Hi, I'm looking to buy a secondhand bicycle for a 2 month long bikepacking trip (from the Netherlands to Greece). It will be my first ever gravel bike. 🙂
- What do you usually look for in a good (affordable secondhand) gravel bike? And is there something to consider in terms of comfort vs speed?
- I have found these two gravel bikes on marketplace. Do you think they are a good buy?
First one (brown tires) is the Cannondale CAADX for € 700 and the second one is the Cannondale Topstone 1 2021 for € 800.
by mindlessdust38
4 Comments
neither fork appears to have any braze ons, i would prefer a bike with multiple mounting points, and made of steel
That trip sounds great. Lucky you!
While both of these bikes will get you there, it helps to share what you plan on taking with you. Are you sleeping in hotels or in a tent, are you cooking or eating out? It’s certainly possible to take everything on these bikes, but it will come at some cost, because you’ll want some light sleeping and cooking gear. Because the bikes are small you won’t be able to store a lot in a frame or handlebar bag. The forks don’t have eyelets, so a front rack or cages are out of the question. You could however use a big bag on a Tailfin (expensive) or Ortlieb Quick Rack (more affordable) without frame mounts. The Topstone seems to have frame mounts for panniers, which opens the door to a lot of storage, but not the best option if you are going to ride a lot of gravel.
Hope this helps!
The first one doesn’t appear to have any mount points for racks which means it would not be suitable for bike packing. The second one looks like it may have rear mount points for a rack.
I have a topstone 2, bought as a universal bicycle, bought in Decathlon rear rack with 2, 27l bags side bags and 2, 5l bags on the front fork (there are installation holes). I have a few short (60 km) overnight trips with all gear (tent, food, beer:)) on the Krk, Croatia. The overall experience is good, but I am a novice in touring so I don’t have something to compare. What I would want, is a kickstand, and what I tried, doesn’t fit well.