Spending, say, a grand, on a bike to ride, in order to have less bikes.

[rwm1962]

Last week I succumbed to a old stock bargain from the bike shop I used to work at for a while Further reduced. A Pinnacle Arkose X. 1x11 SRAM Rival 1 group set, very flared drop woodchipper bars, 650B wheels with 47mm tyres. The plan is for this just to be the commuter. My route is mostly gravel & cycle path so should be ideal. I'm planning on reducing the retro fleet over the coming years but will be keeping my favourites for leisure rides.

 

[Captain Stupido]

Nice. Just been looking at Pinnacle Arkoses, coincidentally.

Currently entry level for hydraulic brakes is £1200. Appealing, but the Planet X looks better value to me.

https://www.evanscycles.com/brand/pinnacle/arkose-3-2021-gravel-bike-915761#colcode=91576102

 

[Takingabreak]

Must admit, I quite like the offerings from Marin
https://www.bikester.co.uk/marin-fo...e23632e3db70d8ee:G:s&campaign_detail=shopping

 

[rwm1962]

Currently entry level for hydraulic brakes is £1200. Appealing, but the Planet X looks better value to me.

Most definitely. As the X was off-web old stock they were heavily discounted plus I got an ex-colleagues staff discount.

 

[brocklanders023]

If it were me I'd certainly be leaning towards the black London road as all bases are covered and it should want for nothing really. The Rival kit is decent and should last, unlike the Apex or cheaper Shimano stuff and hydro brakes are ace!

No reason why it couldn't replace a road bike as from my experience gravel bikes are not much slower, especially if you aren't a proper roadie. I sold my carbon road bike after getting the Trig. They are decent enough off road to a point too, with wider bars and better brakes making a lot of difference. I don't think there's any such thing as a complete all rounder but the gravel bikes cover plenty of bases.

 

[CassidyAce]

Must admit, I quite like the offerings from Marin
https://www.bikester.co.uk/marin-fo...e23632e3db70d8ee:G:s&campaign_detail=shopping

Me too. The DSX2 in my case, but it's brown! Don't know what they were thinking. But compared with Specialized's Diverge Evo, it looks more suited for roads and paths and less like a fully rigid modern MTB. A damn sight cheaper too, although it sounds like Spesh put more effort into the ride quality of the frame.

@rwm1962 Don't those bars put your wrists at an awkward angle when braking or are they OK in practice?

 

[rwm1962]

@CassidyAce I'll let you know! Hopefully be putting some miles in on it very soon. Prior to buying it they felt more natural than regular drops.

 

[Captain Stupido]

Me too. The DSX2 in my case, but it's brown! Don't know what they were thinking. But compared with Specialized's Diverge Evo, it looks more suited for roads and paths and less like a fully rigid modern MTB. A damn sight cheaper too, although it sounds like Spesh put more effort into the ride quality of the frame.

They are very appealing, and available.

https://www.biketart.com/bikes-c1/g...term=4579122336920078&utm_content=Ad group #1

 

[CassidyAce]

They are very appealing, and available.

https://www.biketart.com/bikes-c1/g...term=4579122336920078&utm_content=Ad group #1

That's not far down the road from me but I'm hoping Marin release a 2023 model in a different colour. I've seen a guy commuting on a DSX2 locally and, sadly, the marketing photos do full justice to the brown. It just puts me off. I like the colour of the DSX1 more, but the spec of the DSX2 makes it a better buy IMHO.

 

[Captain Stupido]

Have been fighting the urge to buy this:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Boardman...d-Bike-Medium-B0108-BM17ASR88MD-/393333912836
Looks a very sensible option, and affordable enough to be worth upgrades/tweaks, but ultimately if I don't love it, I won't keep it, and with a new bike that means losing money...

With this:

I'd go a nice new set of wheels, some Shimano 10spd and some dual calipers but keep the chainset

At this stage I've weirdly come back to this and am actually leaning towards LGF's idea of 700c wheels and modern long drop dual pivots, although I'd probably go for retro 7 speed gearing and use parts I have lying about. It's a lovely, light frame, equivalent quality new is out of reach... and at the end of the day a nice frame is usually a good starting point...