Wanted a bike that could do a little bit of everything, without worrying whether it was actually good at any one thing. Light touring/bikepacking, gravel rides, towing my kid in a trailer, cruising through town, etc.
It’s an early 90s Specialized Crossroads Cruz in really nice condition. It popped up on local FB Marketplace, I knew basically nothing about them, did about 5 minutes of research, and decided I needed it. I've got 700 x 45mm GravelKings on there now and think I should be able to fit fenders.
I know friction shifting is basically the law around here, but I grew up on indexed shifting and for me, 10 speed was the pinnacle. Also fully aware this is probably an unpopular opinion, but I’ve always preferred SRAM over Shimano.
One of the nice things about SRAM 10-speed is how easy it is to mix road and MTB parts, which worked perfectly for this build. I’m running an 11-40 cassette with a GX 10-speed MTB derailleur out back.
I also had no idea SRAM ever made polished silver road components until I stumbled across a complete polished silver Rival 10-speed groupset a while back. It’s honestly my favorite part of the whole bike and pretty much dictated the direction of the build from there.
The wheels are Quality Wheels Value HD Series, which were under $200 for the set, shipped to my door, and are actually Velocity Cliffhangers laced to standard Shimano cup-and-cone hubs. Feels like a ridiculously good value.
Took it out for the first real ride yesterday and it felt great. A super fun bike. It’s been over a decade since I’ve ridden rim brakes regularly, so that’s definitely an adjustment.
Next plans are:
- half frame bag
- rear rack
- fenders
by thuh_dude
17 Comments
great bike, would love to hear more about the fire truck rig behind you.
I’ve decided I need one too!
Looks good, silver Rival ftw
Oh wow, I love it! Super clean build.
That looks exactly like the bike I am going to build.
Got a Giant Tourer frame, with a 2×9 drivetrain, drop bars and some Sensah shifters.
I will tag you once I post mine.
really nice setup ..my friend has one and I swear you could fit 700x50mm easy on this frame!
https://preview.redd.it/z6epw0elu42h1.jpeg?width=5712&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0655e9c8e096dbdabc04540ba4b27e7668a9e27f
Every time i see a good Crossroads build I shed a tear for the one I sold for dirt cheap in Craigslist on 2007 to help fund my fixie build
Nice build! Drop bar conversion executed 10/10
Hell yeah.
SRAM doubletap >> floppy Shimano road levers all day!!
Excel at nothing? Excel at looking sharp asf and getting those miles in!
I think Crossroads are underrated, while the Rock-series MTBs are overrated nowadays.
The nice thing about the crossroads is that it is a very cheap bike which you don’t have to worry too much about keeping it in its original trim as they are plentiful.
Many other or similar 700c frames came with a higher pricetag and more prestigious tubing. Giant X2000, Centurion Accordo GT, Univega Via de Oro, GT Cirque, Jamis Tangier, Kuwahara Pacer…
Nice bike!
That drivetrain is fantastic. Crisp and clean. Looks great in polished silver.
I thought that the 10 speed gx maxed out at 36t. How does it handle the 40t?
I am planning on building my crossroads up as single speed… but this is convincing me to do otherwise!
It excels at being cool 😎
Second crossroads on this sub today. Beautiful.
Nice campandgoslow bar tape