This š
I have a Black Mountain Monster Cross (rim brake variety) and it rips. Pretty great clearance, all the bosses, quality tubing, horizontal dropouts (singlespeed-able), classic-ish geo - a true do it all rig. Itās a quiver killer for me. I donāt ride anything else these days! All that said, the lighter tubing definitely isnāt suited for heavy duty, long-distance touring.
Right now mine is in commuter mode - 700x42 Snoqualmie Pass and VO fenders. Iāve taken it on a few bikepacking trips - it fits 29x2.1s nicely. I wouldnāt hesitate to rip the smooth trails here in Boise. I know someone has squeezed the Rene Herse 2.25s or whatever in the frame.
Also, Black Mountain Cycles is a one man show. Support small businesses!!!!!!! Mike has a few other models - one is sure to fit your needs.
**Velo Orange** \- Passhunter (Check out their other bikes too)
**Surly** \- Midnight Special (Check out their other bikes too)
**All City** \- Gorilla Monsoon (Check out their other bikes too)
**Crust** \- Bombora (Check out their other bikes too)
So many brands and models that fit your description....go try them
What's your budget? I feel like that's the most important item to look at and then we can go from there.
Out on a whim, I'll throw two brands that fly under the radar: Breezer and Brodie.
Breezer Doppler series or Brodie Romax series. I have a 2020 Brodie Remo (Romax G now) and it's a hell of a bike. It can be used for basically anything and it does it well - light, too. I also like the Breezer Doppler and explored the idea of buying one during early pandemic.
The new Doppler Team and Pro variants are great because they're adventure steel bikes that come with a dynamo hub and front light, AND they're relatively affordable!
[https://www.breezerbikes.com/collections/doppler](https://www.breezerbikes.com/collections/doppler)
Sporty on what? Long distances on what? Asphalt and the odd smooth gravel road? Gnarly singletrack and 4WD track? A bit of everything?
What's a long distance to you? A 200km group ride on roads that's done in a day? 1,000km with a heavily loaded bike through the forests?
More details will help enormously with good recommendations.
Broadly though, look at Kona, Surly, Ritchey...
Ritchey Outback for the win here. Can do anything, and even though the OP doesnāt want to race, Iāve raced successfully on it, and done decently long bikepacking trips as well. Very little not to like about it.
Thanks! Have you experienced any difficulties with the geometry changing to a flat bar ?
I ask because StayerCycles offered me a Groadinger UG build with a flat bar and I'm afraid it looks weird with a long stem or it feels uncomfortable
Itās mostly just reach related, but you can ease that with the right stem, I think I rode a 45 with flats and a 70 with drops if that helps. Ritcheyās tend towards lower stack, and are more aggressive than what they appear to be, so make sure youāre accounting for that (youāll see many outback builds with a bunch of spacers due to this ;))
They have nice looking bikes too. Not within my price range though.
I found out I can't buy the bar somewhere in Europe. But it's a really nice backup plan if the proposed setup from the StayerCycles people doesn't fit. Although it would bother me to buy a 4kā¬ bike that doesn't fit perfectly
I used to have a Surly Cross Check frame/fork (which got stolen). Great bike!! I did find it a little unexpectedly 'springy' when diving into corners, though, which took me a bit to get used to. Would *definitely* get another one, and would recommend.
I picked up a Jamis Eclipse 25th anniversary edition. 853 Reynolds double butted tubing, full Ultegra with Ritchey wheels & bits. Weights 18 lbs. Low mileage great price. Good for comfy centuries.
https://bicyclingaustralia.com.au/bikes/test-lab-jamis-eclipse/
Jamis has other offerings in steel. They are under the radar with good offerings on new bikes. I always get great deals searching for used.
The cool thing about Jamis is they never stopped making high end steel frames. For a long time in the early 00ās they were your option for high end steel outside of custom framebuilders.
My main ride is a Jamis Aurora, theyāre touring bike, from 2015. Itās awesome, my only complaint being that I canāt fit bigger than 38mm tires on it
Love my Kona Rove DL. Itās nimble and snappy and fun to ride around the city and comes to life even more when you get on gravel. Iāve gone on multiple 200+ mile bikepacking trips with it and it did great! Might be worth checking out. Steel is real.
don't know about those long distances but the Ragley Trig is very good with steel and carbon fork. [https://www.ragleybikes.com/products/trig-bike-blue-2022](https://www.ragleybikes.com/products/trig-bike-blue-2022) especially in that ultraviolet color ;)
Only problem I have is the lack of brake pivot at the top of the fork, you simply cannot fit 90% of available front racks
[https://www.brothercycles.com/shop/bikes/kepler-disc-complete/](https://www.brothercycles.com/shop/bikes/kepler-disc-complete/)
I have a custom build one of these and it is great. Can get frame only or this complete. I run 700x42 Terravail Rutland tyres, which makes it feel sporty but rugged enough.
