A nice update to the Road Rat

http://www.cotic.co.uk/product/roadrat#gallery

Like the new head tube and carbon fork

I like it but don’t like the price. Perhaps if it came with a basic headset (like genesis frame/fork bundles do) it would be more palatable but £500 and then need an extra £45 for a headset and need a roadie front brake caliper on top is too much for a commuter for me.

Back to shopping for second hand ones :(.

I remember when the original Roadrat was £200 or something – perfect as a ‘life bike’ for nipping to the shops on etc. I still have one and an under-the-radar bike I don’t mind leaving at the station for 10 hours a day its perfect. £500 for a frameset suddenly becomes something you’d feel more than a little bit precious about and your ‘life bike’ suddenly becomes something a bloody hipster would ride to a poncy bar to drink little cans of expensive beer.

…need a roadie front brake caliper on top is too much…

You just need an adaptor up front to run whatever calliper you want…. doesn’t need to be a flat mount calliper at all. You still need an adaptor/bracket if you go for a flat mount calliper by the way… so whatever the brake, just get the correct 160mm bracket.

12mm front axle… can I get an adapter for a 15mm DT 350?

I remember when the original Roadrat was £200 or something

£255, but that was over a decade ago, and the original Roadhog forks were “a little” heavier than these new ones.

I really like the look of them, but I can’t help feel those rear dropouts have to be a pain if you run mudguards

Don’t need one, still want one.

Whoever is responsible for the latest Cotic artwork deserves a medal. The swosh of the Roadrat tail under the top tube is neat, and the strong black from the front is very bold. And the new CYMK BFe is just awesome!

I’d have one, or an Escapade for my commute, but at 6’5″ I’m too lanky for the frame sizes they make 🙁

Lovely lovely thing that !

I’d like to know the weight if anyone has seen it and i’ve missed it.

You just need an adaptor up front to run whatever calliper you want..

Had missed you could do that :D.

I really like the look of them, but I can’t help feel those rear dropouts have to be a pain if you run mudguards

I prefer track ends with guards, with forward facing dropouts you end up having to run the guard a long way from the tyre at the front to get the wheel out, whereas the back of the guard just springs back.

OTOH given Cotic’s demographic (mountainbikers) most will probably want to run tubeless anyway so punctures should be a very rare occurrence.

I do like the look of it. However the price is prohibitive and as mentioned above not great for my 6’5″ height.

I like it.

I don’t like that only the singlespeed or 1×9 Sora come in under the £1000 C2W limit.

I saw this which reminded me I was thinking about an Escapade
I looked on their website and there’s only red xs in stock and no forward order option

So is there a new Escapade coming as well?

“So is there a new Escapade coming as well?”

You may very well think that but I could not possibly comment…………..

Wonder why they felt the need to put “carbon blades” on the forks. Ruins the otherwise totally clean aesthetic.

Pedantic, I know, but it’s akin to having TURBO written down the side of your car or something.

New Escapade coming in November. New colours! 😀

For a forum that lives Cotics so much (me included) I can’t seem to give the two I am selling away. Proper decent specs, modern standards. Their second hand value has been really disappointing.

Collection only won’t be helping ;D. You’d be better of splitting at least the bfe

Same with my Soul, it’s cheap enough (I think), 650b, on here and pinkbike, sod all genuine interest.

Road Rat looks nice but the rear drop out and price are right off putting. I also don’t really get a carbon fork on a hybrid, why?

Perhaps because it makes more sense on the escapade and if your developing it for one then using it for both will be more cost effective.

Dispite my earlier post I really want one.

Cotic really don’t like catering for the taller gent for some reason?
I really like them but there’s no way the large is anywhere near big enough for me

Looks like the stack height is better? And carbon forks are welcome. Is the head angle the same I wonder.

Am tempted because I love steel frames but at that price for chromoly feel like I need to think up more reasons to invest.

Really like these, I wonder if all my bits from my crosstrail will transfer across to a new frame, tyre clearance looks spot on, hydro discs, might be a on to a winner with this!

Lovely lovely paint job, I’ll take an aqua please. But I’m a bit underwhelmed. Got excited when I saw the words ‘new Roadrat’ and hoped it’d be the ideal replacement for my current Roadrat, but it’s not really changed significantly from my 7 year old one. Was hoping for more tyre clearance, longer wheelbase and reach, slightly slacker head angle and a tad more stack height.

Guess at 185cm on a large I’d benefit from something bigger/longer.

I don’t think I’m that unique in my use, but trying to find something to take 47m tyres with full length guards and no toe overlap, flat bars, discs, and lightweight is a never-ending search.

dragon – Member
Road Rat looks nice but the rear drop out and price are right off putting. I also don’t really get a carbon fork on a hybrid, why?

TBH dropouts aren’t an issue. I’ve always run discs and full-length SKS on mine and not overly difficult/faffy to remove wheel. Carbon fork perfect for some use, I swapped the original Roadhog fork on mine for a 25mm longer Exotic carbon and it drastically improved the comfort for my use (admittedly I do a fair bit of rough stuff on mine).

I don’t think I’m that unique in my use, but trying to find something to take 47m tyres with full length guards and no toe overlap, flat bars, discs, and lightweight is a never-ending search.

That’s basically what I’m after, though 42c not 47c adn I’m not so fussed about weight.

For a forum that lives Cotics so much (me included) I can’t seem to give the two I am selling away. Proper decent specs, modern standards. Their second hand value has been really disappointing.

Not in the market for one, but tbh if I was, I’d scroll past an ad with no pics, takes 2 minutes to add an image in there, and people shop with their eyes.

More like the market has moved on from Cotic, there was discussion on another thread about how their geometry was outdated. Is there much of 2nd hand market for old school geometry on a steel HT?

Although an old Cotic Soul frame might actually suit those looking for a flat bar commuter.

Don’t think the price is too bad. If you think a BFe frame is £350, then add a custom specced carbon bladed fork on top, it’s not unreasonable. (a full carbon TRP CX fork is £380 for comparison). Bikes are expensive these days. You can thank a variety of reasons for that, not least of which is the vote the other summer…

I think the fork was driven by a variety of things and a lot of it’s to do with the availability of aftermarket forks – plenty of people wanted to fit different forks, but getting straight steerer ones is getting more and more difficult, so then you end up sticking the tapered head tube on, at which point steel forks just don’t work aesthetically. There’s also the simple fact that the carbon one weighs a fraction of the post CEN steel one and rides SO much nicer… (yes I have tried both)

The dropouts are a non-issue. The missus has had an original ‘Rat for many years now – pre built-in mech hangers. In a purely urban environment (which is where the ‘Rat is mostly at home) there’s a good chance of it being run SS, and even with gears, it takes maybe 2 mins longer to remove and refit the wheel, and how many times a year do you actually do that?

As far as outdated geometry goes – have you seen the new BFe?? I had a crack on it over the weekend. It’s really quite sorted….

Is there much of 2nd hand market for old school geometry on a steel HT?

I think this is a key point. The other thread was partly mine, and whilst I enjoy my 26’er Soul, I do find the geometry, in comparison to my FS, a bit short and steep. However, although it’s a nice condition 4 yr old frame, with an XT groupset and Reverb etc, it’s probably only worth maybe £600 at best, so not worth punting.

dragon – Member
More like the market has moved on from Cotic

I guess, sadly, you might be right here. Earlier in the year I had my mk1 Solaris (very good spec) up for less than what most were going for at the time. I had it on 3 different forums and got 0 offers. In fact I think I had 1 question about it but nothing more.

I gave up and tweaked it some more and kept it.