Canyon Grail

[EricG]

FedEx says my bike is in Williston, should have it tomorrow. It's blasphemy to say this, but I'm gonna need to do the first ride on a dry day so that if I have to return it, it can be "as new". Not sure when we will get a dry day!

Maybe Sunday..

 

[Erik Timmerman]

Look what came today! It comes well boxed. It's not held together with tiptoes, but rather with soft velcro straps. Assembly is pretty easy.

Seat post is actually two pieces that can shear against each other to supposedly soften the ride.

Figuring out the hoverer was kind of weird, it tightens from behind, the bike comes with a torque wrench and every other bit you could need.

Full bike ready to go.

The hoverer from the front. Weird, that's why I like it!

I'm feeling pretty good about the size, measured it compared to my Lemond in a few places, and it's within 1/10s, so either it's the right size, or it and my Lemond are both the wrong size. I'll still get a nice easy test ride before I convert the tires to tubeless.

 

[Jwrags]

Looks beautiful! How long did it take for assembly? Also, with regards to sizing how tall are you and how long are your legs? I have been thinking about a Grail but reluctant to order without trying the size.

 

[Erik Timmerman]

It probably took a half hour to put it together, mostly because of me puzzling about wether I should put carbon paste on the stem or not, and how to tighten it. The instructions showed a regular stem. I also spent a fair amount of time removing some tenacious warning stickers. The brakes feel great and it shifts spot on right out of the box. I'm 6' and I think my inseam is 33" or so.

 

[Ron]

Sweet!

 

[Jwrags]

It probably took a half hour to put it together, mostly because of me puzzling about wether I should put carbon paste on the stem or not, and how to tighten it. The instructions showed a regular stem. I also spent a fair amount of time removing some tenacious warning stickers. The brakes feel great and it shifts spot on right out of the box. I'm 6' and I think my inseam is 33" or so.

You are pretty much my size so I will be curious if the large is the right size. Looking forward to the review!

 

[scott43]

I post this somewhat reluctantly.... However...if you use a fit calculator like this one:
https://www.competitivecyclist.com/Store/catalog/fitCalculatorBike.jsp#type
You can look at the resultant geometry suggestions and know that they're in the ballpark. Proper fit is always a personal thing..some people like lower saddles than others..muscle length, flexibility whatnot. However, I've used that in the past and it's pretty close to what I prefer. Sooo...you can cheat a bit and have some confidence. If you fill it in and you're about what you thought you should be, you'll probably feel better buying online.

 

[EricG]

Looks great Erik. Once you ride these fat tires, I wonder if you’ll ride your Lemond anymore? These 35-40c tires ride so comfy.

 

[cantunamunch]

Is it true that adjusting saddle angle on that post requires removal of the post?

#confirmingapocrypha

 

[scott43]

Is it true that adjusting saddle angle on that post requires removal of the post?

#confirmingapocrypha

#yesguy

 

[Erik Timmerman]

Is it true that adjusting saddle angle on that post requires removal of the post?

#confirmingapocrypha

I think it is true. There is a little bolt that holds the halves together, and a scale to let you know how much you have moved it.

 

[Ron]

You are pretty much my size so I will be curious if the large is the right size. Looking forward to the review!

the large should be the correct size overall but it could require a stem swap based on riders flexibility and preferences on a road/gravel bike positioning . Waiting for you to get her rollin'.

 

[Erik Timmerman]

Stem swap isn't really an option, so you gotta be pretty confident when you order. VT had rain 23 of the 30 days in April, now it's rained the first two days of May. Gonna have to pretend I am Belgian and get after it anyway.

 

[Erik Timmerman]

Got her dirty today. I can see how the size medium could work, but I think the L is for me and I’m not looking back. We have this new (or really old depending on how you look at it) rail trail in VT that runs from the CT river to Lake Champlain and goes right through our town so I figured I’d start there. Through town it is nice sta-may type material but a mile or two East it turned into 2” loose gravel with grass growing over it. I don’t have much to compare to, but the bike really felt like it was flying. Hard to say what smooths out the ride, the tires, the chassis the bars or the seat post but it all adds up to a pretty smooth ride. I had 55 psi in the tires too, probably a good deal more than I need, but I don’t want a pinch flat and will drop a few psi at a time to find my happy place. The bike is dead silent no chain noise, no cable slap, just gravel crunching under the tires and pinging the down tube.

 

[EricG]

Looks great. As a reference I run 40-42psi in my 40c tires.

 

[Ron]

45 in my 35's which seat up at 38. (technically they are at 37.5 but...). I Weigh 168_/-

are those setup tubeless? 35's? with a rim that's 22 internal, they will most likely inflate to 37-38 as well. Sweet spot IMHO for tarmac and smooth gravel/dirt.

BEAUTIFUL BIKE.

 

[Erik Timmerman]

Not tubeless (yet) as I didn't want to gunk it up right away. 40 psi just sounds so low as I used to run 40 psi in my tubed MTB tires back in the '90's.

 

[Ron]

what G-Ones are you running, I checked the site bit it doesn't specify?

 

[Erik Timmerman]

700x38 (622x40 not sure why they give two different width measurements) they also say "Bite TLE" hopefully the TL in TLE stands for tubeless.

 

[Ron]

https://www.schwalbe.com/en/road-reader/schwalbe-g-one-bite.html
https://road.cc/content/review/240610-schwalbe-g-one-bite-microskin-tl-easy

yep you can easily run them tubeless. The Bite version is a little more off-road/rough surface focused. Go tubeless or at least latex tubes. Running those on 22 internal width rims should be at about 40-41mm so yeah, drop that PSI a lot once you convert to tubeless


Take a bite out of the trail.

Not just another adventure tire, the G-One Bite is designed for aggressive off-road riding. It may feel blocky on the road, but once you cut your asphalt-training wheels free and embrace the glory of gravel, dirt, and sand, you'll see the true strength of the G-One Bite. Featuring Schwalbe's TriStar rubber compound, the G-One combines traction, efficiency, and comfort, and then ramps it up to 11 with the aggressive open tread pattern. Large shoulder blocks take a bite out of the trail for rock-solid cornering, even in the loosest terrain.

Available in two versions, the SnakeSkin version for added durability and puncture protection, and the MicroSkin version for reduced weight and improved performance. Furthermore, Schwalbe's Tubeless Easy technology – as the name implies – makes running tubeless tires easier than ever. With a quick, easy sealing process, you'll be experiencing the wonders of more comfortable, more protective riding.