LHT vs Cross Check........again
 

NOTE: this is a cross-post on the Touring forum

Hello,

Sorry for another LHT vs CC thread, but I would really like to know opinions for my personal situation.

I'm in the process of building a bike for:
- commuting (7miles each way)
- general roaming around b roads and country roads (lots of cobblestone here)
- off road trails (riding mtb rigid since 2008, my favourite rig was a drop bar Singular Swift)
- touring. Planed tours right now are the Camino de Santiago-Via de la Plata (end of the year), Iceland (2015) and UK (2015/2016? I tend to load light when solo, but when touring with my GF I end up carrying some of her kit (not going to change).

I am equipping the bike with a Tubus Cargo rack, cantis, and two sets of tires, a pair of CX 700x35c for road/commuting/paths and another of 700x45c for mtb trails.

Both frames seem to be tough enough, with the Cross Check (to my surprise) even sporting a thicker top tube (.9x.6x.9 vs .8x.5x.8mm).

My considerations:
- I know that the chainstays on the CC are not as short as advertised, they can be extended 1" for stability
- the CC horizontal dropouts are nice since I am quite paranoid about derailleur faillures
- I want to put the handlebars close to level with the saddle. Is that possible on the CC with the tiny HT? I don't want to end with a stupid amount of spacers
- With it's "unstable" geometry and low dropbar position I could assume on paper that the CC would be inferior to the LHT offroad/rough roads?
- I am a big fan of the Rivendell Atlantis and Hunqapillar, promoted as on/off road tourers, but with a 80mm BB drop. The LHT also sports a 78mm drop. Isn't this excessive for offroad trail riding with 175mm cranks?
- With exactly the same parts, would a LHT still be considered that slower than the CC? And that slowness, is it turning, climbing or going straight?

I would like to thank in advance for all the patience and help

my CC has a ridiculous amount of spacers to get bars level w saddle, the frame is meant to be agressive, be sure you get an uncut fork, stock config has them cut low
one thing I found helpful was to get 40mm spacers, now I only have 2 spacers instead of 8, much less.

how about a touring Troll? better off road, similar cargo compatibility to lht, overbuilt frame, easier to get high handlebars

Regarding the steering spacers, if his helps in any way, I'm an hair under 6'1, 33" inseam and the frame is going to be a 58cm

Only the LHT frame/fork is made in 2 wheel types 26" and 700c .

whole frame is made for the wheel size, not interchangeable.

CC just 700c. Taiwan.

UK, you have SJS's Thorne frames sold there too ..

You should think about getting the right tool for the job. The LHT allows you to center the weight better over the axles front and rear than the cross check so it is a more stable bike under a load. Also given the kind of trips you want to do, the 26 inch wheel option is a plus.

I'm going with 700c, thats a decision I've already made

I had a CC and replaced it with a Rivendell All-Rounder (similar to Atlantis & LHT). One problem I had with the CC was the short headtube.

The AR seems slower because of the more upright position but when I used a stopwatch on a section one night the times were real close.

I'm not really in the mood for a racey position, that's why the the need for the level or nearly level handlebar.
I'm doing a lot more exercise besides cycling (mostly jiu jitsu), so my neck and triceps end up feeling quite sore when riding with the bars well bellow the saddle