So im looking for advice on which bike seems better for urban life(hauling groceries,exploring the bike paths,commuting and bikepacking seems cool) im torn on either the Norco XFR 4 Forma which was my first pick as i know norcos are good but then a relative has a nice Specialized bike so i found the AWOL Expert and AWOL Comp and cant figure out which is better as i love the set up on the expert but hear people complaining about it and raving on the Comp/Elite would also love advice on other brands that are good
Edit: Im leaning towards the Expert since there are so many options for carrying stuff(handy with groceries or other stuff and bikepacking seems like it would be fun to try but i would love to hear what other bikes would be comparable to it

What are the complaints about the AWOL Expert?

According to Bikepacking review Tire clearance – Particularly in the front fork, falls a little short. and No provisions for fork mounted waterbottles, or the likes of Anything Cages and according to theradavist there are not enough gears to switch to and the fact that the tires are not tubeless was another con listed

The AWOL Expert has Tiagra ten speed 11 to 36 cassette and 50-39-30 crankset so I don't know why someone would say there are not enough gears? As for tubeless that's a debatable advantage. And why would anyone mount their waterbottles to the front fork?

I can see why people want to mount water bottle cages to their front fork if they are going bike camping across the Continental Divide but you said you wanted a bike for "hauling groceries,exploring the bike paths,commuting", so I don't think you will miss them. Gearing is great, no problems there. Tubeless, I never see as an advantage, unless you are running low pressure.

As for the Norco, you don't need front shocks to do the things you listed. The bike is not the best choice, plus it isn't even in the same league as the Specialized especially in price.

You can fit big cages on those fork bosses and carry 2 growlers of a half gallon each.


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He wrote that a few years ago while riding a Transcontinental version of the AWOL that came with an Alfine 8-speed IGH, it's not really a concern any more IMO. You could always put clamps on the forks to mount bottle cages, but I just go with a couple of large water bottles. If I need more I throw a bottle in a pannier.

The Norco is a hybrid with a Suntour suspension fork, though, so you'll probably have a worse time attaching a couple of water bottles to that.

It's sort of hard to compare those two bikes, because they're apples and oranges. A dropbar allroad tourer vs. a flat bar suspension hybrid fitness/town bike. Maybe think of what you really want from the bike and then look at other bikes more like it. I.e. AWOL vs. Marin 4 Corners or Norco vs. Specialized Sirrus.

Thanks i thought fork mounting was a strange request glad to see im not the only one

Thanks i didnt know there was a difference between the current and the transcontinal and that it was a older post and im stll learning all the bike terminology so thanks for the advice

Thanks i picked that norco as a possibility for around town before i looked at Specialized bikes so im thinking i like the expert better than the norco simply because of all the possibilities for gear carrying since bikepacking seems like a lot of fun

You are not comparing equivalent bikes here. One is drop bar, the other is a flat bar. XFR does have hidden rack mounts so you can still mount a rack if desired. The Forma line is designed for the female rider in mind, just so you know. If you are not looking for that, you would want to look at the regular XFR or another model that is more comparable to the AWOL, like something with a rigid fork. Perhaps the Norco Search would be a better comparison. https://www.norco.com/bikes/road/adv...arch-aluminum/

Check out the specialized sequoia if you need fork mounts.

https://www.specialized.com/us/en/bi...a-elite/116169