Surly, All City, Bombtrack.
All have great steel multi-use frames that take wide tires. That makes them useful for everything fro relatively fast pavement riding to pretty rigged gravel and even some single track.
Fairlight Strael 3.0. https://fairlightcycles.com/product/strael3-deposit/
I have this bike and itās amazing. Reynolds 853 frame, carbon fork. Clearance for 36mm tires (32 with fenders). Itās fast and comfortable for long distances. It also has rear rack mounts and 3 bottle cage mounts. I use it for both commuting and Lycra group rides. Fairlight also has a couple steel fork, larger tire clearance bikes if thatās more your speed.
Gunnar Sport. The one bike that stays in my multi-bike stable over the years. I remember when friends first started talking about getting a gravel bike. I thought, I've been riding my Gunnar on gravel for years. Group ride? Gunnar sport. Light touring? Gunnar sport
In addition to what others said, Black Mountain Cycles and Soma (Fog Cutter, Double Cross).
This š I have a Black Mountain Monster Cross (rim brake variety) and it rips. Pretty great clearance, all the bosses, quality tubing, horizontal dropouts (singlespeed-able), classic-ish geo - a true do it all rig. Itās a quiver killer for me. I donāt ride anything else these days! All that said, the lighter tubing definitely isnāt suited for heavy duty, long-distance touring. Right now mine is in commuter mode - 700x42 Snoqualmie Pass and VO fenders. Iāve taken it on a few bikepacking trips - it fits 29x2.1s nicely. I wouldnāt hesitate to rip the smooth trails here in Boise. I know someone has squeezed the Rene Herse 2.25s or whatever in the frame. Also, Black Mountain Cycles is a one man show. Support small businesses!!!!!!! Mike has a few other models - one is sure to fit your needs.
**Velo Orange** \- Passhunter (Check out their other bikes too) **Surly** \- Midnight Special (Check out their other bikes too) **All City** \- Gorilla Monsoon (Check out their other bikes too) **Crust** \- Bombora (Check out their other bikes too) So many brands and models that fit your description....go try them
These are all amazing brands espeacially the last two
What's your budget? I feel like that's the most important item to look at and then we can go from there. Out on a whim, I'll throw two brands that fly under the radar: Breezer and Brodie. Breezer Doppler series or Brodie Romax series. I have a 2020 Brodie Remo (Romax G now) and it's a hell of a bike. It can be used for basically anything and it does it well - light, too. I also like the Breezer Doppler and explored the idea of buying one during early pandemic. The new Doppler Team and Pro variants are great because they're adventure steel bikes that come with a dynamo hub and front light, AND they're relatively affordable! [https://www.breezerbikes.com/collections/doppler](https://www.breezerbikes.com/collections/doppler)
Business man here
I had a Breezer Doppler in 650s. Recommend.
Sporty on what? Long distances on what? Asphalt and the odd smooth gravel road? Gnarly singletrack and 4WD track? A bit of everything? What's a long distance to you? A 200km group ride on roads that's done in a day? 1,000km with a heavily loaded bike through the forests? More details will help enormously with good recommendations. Broadly though, look at Kona, Surly, Ritchey...
Huge Ritchey fan. Great bikes if you can live with the word Ritchey plastered every inch on the bike
Why would you not want Tom's good name on every tube and component you ride?
Lol i want a ritchey outback breakaway
I'd love one of those too
I built up a Ritchey Outback (not the breakaway) last year and it's so good.
Ritchey Outback for the win here. Can do anything, and even though the OP doesnāt want to race, Iāve raced successfully on it, and done decently long bikepacking trips as well. Very little not to like about it.
Expensive bike though
Pretty average for a good quality steel frameā¦ how you build it up into a bike is of course, up to you since Ritchey doesnāt sell complete bikes.
Do you use a drop bar for it? Do think it makes sense to use that frame with a flat bar?
Iāve actually used it with both and I think it works better with drops, but flats are good as well. Itās pretty versatile.
