robin-d

Hello, there is a space horse on sale at the top end of my budget (1200) that fits me. Is this competitive/better than a build up of a Chinese carbon with better components?
I'm mostly interested in the semi horizontal dropouts and rando geometry.

Intent is to make this my only bike for commuting +occasional weekend excursions

bwilli88 

The Space Horse is at the top of my list if I made a new purchase today.

Chris Pringle

Yes, definitely a great value as a first rando bike. Solid build, components and geometry!

kingston 

It wouldn't make my short-list if for no other reason than the Tiagra brifters. Although a Chinese carbon frame wouldn't even enter my mind as a possibility, so we probably have different tastes in bikes.

robin-d

No accounting for taste

I didn't like the brifters. Going to see if lbs could set me up with DT friction shifters

I'm mostly interested in the semi horizontal dropouts and rando geometry.

Intent is to make this my only bike for commuting +occasional weekend excursions

I'm currently considering the tiagra derailleurs a positive wrt more economical and robust(?) parts and operation vs 11 speed options. Don't like look or feel of the brifter levers possibly interfering with my brake pull action

52telecaster

The space horse is a great ride. You could tour with it if you wanted. I built one of these in a 57cm a couple of years ago and I,wanted to keep for myself.

joewein

There's basically nothing wrong with Tiagra brifters.

Sure, 105 or Ultegra will be a bit nicer, but they will not essentially transform the cycling experience. Tiagra brifters shift well, are reliable and provide excellent value for money. Up until the latest 4700, Tiagra has mostly been a rehashed version of the previous generation of 105. If you thought that 105 was decent a few years ago then it's hard to argue that Tiagra now is a deal breaker, especially at its price point.

I've put 36,000 km on a pair of Tiagra brifters so far, with no issues. Initially the bike came with Tiagra 4503 (9 speed triple), but after the first cassette was worn out I switched the right hand shifter to Tiagra 4600 (10 speed double).

My other bike has had 105 5703 brifters on it for most of last year and as far as I can tell, the only differences are the cables entering on the side with Tiagra and under the tape on 105, and the gear selection indicator on Tiagra 4500/4600 that 105 and up don't have. One works as well as the other. Or put it another way, the state of your cables or the setup of your derailleur far outweighs any differences in shifters between these groups.

Now I do also have Ultegra level 11 speed shifters for hydraulic brakes (ST-RS685) and these are very nice, but then we're talking totally different price levels.

Tiagra is a very competent product and I'd have absolutely no problem recommending them even for someone who puts a lot distance on his bike(s). Actually, even 9 speed Sora is pretty good.

@robin-d: When I was looking for an all-rounder / adventure bike with clearance for wide tires (I ultimately went for an Elephant National Forest Explorer), the Space Horse was mentioned a few times by people who were very happy with theirs.

absoludicrous

Space Horse is a really nice bike. I bought one as my first road bike.

Last year was my first full year of riding a drop bar bike. I put almost 3,000 miles on it commuting, and even race a couple of half-century gravel races, as well as a half-dozen cyclocross races. It was able to handle them all.

It's not perfect though. Here are my complaints:

The 4600 (last gen) Tiagra groupset was so-so. I started developing shifting issues in the small ring when on the 12t and 13t cassette. It feels like it's either skipping teeth or trying to up shift. LBS removed a link in the chain, as well as performed a couple derailleur adjustments and it's still present. I am upgrading to the newer 4700 Tiagra. I think the problem is that it's simply "autoshifting".

It's heavy. This is really only noticeable when climbing steep climbs and shouldering the bike in CX races. Non-issue if you don't ride those types of events.

A bit flexy. I'm a large person (6'5"/185lb) and can tell the bike flexes a bit under large loads (climbing, sprinting, etc). It's not awful, but it's steel and isn't super stiff. Again, you might like that compliance.

That's about it. I love that I can run huge tires, and ride comfortably over long distances. It really does seem like a do-it-all bike, at least it has for me—again, this is my first road bike though. I plan on upgrading the groupset and riding it another year or two as my only/primary bike.

Get a Space Horse disc if you go that route.