How much fun can you have for under $1000?
With bicycle boutiques and big brands pushing prices of top-level bikes sky high - can you still have fun for less than $1000?
As cycling grows in popularity, it spreads in both directions. High-end bikes are often selling for $15000 – or more – and you can even find fat bikes in K-mart. So it can make it a little confusing when getting into riding – are the top bikes just over-priced? Are the cheap ones poorly made? And will you miss out if you don't spend enough?
The other part of this is the "n+1" phenomenon. Where the ideal amount of bikes to own are whatever you have (n) plus one more. Many cyclists adhere to it. And as cycling grows, so do the niche parts of cycling. You may well have a lovely road bike, and a nice and reliable mountain bike. But your friends want to go touring. What will you take?
What's hot in adventure bikes!
Or you may have an amazing time trial bike, and a fantastic new commuter. But you want to go in the local club criterium this weekend.
What if you've got the bikes you like, but you really want to try gravel grinding, or just get off the well-worn roads and explore – maybe even try a cyclocross race? There are plenty of stock bikes and bespoke builds around. Flashy carbon frames, custom Titanium or steel, and we've even seen raw steel frames drilled for completely internal Shimano Di2 group sets, with a small dynamo so the battery never needs charging. And these bikes are lovely – but do you need to spend so much to get out and experience the serenity of quiet dirt roads, escape to do some light off-road touring, even bikepacking, or jump into a cyclocross race? All these things should be fun, but if there's going to be a lot of financial stress – that fun may not be worth it.
So I wanted to take a look at the Reid Granite 2.0. After testing the Reid Vantage Endurance 3.0 in our current issue, I was really impressed not just by the parts kit available on Reid bikes for the price – but also the build quality of the frames.
Sizing up the Reid Granite 2.0
Reid bill the Granite 2.0 as a gravel-grinder and it is in their all-road/cyclocross range along with the Reid Granite 1.0, the Reid CX, and the awesome Reid SSCX (yes, singlespeed cyclocross). The Granite frame differs to the CX frame. For a given size, the Granite is shorter in the reach, taller at the head tube, shorter in the chainstays, and has greater stability with a lower bottom bracket. For the rider, this means you're a little more upright, and more planted in the bike when descending. The Reid CX frame is a little bit steeper too, has internal routing, and doesn't have a tapered steerer fork like the Granite 2.0 does.
So with that in mind, if you're reading this thinking about getting an entry-level cyclocross bike – get the Reid CX. It does have a full-alloy fork and Avid BB5 cable disc brakes instead of the carbon legged fork and TRP Spyre C brakes of the Granite 2.0. It also has a narrower gear range with 13/26 8sp cassette matched to 34/36 chain rings, as opposed to an 11/32 8sp cassette paired with a 34/50 chain ring combination on the Granite 2.0.
But if you're after a versatile bike, read on.
The Reid Granite 2.0 frame is a 6061 hydroformed aluminium frame, which has external routing on the down tube with full length cable outer for the derailleurs and rear brake. The fork has a tapered alloy steerer, with carbon legs and external routing for the disc brake. The frame and fork take quick-release wheels. Of note, both the frame and the fork have rack mounts.
The frame's grey colour suits the likely dirty use it will see, and the teal accents are a great addition. Even the decals on the Alex MD17 double wall rims match, as well as the base colour beneath the black of the handlebar tape. It's great attention to detail that makes the bike look really polished.
A look at the parts on the Reid Granite 2.0
The Reid uses Shimano 8sp Claris shifters and derailleurs, for a 16sp drivetrain. "WTF is Claris?" I hear you ask? It's a proper STI shifter which you can use from the hoods or drops, with external cables for the shifters, and gear indicators built into the front of the hood.
And while 8 is a lot less than 11, the gear range is there, with an 11-32 cassette. Matched with the 34/50 chain rings on the Claris cranks, it's a wide spread. The KMC chain is wide and strong, and there's plenty of room between the cassette sprockets for mud and gunk. Through the whole test, I never had to tune the gears – they're just not finicky.
The brake runs inside the rear triangle, which keeps the back end clear for racks or guards.
The Alex MD17 rims are built with stainless steel spokes and brass nipples, to basic Reid alloy hubs. The hubs use a cup and cone bearing, and I backed the factory tension off from 'overly tight' to 'just right' and gained a lot more rolling speed. Tyres are Continental Cyclocross Speed, 35mm wide. They are a file tread with subtle edge knobs.
With Reid's own brand finishing kit, including some pretty good shallow drop bars, it rounded out nicely.
So how does the Reid Granite 2.0 ride?
