Adventure/gravel bike advice

I feel like I’m jumping on the bandwagon here, but my local MTB stuff is tame, I don’t like riding my mountain bike on the road and a trendy adventure bike ticks the boxes on paper. I’d appreciate some advice on the bikes I’m looking at.

Specialized Diverge E5 (LBS option) – seems low spec for the money but I like the shop, and should be a quality bike anyway. As the guy in the shop pointed out I don’t want anything fancy (this is my first road bike) but £800 is still a significant spend and there’s much better specced bikes for not much more money. I’m arranging a demo

Pinnacle Arkose – reviews seem a bit mixed, sat on a large but I probably need an XL and they didn’t have any in to demo. Possibly a bit heavier than the other options but I’m not sure there’s much in it. Visually not as appealing either but I’ll try not to get hung up on that.

GT Grade – this[/url] is heavily discounted on Wiggle at the moment (if it’s actually in stock with their recent website issues). Has great reviews all round (for higher spec versions, but same frame & fork). Downside is I can’t try before I buy, it also doesn’t have as much room for wide tyres.

Cannondale Slate Half price at Wheelbase Cycles £1350 seriously good vfm IMHO
Untitled by Richard Munro[/url], on Flickr
Tyres will need changing so factor that in so another£100 quid for decent ones you can run tubeless

Got this for £849, an absolute hoot on and off road!! Changed out the tyres to Panaracer Gravelking sk tan walls, went out this morning into the Mourne mountains was an absolute blast and has clearance for 650b wheels as well

The Alloy 105 GT Grade is decent at £862.
My only gripe is the max 35c tyre clearance. Although for me if I’m riding terrain that I feel the need for even fatter tyres I’d probably just use my mtb.

Make sure you get something that will take at least 40mm tyres.

I was unsure about the tyres. Most of these bikes seem to come with 32-35c fitted, but I assume wider tyres have comfort benefits? I’m keeping my MTB and will be riding that if I’m going anywhere really rough or muddy.

The Slate looks nice but I can’t see anywhere with my size in stock, and I’d prefer not to spend much past £1k.

Tyre clearance on the GT is terrible. I don’t think its great on the Diverge either

Evans will move a bike to a branch for you to ride for £50 deposit. Deposit refunded on riding the bike

Specialized claim there’s room for 42c + mudguards on the new Diverge.

The guy I spoke to in Evans seemed pretty clueless, he didn’t say anything about that and couldn’t tell me anything about the bikes or sizing other than what it said on the tags.

IME 40mm tyres make a big difference to how a CX/gravel bike manages rougher offroad terrain – bigger volume means you can run lower pressures safely without risk of pinch flats and you don’t take such a battering.

Last years Diverge is lovely – we bought some for the hire fleet – but tyre clearance is limited. I’d be looking at something with clearance for 40mm or more.

I’m looking at a Diverge as a road bike that does a bit of gravel the Slate looking more like a gravel that does a bit if road, the terrain around here wouldnt warrant 40mm plus tyres.
Anyone had any experience of the shock system on the Diverge or Roubaix?

Last years Diverge is lovely – we bought some for the hire fleet – but tyre clearance is limited

This years has more apparently

What bad stuff have you heard about the Arkose? Genuinely interested as a biased Arkose owner!

I reckon it’s one of the best VFM gravel bikes at the moment

I had a kinesis pro 6 that I raced cross on and used as a gravel bike. Did things like the c2c, sandstone way, CX sportives, 3 peaks. Now my winter roadie. Very good frame. Takes 35mm tyres easily. As above, when I look for bigger than that I have a hardtail mtb that is probably better suited.

Why limit to “gravel” plenty of X bikes would fit the bill. Ribble, Rose, Canyon etc. then become options.

On my second CDF here and love it. Tyres are limited at 35c but that’s big enough for what is use if for, which ranges from winter road to summer touring, with some tame off-road big sky loops in between.

My new CaadX 105 is gorgeous…totally addicted to it, mostly commuting and a bit of fun in the woods so far, but ultra comfy.

