Ask me in a couple months. I just ordered one.

 

+1 on that...

 

I'm loving mine. I've had it for a year. Great ride and handling on dirt roads and even a little singletrack. Mike is always there to help if you need it.


10sp side by BluesDawg, on Flickr

 

BluesDawg - Looks good, even cross chained! can you post your build specs?

 

I bet you would/will be very happy. I've been looking at his road frame.

 

Only a couple rides so far but it is nice. It rides more smoothly than I expected, which is great. I was expecting it to feel overbuilt, I guess. It feels fairly lively, but stiff enough at the bb.

The handling is good in gravel, a little quick on singletrack, as you would expect, but not bad.

I am running it with 34c tubeless cross tires because that is what I have right now, I will put fatter tires on in a while, but I am going to have to stick to gravel roads mostly because I have too much toe-overlap to feel ok on singletrack. This is because I am on a 50cm, with 43 shoes and the cleats extra far back, so it's not the bike's fault.

I picked it over a cross-check because I thought it would have better tire clearance, and it does, but in the back only. The fork appears to use the exact same crown as the cross-check so it has the same clearance. I can't fit the 2.1 tires I have in the front, but they fit in the back(on skinny rims). I like that the nano seems to fit the fork in the photo above.

Basically, it looks almost the same as my friend's cross-check, but with nicer finishing touches. I will have to ride his and see if they feel any different. I feel guilty not getting a cross check from my lbs but otherwise I can't think of a bike I'd rather have bought in the same price range.

 

Only a couple rides so far but it is nice. It rides more smoothly than I expected, which is great. I was expecting it to feel overbuilt, I guess. It feels fairly lively, but stiff enough at the bb.

I am running it with 34c tubeless cross tires because that is what I have right now, I will put fatter tires on in a while, but I am going to have to stick to gravel roads mostly because I have too much toe-overlap to feel ok on singletrack. This is because I am on a 50cm, with 43 shoes and the cleats extra far back, so it's not the bike's fault.

Pics please. Also how tall are you?

 

Just put a deposit down on a green cross frame that's due in a month or two. Pretty excited about it. My Cross Check is getting the boot, though.

 

Those look quite nice.

 

I was searching for a cyclocross or gravel bike to ride on a gravel trail in my community and to do some gravel grinders on. I do alot of road riding and was hoping to get a frame that is light. After researching different frame materials, I realized that I would be willing to give up a few extra grams for the smooth feel and durable ride of steel. I checked out the Surly Crosscheck and the All City frames. Both seem to come in between 26 and 28lbs when built up with stock components. I came across a blog by Guitar Ted about the Black Mountain Cycles Monster Cross bike. After endless research, I called Mike Varley, the owner of BMC and designer of BMC frames. He states that with a moderate build, I could be under 22lbs. I ordered one in 59cm and as soon as it arrived, I was in awe of the incredible orange color. After a few hours building it up, I took it for a test ride. Smooth is all I can say. It felt light and responded well when hitting some technical terrain. It climbed well and descended with control. I was impressed. By the way, it came in at under 21lbs. I just built up my black mountain Cycles Monster Cross frame. Specs are as follows: Sram Force Shifters, Shram X9 Rear Derailer, Microshift Centos Front Derailer, Truvativ GXP BB, Sram 1071 11-32 Cassette,Bontrager Race Lite TLR wheelset, Cannondale C1 Seatpost, C2 Stem and Handlebar, Cane Creek 10 Headset, TRP 8.4 Mini V Brakes.

 

The BMC uses 8/5/8 tubing vs. the CC's 9/6/9--I doubt that's worth more than a few ounces of weight difference. It's the components that make the weight difference, not the frame.

I looked seriously at a BMC to replace my CC, but I couldn't justify the difference (and, I like the cable routing and rear spacing better on the CC)

 

True, components have alot to do with weight and I did mention in my post that I was comparing my BMC build with a Cross Check with stock components. We are talking more than 5 lbs though. The BMC frame is a bit lighter. That being said, the Cross Check is a great frame, just not what I was looking for. Good Luck!

 

old thread: anyone riding a BMC still? I am looking for a frame to build up like this and there are not many options. I don't know what to think about how it would compare to a Cross Check.