alfordjo

And this thread is why many online forums are dropping in participation.

A person gets a new bike and is excited....posts a photo and wants a few kind comments that share in their excitement.

They get a few people who have to bash and diminish a happy day for the OP.

I like the bike and as I am just beginning to research a gravel bike, would like to hear the OPs thoughts on the bike in a few months.

I bet the gears shift and the brakes stop the bike from rolling.

Enjoy your new toy!

mstateglfr 

Hitting a price point.
Retail, the STIs are something like $70 and the thumb things are something like $25. So at that price difference, its for sure significant enough to not be able to use the STIs, even at OEM cost. This is an industry that will use soft steel bolts that strip and rust instead of paying a penny or two more for quality bolts that wont strip or immediately rust. Pricepoints must be met someway somehow!

Microshift's 7speed STIs retail for $45 on ebay. So the OEM cost of those would be a lot closer to the top of bar thumb shifting things, but I would guess even that would eliminate a good bit of margin or force the cost of the bike to increase.

Rajflyboy

Beautiful

yobuttin

Nice looking bike. Low key, nice color scheme.

ironnerd

Meh, it's a forum. There is always "That Guy".


I call myself a Blue-Collar Bicyclist. I'm very practical. A Carbon bike would be fantastic, but I don't feel like dropping that kind of money on a bike. I was looking for a good, versatile bike at a good price. That's pretty much what I ended up with.

It's a bike. It rides nicely, geometry is good (it was not custom made for me, but it fits me well), it's more comfortable than I thought it would be. The shifters are acceptable - comfortable index shifters. Were I to do it again, I probably should have gone $50 more and purchased the X2 with brake-lever shifters, but it has not become an issue yet. The bike handles well, and it's actually just a fun bike to ride. My longest ride so far (on this bike) was 20 miles. That would have killed me on the MtB. On this one, I was tired, but I was riding in Georgia with no food or water, and I ran out of fuel. The bike worked better than I did.


On day 1, the brakes sucked! I just dragged them down a neighborhood hill a couple of times and they came to life. It also took about a day for me to get them adjusted right (because I was being a moron, and not following the instructions - it turns out that they are really easy to adjust). I am going to look into better pads though. They just don't grab like the V-bakes I am accustomed to (but are WAY better in the rain). Fortunately, the TekTro Mira calipers use the same pads as Shimano Deore M575, M525, M515, M495, M485, M475, M466, M447, M446, M445, M416, M415, M395, and M375. I'll probably try Semi-Metallic next time.


I think there are studs for four water bottle cages on the frame - worst part of the bike. I had to tap one rivnut because I did not have the screw straight and I buggered up the threads. Once I tapped it, though, I was back in business. There are more studs on the fork (four per side, iirc).


The jump from small to large chainring is bigger than I am used to (again, spoiled by my 3x7 MtB). Not bad, just a bigger step than I am used to.


Other than that, the thing works. Shifts nicely, stops nicely, and the saddle is nicer than the typical lead pipe padded with a doily. The 38mm tires provide a nice ride-to-drag trade-off, and make the bike fun to lean into a turn.


Of course, if you can, ride one. That's the only way to really know.

veganbikes

I ride bikes as well, but I also work in a bike shop and spend much of my life around bikes. When you get to that level you will find the flaws in different brands and components and things like that. I don't whine and complain about anything and everything but I can provide facts and figures in this situation. There are plenty of brands I rather like and plenty of components I love and use frequently. One can be happy, quite happy in fact and also dislike things, humans have the capacity for multiple emotions throughout life. Whodathunkit!

The book thing was more of a joke, I don't have time to write a book and if I did it would probably be poetry or some short stories or something more on the creative writing side. That is more my passion.

ironnerd

@veganbikes, you stepped into the wrong thread with your "I know better" attitude. If you have that kind of attitude at the bike shop, you're one of the reasons LBS are dying out. Your attitude is certainly one of the reasons so many forums die off, and why social media is little more than a digital poop fight.