I was tempted by the Akrose but the CaadX is prettier in my books 😉

Genesis CDA runs 40c tyres.

dovebiker –
IME 40mm tyres make a big difference to how a CX/gravel bike manages rougher offroad terrain – bigger volume means you can run lower pressures safely without risk of pinch flats and you don’t take such a battering.

IME going Tubeless is revelatory when riding off-road on the tyres these bikes use. I did the Dirty Reiver earlier this year and literally dozens of folk on cx/Gravel bikes had pinch flats on the first few fast descents, I just kept rolling tubeless 8)

OP, some of the Gravel bikes are aimed at the “faster” end of the market and are more suited to a bit of gravel and a bit of road riding (a couple you’ve mentioned), others are more out and out gravel bikes for off-road use (bigger tyres, 650b option), it’s a case of what you foresee yourself riding more of.
I find having a second set of wheels with road tyres on is invaluable to quickly switch to road-bike mode if I want, so maybe factor that in to your spend?

What bad stuff have you heard about the Arkose? Genuinely interested as a biased Arkose owner!

I reckon it’s one of the best VFM gravel bikes at the moment

A couple of reviews and forum comments I found seemed to think it was a bit dull to ride – definitely outweighed by the people that do like it, to be fair.

I found the Arkose to be dull and harsh on a test ride and it did not have enough niche for roadies to hate me so for that reason I was out!

What bad stuff have you heard about the Arkose? Genuinely interested as a biased Arkose owner!

I reckon it’s one of the best VFM gravel bikes at the moment

A couple of reviews and forum comments I found seemed to think it was a bit dull to ride – definitely outweighed by the people that do like it, to be fair.

I’ve got a 2016 Arkose 3.
I’ll agree that it is a but dull/harsh compared to my Giant Defy, but it is an excellent all-day cruiser (I rode it to Paris earlier this year) however I’ve not really ridden it off-road in anger.
Mine tends to get used as a tourer + winter/bad weather road bike.
I’m having some grief with the brakes at the moment (leaking/squealing Hydros) but that is nothing to do with the bike.

Another vote for the Slate although it sounds like you don’t want to spend quite that much. I am told that Cannondale wont be bringing the Slate into the UK this year so I guess that’s why many places have last years model with big discounts. I’m currently riding the CX1 and it’s absolutely superb.

Probably a bit over budget, but I’ve got an NS rag and it’s great on and off road. One of the nicest bikes I’ve owned. Just stuck some cowchippers on it and it can tackle a lot more off road than I thought it would.

Out of the ones you’ve listed I’d go for the Arkose. They seem to be great VFM and are well liked on here

kelron – Member
I feel like I’m jumping on the bandwagon here…

…it also doesn’t have as much room for wide tyres.

It’s not a bandwagon. It’s finally a bike for folk who want to enjoy the countryside as opposed to bikes aimed at the thrills spectrum.

Wide tyres are the essential. A low pressure compliant tyre is much nicer offroad than a thin high pressure one. Much more comfortable if you want to keep a bit of pace up. I regard 40mm as being a bit skimpy.

I believe that gravel bikes will ultimately evolve to take at least 2″ tyres so don’t skimp on this area.

There’s quite a few of us who have been running old style 29ers converted to road use for many years. Later models tend to be too slack in the HA.

I don’t bother with knobs on the tyres, I find 2″ smooth tyres just as good except for some limited occasions, and much faster on the road. (Use a knobby tyre on road for any distance and it becomes smooth anyway 🙂 )

We’re starting to see wide tyres with smooth centres and knobs on the edge, which is probably the perfect compromise.

The current gravel bikes beat having to convert a 29er apart from tyres being still a bit narrow.

Have you considered a Sonder Camino?

https://www.alpkit.com/sonder/bikes/sonder-camino-al-sram-apex1-mechanical

I have a Camino Ti but the Aluminum frame looks like cracking value. They start at £800.

In the ‘recommend what you own’ STW way….!
I’ve got a bottom of the range spesh sequoia and love it…..factor in upgrading the stock wheels later, as they’re not too hot, in my opinion.

Roadies get the hump when they wave to you, then regret it when they see your bike covered in mud :0)

The Camino looks nice. I’ll see about demoing one depending how I get on with the diverge and arkose.

Has anyone ridden a Giant Revolt? Decent spec for the price at the moment, big tyre clearance and I like the look of it.

