Has anyone built a Gravel bike using a retro frame
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Captain Stupido
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I agree, it's a challenge to get a comfortable riding position with drops on an MTB. My attempts predate the whole gravel bike thing - I was aiming for an "expedition" bike. Really a 26" wheeled tourer. For me this sort of bike really should have a relatively upright position - top of the bars level with the saddle, if you want to go "aero" then that's what the drops are for!
Here's my first attempt - a late 80s Raleigh Ozark which turned out alright - it racked up some miles, and did a coast to coast tour over mixed surfaces (sustrans route) but which was never a fast feeling bike.
The second was based around a mid-90s rockhopper. To get a comfortable postition resulted in a fairly ugly bike. It was successful in that it was an incredibly comfy bike as set up, but maybe with hindsight a bit too upright to be efficient. Again it never felt fast on the road. It never really left London to be honest so I can't say how useful it was as an expedition/gravel type of thing - but it certainly took a load with ease and worked as practical transport.
I think I'd agree that the earlier bike was a better candidate. Also you maybe want a taller frame than you'd want for an XC bike?
To be honest this thread is just making me want to go out and buy an expensive modern gravel bike. My feeling is that 26" wheels just aren't as fast feeling on the road - there's a momentum thing with a larger wheel - it just feels less effort to maintain high speeds. I absolutely love 27" wheeled bikes in this respect - IMO it's better still for slogging over distances...Now there's a retro comeback waiting to happen! I'm not convinced that tyre circumference does the same job either. As it stands I have big baloony 26" x 1.95" City Jet tyres on my Dawes (which is my shopping/commuting bike) - they still feel like 26" wheels. Quite nippy but not fast.
Yeah, after years of trying to build a retro gravel bike (and not knowing it) I think I want to try a modern gravel bike. Disc brakes would be nice. And proper road size wheels. But if I wanted to build a "retro" gravel bike I think I'd start with a touring frame or a retro hybrid so I can use bigger wheels. As I said before, I reckon the gravel bike is really a more luxurious, drop bar equipped reinvention of the hybrid if anything.
One other thing to add is that I personally found drop bars to be a bit hopeless off road...
xerxes":4h1w0hjk said:
hamster":4h1w0hjk said:
I agree, it's a challenge to get a comfortable riding position with drops on an MTB. My attempts predate the whole gravel bike thing - I was aiming for an "expedition" bike. Really a 26" wheeled tourer. For me this sort of bike really should have a relatively upright position - top of the bars level with the saddle, if you want to go "aero" then that's what the drops are for!
Here's my first attempt - a late 80s Raleigh Ozark which turned out alright - it racked up some miles, and did a coast to coast tour over mixed surfaces (sustrans route) but which was never a fast feeling bike.
The second was based around a mid-90s rockhopper. To get a comfortable postition resulted in a fairly ugly bike. It was successful in that it was an incredibly comfy bike as set up, but maybe with hindsight a bit too upright to be efficient. Again it never felt fast on the road. It never really left London to be honest so I can't say how useful it was as an expedition/gravel type of thing - but it certainly took a load with ease and worked as practical transport.
I think I'd agree that the earlier bike was a better candidate. Also you maybe want a taller frame than you'd want for an XC bike?
To be honest this thread is just making me want to go out and buy an expensive modern gravel bike. My feeling is that 26" wheels just aren't as fast feeling on the road - there's a momentum thing with a larger wheel - it just feels less effort to maintain high speeds. I absolutely love 27" wheeled bikes in this respect - IMO it's better still for slogging over distances...Now there's a retro comeback waiting to happen! I'm not convinced that tyre circumference does the same job either. As it stands I have big baloony 26" x 1.95" City Jet tyres on my Dawes (which is my shopping/commuting bike) - they still feel like 26" wheels. Quite nippy but not fast.
Yeah, after years of trying to build a retro gravel bike (and not knowing it) I think I want to try a modern gravel bike. Disc brakes would be nice. And proper road size wheels. But if I wanted to build a "retro" gravel bike I think I'd start with a touring frame or a retro hybrid so I can use bigger wheels. As I said before, I reckon the gravel bike is really a more luxurious, drop bar equipped reinvention of the hybrid if anything.
One other thing to add is that I personally found drop bars to be a bit hopeless off road...
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I think that is another difference between a modern gravel bike frame and some of the 90s MTBs. Some 90s MTBs had quite steep head angles and quick steering, whereas some of the gravel bikes have quite slack head angles and plenty of fork trail, to make the steering more stable off-road, the larger wheels may also help in this respect. In addition, a lot of gravel bikes have wider bars with flared drops.
There's a lot of variation amongst gravel bikes though, some are more at the touring end of the spectrum with loads of mounts for bottle cages and racks, whilst others are more like fat tyred road race bikes.
I think that is another difference between a modern gravel bike frame and some of the 90s MTBs. Some 90s MTBs had quite steep head angles and quick steering, whereas some of the gravel bikes have quite slack head angles and plenty of fork trail, to make the steering more stable off-road, the larger wheels may also help in this respect. In addition, a lot of gravel bikes have wider bars with flared drops.
There's a lot of variation amongst gravel bikes though, some are more at the touring end of the spectrum with loads of mounts for bottle cages and racks, whilst others are more like fat tyred road race bikes.
bjellys":1k1hki92 said:
Here is my attempt, unsure if gravel bike is the term, not really sure how drop bar mtbs were refereed to here in the UK, my Specialized Rockcombo was my only foray into Drop bar MTBs bitd and i quickly swapped it out for straight bars.
Im finally getting there with this one, i needed a different reach stem to get the gear lever reach right for me, now thats been sourced and tried out, i just need to find the time to refinish the stem.
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I know BITD, the Americans called them Dirt-drops, whilst anything we had with bigger wheels was either a Hybrid or a Cyclocross bike.
If not for people like Jacquie Phelan and John Tomac, would we ever have seen widespread use of drop bars on mountian bikes here bitd....?
If not for people like Jacquie Phelan and John Tomac, would we ever have seen widespread use of drop bars on mountian bikes here bitd....?
WandsworthRouleur
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Worked for Graham Obree and Chris Boardman!hamster":3ip0unld said:
xxnick1975
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This is the ‘dale I have - this ones small but very cheap currently, and a lot of bike for the cash
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Cannondale-C ... SwB8xdILw6
This is the ‘dale I have - this ones small but very cheap currently, and a lot of bike for the cash
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Cannondale-C ... SwB8xdILw6
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secret_squirrel
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On a similar note Cannondale's slate is great for winding up roadies, especially the up tight ones in high end shops who refuse to sell you a bike without a bike fit. Just lead them on with a bit of Pinarello or Bianchi browsing, then serve them the whammy by asking for 'that cannondale roadbike with suspension'. :twisted: The fact that its singled side too just winds them up more.
Cannondale seem determined to reinvent the early 90's suspension bike now they have both a 30mm FS (the slate)and 30mm RS (the topstone) but oddly not both together.
If I had a bit more time I would drop bar my Manitou System FS just to show them how it's done!
xxnick1975":22v3suxk said:
On a similar note Cannondale's slate is great for winding up roadies, especially the up tight ones in high end shops who refuse to sell you a bike without a bike fit. Just lead them on with a bit of Pinarello or Bianchi browsing, then serve them the whammy by asking for 'that cannondale roadbike with suspension'. :twisted: The fact that its singled side too just winds them up more.
Cannondale seem determined to reinvent the early 90's suspension bike now they have both a 30mm FS (the slate)and 30mm RS (the topstone) but oddly not both together.
If I had a bit more time I would drop bar my Manitou System FS just to show them how it's done!
When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
