Considering a Steel Cyclocross Frame

+1 on the Traitor. I really want a reason to own that frame/bike, but I already have a bike in this category.

My thoughts:
– Get a 44mm (or tapered) head tube. Really opens up the possibility on changing out your forks. E.g. if my frame would support it, I’d be saving for a Whisky no 7 thru-axle fork. If you do run a QR fork, consider the 9mm thru-bolt instead.
– Get a frame with the rear caliper inside the triangle, especially if you want to run fenders. And make sure you can run full housing for the rear brake (assuming it is going down the downtube) or internal routing.
– Frame material really won’t matter for ride feel on a cx bike. Steel will likely be heavier and flexier than aluminum (e.g. RLT9). Of course, steel looks awesome.
– Give some consideration to seattube angle and your knee-over-pedal-spindle position. Use the competitive cyclist online fit calculator to calculate how many cm you need to be behind the BB. This will likely change the effective stack/reach numbers for your frames (or maybe not if STA is the same).
– I would get the steeper HT angle (e.g. 72.5 instead of 72) as it’s more versatile for road riding. Right now I have my hab cycles frame setup in “road mode”, since I have to repair my shifter on my road bike. It rides great as a road bike.
– Consider tire clearance and how versatile you want the frame to be. I think riding singletrack on 32mm tires works fine, but riding on 42mm tires is arguably more care-free. I was really psyched to find that I could fit big tires on my frame. Of course, if you are switching wheels between road and cx, you might not want a gaping frame that makes the road tires look silly-small.

And, of course, I will put in a plug for Habanero cycles. My HT is not 44mm, but I do like my frame a lot and at ~$1000 for titanium it’s a good value. Probably doing it again I’d pay the extra $500 and customize it (44mm HT, internal/di2-compatible cable routing, caliper insider the triangle).

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P.S. Nice work taking that 26th St. KOM yesterday. You’ll probably want to factor in frame stiffness here to ensure maximum power transfer to the road for when you have to work to get that back after I reclaim it (Just kidding. Mostly.)

(Per Dismal’s edit comment.) The Motobecane stuff is always an attractive option. The only issue I see with the Fantom cross ti frame is the 130mm rear spacing. With all (?) the other manufacturers are 135 — and some going 142×12, it seems like they need to abandon 130 rear spacing for a disc-brake frame.

I have a a Straggler that I use for commuting, and it’s fantastic. I have done some sloppy gravel rides on it, and the 41 Knards are superb on mixed surfaces (though they are too wide for competition, I’ve heard). Massive fork clearance for fenders and racks and such. I had to get a little creative for the rear fender mount to clear the disc, but it wasn’t difficult at all. If you are racing, the cable routing under the top tube seems in exactly the wrong place for shouldering the bike. Can’t beat the paint job, though. Mine’s a 54, which is too small for you, but you can PM me if you want to come out and see it.
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Look at Civilian, too. These are more designed for actual racing than the Surly, it seems.

@hozn 91162 wrote:

If I had to replace my CX bike, this is what I would buy. It is not steel, but it is almost carbon light and checks all my spec requirements. (And has geometry that would work for me; my femurs are too short for a STA less than 73 degrees.)
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That’s the RLT right? That and the tamland are on my list for future gravel commuter bikes