Thoughts on All-City Cosmic Stallion (2019) vs Jamis Renegade S3 (2020)
06-03-20, 09:48 AM
#1
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Thread Starter
Thoughts on All-City Cosmic Stallion (2019) vs Jamis Renegade S3 (2020)
Help, please. I think I’m about to make a poor choice based on cool paint. I recently sold some old bikes and gear and now want to get a new bike for mixed use - Lots of city rides and paved trails, plus some crushed limestone trails, gravel, and the occasional packed dirt path (but I wouldn’t want to ride when conditions turn muddy). I’m trying to do this riding now on 700x25 conti 4000s which obviously just aren’t great off pavement and my road bike cannot fit wider than a 30.
This is purely recreation and fitness - no racing. To avoid marital problems I need to keep it between $1500 and $2300 plus tax.
I prefer steel and I am looking at the 2020 Jamis Renegade S3 for $1,500 and the 2019 version of the All City Cosmic Stallion with 105 groupset which LBS has available at $2,250 from original list of $2,600.
Here’s the struggle: the Jamis is far less money and I think it seems like it may be a bit better equipped. The cosmic stallion is $750 more and I’m not sure it’s quite as well equipped for my purposes...but I absolutely love the fade paint job and overall look. It might not be for everyone but it’s a drool worthy bike to me.
The Jamis has GRX 400 (tiagra equivalent?) with really low gears for climbing sketchy surfaces (46/30 and 11/36). I’m nearly 50 years old, work a desk job, and stay very busy with my kids, so I don’t have much time to ride and stay fit (I’ll be lucky if I can fit in 1,500 miles this summer, so I’m not a high mileage rider), so the low gearing would help me climb even on pavement. The CS has what I conceptualize as the more recreational road gearing of 50/34 and 11/32. Jamis has hydro disc brakes, CS has mechanical Avid BB7. When you run through the specs it really seems like the Jamis is more appropriately equipped for my purposes. Real bike weights are hard to come by but it looks like weights may be similar - perhaps a pound more for the Jamis?
But oh that paint!!! I like the Jamis a lot but I’m drawn to the Cosmic Stallion in a major way. So obviously I want the CS but I’m having a hard time seeing how it makes sense compared to what I would get for the money with the Jamis. Does anyone have experience with either bike? Am I missing something about the Cosmic Stallion? Apart from the incredible paint I’m having a hard time with $2,250, particularly when I compare it to the Renegade S3. Thoughts and recommendations would be appreciated.
This is purely recreation and fitness - no racing. To avoid marital problems I need to keep it between $1500 and $2300 plus tax.
I prefer steel and I am looking at the 2020 Jamis Renegade S3 for $1,500 and the 2019 version of the All City Cosmic Stallion with 105 groupset which LBS has available at $2,250 from original list of $2,600.
Here’s the struggle: the Jamis is far less money and I think it seems like it may be a bit better equipped. The cosmic stallion is $750 more and I’m not sure it’s quite as well equipped for my purposes...but I absolutely love the fade paint job and overall look. It might not be for everyone but it’s a drool worthy bike to me.
The Jamis has GRX 400 (tiagra equivalent?) with really low gears for climbing sketchy surfaces (46/30 and 11/36). I’m nearly 50 years old, work a desk job, and stay very busy with my kids, so I don’t have much time to ride and stay fit (I’ll be lucky if I can fit in 1,500 miles this summer, so I’m not a high mileage rider), so the low gearing would help me climb even on pavement. The CS has what I conceptualize as the more recreational road gearing of 50/34 and 11/32. Jamis has hydro disc brakes, CS has mechanical Avid BB7. When you run through the specs it really seems like the Jamis is more appropriately equipped for my purposes. Real bike weights are hard to come by but it looks like weights may be similar - perhaps a pound more for the Jamis?
But oh that paint!!! I like the Jamis a lot but I’m drawn to the Cosmic Stallion in a major way. So obviously I want the CS but I’m having a hard time seeing how it makes sense compared to what I would get for the money with the Jamis. Does anyone have experience with either bike? Am I missing something about the Cosmic Stallion? Apart from the incredible paint I’m having a hard time with $2,250, particularly when I compare it to the Renegade S3. Thoughts and recommendations would be appreciated.
06-03-20, 12:55 PM
#2
Senior Member
Photo of the Cosmic Stallion
Color is important as it makes you want to ride more if you like the look of the bike.The jump in price for 105 R7000 from GRX 400 is not worth the increase in cost alone. You may want to look at the wheels on the CS (particularly the hubs) as that is another area where cheaper bikes cut costs.
