I'm a newbie to cycling but am interested in getting a cross bike for commuting, urban riding, and the occasional non-technical trail. I've poured over the suggestions here and reviews elsewhere trying to narrow my choices down to a reasonable number of bikes to test ride. I've now ridden:
Of these the Volpe seems to be easily the best bang for the buck for a commuter and newbie like myself. So I've decided that I can get an adequate bike for less that a thousand dollars. There is one other bike that appeals to me, based on all of the good things that people here have said, and that's the Surly Cross-Check. The problem here is that none of the shops in the greater Denver area have any. The can all order one, of course, but that doesn't help me test ride one. So, I'm looking for some advice. I've compared components, geometries, and tire clearances between the Volpe and the Cross-Check, and I've noticed a few potentially noteworthy differences.
Volpe has a slightly steeper HT angle (72.5 vs 72.0 on the Cross-Check)
Cross-Check uses a Tiagra rear derailleur, whereas the Volpe uses a MTB derailleur (Deore)
Volpe has a stock tripple up front, vs a double on the Cross-Check
Cross-Check has the capability to use 130mm road or 135mm MTB hubs
Volpe has STI shifters stock; Bar-end for the Cross-Check
So, without being able to test ride a crosscheck I'm a bit stuck. I don't find the HT angle of the Volpe to be uncomfortable. Will a change in .5 degrees make the Cross-Check noticeably less responsive? Will I notice the difference between the Tiagra and the Deore? Is the deore significantly more durable if I'm going to be riding mostly around town? Metro-Denver, where I'll be commuting, is fairly flat. I don't think I'll need a tripple for most of my commuting, but it might be nice if I take to the trails. If, though, I take to the trails, it sure would be nice to have the capability to run on MTB rims and exceptionally wide tires, which the Cross-Check could handle.
It seems that if I were to customize the Cross-Check a little I could have the best of both worlds. I could put a tripple up front and replace the bar-end shifters with a set of STIs, and I'd end up with a durable bike that could handle just about anything that I wanted to throw at it. I have to say that I'm drawn to both bikes. Surly looks like a cool company, and people who own them are fanatical about them. On the other hand, Bianchi has quite a reputation of their own, and the Volpe seems to be a very well loved and sought-after bike.
So, how can I make this decision easier. I can't find a Cross-Check to ride, so I'd be taking somewhat of a risk there, but it might be a better bike for taking to the trails in the foothills. Would the .5 degree difference be noticable? I'd likely love either bike, but if anyone has any advice or suggestions that might help me choose between the two it would be greatly appreciated.
The BikeForums Team
-adv-
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If your order a cross check to test ride, decide you don't like it, I am sure the LBS will have little trouble selling it to someone else. just ask them if thats cool first. (ask them about a more expensive model at the same time ;) )
k0d0s
What would you suggest that I upgrade the derailleur to? A 105, or do you think that the Deore is a better choice? What other aspects of the Cross-Check make you recommend it over the Volpe?
bokes
The half degree difference turned me off to the Volpe a little because i like stable handling. They use a much larger fork rake to relax the handling. Note the Jamis Nova has 71.5 degree Hta.
As for sizing, the frame angles and BB heights are close enough that if you find a Volpe that fits, the XCheck with the equivalent effective top tube length should fit as well. I test rode a 55 Volpe which fit well, and later bought a 54 XCheck (same ETT), and it fits great too.
sfcrossrider
I LOVE my Surly!!! I use it for everything from daily ride to work to passing guys on 4,000 dollar cross bikes. Mine is mostly XT, and yes, I LOVE the bar end shifters. I've spent alot of time on other cross bikes, (even a friends Volpe) and I ALWAYS want my Surly back.
k0d0s
How do you feel about the HT angle? How much does it effect the feel for this bike, since you've ridden both? I'm planning on spending most of my time on roads, and for that I'd think that the 72.5 of the Volpe/Axis/Tricross/etc would be better. But, I would like to be able to throw some thicker tires on it and jump on some dirt trails. Is the 72.0 going to be much less responsive on the roads?
Emerson
You may want to post in the Commuting forum, since it doesn't sound like you intend to race cyclo-cross on the bike. You'll get some good feedback there on the two bikes. I don't think you can go wrong--both are well-loved and well-tested bikes.
I live in the Springs. I drove up to Denver and took a look at a Volpe at Turin bikes. I immediately disliked the Volpe--it felt heavier than it needed to and, most importantly, didn't fit me. I also wasn't impressed with the service at Turin.
I bought my Surly from Alpha Bicycle. The service was really great. I doubt they have any CC's built up, but they can get one easily. I know that doesn't help. I bought mine without riding it--a stressful situation, but the guys at Alpha were very cool.
