XC/bikepacking hardtail options?

Hi all,

Looking to get a hardtail to replace my gravel bike – will mainly be used for riding around the Pentlands/Edinburgh area, and then bikepacking trips in the Highlands and hopefully further afield. Looking for:

• 29″ wheels, at least 2.4″
• 100-120mm fork
• Decent sized triangle for water/frame bag
• Cage bosses on down tube and seat tube – would also be nice to have them on top of top tube and underside of down tube, as well as rack mounts.
• Reasonably light
• Modern geometry (i.e. reasonably slack head angle, reasonably steep seat tube angle)
• Available on Cycle to Work (Cycle Solutions to be specific)

Current top of the list is the Sonder Broken Road Ti – I’m not hugely fussed by Ti but it’s a lot lighter than the steel version. Main detractors I can see are slack seat tube angle, and not the most exciting brand.

Other options I have looked at:

• Sonder Broken Road steel (heavy)
• Fairlight Holt (not available until April 25 at the earliest)
• Cotics (not available through Cycle Solutions)
• Pace RC429 (too expensive)
• Marin Pine Mountain (basic build spec, no frame-only option)
• Brother Big Bro (head angle too steep 70.5)
• Singular Swift Mk5 (head angle too steep 69)
• Surly Karate Monkey (designed for 140mm fork)
• Ritchey Ultra (looks interesting, don’t know much about it, not a bikepacking frame, head angle a little steep at 68.5?)

Have I missed anything interesting? Welcome any thoughts on my comments above too!

Thanks.

This is a question i too have been pondering

I’d say salsa timberjack should be on your list

On one whippet

In true STW recommend-what-you’ve-got style, try and get a test ride on a Broken Road Ti if you are near an Alpkit shop.

Had mine since 2020 and it’s my favourite bike. It is a great all-rounder and I use mine for trail riding, big xc days and bike packing.

Titus Silk Road?

Way outside of what I know, but folk seem to like the Pipedream S6 – https://www.pipedreamcycles.com/shop/sirius-s6-ti/

Coming in steel too – https://www.pipedreamcycles.com/shop/sirius-s6/

Scott Scale?

Love my solarismax, great uphill and rips downhill loving the techy stuff.

This is it in action up near Cape Wrath

I have a Scott Scale, great bike but small triangle if a frame bag is wanted.

riding around the Pentlands/Edinburgh area, and then bikepacking trips in the Highlands and hopefully further afield.

Back in the day (2001) I did almost that on a 100mm hardtail. Raleigh RSP, then a norco fireball then a cove stiffee.

I’d say any of the bikes you have listed would be ace.

Sonder Broken Road Ti – I’m not hugely fussed by Ti but it’s a lot lighter than the steel version. Main detractors I can see are slack seat tube angle, and not the most exciting brand.

Can you ram your seat forward to give a steeper effective angle? Only one of my bikes doesn’t have the seat all the way forward and that’s because it’s got a rigid fork that’s a bit shorter that the 130mm suspension fork it’s supposed to have.

Rack mounts over frame mounts. I toured with panniers and now I see they are making a comeback. Bike packing bags are better for balance, but panniers are easier to get on in one go with no faffing after taking stuff on and off.

I don’t get to bike pack often anymore. Last time was on my geometron – G13 (160/135mm) , time before on my on one hello Dave(160mm fork)

What about on one? Ti/ steel/ alloy options.

I commute on an on one vandal which was cheap and ticks some of you boxes. There’s is the Titius silk road which ticks more.

I’d suggest choosing one you like the look of, there will all be great in their own way.

On one aren’t a super exciting brand in my eyes, but both the bikes I’ve had from them are great and have geometry that fits me. I’d have a sonder over on one for the warranty on ti. I pretty much expect if my vandal breaks I’ll have to buy myself a new one. It was second hand but I’d assume that for a new one as well.

The new shape Trek procaliber

On one whippet

Mine does a good job.

Specialized Chisel

When I was looking into something for exactly that use (before I decided to go full suspension) I was looking for a Specialized Chisel hardtail.

Trek still do the 1120 as a frameset (much reduced in small). I’ve no idea how that fits.

Solarismax was my first thought when I saw the title.

While I’ve both a gravel bike and a HT I’m buying a drop-bar MTB to do what you’re looking at.

The gravel bike is miserable when loaded on rough tracks, especially descending and the HT is hard work if there’s any road mileage (or into the wind forever) to do.

I’m getting a Cotic Cascade but I guess those companies that do C2W will also do equivalent bikes.

I’ve got a Titus el Viajero which is my main/XC/bikepacking bike. Got it second hand as a frame only, and it rides really nicely, and takes 100-120mm forks (or rigid). Doesn’t have many mounts but that doesn’t matter much. For TT bag, tailfin ones have rubberised plastic feet and are as secure as a bolt on one. For a rear rack you can use an ortlieb quick rack with seatstay brackets, or the newer one that is due to come out that mounts to a special axle with studs. The frame has a decent triangle for a bag though, and if 68.5 HA is too steep for you then you could use a angle adjust headset…i’ve not felt the need. PX to C2W options, though not sure what the standard builds are like. EDIT – also has tons of tyre clearance, up to 2.6

Here’s mine rigid:

I love my on one scandal with a trek 1120 carbon fork for bike packing.

