What Factors Should I Consider When Choosing a Gravel Bike for Road Use?

Question

I’m looking for a bike that I can ride on gravel as well as on the roads. What Should I bear in mind in this case?

Answer 1

Head tube angle is important for usability, target at 72 degrees or more for road-oriented dynamics which gravel bike has to possess. Clearance depends upon bottom bracket drop too, there is an ideal range, more clearance = better stability but need to take care of pedal spindles. A 2x drivetrain is also preferable, especially for gravel or dual-use bikes, as the range is larger with smaller incremental ratios. Tire clearance should also be regarded as a distance which allows gravel and hard tires to be fitted to the bike.

Comments

"Which factors" at 0:06 is a nice editing touch

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I think chainstay length is also an important part of geometry to consider for a snappier, road-ier feel

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Common misconception about 1x drivetrain is that they have a lesser range than 2x which is not the case when you chose the correct 1x gearing. Yes, the jumps between gears are slightly bigger. I live a 1x life on all my bikes. Ebike, commuter, gravel, road and MTb.

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I have a focus atlas alloy bike. I don't like the head tube angle 70,5° and the long wheels base like 1051. For tuoring/bikepacking, off road is OK, but for most of the time on road is very a lazy bike.
For me a ideal gravel/road bike should be like from 3T.

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For slow amateurs like me it probably  doesn't matter too much: I have a 2x10 speed gravel bike but I do >95% asphalt, the best bike for me would be a carbon endurance road bike BUT I can't really go bike backing with it. I now have an aluminium gravel bike with 37mm mm knobby  tires. I'll prpbably switch  out the tires for something like 32mm tires suited more for asphalt. I guess I'll be 1 km/h less slow or something then lol.

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Hey by steeper angle do you mean a larger or smaller angle?

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If 90% of what you ride is flats, go 1x.

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IME if you're not racing, the jumps between cogs on 7sp cassettes was perfect so a bigger jumps between cogs may not be bad. If you are racing, sometimes that big jump is exactly the wrong gear either way.

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Good points, well done. My two cents: Pay attention to chainstay length. Longer stays= longer wheelbase=slower handling/more stability. I have two gravel bikes, both have 71.5 headtube angles but one is much more reactive with 43.5 stays vs 44.5 on the other. Gearing? Both have 1X, 40 teeth up front with either 9/42 or 11/42 in back. Low enough to climb and high enough that I'm tucked-in and coasting before I spin out a 40 X 11, let alone 9! Tires/wheels? Think long and hard before you spring for another set of wheels. Do you REALLY need big knobs, which work only in mud or dirt soft enough for the knobs to dig in? I ride only on paved or gravel ROADS rather than single track or this hairball MTB stuff you see, so 38 mm slicks are just fine for me, but you might find a less gnarly tread pattern lets you enjoy riding anywhere without the expense and time to swap wheels. Rene Herse has some excellent tires choices IMHO.