Comparing gnarly Titanium gravel bikes

lawrence281

lawrence281

lawrence281

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Hey peeps,

Looking to get a gnarly Ti gravel bike to shredd it up of course, not in my terotorityOr as I main road cycle but have been getting into off road cycling on the mtb and now looking for a gravel bike.

Intiailly I loved the feel and ride of Temple Steel gravel bikes but have kept my options open for Ti bikes which are undeniably beautiful and have so many good factors for adventuring and a long day in a saddle/touring.

Titus Goldrush SRAM Force 1 Titanium Gravel Bike | Planet X

https://alpkit.com/products/sonder-camino-ti-rival1-hydraulic

Orginally I wanted https://www.templecycles.co.uk/products/adventure-disc-1?variant=32644442259542
which I still want.

Would love peoples opinions on ti vs steel or if its noticeable on long tours or rad rides?
 
Carbon has more chance of removing vibrations than ti, but it will never look as good!

Planet Xs one is nice for the money, I'd imagine from the same factory as alpkit/Ribble etc.

You don't have to worry about ti as much as steel either. Friends steel bike has just recently got a hole in the chain stay, only ever ridden in the dry too.
 
Begbie said:
Carbon has more chance of removing vibrations than ti, but it will never look as good!

Planet Xs one is nice for the money, I'd imagine from the same factory as alpkit/Ribble etc.

You don't have to worry about ti as much as steel either. Friends steel bike has just recently got a hole in the chain stay, only ever ridden in the dry too.
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For adventuring I woudn't trust myself with carbon, My girlfriends low-step through commuter bike ive used for my commutes, and I love the look, the feel of the frame and its such a smooth ride. So Id imagine the steel adventure bike would be a dream, I would love to test ride a titanium which I havent yet, but for my price range, both materials are in it. I think temple have lifetime warranty aswell, so if a random hole got in the chain stay, they would sort it
 
I have a Planet X Titanium bike. If you're the sort to be annoyed about scuffs or marks on your frame I think Titanium is a great material. I slid off down a bit of an incline and took a little while to come to a stop, leaving some barely noticeable scuffs on the frame. If it was painted I think I'd have been far more annoyed and I'd have suffered some deeper marks and chips. It's certainly a practical material for off roading where you're perhaps more likely to have a slower off that won't cripple your frame, just mar it.

It's nice to just wash it down and not really think about it as well. I think the major pitfall of Titanium is if you end up requiring a repair, it finding someone to fix it is going to be harder. Not impossible though. I'd take it over Carbon, I don't trust myself either!
 
Parsley said:
I have a Planet X Titanium bike. If you're the sort to be annoyed about scuffs or marks on your frame I think Titanium is a great material. I slid off down a bit of an incline and took a little while to come to a stop, leaving some barely noticeable scuffs on the frame. If it was painted I think I'd have been far more annoyed and I'd have suffered some deeper marks and chips. It's certainly a practical material for off roading where you're perhaps more likely to have a slower off that won't cripple your frame, just mar it.

It's nice to just wash it down and not really think about it as well. I think the major pitfall of Titanium is if you end up requiring a repair, it finding someone to fix it is going to be harder. Not impossible though. I'd take it over Carbon, I don't trust myself either!
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Do you have the tempest? how is it?
 
I have a Goldrush. I've had a fair bit of use out of it, though as the weather eventually begins to warm up I'll be out on it more. I've been out with friends on their road bikes and was able to keep up (though they weren't pushing it and aren't exactly in training...).

I can't comment on the Tempest specifically, but spec wise the bikes are similar. I've had no problems with any of the gearsets or equipment on the bike. The titanium frame has been rugged enough to put up with my 100ish kg self taking it up and down all sorts of trails. Not a mountain bike, obviously, but really a bit of an all rounder considering what I've done on it. Any spills I have had have left scuffs, no paint or anything to worry about as I mentioned above. I bent a derailleur and had it bent back. I'd consider ordering a replacement or two from planet x for future usage, I couldn't find an alternative source.