Not what you asked but it has to be said

‘Stooge’

@dove1 I was looking at the to broken road in the sonder shop a few weeks ago. It’s a lovely thing. How do you get on with the sliding drop outs? Do they ever give you any bother?

The guy i sit next at work had a Sonder Broken road in ti. All bike issues are dissected. He has never mentioned the drop outs and has been well looked after by Sonder

@damascus – never had any trouble with the sliding dropouts. They are held in place by 2 chunky bolts each side plus a horizontal, nut-locked hex bolt to stop them sliding forward.

I bought a Ritchey Ultra hardtail frame last year and really rate the way it rides and feels.  I’d quite happily use it for bikepacking.

Mason Raw looks pretty nice. I have a Solaris Max which, although great to ride, has some issues which mean it’ll be seeing the door. Namely the sh!tty external cable routing and lack of bottle bosses on the seat tube.

I’ll most likely be getting it copied by Travers with those problems eradicated.

Yeah, Mason Raw. Love mine 🙂

https://masoncycles.cc/shop/categories/raw-bikes

Thanks all!

Mason Raw is on the list, forgot to put it in my first post – looks great, but it is expensive compared to others, and Mason adds 12% fee for C2W (which most other stores don’t) which makes it even more expensive.

Titus Silk Road – if it didn’t have that funny top tube I’d be keen!

Ritchey Ultra does look good, but HA is a little steep, and only taking 29×2.4 tyre may be limiting?

Cotic Solaris – turns out I can get it through C2W, but slightly put off by lack of seat tube bottle cage bosses. Quite a few of the lower-slung hardtails don’t have this (e.g. Pipedream Sirius S6 which I’m also interested in) – not sure how big of a deal this is – I often ride with 2 bottles on my gravel bike, guess I could start riding with a hydration vest..?

mos – the lack of seat tube mounts obviously was an issue for you on your Solaris. What’s up with the cable mounting?

Such a shame the next drop of the Fairlight Holt isn’t until next April at the earliest as that seems to tick pretty much all the boxes..!

Solaris can take two bottles on the downtube. I prefer this- you can use just the lower one and fit a half frame bag or with both there’s still room for a small bag that would take pump, tools etc.

edit- that’s a medium SolarisMax. I think the new pipedream can do the same.

Also forgot to add, Cotic won’t get the latest version of the Sid Ultimate in which seems a bit odd to me.

The external cable routing is one of the minor things that made me buy a SolarisMax. The thing that will probably make me sell it is more that it’s a big quite heavy tank.

Cotic Solaris – turns out I can get it through C2W, but slightly put off by lack of seat tube bottle cage bosses. Quite a few of the lower-slung hardtails don’t have this (e.g. Pipedream Sirius S6 which I’m also interested in) – not sure how big of a deal this is – I often ride with 2 bottles on my gravel bike, guess I could start riding with a hydration vest..?

My Scandal didn’t come with a under-down tube bottle cage bolts so I just attached one using a pipe clamp – works fine.

@Duane the cable guides for the dropper are bolt on plastic things which fasten to the various bottle bosses on the down tube. I don’t much care for the way they look, they always shred bits of sponge when I’m washing my bike and I’ve scalped knuckles on them nearly as often as I do with chainrings. The gear and brake ones are the std zip tie compatible braze ones under the top tube. There aren’t enough of them to keep the cables neat on an XL frame. I just think internal routing is much nicer, especially on a frame at that price point. If they were £600 I could forgive it.

Would a -1.5 or -2 degree angleset open up any “too steep” options that are otherwise tempting?

In the spirit of recommending what you own – a shout for the Sirius S6. My one criticism is that the seat tube and curvy downtube do make the triangle smaller than some of the competition. but there’s mounts on the top of top tube, stays etc. All in, mine weighs 12kg (with some Hunt Proven XC… depending on luggage you may want something a bit beefier).

Bikepacking.com liked it too.

I think one can sometimes overthink this. I’ve just got back from 600km, largely off-road, up the West Coast then over to Aviemore. Scandal, 483mm AC rigid forks, lightweight 24 spoke wheels, 3400km on the drivetrain, taking more stuff than I usually do courtesy of a Quick Rack (due to a lack of frame mounts). It was all fine.

I’ve a Scandal, got a full-frame custom bag from Alpkit and will be getting one for my Cascade when it arrives.

Run it with this, a handlebar harness (& dry-bag) and a seatbag (with an internal dry-bag).

Big bottle slung underneath the downtube.

Mine has a Pike upfront.

@Intheborders

I’ve a Scandal, got a full-frame custom bag from Alpkit

Please can you post a picture?

I have a half frame bag and a bottle cage on the downtube with an adjuster to offset it lower (XL frame). I’m about to drill the frame (it’s out of warranty and cheap to replace it it fails) to put some more bottle cage mounts lower down as the bottle has damaged the bag.

I might put some mounts under the downtube for my repair kit that fits in a short bottle.

I have also been considering a full frame bag but I was concerned about side winds. Thanks