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Post by ChrisD on Apr 23, 2014 21:05:59 GMT
Just wondering if anyone else here owns a b'Twin Cyclo-X bike (or knows someone with one). I'm interested to compare experiences. I use mine as an all weather bike and something that allows me to ride mixed terrain, especially in and around the New Forest. It's great to be able to slip onto trails in the Forest and still feel free to cruise on the road. My other steed is a T3 red which is strictly for the road. I'd probably use the CX as a commuter too if I did't live so far from work (35 miles each way). Have cycled to and from work a couple of times last autumn since picking up the Cyclo-X, and may do so now and again this summer, but it's not really conducive to a hard day in the office!
With Shimano 105 CX compact chainset, 105 derailleurs and shifters and Mavic Aksiums on the CX bike as standard I guess my set up is the reverse of the conventional mix of cheaper/lower spec "winter bike"/commuter and higher spec road bike. My T3 has some upgrades (wheels, saddle, brake blocks) but the Cyclo-X is still easily the higher spec ride.
My only gripe with the Cyclo-X is that shifting up chainrings from the 36 to 46 on the CX compact chainset is hard going. I've had the cable snap once on me already. It's been repaired and adjusted by a good guy in my FLBS but still doesn't shift very well. Am thinking about a possible change to a standard compact 105 chainset at some stage and he suggested a better 105 front derailleur set up might be worth looking at too.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 24, 2014 0:54:29 GMT
Interesting reading - am sure I'd have gone for a CX bike if any were priced similarly to the Triban 3 bikes. Why they're so much more expensive, I've still to understand!
As it is, have fitted a cross-top brake lever to my 3A for that little bit more control, though am wondering how long I can get away with bumping up and down the occasional kerb, and jumping speedbumps. Even did some half-decent wheelies (gf "How do you do that?") recently but now scared to death to try having gone clipless.
Out of ignorance, why no 35 mile commute on the CX? Tyre profile? Weight?
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Post by ChrisD on Apr 24, 2014 7:34:35 GMT
Many thanks for the reply Carrington.
The spec on the Cyclo-X is much higher than the Triban 3 as it comes with the Mavic Aksium wheels and full Shimano 105 drivetrain straight from the factory, though the chainset is a special cyclocross version of 105 with 46/36 chainrings to give closer gear ratios for cyclocross racing I guess. I can see that the CX chainset is slightly cheaper than the standard 50/34 compact but there's not a lot in it. The frame is alloy with carbon front forks, as on the T3, but the geometry is slightly different, with a straight top tube for example. It's a well thought through bike, with the cables to rear mech and brakes running over the top of the top tube so that they don't snag if you pick the bike up to sling it over your shoulder, which happens all the time in cyclocross but isn't something I do a lot! It also has clipless pedals fitted as standard and dual brake levers for when you don't want to ride down on the drops or hoods. The dual levers are very clever and simply interrupt the cable run to the brakes so they give the same braking power as the main brake levers. Most folk who take a look at the bike when I'm stationary, and the guy in the friendly local bike shop that I mentioned in the original post, tend to say they think it is a very good bike for the price and I would definitely agree.
As for the commute, it's not the bike. The Cyclo-X allows me to keep off some nasty A-roads by taking the odd bike trail and to cruise over cattle grids, both things I think twice about doing with the T3. The issue is really the distance and time it takes to do the 70+ mile round trip each day. I have done multi day bike tours covering more than that distance each day while carrying gear on the bike, but the ride has been the main feature of the day's activity rather than simply the means to get to and from work. For much of the year I work till 9pm on a couple of days each week so getting home around midnight then only to jump back on the bike at 6am the next day and do it all again would be a challenge. At least I could afford to be a little less cautious about what I eat during the week! I'm hoping to cycle in at least one or two days each week through the summer. Just not sure when the summer will begin :-)
I'm not sure about pulling a wheelie at the best of times let alone with clipless pedals!
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Post by chas on Apr 24, 2014 10:18:34 GMT
I've noticed the very stiff front shifting on last years cx and looked at improving it (the year before were fine, and essentially the same). I found taking apart the pulley it made more sense to me to put it back in the mount the other way round so as not to be trapped when tightened. Hard to explain but have a look and you'll see what I mean, a bit of grease might help too. This didn't cure it completely but should help, if you're thinking of changing the front mech, a top pull one might improve matters further.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 24, 2014 12:22:22 GMT
Aah, yes... somehow overlooked the small matter of a 70 mile commute! Sometimes when reading things here, I get the impression that everyone cycles 100 miles a day!
