small budget Gravel bikes
- Thread starter DP-UK
- Start date
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HLaB
Marie Attoinette Fan
When I was looking a few years back for new and a popular size. That was getting you slightly less gears, a lower groupset, mechanical disk brakes, exposed cables and all aluminium. Still a good bike, but I upped my budget to £1,500 the original price of @ColinJ example but another make. I could have got full carbon too for just more than £2,000, but I opted for just carbon forks as a friend advised that it being my first gravel bike that I wouldn't want to be nervous about falling off and bashing it and the extra dough wouldn't have been worth it.
Katana
Active Member
If he plans to buy a brand new bike then Boardman Adventure 8.6 from Halfords comes at £825 which is very good gravel bike(I also own it). I think only thing it lacks is the hydraulic brakes as it is equipped with mechanical disc brakes. Other than that I cannot fault anything. However he could possibly consider better spec models for more if he’s able to get it through “Cycle to work scheme”.
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vickster
Squire
Go outdoors have a few options
https://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/cycling/bikes/gravel-bikes/
Try Decathlon too as well as Boardman above
https://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/cycling/bikes/gravel-bikes/
Try Decathlon too as well as Boardman above
ade towell
Über Member
- Location
- Nottingham
If you're prepared to go second hand you could get a really beautiful lightly used bike for under £900 - I got a Kinesis Tripster ATR titanium with hydraulic brakes for less than that, worth checking ebay and Facebook marketplace locally if you're comfortable with that. As has been mentioned you may struggle to get a new bike with carbon fork, hydraulic brakes and under £1000, imho they are so much nicer than mechanical disc brakes, and for me at least less hassle
PedallingNowhereSlowly
Über Member
For £1050:
https://www.merlincycles.com/felt-broam-30-grx-gravel-bike-317209.html
Still a few sizes left. Quite happy with mine thus far. Gearing is a bit lower than the bikes recommended with road mechs/cassettes.
https://www.merlincycles.com/felt-broam-30-grx-gravel-bike-317209.html
Still a few sizes left. Quite happy with mine thus far. Gearing is a bit lower than the bikes recommended with road mechs/cassettes.
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fossyant
Ride It Like You Stole It!
- Location
- South Manchester
Used ?
PedallingNowhereSlowly
Über Member
My link is a new bike.
£150 over budget - but it has 12 speed, GRX components, hydraulic disc brakes and a carbon fork (albiet with aluminium steerer).
HLaB
Marie Attoinette Fan
Felt has changed hands a few times and I think KTM are trying to offload them again, if you can live with that it looks like you got a bargain 👍
https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/felt-bicycles-to-be-sold-due-to-difficult-economic-environment
My money would be on something used - while new prices seem to be getting more sensible as we move away from the post-covid issues, used still appear to represent disproportionately better value.
Personally on a £900 budget I'd be looking at a used Genesis Croix de Fer as the most accessible / available steel offering, but you'd probably get something equally as decent from Temple Cycles. If frame material is less of a concern I suspect there are myriad ally bikes available used for well within the stated budget.
Personally on a £900 budget I'd be looking at a used Genesis Croix de Fer as the most accessible / available steel offering, but you'd probably get something equally as decent from Temple Cycles. If frame material is less of a concern I suspect there are myriad ally bikes available used for well within the stated budget.
DRM
Guru
- Location
- West Yorks
https://www.spacycles.co.uk/m1b0s221p0/Bikes/CLEARANCE-Ex-Demo-Bikes
Any thing here any good?
Any thing here any good?
ade towell
Über Member
- Location
- Nottingham
I agree on getting a much better quality used bike for that budget - I do love steel as well as titanium bikes and looked at both the steel bikes mentioned here - just be aware with both the Croix de fer and the Temple Adventure bikes that the lower models of each use mechanical disc brakes not hydraulic - I know I’ve mentioned it already but particularly if planning riding much off road, the modulation and lighter touch of hydraulic is imho much nicer
Cheers and yes; that's a good point about the brakes however it's a potentially bit more nuanced than that. Can't speak for Temple but I'm very well acquainted with Genesis' range (at least up until 2020).
IIRC nowt got proper hydraulic discs until the 2018 CdF 30, which had non-series but 105-level kit. The 2019 and 2020 '30s are the pick of the bunch IMO as they both got full hydraulic R7000 / GRX. These were a good chunk more than the lower-level offerings (RRP was c. £2k) and are a lot more scarce, however don't seem to hold their value so well and you do see them come up occasionally within your budget.
As you point out none of the lower-end models have ever had proper hydro brakes, although the CdF 20 got semi-hydro with cable-operated TRP Hy/Rd calipers for most of its run from 2015-2020.
Also, probably off the menu but the flat bar version of the CdF 10 introduced in 2020 got hydros at a much lower price (no doubt thanks to this tech being ubiquitous in MTB circles for years) while the 2021-2024 '10 and '20 also got hydro brakes..
Post-2020 it all went a bit squirly as covid first knackered what kit could be got, then made it all bloody expensive. The 2021 CdF 30 was hobbled with cable discs (on a £2.3k bike!) and stuff has got a bit more sensible now, although personally I'm not a huge fan of the way they're heading and given how poor sales have likely been I suspect most of the used stuff you'll find will be earlier.