Color is important as it makes you want to ride more if you like the look of the bike.The jump in price for 105 R7000 from GRX 400 is not worth the increase in cost alone. You may want to look at the wheels on the CS (particularly the hubs) as that is another area where cheaper bikes cut costs.
06-03-20, 01:23 PM
#3
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Thread Starter
Originally Posted by katsup
Photo of the Cosmic Stallion
Color is important as it makes you want to ride more if you like the look of the bike.The jump in price for 105 R7000 from GRX 400 is not worth the increase in cost alone. You may want to look at the wheels on the CS (particularly the hubs) as that is another area where cheaper bikes cut costs.
Color is important as it makes you want to ride more if you like the look of the bike.The jump in price for 105 R7000 from GRX 400 is not worth the increase in cost alone. You may want to look at the wheels on the CS (particularly the hubs) as that is another area where cheaper bikes cut costs.
06-03-20, 03:15 PM
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Ride them and pick the one that speaks to you.
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06-03-20, 03:45 PM
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There is no wrong decision- both are quite nice.
The mechanical avid on the Cosmic Stallion is lame, agreed. All City is not a value/budget brand. Ive done a few detailed hypothetical frame builds where I end with a nicer spec'd bike with their frame for the cost of their full build, or a cheaper costing bike with the same quality spec as their full build.
All City's paint is excellent year after year. Their fades and splatter paints make me all sorts of happy because it reminds me of late 80s road bikes and also all the early 90s GT bmx bikes my friends and I rode.
If you want value and quality- Jamis with 631.
If you want flash and quality- All City with ACE.
...this assumes the geometry for each works well for you and how you want a bike to feel..
The mechanical avid on the Cosmic Stallion is lame, agreed. All City is not a value/budget brand. Ive done a few detailed hypothetical frame builds where I end with a nicer spec'd bike with their frame for the cost of their full build, or a cheaper costing bike with the same quality spec as their full build.
All City's paint is excellent year after year. Their fades and splatter paints make me all sorts of happy because it reminds me of late 80s road bikes and also all the early 90s GT bmx bikes my friends and I rode.
If you want value and quality- Jamis with 631.
If you want flash and quality- All City with ACE.
...this assumes the geometry for each works well for you and how you want a bike to feel..
06-03-20, 06:29 PM
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Since you mentioned hills, the gearing on these two bikes is very different. A 34/32 low gear is pretty low but nothing like what the Jamis has. The All-City seems to me to be more of a road bike that you can ride on trails/gravel, where the Jamis is more an off-road bike you can ride on the road.
I do like that paint though.
I do like that paint though.
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06-03-20, 06:36 PM
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Test ride for the final decision. Two great choices. Win-win either way. Just get the one you like the best, after the test ride.
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06-03-20, 06:38 PM
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Test ride for the final decision. Two great choices. Win-win either way. Just get the one you like the best, after the test rides.
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06-03-20, 08:13 PM
#9
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Thread Starter
Originally Posted by mstateglfr
There is no wrong decision- both are quite nice.
The mechanical avid on the Cosmic Stallion is lame, agreed. All City is not a value/budget brand. Ive done a few detailed hypothetical frame builds where I end with a nicer spec'd bike with their frame for the cost of their full build, or a cheaper costing bike with the same quality spec as their full build.
All City's paint is excellent year after year. Their fades and splatter paints make me all sorts of happy because it reminds me of late 80s road bikes and also all the early 90s GT bmx bikes my friends and I rode.
If you want value and quality- Jamis with 631.
If you want flash and quality- All City with ACE.
...this assumes the geometry for each works well for you and how you want a bike to feel..
The mechanical avid on the Cosmic Stallion is lame, agreed. All City is not a value/budget brand. Ive done a few detailed hypothetical frame builds where I end with a nicer spec'd bike with their frame for the cost of their full build, or a cheaper costing bike with the same quality spec as their full build.
All City's paint is excellent year after year. Their fades and splatter paints make me all sorts of happy because it reminds me of late 80s road bikes and also all the early 90s GT bmx bikes my friends and I rode.
If you want value and quality- Jamis with 631.
If you want flash and quality- All City with ACE.
...this assumes the geometry for each works well for you and how you want a bike to feel..
