So looking at potentially changing my commuter bike, the road bike, without mudguards and caliper brakes s starting to get tired with the 45km a day of wet and road grit, and I can’t see it enjoying the winter ahead. After wednesday’s showers, I’m not sure my feet can cope with it either.

My criteria is as below.

Full length mudguards
Disc Brakes
Drop Bars
Pannier Mounts
Ideally less than £1k

I’m on the road/cycle path the whole way, and I’ve been fine on my 23mm tyres, and cheap carbon frame till now, do I’m not desperate for more comfort, it’s only an hour each way after all. So I’m open to aluminium, steel etc, and fat tyres is not a required.

Let me know what you think, I have been looking at the Planet X Full Monty, and the classic Cotic Roadrat, although I can’t seem to see a drop bar option anymore.

I forgot to add that a hub gear would be beneficial but not required.

https://www.evanscycles.com/pinnacle-arkose-alfine-8-2018-adventure-road-bike-EV275630

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/charge-plug-grinduro-single-speed-adventure-road-bike/ (so cheap you could add a hub gear setup to it later if you really wanted it, a real bargain IMO)

Genesis Equilibrium

Pinnacle Arkose
Genesis Croix de Fer 10

You should be able to find this year’s models being discounted as the 2018 versions are being advertised.

Probably not the answer you want, but if you’re not doing any off road or rough stuff how about fitting some race blades to your current bike. Then buying some decent gear (including something like a pair of Northwave Celsius boots) so that you keep warm?

I ride a similar distance daily on road and I’ve found the best bike for the job is a carbon road bike on 25mm tyres (or 28 if they’ll fit). The only reason I go back to the disc’d up ‘gravel’ bike is because there isn’t clearance to fit race blades. If you swap to something like a roadrat after riding a proper road bike all summer it’ll feel awful and you’ll hate it.

I’ve bought a lot of kit over the past two years to help with commuting in – fancy hydro brakes, frames and wheels. The bests two things I’ve bought have been a Rapha winter jacket and those northwave boots.

Genesis Equilibrium

+1

Sonder Camino Al

I was squeezing the levers on the 105 Arkose in Evans yesterday, very nice and £1k bang on.

I wouldn’t write off Gravel bikes, I wish I had one now (my current £400 Saracen fulfills all of your requirements and runs 25s) so that I could fit studded tyres on my spare wheels if the need arose.

I got an Arkose alfine 8 this year. It’s perfect for what you want.
Nano tyres are a little draggy for a road commute but everything else is great.
I love mine!

I’d look further into the hub gear thing – I hate mine. Its just feels really heavy. I know all in the weight difference is meant to be negligible but with an Alfine 8 it feels like theres a brick in the middle of your back wheel. I’m going to switch back to normal gears with a 1×10 setup at some point in the near future.

The Alfine hub gear will feel a lot worse on hard and narrow tyres, run the widest rear tyre you safely can, with 26×2.35″ Big Apples or Super Motos my old Pylon8 felt fine.

It was a slower bike up hills, but it was a portly bike anyway being ~16Kg, which can be used to your advantage as a training tool to make your racey bike ascending far quicker. 😉