Help me decide which bike
#1
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Help me decide which bike
Hello all. I am new to the forum and will be purchasing a gravel/cross bike within the week or so. I think I have it narrowed down to a top 2 or 3. I call upon the experienced field members here for comments and suggestions. I grew up on BMX and went to a GIANT hard tail MTB. I live in Colorado between Boulder and Denver. This next bike will serve as a short commuter and a weekend fun camping bike with a possibility of competing in a race for fun. I have decided to def go with a 1X setup. Spending no more than $2,000 I am unable to post the links because I havnt posted enough on here. The bikes I am currently leaning towards is the JAMIS Nova Pro($1899). The CANYON Grail AL 7.0 SL($1899). and The GIANT TCX Advanced($2000). 2 of the bikes have the exact same drive train and components of SRAM APEX 1. The CANYON having the SRAM Rival 1. The only one I was able to test ride was the GIANT. Thank you again for any suggestions. All will be considered.
#2
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I have the TCX and I love it. The Grail might not be as harsh of a ride than the TCX. To me the TCX is very quick handling, which is why I like it so much. I don't know anything about the Jamis Nova Pro. There are a few Grail riders on here I'm sure they have great info. The AL Rival Grail looks awesome.
TCX can take 700x45c tires. I don't know what the others max tire size is.
TCX can take 700x45c tires. I don't know what the others max tire size is.
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yeah, they were in stock when I was doing the research on bikes. They are out of stock in my size now unfortunately. Signs seem to keep pointing me to the GIANT. I will try to be patient and see what happens.
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Its not quite as aggressive as the Carbon Inflite, maybe moderately more aggressive than the Al Grail. As I recall, the biggest difference (between AL Grail and inflite) was tire clearance. Might want to check what that is on the AL Inflite these days. I think it may be 35mm? The grail would probably take 40mm.
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Yeah, that was their goto bike to "serve as a short commuter and a weekend fun camping bike with a possibility of competing in a race for fun"
Its not quite as aggressive as the Carbon Inflite, maybe moderately more aggressive than the Al Grail. As I recall, the biggest difference (between AL Grail and inflite) was tire clearance. Might want to check what that is on the AL Inflite these days. I think it may be 35mm? The grail would probably take 40mm.
Its not quite as aggressive as the Carbon Inflite, maybe moderately more aggressive than the Al Grail. As I recall, the biggest difference (between AL Grail and inflite) was tire clearance. Might want to check what that is on the AL Inflite these days. I think it may be 35mm? The grail would probably take 40mm.
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Congrats! Hope you will love it. Set the tires up tubeless and it should be fine. I find the stock 33mm tires a little narrow for knobby tires (silly UCI CX rules). I tend to use slicks in that size. You might be able to squeeze a 37 or 38mm on there if you wanted to go bigger (should work fine in the front, I'm not sure about the rear).
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just looking at the geo charts
for aluminum (medium), the Inflite has steeper head angle (more road like at 72.25 vs 70.25 for the grail) and a higher BB offset (66mm vs 75mm).
The Inflite is fairly similar to a large tired road bike, were the AL grail is a little lower and slacker (tending more towards mountain bike stability).
for aluminum (medium), the Inflite has steeper head angle (more road like at 72.25 vs 70.25 for the grail) and a higher BB offset (66mm vs 75mm).
The Inflite is fairly similar to a large tired road bike, were the AL grail is a little lower and slacker (tending more towards mountain bike stability).
#12
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just looking at the geo charts
for aluminum (medium), the Inflite has steeper head angle (more road like at 72.25 vs 70.25 for the grail) and a higher BB offset (66mm vs 75mm).
The Inflite is fairly similar to a large tired road bike, were the AL grail is a little lower and slacker (tending more towards mountain bike stability).
for aluminum (medium), the Inflite has steeper head angle (more road like at 72.25 vs 70.25 for the grail) and a higher BB offset (66mm vs 75mm).
The Inflite is fairly similar to a large tired road bike, were the AL grail is a little lower and slacker (tending more towards mountain bike stability).
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I do love my Grail! And handful of guys in my club have Canyons - everyone loves their bike. The only complaints are the one you see in every Canyon thread - this one included:
- They don't have my size... wait, now they do... nope, not anymore
- Sizing is a challenge. For some, the online tool nails it. For others, the bike they land on isn't even close - usually bigger than expected.
Best advice I can give - having purchased and helped purchase a few: Unpack the bike like you know it's going back in the box - go slow, take pics of how things are arranged, label the parts (to which other part they're lashed) with masking tape and a sharpie, e.g. front wheel to frame, seat to seat stay)
- They don't have my size... wait, now they do... nope, not anymore
- Sizing is a challenge. For some, the online tool nails it. For others, the bike they land on isn't even close - usually bigger than expected.
Best advice I can give - having purchased and helped purchase a few: Unpack the bike like you know it's going back in the box - go slow, take pics of how things are arranged, label the parts (to which other part they're lashed) with masking tape and a sharpie, e.g. front wheel to frame, seat to seat stay)
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