Ugly modern bikes

[james1985]

I love the look of some old bikes and some new ones.
I enjoy the simplicity of a nice steel frame, rigid fork and rim brakes.
These days my retro tastes are more toward road/touring/cyclo-cross bikes.

I didn't realise there was such animosity towards modern bikes until I complimented a customers bike, he brought in a Roberts, and we started chatting about it but he just launched into a rant of why modern bikes are not as good. His parting shot was the Roberts was made when you could still get light weight mtbs.
I weighed the Roberts and it was 24lbs )
Probably the type that sits up at night telling people on forums that rim brakes are better than discs.

I've got a modern xc race bike, brilliant suspension, 29 inch wheels and modern compounds, tubeless tyres. My times improved over night, and I was consistently beating other riders I couldn't before.
It's a bike, not an ornament. Having said that, I reckon my new bike looks absolutely great.

 

[legrandefromage]

There are those that would like to, god forbid, just go for a ride! But that seems to no longer be allowed as you have to be faster better quicker beardier. Then if you dare to pass someone whilst out on your old crapper, its a flurry of gears and huffing as they try to pass you on their super new.

Since this thread started 8 years ago, bars have become ridiculously wide let alone everything else that has been thrown at us in the name of progress.

 

[james1985]

Dont get me wrong when I'm not racing I'm quite happy to take something old out,. I do sometimes go to chicksands on something very inappropriate like my CX bike. I've found myself not really needing a MTB as such. Most of my local rough stuffing is absolutely great on an old touring bike it's only really winter and mud that demands more clearance.

 

[james1985]

Oh and wide bars are awesome, even had them on my old ti shitter.

 

[ibbz]

These are quite nice but the size of the wheels makes the bottom one look as if it’s ready to float some guy across the channel instead of in a dinghy
Top is supposedly a Gravel bike but apart from the drop bars (as I mentioned on another thread) it looks like a mountain bike to me.

 

[grantoury]

View attachment 687372View attachment 687373
These are quite nice but the size of the wheels makes the bottom one look as if it’s ready to float some guy across the channel instead of in a dinghy
Top is supposedly a Gravel bike but apart from the drop bars (as I mentioned on another thread) it looks like a mountain bike to me.

The FRM looks nice. Deda steel apparently, FRM so probably light.. It is "adventure gravel", so more of a drop bar mountain bike, I guess.

 

[brocklanders023]

Yeah, that FRM is swell.

 

[MuchAlohaNui]

The head tube angle on the gravel bike is pretty wild. Since you wanted angle with your angle the engineers put further angle into that front fork from the steerer tube to the legs. The angle in degrees looks low 70's high 60's.

 

[brocklanders023]

The angle in degrees looks low 70's high 60's.

Which is pretty normal these days, same as the steep seat tube. To me, the flat bar bike looks too steep in the HA and the seat tube too laid back. Depends what you like I guess but I much prefer the current geometry trends.

 

[brocklanders023]

I'd love to save up and buy one of the modern Yo Eddy's but the geometry has not changed since the re-release and seems miles away from what I actually want to ride these days.