• This topic has 67 replies, 35 voices, and was last updated 7 years ago by drlex.
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  • Shand Stoater as a road bike – anyone?
  • MoreCashThanDash
    Full Member

    I’m after a new and only road bike. Drop bars, disc brakes, mudguard and rack mounts, clearance for 28mm tyres or bigger, possibly dynamo lighting. More audax than sportive, but still the occasional club run as well.

    I’m a big fan of British designed steel bikes, and think the Stoater is a lovely looking machine, so it is on my (not so) shortlist. Just got the feeling that my heart may be ruling my head, there are cheaper options out there.

    Anyone using one as their main road bike, or having problems doing so?

    If you put me off the idea now, we can avoid all the subsequent threads about 0% credit cards and what colour to go for! 😉

    Duc
    Free Member

    Going through the same process – looking at the Vissago Donnybrook from Charlie, cotic escapade and singular Kite.

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    For a Shand I’d probably go Stooshie if I wanted discs and it was mostly for road.

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    slackboy
    Full Member

    tesco will do you a 28 month 0% credit card…

    highlandman
    Free Member

    Picking up a custom Stoater frame for the Mrs next week… So can’t add anything sensible at this stage!! It’ll be an all-round road bike in due course. I can’t see any reason why one of these wouldn’t match your needs perfectly.
    There may be cheaper options out there. But better? I doubt it.

    fatmax
    Full Member

    I’m tempted by a Stooshie for more road orientated stuff too.

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    There may be cheaper options out there. But better? I doubt it.

    One is very easy to determine, the other is highly subjective! 🙂

    kcr
    Free Member

    There are a lot of options out there just now for the class of road bike you are describing. My commuting/touring/Audax road bike is built around a Kinesis Pro 6 frame.
    I personally wouldn’t go steel, because every steel bike I’ve owned has ended up rusting with the normal wear and tear of winter commuting. That might not be a problem if you are not using the bike in that way.

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    Similarly you’ve got the Mason bikes. If you were to look at Alu bikes then there’s Bowman too.

    MoreCashThanDash
    Full Member

    Wouldn’t be a commuter. My 12 year old Soul has coped very well after years of wet and neglect so rust isn’t a concern.

    Alternatives also on the list are Kinesis 4S disc in aluminium, GF Ti, 18 Bikes Monsal, or maybe something plastic like a Diverge or the new Focus Paralane. And there is also the Stooshie for a firmer and more expensive ride.

    The more I look the more choice there is. But only the Stoater has got me genuinely “I want one of those”. But I don’t want/need it as a gravel bike which closer to where it is pitched.

    TurnerGuy
    Free Member

    Just been to Swift Cycles in London and seen their Fairlight bikes that are about to come out.

    Designed by an ex Genesis guy, they have the Faron which is like a croix de fer and the Strael, which is 853 and road/audaxy.

    Seemed quite impressive, shaped 853 tubes, two lengths of headtube for different fits, rack and mudguard mounts, etc. The skinny tubes looked a little funny next to that headtube I thought.

    Use Hunt wheels on the Ultegra build.

    Their facebook page is a typical attempt at generating internet fervour and they are emphasising their ‘European-ness’ :

    https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1560/25708114612_1e9120c663_b.jpg

    but the guys at Swift Cycles are really nice and seem to know their stuff. Bikes over £1200 get a free retul fit I think.

    Frames will be coming into the country in 2 to 3 weeks so I am going back to have a closer look.

    ransos
    Free Member

    Similarly you’ve got the Mason bikes. If you were to look at Alu bikes then there’s Bowman too.

    Mason do steel, alu and Ti. I have the alu Definition and think it’s bloomin lovely. I’ve used it with guards and rack for touring, audaxes, through to fast sportives and it’s felt perfectly suited at all times.

    Nipper99
    Free Member

    Don’t forget Wold

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    TurnerGuy they really need to get those tri bars off that bike!

    whitestone
    Free Member

    That wheelie bin hanging off the back of the saddle doesn’t do it any favours either 😆

    tang
    Free Member

    I would certainly be looking at Mason. How about Donhou DS2?

    TurnerGuy
    Free Member

    I think it was be prepped for this guy on the trans continental, so to give alternate ride positions :

    the wheelie bins looks to have been left behind though.

    @jamesmarkhayden is currently in 4th place. He has 497km left to ride and the chase is on! 3rd placed rider is 40km…

    Posted by Fairlight Cycles on Sunday, August 7, 2016

    TiRed
    Full Member

    Can’t believe nobody has mentioned geometry. That Shand as a very nice-but-dull 70-71 degree head angle. OF course you can ride it on the road, but… it will handle like the touring bike it is designed to be. For a proper road experience you really want something with sharper handling. Look for 72.5 or 73 degree head angle. A 73 degree parallel design is an excellent handling road bike. You should be able to fit a rack if needed.

    Even for Audax riding, I would go for something sharper. I do, however love the flex of steel.

    nedrapier
    Full Member

    I use a Singular Peregrine as my road bike. Wouldn’t want to say it’s ideal, and it’s certainly not light for a roadbike. But I pedal and it goes forward. Done plenty of long rides inc a 100miler at 20mph average (Ride100, so cheating!) If I was racing, or joining a road club, I’d want to be getting something more like a proper road bike. Anything other than that, I’d be happy to stick with the Peregrine. Although lifting a mate’s Ti enigma at the weekend did make me think… – must not do that again!

    just did some light googling. Some weights from Mr Shand:

    Stoater, 105 triple, XT wheels (no saddle/pedals) : 10Kg
    Stoater, 105 double, XT Wheels, Hope V-twin brakes (no saddle/pedals) : 10.4kg
    Stoater FT, XT, wheelsmith Race23 wheels : 10.8kg
    Stoater, Chorus, King/Archetypes, Thompson finishing kit, Spyre SLC : 9.5kg

    Edit: Ha! Next post down was from you, OP!

    ransos
    Free Member

    Can’t believe nobody has mentioned geometry. That Shand as a very nice-but-dull 70-71 degree head angle. OF course you can ride it on the road, but… it will handle like the touring bike it is designed to be.

