bkh020

In the market for first gravel bike. LBS has a leftover 2021 Giant Revolt Adv Pro 0 with some specs swapped out that they will sell for C$4,100 (orig C$6,500). Below are the changes:

GEARING
Spec: SRAM Force etap AXS 2x 30/43 crank w/ 10-36 cassette
Now. SRAM Force etap AXS 1x 38T w/ 10-36 cassette

WHEELS
Spec: Giant CXR-2 gravel wheels (25mm inner width) - 40mm tires
NOW: Giant SLR-1 road wheels (19.4mm inner width) - 45mm tires

Any concerns with SLR-1 wheels for gravel? They seem a bit skinny for wide tires at low PSI. To me the gearing also seems far less than ideal for graveling, as it is lacking at both ends.

Am I wrong to think it might cost me $2,000+ to get this thing changed back to proper gravel specs like XPLR or Eagle rear derailleur / cassette and gravel wheels? Some of that cost could be recovered by selling existing components. However, all things considered, this may not be worth the hassle, especially if those wheels are sub-optimal for gravel. Any views welcome! I’m a gravel novice!

bkh020

PS - the SLR-1 wheel set is 42mm depth (prob unnecessarily deep for gravel?)

Metieval

Gearing depends on your gravel. You might like that 1x

bkh020

Thanks! Will be a mix of tarmac (to get to non-tarmac), dirt trails, light gravel paths, mountain trails with some climbing, etc. Nothing too gnarly and not racing.

Any sense for whether the 19.4mm inner width road wheels will provide sufficient support and stability for a 40mm or wider gravel tire?

Koyote

I've run wider tires (44mm) on 19mm ID rims, and it works fine...But if I were buying a new gravel bike (or even just wheels) now, I'd be looking for rims with an ID of 24 or 25mm. Ask the shop to put something more appropriate on the bike.

SoSmellyAir

I think it ultimately depends on what other gravel bike you can buy in the range of about C$4,100?

That said, I think your intuition is absolutely right that the gearing is far from ideal for gravel. I am also a gravel novice, but I live in an area where some paved multi-use paths ("MUPs") have an adjacent gravel path, an ideal environment for comparing the gearing necessary for each surface. On the paved side, I get by just fine with 50/34 and 12-28, but on gravel, where I have 48/31 and 11-34, I find myself needing much lower gearing, and realize that almost all gravel bikes offer one or more < 1:1 gear ratios for a damn good reason. The more adventurous BF members have even larger MTB cassettes on their gravel bikes. You may get by on a 1x just fine, but you would likely need a larger cassette and a corresponding rear derailleur. Or, assuming that shifters have not also been swapped by your LBS, you may need to swap back to a 2x crank and (add) a front derailleur. Neither option should run C$2,000. However, I say this based solely on my knowledge of the exchange rate, but no knowledge of the Canadian bike component market, other than the fact that it seems that almost all consumer products cost more in Canada than just the exchange rate difference.

As for the wheels, I agree with Koyote; a 25 mm internal width is pretty much the de facto standard nowadays for rolling on 40 mm wide tires. Isn't sufficient clearance for running super wide tires the whole point of buying a gravel bike?

tFUnK

No experience with the bike, nor knowledge of your specific intended use cases, but my opinion is the rims are plenty wide for gravel tires, and the gearing should be low enough to suffer even the steepest stuff.

Caliwild

I don't think I'd do it personally, as it sounds like a hassle to get it to where you want it... Maybe ask if they'll swap out the wheels and give you credit towards a new wheelset?

black_box 

The 38/10 combination would have you pedaling at 90rpm at only 28mph or so. Maybe that's fine for your area if you're not going down hills, especially if you have another road bike, but it sounds low to me if you need a "do-it-all" bike. My cross bike came with 48/38 rings in front and I changed it to 46/36 later. I would not do a 38 ring up front as a single ring option.

Metieval

That thing is set up to be fast.

Another way too look at it is if 38 to 36 isn't low enough for you then you probably won't like the 38 to 10 either. So just swap it out for a 36t chain ring.

Bottom line, if you don't like the gearing, or the wheels. It's not a good buy!