Buying advice (again!)

bikeandbivvy

So having carefully looked at what I want from a bike (cycle to work along canal paths, amateur riding at trail centres & bit of bikepacking) and being given a limit of £800 on the cycle to work scheme by the wife, I have narrowed down my options to the Trek Roscoe 7 2019. Which comes in at £875 but Evans will do a trade in on any old bike for £75 which puts it right at my limit or Trek Xcaliber 8 2019 £800 (with £75 trade in to spend on pedal or tyres or something!). Both share the same frame so it's forks, wheels & components really!

https://www.trekbikes.com/gb/en_GB/bike ... 7/p/23444/

https://www.trekbikes.com/gb/en_GB/bike ... de=reddark

Originally I was looking at a 29er with 2x chain rings for the commute side like the Xcaliber but I want something that can handle a bit of small jumping etc. Like the roscoe which is a 27.5 with single chain ring.

My questions are these!

1) Easy to max out on 1x10 on the commute is there a way I can avoid this ie with a bigger chain ring perhaps? Recommendations appreciated! Perhaps Xcaliber scores here?

2) In my experience Tektro brakes aren't great. I don't need top of the range but what sort of price to upgrade in the future to reasonable set? Or are these OK? Again Xcaliber comes with shimano m 200 (another win?)

3) Rock Shox Judy fork v Rock shox silver 30 air , appreciate both are budget forks but will they do me (6'2 & 250 lbs) and any benefits to either?

Dropper post? Essential or gimmick? Main riding will be commute etc maybe once a month at a trail centre (Gisburn probably!)

Thanks in advance!

JGTR

You can upgrade then brakes for a reasonable price so don’t worry about those, dropper post not essential but there’s a reason why everyone uses one, I wouldn’t ride a trail centre without one, depends on how fast you ride if you max the 1x out - you can easily fit a bigger front chain ring but you’ll then lose the easy gear for the trail centres - if it’s mainly for commuting I’d recommend 29” which will be faster and reduce the risk of maxing out the 1x.

Spagoose

I am almost in exactly the same situation as you, except its the Halfords cycle scheme. Unfortunately the VooDoos and Boardmans seem to be either too big or too small for me so I am looking at others.

I was looking at the Roscoe and X-Caliber 8 as well.

I was recommended, since I mainly want to use the bike XC, that both a 10x2 and 29er wheels would be a better fit.

But to answer some of your questions:

1. If you are hitting the top gears too easily then yeah, you can put a larger chainring on at the expense of your easier gears.

2. I have never used Tektro brakes so can't personally comment, but from what people say online about them, they don't seem to be that great, but in general brakes are an easy upgrade.

3. Xcaliber 8 fork is air sprung with 100mm travel whereas the roscoe 7 is coil sprung with 120mm travel. Air is better than coil and easier to adjust to your preference. But being shorter is not as ideal for jumps.

Droppers are great, not essential but definitely not a gimmick either. I would prefer to have one either way.

Also personally I'm not as much a fan of fat tyres because I don't really go on proper trails and prefer the go faster aspect of 29ers.

Personally if your cycle scheme allows Halfords bikes, though I doubt it if its the Evans one, you should look there first, VooDoos, Boardman and even the Carrera Fury have amazing specs for the price. Also look at the Vitus range on chain reaction cycles which accepts a different scheme, though they tend to always be out of stock when I look. To be honest that is the only way you will find a bike that has 120mm air forks in your price range with a 1x chainset other than buying second hand. Other than that, you either have to up your budget or drop some features you want.

bikeandbivvy

JGTR thanks!

I messaged trek on their Facebook page not really expecting a reply however they've been really helpful and even though I'd not given any models I gave them budget and riding I do they came back with both models but recommended the Xcaliber as this had more benefit to me if I wasn't riding at trail centres all the time. Looks like could be decision made!

bikeandbivvy

Spagoose thanks for the comprehensive reply. I think I can use my cyclescheme voucher pretty much anywhere, I didn't have to choose a specific retailer.

I did look at the Carrera, Vitus & Boardman but nothing really took my fancy. I don't think I need 120mm air forks and the time at trail parks etc will be more limited, definitely the commute & bikepacking is more my thing so 29er & extended range of gears is more important and I think the Xcaliber ticks those boxes & I could a dropper post later if I want/need at a later point.