Crikey. I think you’re approaching commuting in London with an attitude completely incompatible with longevity. Dicing with buses and racing other riders is going to get you hurt.

Also hate gatorskins. Abandoned them after about 3 weeks due to 3 punctures, lack of grip in the wet and poor feel. Maybe I was unlucky, but I’ve used 28mm GP4Seasons for about 9,000-10,000kms, no punctures, no issues with grip.

I just switched to Schwalbe One Tubeless last week, and while I can’t comment on the puncture protection (I’ve done about 100km so far), I love the feel and grip improvements from running lower pressures.

I had a Kaffenback, did about 6000km on it. I liked the geometry on the Kaff, but the frameset was oppressively heavy (over 12.5Kg, without guards) and flexed a lot when loaded, which made the handling nervy. I hear the Kaff2 is better in both regards, though.

Switched to a Cotic Escapade last year and 1500km later I’m very happy with it. I transferred the parts from the Kaff to the Escapade and it weighed ~11Kg. I’ve had it fully loaded with a rack on the back and guards, and it felt significantly stiffer, it didn’t flex under load like the Kaff did. Has massive clearance for big tires. The head tube is taller, but I fixed that with a long inverted stem. I like the compact geometry too, makes sense for commuting and off-roading.

Agreed on mudguards. Hate having them on, but they make wet weather rideable.

Waterproof socks are bollocks, every time I’ve worn them commuting or riding my MTB I’ve ended up wearing what is essentially a bag of water around my feet.

Waterproof Overshoes. They keep your feet warm and dry, and they’re only £25.

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/endura-road-overshoe/rp-prod91160

LBBSST – it’s an awesome bike. I love mine in it’s fast commuter/long sunday ride guise with 28c gatorskins.

It’s got big tyre clearance, but not sure if it’ll handle 40c plus – best bet is to mail Cy at Cotic, he’ll let you know.

Brant – original

I built up my Escapade last week, transferring all the parts over from my Kaffenback. I bloody love it! Worlds apart from the kaffenback in handling terms, and a bit lighter too.

I was worried about the 9mm thru-axle too, but it turns out that you can put a standard hub in by holding the fork legs apart slightly. The hub axle collar will just go into the holes. I use the QR stalk to keep the wheel in. I’ll put up a picture later.

My wheels are XT hubs on DTSwiss RR415 rims. I don’t know what the weight is exactly, but I calculated when I built them that they would be about the same weight as the Kinesis CX wheel set that they had out at the time (2 years ago now). I’ve done 4000km on them, and serviced them once. TBH I’m considering getting a new set in the coming months, so interested to see what you go for!

Slimjim, looks very nice :) How does it handle with the Alfine? Currently thinking about this vs a Day One. Part of that equation for me is should I go Afline or derailleur.

I think I’m out, my rib is still not good :( So annoyed.

If I had that amount of money to spend on a road bike I think I’d get a Trek Domane. If it’s good enough for Cancellara..

Beer is helping :)

Gah. Sleeping is painful, driving/changing gear is painful, pootling on the commuter is painful. Even bloody laughing is painful!

Guess I need to rest up. And the weather’s been so good! At least I didn’t break my collarbone :)

I’m in, assuming my ribs stop hurting after coming off at Swinley on sunday. I’ll be tackling the 50km route on my 1×10 Kona 2+2.

It’s my 1st ever mtb event, so I can’t wait :)

when does this bike get out of its depth?

When the terrain gets too rough for it.

I have a 2+2. I got it about 6 months ago, I couldn’t find better value at the time, and it suited my riding style.

I’m happier with XC, climbing and tackling nice flowy single track than I am going hard at downhill sections, and this bike really suits that kind of riding. I’m doing the Bucks Off-road Sportive with it in a couple of weeks, I think it should be pretty good for a long day in the saddle.