See what you mean about the better spec of your bike - my query is why there isn't a budget-spec CX bike. Can't cost much to re-route cables, so one with just cheap wheels & running gear = Β£300, no? I'd have thought there'd be demand for it, though seeing as none exist, perhaps not...
Anyway, would love to have a ride on one at some point. Btwin CX on eBay at the mo, finishing today.
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Post by chas on Apr 24, 2014 12:42:08 GMT
I'm sure there is demand, many newcomers wanting the light weight and speed of a road bike are put off by the percieved inability to go offroad. It is possible with care on a road bike but a cx bike particularly if it has mudguard and rack mounts offers so many options from commuting or touring to racing. This years model will be a bit cheaper as it's moved from the 'competition' range to the 'sport' range and I've heard will come with disc mounts on the frame but not brakes yet. (yes it will have brakes, not disc brakes)
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Post by ChrisD on Apr 24, 2014 21:06:05 GMT
I've noticed the very stiff front shifting on last years cx and looked at improving it (the year before were fine, and essentially the same). I found taking apart the pulley it made more sense to me to put it back in the mount the other way round so as not to be trapped when tightened. Hard to explain but have a look and you'll see what I mean, a bit of grease might help too. This didn't cure it completely but should help, if you're thinking of changing the front mech, a top pull one might improve matters further. Thanks Chas, that's really useful advice. I'll have a look at that, although I think it got a good greasing when the able was replaced a couple of weeks ago. The pulley arrangement does seem odd. Did the previous year's model have the same arrangement? Seems like another potential mud/grime catcher to me, which is strange for a CX bike. The guy from the bike shop recommended a top pull front mech.
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Post by ChrisD on Apr 24, 2014 21:26:07 GMT
I'm sure there is demand, many newcomers wanting the light weight and speed of a road bike are put off by the percieved inability to go offroad. It is possible with care on a road bike but a cx bike particularly if it has mudguard and rack mounts offers so many options from commuting or touring to racing. This years model will be a bit cheaper as it's moved from the 'competition' range to the 'sport' range and I've heard will come with disc mounts on the frame but not brakes yet. (yes it will have brakes, not disc brakes) A mixed terrain ride was certainly the attraction for me, especially as other family members all have MTBs/hybrids and my previous bike was an old Dawes Galaxy tourer which I'd had for 20 years until the frame failed and my better half said she thought it was time for a new bike . The Galaxy could cope with some moderate off road miles. After picking up the T3 and realising I was going to struggle with anything other than road work, I remember walking into the Decathlon store in Southampton to look at accessories and thinking if only they did something like the Boardman CX bikes, and there was a Cyclo-X on display. One drawback for using the Cyclo-X bike as a commuter/tourer is the lack of rack/mudguard mounts at the back (there's a mount on the fork at the front). I've been looking at seat post mounted racks (such as the Topeak MTB system which I used on a multi-day bike tour last year) but the rack and the bag combo is expensive and has limited capacity, so I think I'll end up resorting to p-clips to mount a rear rack. I bought Raceblade long mudguards for my T3 but haven't fitted them yet as I'm a bit of a wimp on steep downhills and the thought of taking them on in the wet with 700x23 road tyres makes me shudder a little. Unfortunately the they're not wide enough to use on the Cyclo-X with the wider nobbly tyre. If the new model has a rear mounting point that will be a good addition.
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Post by chas on Apr 24, 2014 22:19:37 GMT
TBH I can't remember if the previous model had the pulley, but assume it did, they're common on cx bikes which have top pull cable runs to avoid the muck as road bike front mechs are bottom pull. MTB levers pull more cable for the front mech (rear are the same) but you can use a MTB mech if you attach the cable to the 'wrong' side of the mounting bolt reducing the leverage. (I've done this in the past modifying an old MTB for my son to race cx). For mounting a rear carrier I'd look at drilling and tapping holes above the dropouts, I'm sure there's enough 'meat' there and for the top mounts possibly an extra seat clamp around the post with a longer bolt and nut through it? I've done that with a seatclamp before, but on the cx the cable hanger may be in the way hence the extra one on top.
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Post by ChrisD on Apr 25, 2014 11:06:32 GMT
Thanks Chas. That's very welcome advice!
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