I currently have a Specialized Hardrock with 26" tires that I primarily use on gravel/easy trails and go 20-30 miles. It needs new forks, new rims, and the cassette is bent. I love the bike but it needs a lot of expensive work to be right. I'm thinking about getting a new gravel bike, but cost is seemingly crazy. Does anyone have any recommendations for an affordable gravel/hybrid type bike to replace my Hardrock? I really don't to spend more than a grand on a bicycle.
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If you were spending 10 times as much, many people could offer recommendations.
The last time I bought a bike the entry level stuff that wasn't at wal-mart was like $500. Now its $1200 and between $2500=$4k for most things. There's just no way I'm spending that on a bicycle.
Decent full suspension bikes start at over $1K. If you’re just out for exercise and a little fun there are good hardtail options for less than a grand. Most of us don’t significantly benefit from higher end components, which can always be added later if starting with a good frame.
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Aren’t gravel bikes kinda like enduros, not really good at anything?
I would look at some of the manufactures sites that offer recondiction and returned demo bikes. SInce Your coming from what sounds like an older bike, getting a closeout left over model could save you a lot and still be a big upgrade.
I got myself a Canyon Emtb for about half price on a closeout. It was a brand new model that had been returned but never ridden. I know You are not looking for an EMTB , so this example is just for showing how they dealt with an issue that came up.
There was an issue that developed with batteries on the model I have. They issued a STOP ride notice and promised a fix.Gave me a place to go check to confirm my bike was impacted and register for a new battery. A month after I got the notice I got another email saying that they were going to pay everybody who was impacted a percentage of the purchase price for each additional month that it took for them to get a fix for the issue inplace. I ended up getting around 3 or 4 months of pavements that totaled around $600-700 and a new battery with a return shipping label for my old one if I wanted them to dispose of it for me.
Canyon is direct to consumer and doesn't have dealers, but my experience has been great with them. And the bike has been great too.
The Bike industry has had some insane closeout pricing on bikes,parts and gear recently. So there are some great deals out there if You look.
I looked at the Canyon site and there are only a couple that are a hair under 2K so that might not be very helpful. When I got mine I was watching and they run sales every so often that brought the total price down even lower than what I ended up paying for mine. So it may be worth watching a few of the sites that have bikes that are close to your budget for a little bit.
Commencal is another brand that has some gravel bikes on sale and is a good brand. I saw a couple that are around $1200 that are 37% off of the original price. https://www.commencal.com/us/en/bikes/bikes/gravel%20%26%20city/
Buy used at that budget, otherwise you’ll be getting a crap bike. It’s just the way it is now
Hey Smuffers! Sent you a PM with some info I could share! Good luck with your search! 😎 👍❗️
Its just mind blowing to me that bicycles cost this much now. You can literally buy a new dirt bike with a motor for less than you can buy a mid-level bicycle.
Are you looking for a gravel bike or a mountain bike to ride on gravel? A gravel bike is very different than a MTB
You can definitely find new gravel bikes in the $1000 range. Or $12g. Check out what Salsa bikes offers for quality affordable bikes.
Buy used for half the MSRP.
1k will get you a solid gravel bike about anywhere.
Looked on Craigslist and there was nothing. Don't have facebook so can't do marketplace.
Good local bike shops usually have used inventories. Spend a couple hundred extra and get a quality bike.
I'm still partial to flat bars. I get that drop bars put you in a better "cycling" position, but you have shit for leverage when it comes to handling.
https://www.trekbikes.com/us/en_US/bikes/hybrid-bikes/active-fitness-bikes/fx/fx-sport/f/F421-1/fx-sport-sl-6/47256/5323991
Yeah, when I go on group rides I'm usually the only one with flat bars. For now, I'll give up the optimal aero positioning with drop bars.
Kind of depends on what you are looking for, if you like riding a hardtail on the gravel just get the nicest 29er hardtail with an air fork you can find and put some gravel tires on it. If you want a dedicated gravel bikes for group rides and races either check out what lbs's have or look at some of the cheaper online places like bikes online, just keep in mind that with shipping and tax the price will be $100+ what is advertised.
Craigslist is dead everything sold locally is on Facebook. You can find used bikes on pinkbike.com also.
Pit Row
For a gravel bike, entry level treks are hard to beat for price tag in my opinion. Unless you plan to ride 100 miles a week. Used market is great right now as well.
This site has a lot of info on deals for new and used bikes. Worth looking at
https://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/list/?region=3&page=1&sort=price-up&ca…
All the super deep discounts on new bikes right now is killing the used bike market.
I'm curious as to what you might think about this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtrVPce6rQE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXqqFAO6cIk
Looked for the Ozark gravel bike, but they appeared to be sold out! I would have bought it if they had a large in stock.
Update, I did find a bike shop that would true the wheels and install new forks on the Hardrock for $400. I'm just going to go that route and ride the old girl for a few more years.
Sounds like the right move, especially since you are already positively familiar with your current bike. Good luck!
Appreciate your responses and insight on this thing. Happy to have the old bike up and running. This is also a suggestion to everyone to get quotes from a couple of shops to do bike work bc they are not all the same. Local bike shop basically said there was nothing they could do and charged me $200 for a "tuneup" where they didn't even clean the cassette.... REI is going to true the wheels, install new forks, and new brake pads for that $400 price.... in short, shop around.
Absolutely! I'm learning from everyone, everywhere. I've been riding casually all of my life, but my recent Trek purchase took it to another level. I cannot believe I've done several 30-40 mile rides and even a 55 mile ride, lol!
It's a fine balance of wanting to support local businesses, but the bigger companies might be able to give you a better value for your dollar. At any rate, it sounds like the old horse is becoming the freshest horse in your stable!
https://bikesonline.com/collections/polygon-gravel-bikes?srsltid=AfmBOorLoWgg0nKcaktEwMuj7d_EqNNr3C7o0VWTc24uT5O_j0H1zBv2
I've had very good luck with my polygon, much more reasonably priced than other brands.
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