Think I looking for a "gravel" bike,. How much to pay? which all rounder / buy or mod second hand MTB

[SkipdiverJohn]

As far as frames go, Reynolds 531, Columbus, Truetemper, and Tange frames, butted and lugged, in good shape would be my preference, especially as older ones will often take nice 700c 35 mm tires easily. Nice chrome-moly 80s mtn bikes can be fairly light and very nice too. With these fine machines it can be bitchin to have several sets of wheels. I have interchangeable ones with studded snow tires and others with fat Slicks or gravel type tires, to suit whatever the day's riding requires.

I agree that the sort of quality steel frames you mention are worth having, as I favour the same types myself.
However, the current UK market for quality lugged steel is such that it is often just as cheap to acquire additional complete bikes, and fit different types of tyre to them, as it is to have multiple wheelsets for one frame that need to be swapped pre-ride.
Not long ago I picked up a full 531ST touring frame equipped with strong 36 spoke wheels, for just over £40. Testing It felt like riding through treacle, because maintenance had been totally neglected to the point where the wheel bearings and BB had semi-seized and were very stiff to turn. Riding it on the flat was as much effort as climbing a moderate hill on a well-maintained bike, and the QR on the back axle would sometimes allow the wheel to pull to one side in the frame because the wheel bearing took so much force to turn.! I suspect it was used as a commuting hack and probably left at a remote end train station by an office worker and not kept at home. All that it needed is a lubrication service!

 

[DRM]

https://www.marinbikes.com/gb/bikes/20-gestalt-2
this is my latest bike, it seems just about right for a mix of on/off tarmac riding, it's a comfy ride and will take up to 35mm tyres, it's low enough geared for off road climbs & high enough to get a move on when on road, the geometry is very stable & the shimano tiagra setup is very smooth, it has plenty of mounts including rack & mudguard mounts, the only thing to watch on gravel bikes is that to get really fat tyres in you need to go for 650B wheels, or have a 1x setup as the front derailleur can get in the way .

 

[jase_31]

Thanks for all your comments so far, still not yet decided on new or second hand,

Up to around £400 as a starter bike
Able to fit larger tyres (28 or 32 mm)
Low gearing (we have some hills so maybe 50/34 and then 11-34 or similar)

This should give a bike capable in on the road, and some gravel.

I have read the reviews, but not always clear on what tyres clearance is. The Triban range seems reasonable as a first bike, rather than a bike shaped object. Any thoughts on the Triban RC120, or 500. Any other ideas for a similar amount?

 

[vickster]

Halfords have a budget gravel bike
https://www.halfords.com/bikes/adventure-bikes/voodoo-limba-adventure-bike---52cm-445562.html

positive feedback, spec meets your needs
There’s an issue with the rims on some of the Tribans, making tyre removal v hard which you may want to research

 

[Cycleops]

This my Specialized AWOL I bought down here second hand having been brought from the US. It had straight bars and cheap components which I swapped out so all that is original are the wheels, brakes and frame which is steel (lugless) which I prefer for this type of bike. Slow on the road with 40c tyres but copes well with hard rutted surfaces here.

If you can pick up something like this secondhand you can then tailor it to your needs.

 

[Andrew1971]

I have a large voodoo limba in the spare room not doing much. Barley used from new. Got kojaks on at the moment.
Andrew

 

[Gunk]

I recently sold a Specialized Diverge E5 recently for £365. They’re a good robust bike with plenty of scope for upgrading.

 

[uphillstruggler]

I recently bought a genesis Croix de fer for all terrain riding and it’s brilliant, but for the sort of riding you described, I’ve used a Peugeot premier HLE from about 1989. I swapped the tyres from 25mm road to 35mm cyclo cross tyres (not much clearance if it gets muddy) and it coped perfectly well with a 28 mile canal tow path ride over smooth and bumpy surfaces. It even had a rack at one point. It cost me a tenner.

I guess the moral of the story is that you can pretty much use anything with a bit of imagination and know how.