Here’s mine:

Here’s a quick brain dump

Good Stuff:
* It climbs super well. Feels really solid when climbing tech stuff or fire road. It doesn’t really feel like it’s moving at the rear at all when climbing.
* Descending and rough terrain activates the rear. It’s a very active ride, not floaty. Maybe it’s the way I have it set up, but it’s not plush at all, so don’t expect to floating over obstacles like on an AM bike. But it takes the sting out of the trail, and you get really good traction through the rough stuff.

Stuff I changed:
* The ardents it comes with are not suitable for UK trails. I put nobby nics on it over winter and was much better. I don’t think the ardents are going to be much good for summer either so looking for summer options.
* I hate the Elixir 5s with a passion. SUPER hard to set up. Once you do get them set up it takes about 5 mins for them to get clogged up with shit. Swapped them for the cheap Deores from CRC a few months back and they’re much better for setup, not as good for stopping power.
* 1×10 is no problem at all. Bike feels better without all that extra shit up front :)
* It didn’t come with a QR seat clamp
* Upgraded to wider riser bars

Stuff I want to change:
* Will eventually swap the seat/seatpost/stem for lighter stuff
* Short cage clutch mech at the back
* XT brakes

Bad stuff:
* Setting up the rear shock is hard as it only really activates properly when you’re riding it through tricky stuff. So you have to take a shock pump out on the trail and noodle with it
* Tape up the headtube, the hoses and cables have worn-off the paint in a couple of spots.

OR the front wheel is just closer to the camera.

one of your wheels is the wrong size.

20 mins including tea break? Any longer and your LBS is taking the piss

Merino base layers are awesome, are warm in winter, cool in summer, dry quick and don’t smell so much. Use one of them :)

Was talking to Dom from Genesis at the bike show today – the prototype bike is bloody lovely. I talked to him just as he was just putting the bike on the display having commuted to the show on it!

Moda have a similar 953 framed bike retailing for £2k, weights in at about 16lb, which is about par with carbon and ti at that price. Can’t wait to see some MTBs built with those tubes.

Just got home from it. Still stunned after seeing the £15k pino dogma 8O

Effort and weight aside, no-one’s mentioned gearing?

On my Kaffenback I run a 53-39 double and a 12-26 block to make my relatively flat commute harder up the hills to improve my fitness. If I switched to a compact/triple and a bigger block it’d be less painful.

I read somewhere that Wiggo runs a lower MTB block on his TdF climbing bikes.

Leftygirl – I actually didn’t ride there through December because I felt like the trail was getting destroyed, so I’m actually glad you’ve decided to close it for repairs.

I’ll be there in feb!

Boris, when’s the next building day? I’d like to help out. I’ve been riding there very regularly recently, so i’d like to give back.

xcwanabe – disagree – I just got glass in my specialized armadillos, resulting in a 5km walk and a nice ride on the train tomorrow. Bollocks.

Can anyone recommend some good 700×23 tyres for commuting? Schwalbe Marathons? Continentals?

I’m not quite sure how much of an issue the toe overlap is until I’ve cycled in heavy traffic. It’s already bugging me though.

And heels – I adjusted my cleats so my heels point out slightly, but that just exacerbated the toe overlap :)

Does anyone have experience of the Cotic X/ Surly DT?

Drops or bullhorns are going make climbing easier. Try it out!

Also, pedal harder :)

Thanks for the links Ned and Woody, that’s made my mind up! Will post pics when I get the thing built.

Anyone got recommendations for good guards for Kaffs? Would like to keep the weight down if poss.

Mos, how are you getting on with the single chain ring up front? About to start building a Kaff and would like to avoid the front mech. Horrible brutal things!

You’ll need to have the brakes and shifters right in the middle of the bar up against the stem. I’ve done that on a single speed bike with bullhorns and bmx type brakes but switched back to drop bars and normal road bike levers because I didn’t like the lack of control with my hands so close to the stem.

XC4s might be a bit overkill for road use though :)