What brands have earned your loyalty, or appeal to you for some irrational (or rational) reason?

And is there a type of bike you would never want to be without?

Aa per Ton, include reasons.

surly. because they are strong and unfussy.

No brand loyalty here. Everything on its merits.

A “type of bike”, probably some sort of road/gravel/cx/tourer thing.

British Eagle

Yeti… I’ve never had a chainstay snap and my SB rides brilliantly.

Trek. Brilliant designs and fantastic warranty

And is there a type of bike you would never want to be without?

A mountain bike. Not sure I need to explain on here…

From years of experience….

SRAM mtb gears
Shimano road gears
Rockshox forks/droppers
Maxxis tyres
Easton Carbon bars

Voodoo because they provide excellent, value for money, entry level products that are more than adequate for a fat old biffer like me who has no real interest in spending my fortune upgrading kit all the time.
I’ve had a 26″ Hoodoo for a few years and never, ever felt underbiked for my skill level.

So much so I bought another Voodoo this week. £400 for a perfectly adequate ( for me ) fatbike. What’s not to like?

A £3k bike would be utterly wasted on me.

My stumpy wee legs and long body seem to fit Orange bikes rather well. Stuck with them for the past 17 years because of the fit. No complaints yet. 🙂

Ducati

IGMC.

Lusso clothing, works well, fits well, reasonably priced, well made. Plenty of other brands do the same but Lusso still make their stuff in the UK which is the reason for me to choose it over similar products.

Niner, no explanation required.
Ridley, utterly solid and light race bikes. Built with Belgians in mind, by Belgians and a Belgian rides hard and will break stuff if it isn’t made by Ridley.
Giant TCX Adv1, because mines been impeccable despite the abuse it’s received.
UP, because they’re spectacular and they’ve got my riding style nailed to the top tube.
Cervelo, but the R5ca American made ones only. Again mines been impeccable despite the abuse it’s received.
Parlee, handmade genius.

Giant – we have 3 of them at present, 2 road and 1 mtb. Very well made, great value, second to none warranty if required.

I buy bikes on their merits irrespective of brand. Having said that, Genesis make a load of bikes I really like so I own four of them currently 🙂

Cannondale and cervelo

Bit of an Orange fanboi – massive fan of the thinking behind them. Saying that not bought one since Steve and Lester left.

Would very happily buy another Bird.

TBF both relationships are probably heavily influenced by riding bikes with the company owners and agreeing with their philosophies.

Shimano kit. Again, very much approve of their philosophy of only entering a market once they’ve decided they can do something better, and the fact they are a genuinely humble company.

Whyte
KTM

Simply both because they’re exceptionally good at what they’re supposed to do.

just sat and wrote down all the mtb’s I have owned since 1985.
got to 41 so far. out of them all I have only had problems with 1.

sold them on to try something new.

As ubiquitous as they may be, Trek, as they have always been very well built, withstood lots of my abuse, and done what I have wanted them to do.

Wilier for road. I don’t know what it is, but the moment I saw one of their bikes, I fell in love, and now that I have one and it suits me so well, that love has only been affirmed.

I would also now Genesis to my list. And BMC appeals to me for some reason.

As for type, I suppose if I could only have one bike, it would have to be a gravel bike, insofar as it would give me enough of a road experience to keep me happy, but still allow me to go somewhat off-road when the mood struck.

Hope
Two sets of M4 and one E4, all still in use, original M4s from 2004 are still great (after a seal change).
Ceramic BB eight years on and still good. Compared with the 6 months I got at the time from other brands.

Maxxis tyres.
Shimano Cranks.

That’s pretty much all that springs to mind.

I don’t think I’ve owned the same brand of bike / frame twice in a row. I’ve flitted from Marz to Fox to Marz to Fox to RS and the only stuff I’ve disliked was a set of OE 36s with a really crappy open-bath damper not worthy of the name.

scotroutes – Member
No brand loyalty here. Everything on its merits.

A “type of bike”, probably some sort of road/gravel/cx/tourer thing.
What Colin said (except the road bit)

Rockshox forks/droppers
Maxxis tyres
Easton Carbon bars

This

and Shimano Pedals

Kona

I just like them. Probably stems from how cool they were in the 90s.

If I had the money, Brooklyn Machine Works, just to park outside Starbucks. Otherwise Giant.

I’d buy another Giant road-bike as I absolutely love my 2013 Defy.

I don’t really like Campag or SRAM road groupsets so would probably only buy a bike that has Shimano kit.

Maxxis Tyres. Shimano cranks.

Every time I try something else I marvel in my own stupidity.

Ritchey stuff for me. Strong, light, not hideously expensive (well until you get to superlogic carbon things…).

Look good as well!

Evil – cos I just saw this on Fresh Goods Friday: “Price: £2,699 (frame only)”

I’ve just posted that in the wrong thread haven’t I? 😆

I wouldn’t say always, but I would happily buy from Bird again assuming the bike and price are right given what I’m looking for at the time. That’s based on the product (quality and value), philosophy, customer service, and that personal touch you get from a small company.

My Stanton bikes frame is still impressing me, I’d definitely buy from them again. They seem to build to a level of detail and quality but still aren’t ridiculously priced.
Other than that, Renthal stems and bars.

I wouldn’t say always, but I would happily buy from Bird again assuming the bike and price are right given what I’m looking for at the time.

+1.

Also Maxxis MTB tyres assuming they don’t degrade the quality.

Cannondale, I started out on one way back will probably end on one. I like that they aren’t scared to try new stuff out they remind me of Saab, a brand I miss.

Genesis my roadie is one and my lads bike is too, seem like well thought out good riding bikes.

I’ve had 3 Yetis and 3 Rocky Mountains, so they probably count.
Would defintely by Kinesis again.

XC Hardtail.

If I had the money, Brooklyn Machine Works, just to park outside Starbucks. Otherwise Giant.

Needs moar huck

Cotic went above and beyond for me so many times it became ridiculous. And also make kick-ass bikes, and are a generally great company. That’s my benchmark. I don’t own any just now mind (well, I have a frame and a corpse, but no bikes) but that’s just how it worked out. 10/10, would buy again

I guess as I’m on my sixth Cotic frame, err, Cotic 🙂

They make bikes I like (obvs) and always get prompt response from Cy whenever I decide to hassle him about some shit.

On the opposite side of the spectrum I also like Giant (had 5 oh theirs over the years).felt they made road bikes that suited mountain bikers. Good value for money and decent dealers.

I would have said transition as well made, good value fun bikes, but recently they seem to have made a decision to up their prices massively and try to compete with Santa Cruz and yeti etc

I’d always consider On-One, just because the two I’ve got have done what they’re supposed to do for years. And they’re soulless and have no ‘character’.

It was always Turner for me, I’ve had five of them. Unfortunately I think they’ve been left behind a bit recently.

I’ve got a 2017 Trek Fuel and a 2015 carbon Defy now, love both of them which I’m almost surprised by for no rational reason. Guess I’m still a bike snob at heart