kbydida4146

I am looking to buy a gravel bike and came across this Co-op Cycles ADV 2.3 Bike with really good component set. What are your thoughts ? Newbie to gravel biking coming off a 2 year hiatus riding a CAAD10 3. Thanks !

beach_cycle

Co-op's are excellent, so go for the ADV 2.3 Bike...

gus6464

That is a nice component set on that bike. It's also the first GRX I've seen in the wild with dropper config.

kbydida4146

I should have bought it last week when they had 15% off... oh well will wait for the next coupon... hopefully soon.

dwmckee

They are okay I am sure but the brand feels like a department store brand to me as REI owns it. They are better I am sure but it makes me think of the Sears Free Spirit bikes of the 70s. The Jamis Renegade is way cooler in my book and reasonably priced for what you get.

Smitty2k1

I think they usually do a big Memorial Day sale, so that should be coming up relatively soon...

mstateglfr 

That's like calling ribble bikes 'department store' bikes.
House brands aren't necessarily department store quality in the pejorative sense.
And why you think of the free spirit brand when COOP brand bikes are mentioned is beyond me. There is nothing even remotely close in quality level comparative to the market.

dwmckee

If you reread my comments you will note I said the bike is probably okay and I commented my opinion of the brand image. That is my opinion as I stated. You are welcome to your own opinion. My brand affinity is more aligned to niche players than the mass corporate players. That matters to some, not at all to others. There are many similar bikes like this in the same price range; some chose among them based on a small difference in price, variance in how the bike fits their specific anatomy, what is available closest to them, what their friends ride, what colors are available or often how they identify with the brand image of the manufacturer. I chose to share my opinion only on the brand image.

raceboy

I own two Novaras, the name for an REI bike before co-op. I really like them both and went on a awesome weeklong tour on my Safari model.

gus6464

The niche players whose frames also came from the same or similar factory?

You'd be very surprised to know where most of the boutique frames get their stuff from. You see this all time with high-end mtb frames. Yetis are some of the most expensive frames you can buy yet they have a lot of QC issues. But because Yetis are the dentist bike of choice they are perceived as the creme de la creme.

kbydida4146

I totally agree with you. Looking beyond just the "image", objectively co-op brands offer so much better value for guys like me. Also, thank you for mentioning Ribble bikes. They are very interesting and like Co-op offer great value. I am definitely doing some research into them.

Steve B.

The sales rarely (like, never) include bikes.

Steve B.

You want 1X ?. I would on a pure mt. bike, not on a gravel bike unless you are planning to use off road 100% of the time.

For $2,200 and mail order to boot, with an aluminum frame, there's a lot of other bikes out there.

Also look at the Cannondale Topstone, I think REI is allowed to mail order this currently, also aluminum, 2X, 105 components, $1750. For the difference you could either swap to a GRX R derailer (works with the 105 shifters) and a wider range cassette OR get a 2nd set of wheels with road tires and road cassette.

kbydida4146

It was 15% off at approx $1800 but now it is back to full price. Like one of the other members posted, i am hoping they will have a memorial sale.

kbydida4146

Good point. i never thought much about it being 1X. I definitely don't plan on riding it 100% off road so i guess having 2X will be good. I did consider the topstone but felt the co-op had better components all through, except the 1X.
Any other recommendations around the same price point ? For the most part i just want to ride the bike stock as i am not much of a DIY'er.

mstateglfr 

the 20% off sales exclude bikes(each time I have bothered to look, not sure if theyre always excluded). The memorial day sale and other thru the year sales include bikes.

but even when not on sale, a 10% dividend paid at the end of the year effectively makes bikes cost 10% less, which is one of the reasons why some cannondale dealers were annoyed REI fully picked up Cannondale. I'd imagine dealers in areas where Salsa is a big deal would feel similarly.

GrainBrain

Nice bike, I would want it without the dropper (carbon seatpost maybe) and with 2x.

Feel like mail order? The Canyon Grail AL 7 is really nice.
​​​​​​https://www.canyon.com/en-us/road-bi...FBK&quantity=1

Steve B.

Slim pickin’s from the online sites I know of.

All I found was this,
Salsa Vaya, $2300
https://www.universalcycles.com/shop...&category=6619

Problem right now might be limited inventory. China was closed Feb. into March, thus bike shops were selling what was on hand, unless it made in USA and even then nobody was building.

mstateglfr 

I don't need to re-read your post. I know you added in the comment that the bike is 'probably ok'.
My motivation for posting was to counter your claim, based on your view, that COOP is a department store brand.

As for you liking boutique brands(niche players), I'm not sure how COOP couldn't be viewed as a boutique/niche/minor player. They certainly don't seem like a 'mass corporate player' to me based on observed sales in use.
After Trek, Specialized, Giant, and Cannondale...pretty much everything is niche/boutique/minor player. Thats a generalization, but its hardly far off base if at all.

Sharing an opinion only on brand image is perplexing. Its basically the most superficial part of the process. Its quite useless when the opinion held is for wildly off base and seemingly in the minority.
Reminds you of free spirit? Please.


COOP bikes are an interesting mix to me. There are parts that are quality and parts that are head scratching and clearly used to meet price points. The problem is that many competitors use different price point meeting components, so it becomes difficult to compare.
I don't think there is massive value in most of the COOP bikes, but the ones I have ridden have had nice touchpoints and seemed to be well designed for the intended use. Same goes for all the ones I've seen in store too.

Steve B.

A dividend is only on the amount you purchased during the year, not 10% off an item. You only purchase $100 worth of stuff, you get a $10 dividend to apply towards a purchase.

I’ve seen discounts on bikes, but never a 20%. My take on REI is they are expensive unless it a sale and even then you can do better on the web.

mstateglfr 

Sorry, I probably didn't phrase my post well as i said what you just said here.

- the 2x/year 20g sale excludes bikes, but other sales include bikes.
- the dividend is for 10% of whatever you purchased at full price thru the year. You are correct that it isn't a per item dividend, but thats really a distinction without a difference. If I pay $2000 full price for a bike, at the end of the year, $200 of my dividend is based on that bike, so it effectively cost me $1800.

Steve B.

I take advantage of my dividend when I can. I also get 10% off purchases, bikes, whatever included, at my LBS as a member of a local mt. bike club ($30 for 2 years). I’ve purchased 2 bikes in the past 2 years. 10% is a good deal these days on a bike, REI or wherever.

gus6464

I find the 1x hate hilarious. I've done the bwr and not once during the ride I thought to myself man I wish I had 2x. And that had more road than dirt.

Steve B.

I can't find the "beat a dead horse" gif, but that's what we'd be doing.

The OP needs to look at a gear chart, compare a 1X vs a 2X system and determine if he's OK and has both the range and in-between gearing he desires. Simple as that.

gus6464

Except you started it blanket statements like 1x is for 100% dirt which is not. The whole cadence thing is really overplayed. If it was such a big deal we'd all be on triples still. One can totally get used to the jumps in the rear and maintain the same rhythm.