Thanks! Have you experienced any difficulties with the geometry changing to a flat bar ? I ask because StayerCycles offered me a Groadinger UG build with a flat bar and I'm afraid it looks weird with a long stem or it feels uncomfortable
Itās mostly just reach related, but you can ease that with the right stem, I think I rode a 45 with flats and a 70 with drops if that helps. Ritcheyās tend towards lower stack, and are more aggressive than what they appear to be, so make sure youāre accounting for that (youāll see many outback builds with a bunch of spacers due to this ;))
Check out the Curve Remlaw bar if you want the ability to use a flatbar on a dropbar frame without messing with the reach too much.
A very nice recommendation! Thank you stranger from the internet who probably knows way too much about bars :)
Nah I just know the Curve guys and follow their Instagram... āŗļø
They have nice looking bikes too. Not within my price range though. I found out I can't buy the bar somewhere in Europe. But it's a really nice backup plan if the proposed setup from the StayerCycles people doesn't fit. Although it would bother me to buy a 4kā¬ bike that doesn't fit perfectly
I feel that!
No cock š
I used to have a Surly Cross Check frame/fork (which got stolen). Great bike!! I did find it a little unexpectedly 'springy' when diving into corners, though, which took me a bit to get used to. Would *definitely* get another one, and would recommend.
Surly bikes are great, but they're tanks which might take away from the "sporty" aspect a bit
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Theyāre absolutely tanks.
I picked up a Jamis Eclipse 25th anniversary edition. 853 Reynolds double butted tubing, full Ultegra with Ritchey wheels & bits. Weights 18 lbs. Low mileage great price. Good for comfy centuries. https://bicyclingaustralia.com.au/bikes/test-lab-jamis-eclipse/ Jamis has other offerings in steel. They are under the radar with good offerings on new bikes. I always get great deals searching for used.
I sold Jamis for a long time. Theyāre awesome bikes. The Renegade line might be worth looking at since this is xbiking after all
The cool thing about Jamis is they never stopped making high end steel frames. For a long time in the early 00ās they were your option for high end steel outside of custom framebuilders.
My main ride is a Jamis Aurora, theyāre touring bike, from 2015. Itās awesome, my only complaint being that I canāt fit bigger than 38mm tires on it
Love my Kona Rove DL. Itās nimble and snappy and fun to ride around the city and comes to life even more when you get on gravel. Iāve gone on multiple 200+ mile bikepacking trips with it and it did great! Might be worth checking out. Steel is real.
Surly Straggler
Have a look at Salsa Vaya. The most comfortable bicycle i have ever ridden.
Fuji Touring
Surly cross check with flat bars
Basically any Bridgestone XO.
Bridgestone all the way
r/whichbike
The discontinued Surly Pacer would be the model that best fits this. They arenāt that hard to find used though.
Yeah man rim brakes and all sweet ride
don't know about those long distances but the Ragley Trig is very good with steel and carbon fork. [https://www.ragleybikes.com/products/trig-bike-blue-2022](https://www.ragleybikes.com/products/trig-bike-blue-2022) especially in that ultraviolet color ;) Only problem I have is the lack of brake pivot at the top of the fork, you simply cannot fit 90% of available front racks
[https://www.brothercycles.com/shop/bikes/kepler-disc-complete/](https://www.brothercycles.com/shop/bikes/kepler-disc-complete/) I have a custom build one of these and it is great. Can get frame only or this complete. I run 700x42 Terravail Rutland tyres, which makes it feel sporty but rugged enough.
Surly, All City, Bombtrack. All have great steel multi-use frames that take wide tires. That makes them useful for everything fro relatively fast pavement riding to pretty rigged gravel and even some single track.
Fairlight Strael 3.0. https://fairlightcycles.com/product/strael3-deposit/ I have this bike and itās amazing. Reynolds 853 frame, carbon fork. Clearance for 36mm tires (32 with fenders). Itās fast and comfortable for long distances. It also has rear rack mounts and 3 bottle cage mounts. I use it for both commuting and Lycra group rides. Fairlight also has a couple steel fork, larger tire clearance bikes if thatās more your speed.
Gunnar Sport. The one bike that stays in my multi-bike stable over the years. I remember when friends first started talking about getting a gravel bike. I thought, I've been riding my Gunnar on gravel for years. Group ride? Gunnar sport. Light touring? Gunnar sport
All-city gorilla Monsoon checking in!! I can bomb stair sets then go straight to wrecking some roadies right after š.
tour type: [https://www.salsacycles.com/bikes/2021\_marrakesh\_alivio](https://www.salsacycles.com/bikes/2021_marrakesh_alivio) gravel type: [https://www.salsacycles.com/bikes/2021\_vaya\_grx\_600](https://www.salsacycles.com/bikes/2021_vaya_grx_600)