

MikeBrew wrote:

I wonder if the Gulf racing one .

Sorry to be a pedant but the Gulf colours were / are blue and orange.

MikeBrew

Fair point, this is more of a redish-orange or an orangey-red, though they did do a pretty good job on the blue. So the colour match machine apparently wasn't out of calibration. Maybe they made the mistake of making a copy of a copy . Eg.




If you're going to copy, its probably always best to copy from the original. This one doesn't even have the blue right.

drlodge

Fenix wrote:

If I could only have one bike - it'd be a cross. Plenty of clearance for big tyres for offroad. Bung on some skinny ones for the road. It does everything.

This ---^ That Planet-x crosser does look nice...

ugo.santalucia

Not only nice, if you ask folks in the cyclocross section, who use it for racing, it appear to be a very good bike indeed

MikeBrew

PX/Alan Dorrington wrote:

Conclusion
Alan Dorrington has ridden both these bikes from the top flights of the UK cyclocross race scene to winter road training and simple trail bashing. Here's what he had to say:
"The design, angles and tube profile of the XLS combined with its relatively short headtube lends itself better to flat out, punching-in-and-out of corners 'cross racing. The Disco also races well for sure, but for me is perhaps the more accomplished all-rounder. If I was to choose the better winter trainer it might be the Disco, as it is that little bit more comfortable with a more compliant back end than the tight and stiffer XLS."
We're not going to argue with a professional with Alan's experience, but we think he's bang on the money anyway!

So maybe the OP would do better with the Dirty Disco, if he's after an all rounder.
http://www.planetx.co.uk/news/products/ ... irty-disco

bendertherobot

CX? Racing? I stuck 28c tyres on mine last night and knocked out 15 road Strava PR's today. No idea how mind given the 42t ring on there

It is a properly good bike the XLS. Not quite as finessed as my Supersix but good.

veronese68

I did the London to Brighton off road on a cross bike a couple of years ago. It was the best bike for the job 98% of the time. For most of the other 2% it varied from being uncomfortable to scary. Last year I did it on my hard tail 29er, it wasn't as fast but it was never scary. But people ride trail centres on cross bikes, they are probably more talented than me though. I'd say the best bike for you is a cross/gravel/adventure type bike that can handle wider tyres. If I was buying now I would only consider full hydraulic discs. The XLS is a good bike for the money and I think they do Cyclescheme but may add a handling charge. Mikebrew makes a good point about the Dirty Disco. Which has more tyre clearance?
Alternatively, get a hardtail 29er and put some slick tyres on it for everyday use as they are the same size as 700c. But that's not really helping your dilemma is it?

bendertherobot

Yeah, PX do charge you a fee. And my cyclescheme scheme charges finance, it seems. So my £799 PX will cost me about £880 by the end of the scheme (once I buy it). Not bad but no real saving over waiting for a sale and using 0%

MikeBrew

Veronese68 wrote:

Which has more tyre clearance?

According to this http://www.planetx.co.uk/news/products/ ... irty-disco that would be the disco.

bendertherobot

The disco is old now, avoid that one. If you want tyre clearance get the bish bash or the Strada bianca

kajjal

I have a diverge comp, 105 with hydraulic discs. On road a little slower uphill than a road bike, similar on the flat and much faster downhill due to being smoother with hydraulic brakes. On smoother off road trails like fire roads it is faster than my xc mountain bike and climbs very well. Once the surface is looser, off camber and more technical / twisty you have to really keep on top of the bike. Fatter tyres would help but cost you speed on the road. On the same trails my xc mountain bike flies. On rough and rocky trails due to being rigid you take a beating whereas my xc mtb is fine.

For me it is good for exploring and linking off road sections, by road. The road sections just fly by. At the weekend i was out on it for three hours on road, canal towpaths, bridleways, byways and a forestry area. It is not the same as a mountain bike but flexible and clocks up the miles easily.

fenix

Veronese68 wrote:

I did the London to Brighton off road on a cross bike a couple of years ago. It was the best bike for the job 98% of the time. For most of the other 2% it varied from being uncomfortable to scary.

I'm curious - what made it Uncomfortable or Scary ? I've had mine >50 mph in Italy and it was fine. Apart from suicidal Marmots. (bigger than you think !)

veronese68

Fenix wrote:

Veronese68 wrote:

I did the London to Brighton off road on a cross bike a couple of years ago. It was the best bike for the job 98% of the time. For most of the other 2% it varied from being uncomfortable to scary.

I'm curious - what made it Uncomfortable or Scary ? I've had mine >50 mph in Italy and it was fine. Apart from suicidal Marmots. (bigger than you think !)

The first one was a bumpy singletrack descent roots were knocking me all over the place, not helped by the fact that I was on the hoods and didn't move to the drops before I hit the bumpy section. Felt like my hands were going to come off and I struggled to hold my line as the bike was getting bounced around too much. The second time was coming off the top of the south downs on a lane with tyre tracks made of pebbles with a grassy bit down the middle and grass banks, got a big speed wobble on to the point where I struggled to focus. Managed to get out of the rut onto a path on one of the grass banks, wobble stopped and could then brake.
Probably could have managed both with better technique. But on a mountain bike with bouncy forks and fatter rubber neither were the slightest problem as the bike compensated for my deficiencies.

fenix

Ah fair enough then. Sorry didn't read the post properly - thought you'd done the L2B charideee ride. I'm crap descending off road anyway - I'm so slow that butterflies overtake.

XTC2009

Thanks for the advice. In the end I managed to raise the funds for the new Boardman CX Team. It is a beauty! Delivered to my door, assembled by myself, checked over by my LBS. Can't wait to ride it - drowning in overtime at the moment, but I'll find a way! Not sure about the saddle, but I'll give it a go. If it doesn't get on with my posterior I was going to switch back to either my Bontrager Affinity from my old road bike or my Evoke from my MTB... being a cross bike I don't know which would be more suitable (road or MTB?). Or try an Ergon SRX3, or something else. I have time to think about this stuff, which is always dangerous...