Or buy my Genesis Vagabond 😉

We’re starting to see wide tyres with smooth centres and knobs on the edge, which is probably the perfect compromise.

When speccing my 26er MTB for rough-surface touring I used to use Schwalbe Hurricanes for this reason. Great volume and just enough tread on the edges to stop you sliding sideways on a trail/muddy descent

Too small for me 🙂

Is there a difference between a gravel bike and an adventure bike? I don’t know why but in my head an adventure bike is for long trips with luggage, so should be quite well built with a tons of mounting points for racks, mudguards, water bottles etc and should be a fairly comfortable ride.
A gravel bike is almost a CX bike, less focused, for blasts where mountain bikes are boring.

I think the term is interchangable. Pinnacle iirc don’t like using gravel as the UK doesn’t have that much of it.

Is there a difference between a gravel bike and an adventure bike?

My interpretation is thus;
-Gravel would mean tyre clearance for 40c as suggested and more relaxed geometry than a road bike, lower BB.
-Adventure would mean the above, maybe tyre clearance for up to 2″ tyres on 650b, loads of points for mounting bottle cages, etc., and perhaps even more relaxed geometry than a gravel bike for more stability when carrying luggage on rougher terrain.

I wince whenever (and it happens regularly) when someone asks about ‘gravel’ and/or ‘adventure’ bike and several people immediately recommend the cyclocross bike they have; they are designed for riding around a muddy field for a couple of hours on tyres around the 32c mark. I’ve gone from a CAADX to a Sequoia so am talking from experience though do acknowledge there is some overlap.

This is a timely thread, just came here to post the same question!

Just finished a 4 day trip on my old Kinesis Crosslight, lots of lanes, some sandy forest track, towpaths, old train lines etc. It was a bit much for the old girl, caught the chain giving way just before it snapped, snapped a(nother) spoke (which meant removing the cassette trailside) and cut my thin-ish tyres (self-sealed but there is a nice open wound).

I currently have 10 tabs open with various options…keep finding more and more bikes I didn’t know about, and a couple more on this thread I’ll be checking in a minute!

So far my favourite by far is the Arkose Alfine, only downer is I’d rather have it in a much brighter colour! The browsing seems to going along the ‘huh, no Alfine model…bugger, no frame only option’ line. (I have an Alfine 8 bodged into my full suss and I reckon its the way to go…)

Others (models around £1000 mark):
Giant Revolt – dare I say it…a tad ugly?
Specialized AWOL – cable discs even on the £1100 bike.
Genesis Day One Alfine – 3kg heavier than the Arkose!?! But does include mudguards…
Genesis Croix De Fer 10 – the expensive models have beautiful paint, this one is ‘alright’.
Alpkits Sonder Camina AL – pretty interesting…external cable routing is a shame (but only a niggle) Frame only so could build with an Alfine?
Norco Search A – nothing really sets it apart from the others
Planet X London Road – Nice colour…presumably not easy to get a test ride.
Charge Plug – only just stumbled across these…nice retro paint jobs 🙂
Ridgeback Panorama – nice but a bit porky (includes rack and guards) Over budget.
Ridgeback Ramble – same as the Panorama w/0 rack/guards but cheaper frame material/spec?
Bokeh – bike porn. Way over budget 🙁
Wilier Jareen – a tad over budget but beautiful in blue. Must take another look…anyone know if you can get a frame only?

CDF10 2018 is the prettiest in the line to my eyes. They look sooo much better in the flesh/paint….

Giant Revolt – dare I say it…a tad ugly?

Its gopping

Re use of gravel/adventure, they seem to be interchangeable most of the time when people describe these bikes. I’m not really looking for a long distance tourer.

Wheelbase have a Large in store I,m a large at 5ft 10 average build
Untitled by Richard Munro[/url], on Flickr

Yep – being able to differentiate gravel/adventure bikes from actual CX bikes has been a great idea.

Move somewhere more interesting and forget about all this skinny wheel, drop bar nonsense 😉

@spooky
I’ve had the norco for about a month now am really enjoying it. Saddle was awful though.
I’ve not hat any meaningful rides on anything else though to compare it against.