Let's get some perspective...
I'm an airplane mechanic and a pilot. I work in an aircraft factory. I have worked on almost everything form a Piper J3 Cub to a 747-400 (and 777-200), and even helped build a few F-22's. I've flown Cessnas, Beechs, Mooneys, FlightDesigns, Pipers, and even a couple of homebuilts. I'm actually building a plane of my own. So to say I have knowledge and passion in the field of aviation is to greatly inflate the meaning of the mundane words "Knowledge" and "Passion". I do not feel, nor have I ever felt, the need to point out to people that their low-cost Cessna 152 is in some way inferior to a more expensive Mooney M20 or FlightDesign CTLSi. I'm just happy for the dude (and/or dudette). Why? Because I loves me some planes, even the weird ones. Even cheap ones (like a slightly used AA-1A). And if some cat buys a plane that makes him happy, I don't care what kind it is. I'm gonna go talk to him about his plane. And I would never give him a laundry list of what's wrong with it - 'cause that's a Richard-move.

I know what I bought. I ride it every day with a smile on my face. I'm really happy with my MOTOBECANE GRAVEL X1 DISC. This Motobecane is, in every way, better than the Motobecane I had as a kid (but it's still not the best bike I ever had), and when adjusted for inflation, it cost less. Of course there are a couple of things I want to change, and that means I get to tinker with mechanical stuff - which is kind of a passion of mine.

Had our roles in this conversation been reversed, and you had purchased a bike I thought was sub-standard, I would ask "How do you like it?" and had a conversation along the lines of your experiences with the bike, why you picked it over some other models, and if it is meeting your needs and expectations. And if you had issues, I would use my super-impressive subject knowledge to help you find solutions. But that just ain't how you roll, is it Sunshine?

veganbikes

The problem is I do know better and so do you. Your bike is not French and your components are not Japanese and lying to someone and saying they are is just wrong. Buy a cheap bike, ride a cheap bike whatever just don't try and claim your bike is something that it is not. That was my main problem here. Honesty is a good policy.

Working on and flying planes is awesome. However imagine someone tells you their low cost plane is something it is not and has parts from somewhere that doesn't produce those parts which were produced in a place that has lower quality standards and they were really proud of those fake facts designed to be dishonest, you would likely take issue with that.

Also I wouldn't say buy a carbon bike, steel is real, ti is fly, wood is good and the rest don't rhyme well.

I am happy to help you find solutions to any problems. I already provided one, is to just be honest. Sure not everyone loves honesty because sometimes the truth can sting a little but the truth is what it is, my friend.

With much love,
Sunshine

Spinay70

I dont think the OP was being dishonest, rather making a joke at the heritage of the new ride. But, you are correct...it is the best policy.

Spinay70

ironnerd

@veganbikes is why forums have ignore lists...

ironnerd

I'm curious... tell me more 'bout this bike. 'Cause it looks sweet!

DomaneS5

Perfect for all day, 40+ mile rail trail rides... it could easily do touring. It's fast on rail trails with the road bike gearing... 50/34. I paid $1K for it and the Trek equivalent costs over twice as much. My LBS assembled and fine tuned it for me. I don't get to ride it as much as my Trek Domane road bike, but it's racking up the mileage. I have Speedplay Frog pedals on it.

ironnerd

@DomaneS5 - SEXY bike!!!!

I'm still stretching my legs. After 20 miles, riding starts to become work. I may be able to do 30 with a riding partner, but that's a super-solid maybe.

https://flic.kr/p/2gmwqih
In the interest of my continuing review of this "Cheap Bike" I'll post about some of the longerish rides and significant findings.

I rode 21 miles today. My last 20 was on the basically flat Silver Comet, but this ride had actual hills!