That's the question, isn't it? As a bike that weighs 11.16kg (confirmed, in medium) before adding pedals, it's not light. With a near on straight seatpost (15mm setback) and a reasonably short toptube and tall head tube the Reid sets up pretty short. Ideal for riding and exploring – not suited for aggressive racing. But that's perfect for the bike's intended use.
As a bike that is intended for all-road use, the best thing I thought I could do to test it was to just ride it. I rode it on a popular road route near my home in Brisbane. I rode it while showing some friends around who came to visit for the National Cyclocross Series. I raced it in the same National Cyclocross Series. I rode out to the second day of the series along a route of gravel roads, bike paths and firetrails. I commuted on it. I rode to the post office with it. I rode it to a cafe or five – and I just used it as a bike that I wasn't chasing road KOMs or mountain bike thrills on.
And I had an absolute blast! Richie Tyler did a story on gravel riding earlier this year, and put it best when asked what a gravel bike was:
"Purists will say whatever you’re riding, although those purists may be responsible for more than their fair share of punctures."
But with a super-wide gear range, upright rising position, reasonable bottom bracket drop and reliable disc brakes with 35mm tyres – the Granite 2.0 was spot on out of the box, for what most people would expect for a gravel, or all-road bike.
If I wanted to push the bike a little harder, it had some short falls. I did have to fit a setback seat post to get my fit right, and probably could have gone up to the large in retrospect if this would be my own all-road bike. I would have happiily moved to a longer and lower position for the two cyclocross races I did. And while the geometry still wouldn't have been perfect for that – it was ok. Just not as agile as a cyclocross bike can be. Cyclocross bikes tend to have less bottom bracket drop (how far below the hub height that BB sits) which makes them flcik from one side to the other a little more readily, and you're less likely to clip a pedal when keeping the power on through corners. The flipside of that is a cyclocross bike can make for a nervous gravel bike.
Do I need to spend more, for more fun?
That's the beauty of bike riding. For you and I it's a fun past time. If part of that is owning truly nice things, the whole bike industry is set up for that. You could do something like custom spec a 3T Exploro – and have a very capable bike which drew plenty of comments, and would be an absolutely lovely thing to own and ride. Would you have more fun on it, and would it get you extra features? Considering you might be paying 10 times as much, it's unlikely that the increase in fun and features would be that dramatic. (But if 3T are reading, I wouldn't turn an Exploro down!)
Bikes can be an outlet for our passion, as much as they can be a tool for mental health, physical fitness or sporting prowess. If you feel the need to keep up with the Joneses – then the Reid Granite 2.0 isn't for you. But if you want a bike to explore some dirt road riding, go touring, try some cyclocross and get about on without spending more than a grand – you will not be disappointed with this bike.
Consider that with a Reid helmet at $20, some pedals and shoes and a bottle cage, you're still likely to spend under $1000.
What would I change on the Reid Granite 2.0?
I was very close to asking to buy the bike instead of returning it after testing. I've had a lot of fun on this bike. But my garage is full and I should probably adopt n-1 not n+1… if I were to make it my own, I might make a couple of changes depending on how I was to use it. The ride isn't as supple as a high-end bike, thanks to a solid build, solid wheels and basic but functional finishing kit. Some tyres with a better casing and a little more volume would be great if you did take this off the beaten track a lot. Tha Maxxis Rambler is a popular choice for that.
Alternatively, if you're mostly around town and in parklands, the stock tyres are great. I bought a digital pressure gauge recently and found about 38psi was the sweet spot for me, making the bike super comfy for paths and dirt roads. Higher speeds and harder surfaces were best with a little more pressure for less squirm.
You could consider a slightly more padded hanbdlebar tape – I ended up with a blood blister on the heel of my palm after racing a very rough cyclocross race on the Reid Granite 2.0. Someone on the podium on a very sweet ride had the same problem – it was pretty rough! I'd look to the Supacaz Super Sticky Kush – and I might even reach for the aqua colour! Some thickly wrapped cork or synthetic tape would do well too – for about half as much.
Although really, I'd just ride it, and see where it took me. When I posted the bike to Instagram, 'Bogus Jimmy' was quick to highlight where he took his Reid Granite 2.0. He toured with it all over Europe.
I think this speaks for the bike a lot. It's not a bike to chase the curated look of an Instagram hipster (no offence to Bogus Jimmy), and I found that it polarised opinions from people I know. Some thought it was great that you could get so much bike for your money. Others, often those in the bike industry, derided the fact I was riding and testing a Reid. But that is their loss – and especially theirs – as I think bikes like the Reid Granite 2.0 will get more people on bikes and having a great experience. And it's excellent to see that having awesome cycling experiences doesn't have to cost the earth.
Reid Granite 2.0
RRP: $849.99
From: Reid Cycles
