Cube NuRoad 2018

CitizenLee

My new commuter/gravel bike finally arrived! It was meant to be delivered to work but they sent it to my house instead so I got a lift home on my lunch break, fit the pedals and then rode it back to the office.

Bone stock for now other than the pedals (which are the same red as the frame, despite looking orange in the photo). Can't see me needing to upgrade anything straight away, but I'm sure upgraditis will kick in at some point.

Better photos to follow.



Frame: Aluminium 6061 T6 Superlite, Gravel Comfort Geometry, Flat Mount Disc, Fender & Rack Option, 12x142mm, AXH
Forks: Cube Nuroad Disc, One Piece 3D-Forged Steerer/Crown, Carbon Blades, 1 1/8" - 1 1/2" Tapered, Flat Mount, 12x100mm

Bars: Cube Gravel Race Bar
Stem: Cube Performance
Headset: FSA Orbit Z-t ECO, Top Zero-Stack 1 1/8" (OD 44mm), Bottom Integrated 1 1/2"
Bar Tape: Cube Grip Control

Shifters: Shimano Tiagra ST-4700
Front Mech: Shimano Tiagra FD-4700, 31.8mm Clamp
Rear Mech: Shimano Tiagra RD-4700GS, 10-Speed
Brakes: Tektro Spyre MD-C610C, Flat Mount (160/160)
Brake Cables: Jagwire Road Pro

Crankset: Shimano Tiagra FC-4700, 50x34T, 172.5mm
Chain: KMC X10
Cassette: Shimano CS-HG500, 11-34T
Pedals: DMR V8 V2
Bottom Bracket: (TBC - It's not listed on the site so will check later)

Seat: Cube Race Exc
Seat Post: Cube Performance Post, 27.2mm
Seat Post Clamp: Cube Screwlock, 31.8 mm

Wheelset: Cube RA 0.8 CX
Tyres: Clément X´Plor MSO Folding, 36-622

Weight: 10.7kg

I'll need to tweak the limit screw as the chain hops off the biggest cog on the rear, but I'll sort that when I'm adjusting the seat and bars after work. Otherwise I couldn't be happier with it

craigus89

So this is why you've been so defensive of disks recently?

Looks pretty tidy and I quite like the colour scheme for something like this. How far is your commute? I've not ridden anything like this, how much more drag can you feel with the knobby tyres?

CitizenLee

Haha... no, I'm defensive because I genuinely do think they perform better (see my bike history in my signature, all discs) but we can save further discussion on that for the relevant threads

My commute to work is only around 5 miles but all uphill, and then going home I usually take a scenic coastal route which can be as many miles as I'm willing to ride really, usually around 8-10. So relatively short, but it beats getting the bus which I absolutely hate.

The tyres roll surprisingly well on tarmac to be honest. I've been riding my NukeProof to work lately so pretty much anything will feel less draggy than that! Haven't tried it on gravel/off-road yet since its only a few hours old but will do that after work today. I'll probably need to drop the pressure a little.

EDIT: Went for a bit of a gravel/forest path adventure on my way home tonight and the bike handled surprisingly well at speed, although coming from 160mm travel to rigid I had to pick my lines a bit differently! Definitely need to drop the tyre pressure a bit for off road too. Was good fun though

CitizenLee

Some better photos...

This is a section of my usual route home. The bike just flies!









Went to get it from the basement this morning only to find I'd been visited by the P Fairy, so back on the bouncy bike to work today. Gonna have to go tubeless on the Cube too I think... life's too short to fix punctures or change tubes! :P

N0bodyOfTheGoat

https://www.merlincycles.com/shimano-rs ... 09289.html

£300, if you fancied an upgrade, best price I've seen recently for Tiagra.

Nice bike, 45mm tyre clearance IIRC.

CitizenLee

NitrousOxide wrote:

https://www.merlincycles.com/shimano-rs405-hydraulic-disc-brake-set-stis-rs405-flat-mount-calipers-10-speed-109289.html

£300, if you fancied an upgrade, best price I've seen recently for Tiagra.

Nice bike, 45mm tyre clearance IIRC.

Thanks Nitro

It baffles me why road bike hydros cost more than MTB hydros (it's only ~£250 for a set of XT brakes for example), but that does seem like a decent price! To be honest I find the Sypres are performing very well so far and they should improve as they continue to bed in too. An upgrade to hydros will definitely be on the cards at some point in the future though... but a tubeless conversion if definitely first on the list!

CitizenLee

Upgraded the tyres to Schwalbe G-One Allround TL-Easy 700x38 last week and gave them proper multi-surface test at the weekend. I was running them at 40psi and had loads of grip on wet and dry hardpack and gravel... although I had a few two-wheel drifts when cornering on the wet leaves. You soon get used to how much you can push them before they let go though, which I like. They did also slip a bit when climbing in wet mud so reckon 35psi would be even better but then I still need to roll fast when on the road again so will leave them at 40 most of the time. Anyway, they're highly recommended - super easy to set up tubeless on non-tubeless rims too!

Vino'sGhost

really nice commute to work!

CitizenLee

Vino'sGhost wrote:

really nice commute to work!

I’ve been doing the off-road section of the commute less recently, since the nights are drawing in and the weather has gone a bit cold, wet and windy… so to offset “too much tarmac” I’ve been taking it out at the weekend rather than the MTB. I went for a 20 mile off-road adventure with a friend on Saturday, mostly on fire roads and paths but I did try some of the less gnarly MTB trails too and it handled them surprisingly well, albeit at a slightly slower pace than I’d ride them on the full suss. It’s amazing on the smoother trails though, and absolutely flies uphill again so ended up beating a few of my previous PBs

KoenM

Probably will buy the Cube Nuroad Race FE 2019 (with fenders) next spring as my winterbike i'm using now will only fit 25mm tires with fenders and doesn't have disc-brakes. No money this winter but this bike looks the best option for me, also usefull for gravel riding and an odd cyclocross (once a year). But who knows what bikes will come out in the next 10-11 months!

alan_sherman

Can I *ahem* ask your measurements?

Which size frame is that and how big are you? I'm trying to work out if I'd prefer a 56 or 58. I am 6'1" and usually a 58 but have been finding reach to the hoods too long recently (getting old!). So with these gravel bikes with higher front ends and longer seat posts I was thinking about sizing down from usual.

Which size frame is that?
What is your saddle to centre of BB?
How far from saddle to bars?
How far from saddle to hoods?

And yes I am very jealous of your commute to work. It looks beautiful!

g4cox4

CitizenLee - Could I ask which tubeless valves you used as I am setting mine up tubeless but having issues with the valve any help greatly received thanks.
p.s. loving the red pedals