fiatjeepdriver

I currently have an older soma double cross that I am wanting to make my pit bike and am looking at replacing it with something newer. The bike that has really caught my eye is a swiss cross. Unfortunately there is no one in my area who has one so I'd be ordering blind. Does anyone on this forum have one and what do they think of it? While I don't need another bike I'd like one so that's all that matters. There are a couple of other options I'm considering but as of right now ritchey is in the lead.

Smiziley

I too am looking for a new frame and that came across. Too expensive for me, good luck on it.

I've been looking at the Soma Double Cross vs Surly CrossCheck, how have you liked it for racing?

fiatjeepdriver

My soma works great as a race bike. It is reasonably light for what it is (I'm not a weight weenie) and tange prestige tubing has a great ride quality. Like I said I don't need to replace it, I just want to.



Here is how mine is set up:
Shimano Pro full carbon fork
TRP euro x canti's
Retroshift levers with 10sp dura ace bar end shifters mounted on them
105 front derailluer
9sp SLX rear derailluer
CX50 crank
M952 XTR hubs laced to Open Pro rims
Thomson Post
Shimano Pro stem
WTB dirt drops
ESI grips
Selle Italia prolink saddle.
As it sits @20lbs

fietsbob

The Richey Cross is also offered in the Break Away frame , design ..

travel to events not in your town, EZ to move , with the frame separated in 2 parts..

fiatjeepdriver

Not that there is anything wrong with the break-away frames but I'd prefer the standard frame instead. I do travel for some races, just not far enough to justify the break-away.

flargle

That frameset is dead sexy. I say go for it.

DinoShepherd

Quite possibly THE hottest CX bike in the market. They ride great. You will love it.

Classic.

justin1138

Might be worth it to take a drive up to Portland to sit on one yourself. River City carries them.

fietsbob

Or closer .. Take the UBI frame building class and Make your Own,

from Eagle Point, Ashland is closer than Portland .

and having TR's name on it adds a lot to what it costs.

fiatjeepdriver

One of my former employees was the niece of the owners of UBI, she wouldn't get me hooked up with a family discount though. I am actually building a couple of frames for myself, though, I've been sidetracked with a broken oxygen regulator and 75 hour work week.

fiatjeepdriver

If I make it up for any of the cross crusades this year I'll check out River City. I'll probably post on OBRA chat and see if anyone doing the psyco cross races has one since I'm doing most of those.

tarwheel 

I have a Ritchey Breakaway Cross and LOVE it! I bought mine used without the fork, so put a steel Soma-Tange one on it. I have always wanted a Swiss Cross but a Breakaway Cross actually suits me better because it has mounts for fenders and racks. The geometry on mine is pretty close to the Swiss Cross except for the braze-ons. Any questions that you have in particular? I know someone who owns two older, classic Swiss Crosses. I tried to talk him into selling me one of them but he wouldn't budge.

fiatjeepdriver

I wonder about the ride quality and if others have ridden both how it would compare to my soma. There are a few other bikes I'm considering but so far the ritchey is in the front.

fietsbob

Remains another easy question to ask . how would A compare with B is often asked, here.

need to visit a shop that sells Both. find out 1st hand.

Portland has a hundred Bike shops by Now . so You May Have to Travel..

some of it is just Brand Names ,, though the the curving the seat stay, TR did,
will flex very-slightly more than a straight one .

fiatjeepdriver

I feel guilty going into a shop to check out bikes I know I won't get from them. Most likely I'll make the drive north before I order, just need to find time in my insane work week to do that.

tarwheel 

I am certain that the ride quality on the new Ritchey Swiss Cross would be great, as long as the geometry fits you well. Why wouldn't it ride nice? It's a steel frame with a carbon fork, and Ritchey knows how to design and build frames and forks right. As I said, my Breakaway Cross rides great and it has essentially the same geometry as the Swiss Cross with braze-ons. Very predictable handling, typical steel "magic carpet" ride. Only difference would be that mine has a steel fork, which I prefer although lots of cyclists seem to have the mistaken notion that carbon forks ride better.

1speedlos

Although I've only ridden it around the parking lot, we recently built a Swiss Cross, SRAM Red 1x10 with a Wolf Tooth narrow/wide ring. It rides really nicely, built up beautifully. If I could justify the purchase, I'd totally ride one!

Los

marqueemoon

Just FYI if you're considering any kind of V brakes there's no cable stop here. There are workarounds, but this seems less than ideal to me.

flargle

What about disc brakes? Is it compatible with disc brakes?

fiatjeepdriver

I have canti's on my current cross bike and for how I ride they work ok. I'd like to try mini v's but I haven't gotten around to it. This thread might be a moot point as I noticed cracks forming in my main mtb's rims. A the wheels I'm going to have built are likely to run $600 or so, so I might have to put this purchase on hold.

1speedlos

Oh well, there's always next season!

Los

Cynikal 

I would bet that you could use a step down ferrul for a cable stop if you wanted to use Mini-V's. Flargle, no disks on these.

KeatonR

I had an earlier version of the Swiss Cross (think I bought it in '99 or so) but sold it because I wanted something with more tire clearance in the rear. Really wish I had kept that bike, though, more than any other I've sold. It had the most beautiful fork, with a box crown (I think it was called?), and my bike-mechanic friend, who had gotten me a great deal on it at the shop where he worked, had set it up beautifully.

If this version's anything like the older one, get it and don't ever sell it.

Niloc

Just run a canti in back then. That's what I do on my Bianchi reparto corse which also has a cable stop. The V-brake will solve the ubiquitous 'cross bike fork chatter problem up front, the back doesn't have that problem, so just stick with a lightweight simple canti. I don't notice a difference in feel and remember 70% of your braking is done up front anyways.

Niloc

and I just googled it, that's a sweet steel frame. did you get it?