Hey All!
I’m in the market for a Gravel/CX bike and i figured as there were threads for the other bikes (Al/Ti/St) could we have one for gravel bikes? I’m also curious to see how many people prefer 1x vs 2x setups.
Hoping also for some inspiration for which bike to budget towards.
Thanks!
If you want to outflank the gravel scene with insufferable cool, buy a 90s steel hardtail.
I second the “steel”.
This is from the Titanium build thread too but here you go. Black one is mine and “bass boat” one is my wife’s.
Mosaic GT-1 custom matte black with gloss black logos
Ultegra Di2 group with RX-805 clutch RD
Ultegra 11-32 cassette
Easton EC90SL crankset w/ 46/30 Gravel Shift Rings
Easton Cinch spindle power meter
Enve Road di2 bars 42cm
Enve seatpost
Enve stem
2 wheelsets: Enve AR4.5 Disc for road and G23 for gravel both with Chris King hubs
Tires: Panaracer Gravelking slick 38’s for road wheels and Gravelking SK + 38’s for gravel wheels
Wolftooth/King Titanium bottle cages
Specialized Elaston Power saddle
My wifes bike is an XT-1 which is their cross bike but we just switched it over to the same style of gearing that I have from a 1X setup.
I prefer 2x for gravel. With the setup I have I can ride pretty steep single track in the 30/32 combo but in the 46/11 I’m not spinning out until about 35 mph. The thing I like about 2x is when I throw the road wheels on it is a much better setup than riding 1x. I do a fair amount of climbing and training on this bike since I don’t have a road bike and the 2x is WAAY better when in the middle of an interval and rolling over the top of a “roller” in the road. On 1x you are shifting down 5-7 gears which is pretty annoying to me.
Now these are custom bikes with a lot of expensive components so most wouldn’t be able to, or want to, spend that kind of money. But we do pretty well and aren’t having kids so this is our passion and these are forever bikes. I will say that the titanium rides better than any bike I’ve ever owned and I love it. Super smooth and just a joy to ride.
Sweet bikes…My bikes look like I have kids…because I do 
With that said I run mostly 105 with Ultegra RX in the rear. I9 wheelsets, one for road and one for gravel.
Bike is a Niner RLT9 steel build. Tad heavy but it’s smooth and I love it.
I run the Panaracer Gravelking SK’s 38mm. Handle pretty much anything with those and gravelking slicks on the road 32mm.
I’m converting my CX / Gravel bike to 1X, I just like the idea of less things to worry about and the quieter drivetrain with a clutched derailleur 
I used my “old” HT Jamis Nemis CF pro 650b MTB. I added drop bars, SRAM 2X11 road group with hyd disc brakes and some carbon rims, it also has a 100 mm front fork, rebuilt it added a little more pressure. I went 2X because I do a few fondos and a 1X setup just does not work for me, when you find your self in a paceline you are just never in the right gear. With the 650B wheels I can go to a 2.3 tire so I get plenty of traction on downhill sections, I give a little up on longer paved sections but the comfort is worth it.
My gravel /cx bike is a 2016 Kona Jake The Snake. I put a set of wheels on it with Velocity Aileron’s laced to some old Hope hubs a had. I rode it several thousand miles with the 105 group that it came with. Hoped to upgrade this year, but it wasn’t in the cards. I did move up to GRX 800 shifters, brakes, and RD. I stuck with 2x and Ultegra up front.
For the terrain I have and the way I use the bike I just couldn’t go 1x.
Figure out if you want a gravel bike or CX bike first, and then go from there. They are quite different but both take fat tires. I’m going to get roasted for this, but they are very different to people who actually race CX.
This is my CX, Gravel and Road bike 3 wheelsets, carbon road 28mm, 40mm gravel tyres and 33mm CX tyres. I have a 1x road bike now (using the same road wheelset), but still use this for long road rides or big climbing road rides
Its a Chinese carbon (workswell) CX frameset, Force22 groupset w Red Quarq cranks (46/36) and wifli (11-32) rear. Have done 19,400km on it so far. Everything from gravel roads, rail trails, fast group rides, crits, CX racing and long road rides.
Weight is between 7.5kg and 8.5kg depending on wheel/tyre combo. Ive relaxed my position a little by raising the stem a touch now i have a fast road bike, but its still pretty aggressive, which is how i like it
Awesome to hear you have had a good experience with Workswell. Been kinda toying with the idea of going “Chinese carbon” for a future build and they are a brand I’ve been considering
When I do finally get a gravel bike it’ll be 2x for smaller spacing between gears.
I’ve been eyeing the salsa warbird for a while. Just need to decide when to pull the trigger. The thing that’s holding me back is I don’t really “need” a gravel bike - as my road bike can fit 35/37mm tires. I know, that should be no excuse!
Not so sure on the quieter part of clutched 1x setups. From my experience (almost 2 years in a shop), derailleurs with clutches tend to be louder, more so when paired with some kind of narrow/wide front ring (some being louder than others). I think the other reason is that on a 1x setup you’re creating more extreme chain lines (similar to cross chaining on a 2x) and the more extreme the angle of the chain, the louder it is. These setups just tend to create a constant buzz/hum imo. Just my experiences though. I’m sure that alt of it is relative, and that there are some combinations of parts that can be fairly quiet.
Ive always found 1x with a clutch much quieter, especially when the surface is anything other than smooth hotmix
If I didnt use my CX/gravel bike as a road bike as well id go 1x on it for sure
I’m currently on a cheap/low-end 3x hybrid, sort-of moving towards a purchase decision on a ‘decent’ gravel/adventure bike. [The Trek Checkpoint ALR5 is looking like a ‘good’ pick for me - constrained by things besides price and ‘the bike itself’. Merely 1/7 my weight, rather than nearly 1/4]
Would not be choosing 1x. Hills + load + ‘small and old’ … small differences in gearing matter.
Edit: wanted: CVT on bikes
Interesting, I thought with way less chain slap they would be quieter!
My CX/Gravel setup. Trek Boone RSL with Di2. I run 1x for CX race season, Wolf Tooth 40t oval, with tubulars and 11-32t in the back. For the offseason and gravel rides I switched back to 2x 46/36, 11-34t in the back, and I’m running Riddler 37s.
What did you do about the brake situation? I cant tell from your photos…
I also have A 2015 Kona, Major Jake (Same Frame) I have a 386EVO FSA Crank with a stages powermeter, that I swap back and forth to my road bike and this one, and I’m going to GRX this spring, I jiust cant talk myself into changing the frame, it does everything I want it to. I’ve got a set of Stan’s hubs laced to chinese carbon 650 rims, with 42-45 tires depending what I’m doing, and I’ve got the stock Stan’s still running Iron Cross rims for cross. I will definitely upgrade the cross wheelset this year.
I think the clutch eliminates the loud chain slap sounds but between the wide chain angles and the narrow wide the drivetrain has a louder hum while just cruising. So the sharp sounds are gone but it doesn’t sounds as smooth on a road.
Gotcha! That makes sense