Started in town, road a bunch of MUPs to the River. From there I rode on actual gravel, some dirt single-tracks, pavement (of course), and even wood. I was pleasantly surprised by the bike's ability to climb steep sections covered in exposed roots. I was expecting a lot of slipping, but even with my tires at 60 psi, it was a non-issue. I even found a new, semi-secluded MUP along a larger creek (Rottenwood Creek) that feeds into the Chatahoochee

Climbing all the hills started to get old though. I ended up climbing out of the valley twice (Bikeroute.com says my total climb was about 1,800 ft). The second time I decided to have a snack and some water about half way - 5 min break that made a huge difference.

I did see the value of having blevers though. I figure that will be my first actual upgrade. What I really need is a combination Brake Lever, Shifter, and Bell.

It also sounded like the entire front of my bike was going to come apart - turned out to be my loose-fitting waterbottle and the bell working together to make some truly nasty sounds.

Pics here -> LINK

veganbikes

Ehh so many people try to do that. I just don't stand for it, if you want to buy a bike for the brand name buy the right bike if you want just a cheap bike than buy a cheap bike and leave the brand out of it.

veganbikes

LOLOL...you kids are funny. Ain't my fault y'all are butthurt because you cannot accept your bike isn't French and the components on it aren't Japanese and how dare anyone ever question that. It's cool dude, enjoy your bike just know what it is : )

TXBDan

If i had a party I would not invite this guy.

BookFinder 

LOL. From the standpoint of another guy who likes any bike that works (with no regard for brand or “lineage”) this has all been most entertaining.

Nice catch @ironnerd. I’ll look forward to reading more of your impressions about the new bike. 👍🏼

veganbikes

Cool I probably wouldn't be interested in your party anyway. I am sure you guys will have fun sitting around in awkward silence drinking flat tap water. I will be enjoying myself with fun people who can handle the truth.

ironnerd

@TXBDan... When you quote him, I can see what he says...
Again... there is always "That Guy". This one does not get tongue-in-cheek humor, I guess. So far on this forum I've found about 1,000 cats who like bikes, and one guy who's had to go on my ignore list. By 2019 standards, that really impressive.

@BookFinder, Thank-you! I'll try to keep posting my findings. I just broke the 200 mile mark on it, and nothing fell off yet - except for the mirror, but that does not count since it was scavenged from my previous bike.

I really did like taking it down the dirt paths through the woods. It was surprisingly smooth. Those drop bars make precise steering a bit of a challenge sometimes, but they fit through some narrow gaps (it's all a trade-off, I guess). Traction on all surfaces was good, and braking positive. Made for a good day on a bike.

ironnerd

Took a nice ride in town a few weeks ago, just now getting around to the pics:



20190628_094007 by Iron Nerd


20190628_094127 by Iron Nerd


20190628_094230 by Iron Nerd, on Flickr

I also discovered the next BIG THING in bicycling; Carpet biking!

I forgot my lock, so I pushed my bike through the turnstile at work, and parked it in my cubicle. At the end of the day, I wanted to make sure everyone else was through the turnstile before I shoved the bike back through, so I waited around for a while - in an empty office area. And I stared riding my bike around the cubes on the nice carpeted floor.

Very smooth and really good traction. Also air conditioned. I see a future for this sport.

freeranger

Congrats on the new bike! Sure it is going to bring lots of riding pleasure!

pickettt

For what it's worth, each of my $9000 carbon bikes were made in China too.

ironnerd

550 mile update.

The kickstand is getting floppy. Normally I would just pull it off, but I actually use it all the time.

Aside form that, no problems. Still runs fine.
It is a little chain-noisy if the top chainiring is driving anything but the bottom cog. I can live with that.

Yonah

ironnerd - Just stumbled across this thread and thinking about the X1 or X2. I am not a daily commuter, but mostly just drive recreationally on paved road, roughly 5-10 miles at a clip. My neighborhood does have some rolling hills, and some poorly paved streets, and we have gravel trailway I might want to try.
My question to you is - looking at the X1 and X2, the only difference seems to be the shifters - are they worth the extra $50?

TIA

WaffleHouse

ironnerd

How's the bike doing so far? How many miles? Have any other issues popped up with it since the last update?