I did swap tyres out but your milage my vary. The rims were also fine going tubeless. When I ordered there wasn't a lot of choice in terms of swapping things like saddles and I found the one provided wasn't particularly comfortable, but it's very individual, budget in a replacement just in case!

My only real quibble with the bike is I wish it had a bigger chainring (I'm not sure going from 40t to 42t would be of much benefit either). Other than that, I'm very happy with it! Especially considering how hard it was (maybe still is?) at the time to get anything decent for a reasonable price.

If you have any specific questions in mind just ask!
 
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Bear said:
Whenever Ive looked at Titanium bikes I always look at https://www.jlaverack.co.uk/titanium-bike-range/ but dont know if its out of your price range or not. I have a hand built steel bike which I use for bike packing made by Shand https://www.shandcycles.com/shop/bikes/stoater/ which is suitable for gravel.

Cant tell you the differences as Ive never ridden a Ti bike but steel is far more comfortable compared with carbon
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Bar being up a tier on groupsets, I really can't see the extra value in the bikes from J.Laverack. I imagine you'll get more support from the company which is worth a lot, but is it worth 3-4x the cost for a titanium bike? We're not talking cutting edge carbon insanity. Just my biased take based on how happy I am with my own purchase.

As for the difference between carbon and titanium... having used my friends carbon road bike, you'll feel the weight difference for sure. You'll feel the difference in efficiency in the bike as well. Carbon frames tend to be more aerodynamic. If you're going to go road warrior I'd get a carbon frame, but if you want an overall more robust all rounder (say a "gravel frame" with some bigger tyres on) or something you commute on / put any luggage on, I'd go titanium.

I've never specifically tried a titanium framed road bike though.
 
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Parsley said:
Bar being up a tier on groupsets, I really can't see the extra value in the bikes from J.Laverack. I imagine you'll get more support from the company which is worth a lot, but is it worth 3-4x the cost for a titanium bike? We're not talking cutting edge carbon insanity. Just my biased take based on how happy I am with my own purchase.
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I guess it depends if you see value in a built to order bike manufactured in England compared to a mass produced frame from Asia. There’s nothing wrong with a mass produced frame from Asia, I ride a Giant Propel and a Gran Fondo from Ribble, most of the carbon frames are from Asia as well so it’s not a slur but a small artisan bike manufacturer hand building in the UK will always cost more.
 
Bear said:
I guess it depends if you see value in a built to order bike manufactured in England compared to a mass produced frame from Asia. There’s nothing wrong with a mass produced frame from Asia, I ride a Giant Propel and a Gran Fondo from Ribble, most of the carbon frames are from Asia as well so it’s not a slur but a small artisan bike manufacturer hand building in the UK will always cost more.
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I understand and I'm with you. Where it's viable and worthwhile I'll always try and stay in country or even local. It's just so much more expensive, at least for me! They're also not trying to package something made entirely from Asian parts and sell it on as a British brand with an extra side of £££, unlike some (especially with carbon).

Though saying that, they're not quite as eye watering as others.
 
lawrence281 said:
Hey peeps,

Looking to get a gnarly Ti gravel bike to shredd it up of course, not in my terotorityOr as I main road cycle but have been getting into off road cycling on the mtb and now looking for a gravel bike.

Intiailly I loved the feel and ride of Temple Steel gravel bikes but have kept my options open for Ti bikes which are undeniably beautiful and have so many good factors for adventuring and a long day in a saddle/touring.

Titus Goldrush SRAM Force 1 Titanium Gravel Bike | Planet X

https://alpkit.com/products/sonder-camino-ti-rival1-hydraulic

Orginally I wanted https://www.templecycles.co.uk/products/adventure-disc-1?variant=32644442259542
which I still want.

Would love peoples opinions on ti vs steel or if its noticeable on long tours or rad rides?
Click to expand...

what did you get?
 
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