    My Mason is way sharper than my Thorn, despite having the same head angle.

    MoreCashThanDash
    Full Member

    didn’t think the Donhou took guards, now I hardly dare look.

    I’ll be the extremely over excited guy at the Bike Show on Saturday, btw 😉

    corroded
    Free Member

    I’ve got a stoater and I’d say it’s at the gravelly/touring end of the spectrum, if you’re looking to use it almost exclusively on the road. But it is very nice and I can keep up on road rides, despite a ‘bit’ of a weight penalty when climbing against the carbon bunch. Not sure what the current iteration is like but if buying discs these days I’d definitely go for thru-bolts not QR. And whatever brake mount is now standard… Loads of exciting bikes out there.

    benp1
    Full Member

    How about a Ti bike from Enigma?

    they have a sale on at the moment

    TiRed
    Full Member

    My Mason is way sharper than my Thorn, despite having the same head angle.

    That will be the trail of the forks and possibly the wheelbase. 70 degrees is very slack for a bike for “road” riding. It will be nice to ride, of course, but there have been quite a few comments on here about how their [insert bramd here] all purpose road bike felt dull. Steel bikes can be great and they can be dull. It’s all down to geometry. And the Stooshie looks a better bet (as already pointed out).

    jameso
    Full Member

    Drop bars, disc brakes, mudguard and rack mounts, clearance for 28mm tyres or bigger, possibly dynamo lighting. More audax than sportive, but still the occasional club run as well.

    Sounds like an ideal mix for a bike like that. The 2 smallest sizes are 70 deg but with loads of fork offset. The other sizes are 71.5 / 45mm. Not razor sharp by any standards but plenty of gravel bikes use that geometry, works well on the 28-35C tyre range. Personally I don’t like 73 deg race bike handling that much, imo can feel too twitchy outside of fast bunch riding use and no real need for a bike to be so light steering on average UK roads. Back it off a degree and it feels far better to me on long rides or at 45mph on local hills.
    I’m a massive fan of all-steel bikes like the Stoater than can do a bit more than just road miles. For a steel frameset it’s a really good weight too. Best bit is that you could get a 72 deg HA if you wanted with everything else about the same.
    ie yes, I would buy one : )

    MoreCashThanDash
    Full Member

    Sounds like an ideal mix for a bike like that.

    Yeah, but what do you know about bike design….. 😉

    jameso
    Full Member

    Not much, I can’t actually cut the tubes and braze/weld them : )

    bikebouy
    Free Member

    I like this… looks really nice to ride, yes maybe a little slack for hard hacking, but I can imagine doing many many miles on one. The Stoater..

    And, cooooweeeee… this looks bloody lovely too… again, a bike for many miles and smiles…
    The Stooshie..

    I dont envy your decision making one bit… 😆

    beanum
    Full Member

    But as mentioned above, there’s also this… 🙂


    Mason Resolution

    MoreCashThanDash
    Full Member

    But I can get the Stoater/Stooshie with a dynohub for the price of the Mason.

    Or I could get the Paralane on interest free credit at the LBS.

    Or I could get a 4SDisc and save £1000. And always think “what if….” every time I rode it.

    tang
    Free Member

    Tom Sturdy (custom builder) did this project for himself. Race geo, discs and clearance for big tyres. Looks a riot!

    MoreCashThanDash
    Full Member

    Not sure I need race geometry – most people who see me in my Greggs cycle jersey think it’s a genuine sponsorship deal, given what lies beneath….

    bikebouy
    Free Member

    Blimey, that Tom Sturdy build is Awesumnez.

    That has got me thinking..

    Kerching!

    ampthill
    Full Member

    Can’t believe nobody has mentioned geometry. That Shand as a very nice-but-dull 70-71 degree head angle. OF course you can ride it on the road, but… it will handle like the touring bike it is designed to be. For a proper road experience you really want something with sharper handling. Look for 72.5 or 73 degree head angle. A 73 degree parallel design is an excellent handling road bike. You should be able to fit a rack if needed.

    Even for Audax riding, I would go for something sharper. I do, however love the flex of stee

    Not trying to provoke and argument

    Does “sharp” handling actually let you do anything that dull handling doesn’t. Do you get there faster? Or is just a preference thing

    bikebouy
    Free Member

    Bowman Pilgrim??

    Looks to be in the right place, and a nice place to be…

    ransos
    Free Member

    That will be the trail of the forks and possibly the wheelbase. 70 degrees is very slack for a bike for “road” riding. It will be nice to ride, of course, but there have been quite a few comments on here about how their [insert bramd here] all purpose road bike felt dull.

    I can only go by how my bikes feel. I had a Wilier with 73 deg parallel geometry which felt really stable but fun to ride; the Mason is similar to ride but on paper looks quite different.

    rOcKeTdOg
    Full Member

    tang
    Free Member

    Nah, this. Somewhere for the lunchbox is a bonus.

    flap_jack
    Free Member

    A 73 degree parallel design is an excellent handling road bike.

    +100.

    Very few out there, but 73 parallels ride like motorbikes. Stable, nimble, perfect…

    ontor
    Free Member

    I have a stooshie. It may well be the best bike I have event owned. I’ve raced cyclocross, commuted and done long road rides on it. If I had only one bike, this would be it without doubt.

    Buy it, buy it, buy it.

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