06-03-20, 08:24 PM
#10
Member
Thread Starter
Originally Posted by Ogsarg
Since you mentioned hills, the gearing on these two bikes is very different. A 34/32 low gear is pretty low but nothing like what the Jamis has. The All-City seems to me to be more of a road bike that you can ride on trails/gravel, where the Jamis is more an off-road bike you can ride on the road.
I do like that paint though.
I do like that paint though.
02-02-22, 08:48 PM
#12
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Originally Posted by RoLo50312
Help, please. I think I’m about to make a poor choice based on cool paint. I recently sold some old bikes and gear and now want to get a new bike for mixed use - Lots of city rides and paved trails, plus some crushed limestone trails, gravel, and the occasional packed dirt path (but I wouldn’t want to ride when conditions turn muddy). I’m trying to do this riding now on 700x25 conti 4000s which obviously just aren’t great off pavement and my road bike cannot fit wider than a 30.
This is purely recreation and fitness - no racing. To avoid marital problems I need to keep it between $1500 and $2300 plus tax.
I prefer steel and I am looking at the 2020 Jamis Renegade S3 for $1,500 and the 2019 version of the All City Cosmic Stallion with 105 groupset which LBS has available at $2,250 from original list of $2,600.
Here’s the struggle: the Jamis is far less money and I think it seems like it may be a bit better equipped. The cosmic stallion is $750 more and I’m not sure it’s quite as well equipped for my purposes...but I absolutely love the fade paint job and overall look. It might not be for everyone but it’s a drool worthy bike to me.
The Jamis has GRX 400 (tiagra equivalent?) with really low gears for climbing sketchy surfaces (46/30 and 11/36). I’m nearly 50 years old, work a desk job, and stay very busy with my kids, so I don’t have much time to ride and stay fit (I’ll be lucky if I can fit in 1,500 miles this summer, so I’m not a high mileage rider), so the low gearing would help me climb even on pavement. The CS has what I conceptualize as the more recreational road gearing of 50/34 and 11/32. Jamis has hydro disc brakes, CS has mechanical Avid BB7. When you run through the specs it really seems like the Jamis is more appropriately equipped for my purposes. Real bike weights are hard to come by but it looks like weights may be similar - perhaps a pound more for the Jamis?
But oh that paint!!! I like the Jamis a lot but I’m drawn to the Cosmic Stallion in a major way. So obviously I want the CS but I’m having a hard time seeing how it makes sense compared to what I would get for the money with the Jamis. Does anyone have experience with either bike? Am I missing something about the Cosmic Stallion? Apart from the incredible paint I’m having a hard time with $2,250, particularly when I compare it to the Renegade S3. Thoughts and recommendations would be appreciated.
This is purely recreation and fitness - no racing. To avoid marital problems I need to keep it between $1500 and $2300 plus tax.
I prefer steel and I am looking at the 2020 Jamis Renegade S3 for $1,500 and the 2019 version of the All City Cosmic Stallion with 105 groupset which LBS has available at $2,250 from original list of $2,600.
Here’s the struggle: the Jamis is far less money and I think it seems like it may be a bit better equipped. The cosmic stallion is $750 more and I’m not sure it’s quite as well equipped for my purposes...but I absolutely love the fade paint job and overall look. It might not be for everyone but it’s a drool worthy bike to me.
The Jamis has GRX 400 (tiagra equivalent?) with really low gears for climbing sketchy surfaces (46/30 and 11/36). I’m nearly 50 years old, work a desk job, and stay very busy with my kids, so I don’t have much time to ride and stay fit (I’ll be lucky if I can fit in 1,500 miles this summer, so I’m not a high mileage rider), so the low gearing would help me climb even on pavement. The CS has what I conceptualize as the more recreational road gearing of 50/34 and 11/32. Jamis has hydro disc brakes, CS has mechanical Avid BB7. When you run through the specs it really seems like the Jamis is more appropriately equipped for my purposes. Real bike weights are hard to come by but it looks like weights may be similar - perhaps a pound more for the Jamis?
But oh that paint!!! I like the Jamis a lot but I’m drawn to the Cosmic Stallion in a major way. So obviously I want the CS but I’m having a hard time seeing how it makes sense compared to what I would get for the money with the Jamis. Does anyone have experience with either bike? Am I missing something about the Cosmic Stallion? Apart from the incredible paint I’m having a hard time with $2,250, particularly when I compare it to the Renegade S3. Thoughts and recommendations would be appreciated.
02-02-22, 08:49 PM
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Originally Posted by peanstein
I know it's an old thread but which bike did you end up buying?