Have you tried up in Boulder? Excel sports there carries Surlys and might have one.
I was also frustrated by not being able to find one to ride, but I am so happy with my choice. I use mine for all the purposes you describe...and...slap fat tires on for some non-technical trail riding. I love the versatility. My signature has a link to my Cross-check page and talks about the build and why I made the choice I did. PM me if you have any questions. Mine is set up with an unusual flat bar--drops don't work for me back--so I don't think I can address the geometry issues except to say my bike handles wonderfully. I did a ton of research and there was barely anything negative said of the Surly, except it being a bit heavy. I don't think the Bianchi is any lighter. Good luck and let us know what happens.
endform
Alright, so both the Bianchi and the surly have genuine shimano hubs (this is important) and both have generally low end components. What you need to consider is that derailleurs are a relatively unimportant piece of the puzzle, heck, they could put an acera derailleur on there and it'd work practically just as well as a 105. Derailleurs are often juice up on cheaper bikes so that the bike looks better, but really it's all about the wheels, both of which are shimano hubs laced to alex rims.
These bikes have very similar parts packages on them, and STI levers are in my opinion a heck of lot nicer than bar ends, and I even ride a bike with bar ends (hey I'm cheap).
Don't buy a bike if you haven't test rode it, it's just not a good plan if you aren't very experienced and know how those number translate into the real world.
I would personally say the Bianchi looks like a better deal, just get rid of that silly shock seatpost
sfcrossrider
I used my Surly to do training rides when I was a CAT 3 road racer when my Bontrager was in the shop. Needless to say it will work on the road (I did have it built up with Ultegra at the time). If you want a serious road bike, get a serious road bike. If you want a bike that you can do cross, road, AND slap some fat tires on, hit a mountain bike trail that NO other cross bike could be ridden on, this is your bike. It does everything WELL.
BTW. I would NEVER take an STI bike off-road on the type of trails that you will need larger tires for. You WILL break your shifters when you crash. I replace my levers every few year from crash damage. My bar end shifters have been to hell and back and they still work like new.
nemonis
A couple of comments to help refine your decision:
1. What type of terrain will the bike be ridden in? If there are lots of hills around there (just a guess), then you might appreciate the stock gearing on the Volpe better. The Volpe has a low gear of about 24 gear-inches, while the Crosscheck has a low gear of around 38 gear-inches. That is a BIG difference when climbing a long, steep hill.
2. You mention changing the shifters on the Crosscheck to STI, and changing the crankset and the cassette. If you do that, you will basically end up with the Volpe. STI levers are not terribly cheap as an upgrade, nor is a crankset.
3. I would agree with endform on the seatpost. I picked up a Volpe about a month ago as an upgrade from a 10+ year old road bike. The only changes I made from stock were swapping to a rigid seatpost and going to slicks for tires (I do only doing road riding).
In conclusion, I have heard good things about both the Volpe and the Crosscheck. I bought the Volpe because the stock configuration was almost exactly what I was looking for in a bike. I wanted a drop bar bike with rack and fender braze-ons and a wide gearing range. The Volpe fit the bill for a reasonable price. One thing that I have heard is that the Volpe can get rather difficult to find as the season progresses (they sell out). If you decide to buy one, you might want to do so sooner rather than later.
God bless!
Wayne J.
k0d0s
You have all given me quite a bit to think about. I'm leaning more towards the Cross-Check now, especially if I can get my LBS to build one for me, let me ride it, and sell it for me if I don't like it. I still haven't heard anyone say that I won't notice the .5 degree difference. It seems like the Volpe may very well be a better bike for my on-road riding, but the benefit of being able to throw some big tires on the cross-check and ride off into the mountain trails is quite appealing.
I'm going to head down to my LBS this weekend and see what they can do for me. I'll post back once I have the, whichever it ends up being, bike in my posession.
Emerson
Well, glad we could [get the Cross-check] help out. I'm sure you will [buy the Surly] make a good choice. It is, in the end, really up to you. [must have a Surly] I hope the local shop takes [a credit card for your new Cross-check] good care of you. No one here would want to try to sway you one way or another. Just get what works for you ;)
wintermute
From everything I've read, it seems like you really have to split hairs comparing the Volpe to the Crosscheck. They're both bikes made to do almost everything - road, cyclocross, commuting, fixed, trails, etc. It seems the main difference between the two is that you can fit big honkin' 29er tires on the crosscheck, but only somewhat beefy 38mm wide tires on the Volpe. So unless you're diving into mud or really technical stuff, there really isn't much of a difference.
I'm waiting for my backordered Volpe to arrive. it was a choice between getting the crosscheck, switching it to a triple and spreading out the rear gears and getting appropriate derrailleurs, or getting the Volpe and switching out the STI for barcons.