Anyone with a Fairlight Strael? How does it stack up?

[ridethecliche]

So... Id listed my strael 2.0 for sale since I think it's a bit too small but moving some things around and I think it just might work for me...

I swapped to my preferred 40cm bars and selle smp saddle and dropped a spacer to increase the reach a hair. Just did one of my longest rides of the season at 65 miles. Averaged about 15.3 miles including a lot of MUP stuff on the way out and back and that's with about 3100 feet of climbing and honestly struggling for the last 10-15 miles since I'd meant to pick a 55 mile route.

But all said and done it felt really really good. Just trying to figure a few things and then... Profit?

[fourflys]

good to hear!

[ridethecliche]

There was some talk about weight earlier so I'm wondering what folks are seeing their builds come in at for the strael (2.0 or 3.0) and the secan?

As an aside, got within like 3 seconds of a hill PR and a few others and I'm in really not in as good shape as i was 3 years ago when I set the old ones... also like 10 lbs heavier myself. Guess I'm settling into the strael nicely!

[mstateglfr]

Originally Posted by ridethecliche

There was some talk about weight earlier so I'm wondering what folks are seeing their builds come in at for the strael (2.0 or 3.0) and the secan?

61T Secan frame.

The fork with a 330mm steerer and no thru axle weighs 445g.
The 61t frameset with no thru axle weighs 2325g.

23.5# currently- 2x11 105 Hydraulic with RX Ultegra RD, aluminum cockpit, C17 saddle, and 1800g wheels.
Focus was not on weight as much as it was on quality and reliable parts that also werent too heavy.

[ridethecliche]

Also I think I saw someone comment once about the Ritchey road logic (rim brake I think) saying that it was an incredible bike but the poster felt had it was flexy during hard efforts over 600W or so.

I'm not in the best shape right now but I've just about always had a jump. Figured it would be fun to see how the strael did with an all out sprint. Again I'm not really super dialed in right now but... I hit 1340W the other day doing a hard jump. Bike felt totally planted and solid.

I don't have a ton of experience with steel frames other than my 84 trek 760 and a Peugeot from college... Those used to get bendy just looking at them! Hah!

[Radius PNW]

Originally Posted by dftjunkie

I have the Fairlight Strael 2.0 in a size 54T.

Really love this color way.

[dftjunkie]

Originally Posted by dftjunkie

I have the Fairlight Strael 2.0 in a size 54T. Have had it for about 4 months now. It’s a really sweet ride except for one issue. It’s weight. I run dynamo hubs and the total weight with Force AXS works out to 22lbs. I can’t say that I don’t notice it but anything flat it excels.




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An update on the bike. I was prepping for PBP and this bike was meant as a PBP build for comfort and let me run dynamo lights. But right until the week before I had to leave for France, I was torn between taking the Strael and my Firefly Road Disc. Also the bike was hit in a rear end accident and had to have its fork replaced. The main dilemma I faced was whether to take the hit of an additional 4lbs of weight over the 1200kms of the ride. But the lure of running the dynamo and not having to worry about batteries/lights finally made the decision for me. And it ended up being the absolutely correct decision. The climbs weren’t challenging enough for the weight difference to be a penalty while the additional comfort offered by the steel frame was necessary to stave off the fatigue until later on the ride. I enjoyed the bike so much that I have decided to hold onto the bike post-PBP and run it exclusively as my randonneuring bike. Here’s my setup.. weighing ~30lbs at the start including all the bags




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[Papa Steel]

Originally Posted by mstateglfr

61T Secan frame.

The fork with a 330mm steerer and no thru axle weighs 445g.
The 61t frameset with no thru axle weighs 2325g.

23.5# currently- 2x11 105 Hydraulic with RX Ultegra RD, aluminum cockpit, C17 saddle, and 1800g wheels.
Focus was not on weight as much as it was on quality and reliable parts that also werent too heavy.

Just noticed you're riding a 61T Secan and thought I'd reach out. I'm new to Paceline. Such a deep abyss of bike info. Would love to know your impressions of the Fairlight.

I'm currently trying to find a new home for my minty Independent Fabrication Crown Jewel before brining a new rig into the stable but have been eyeing two bikes - The Fairlight Secan and the Mod Zero by Black Mountain. Both comfy all-road bikes that I can run fat fires, disc brakes, 1 x 12 set up, and flat bars.

Mind me asking what your PBH and height is? I've got a 93.5 PBH and am a little under 6-3. Current ride is a 61cm Surly CrossCheck.

Cheers

[mstateglfr]

Originally Posted by Papa Steel

Just noticed you're riding a 61T Secan and thought I'd reach out. I'm new to Paceline. Such a deep abyss of bike info. Would love to know your impressions of the Fairlight.

I'm currently trying to find a new home for my minty Independent Fabrication Crown Jewel before brining a new rig into the stable but have been eyeing two bikes - The Fairlight Secan and the Mod Zero by Black Mountain. Both comfy all-road bikes that I can run fat fires, disc brakes, 1 x 12 set up, and flat bars.

Mind me asking what your PBH and height is? I've got a 93.5 PBH and am a little under 6-3. Current ride is a 61cm Surly CrossCheck.

Cheers

Fairlight as a brand- love it. They cater to the geek side of things with all the detailed design info they provide- tubing spec, cable and hose routing changes thru the years, tweaks to tubing and why etc etc.

Secan as a bike- love it. It is on the lighter side of what I could get for a production disc gravel frame. Even then though, it isnt lightweight relative to a custom build gravel frame. The DZB downtube is stout- I bet it could be rolled over by BigFoot(is that still around?) at a Monstertruck rally and not be dented. The frame has to pass failure testing, so its overbuilt even for me at 6'5 225#.
Anyways, it is super easy to build up and maintain since routing is fully external except for the front brake.
The geometry for the 61T was exactly what I wanted as it pretty closely mimics my main road bike in terms of stack, reach, and trail(when tire size differences are accounted for). It feels more like a wide tire road bike than a a slacked out adventure bike built for heavy singletrack use. Since most of my rides with it are a mix of paved and unpaved roads- a wide tire road bike is exactly what I wanted.


My first purpose built gravel bike used a Black Mountain MC frame. I still have the frame and it is now built up with a 3x9 drivetrain, fenders, and a large basket for commuting. Love the frame and versatility of it, but wanted to try a carbon fork, disc brakes, etc whcih is why I bought the Fairlight.
Anyways, while I was looking at frame options before buying the Fairlight, I heavily considered the Black Mountain MCD frame. At the time, I could have bought that frameset and a 1 1/8 carbon fork for the same cost as the Fairlight frameset. This was early '19 and there werent many 1 1/8 steerer tube carbon gravel forks with a long enough steerer(350) for my need...I think it was just 1 or 2 options. If the Wilde Wayfinder fork had been around back then, I likely would have gone the Black Mountain MCD frameset route. Brakes would have been janky with 1 flatmount and 1 postmount, but whatever.

The Black Mountain ModZero frameset is really cool because he consolidated two frames that were very similar(MCD and Road+), he adopted flatmount for brakes, and he has a headtube that can accept a ton of tapered carbon forks.
I dont love the look of the external gussets, but I do recognize others dig em and I can appreciate the nod to some 90s frames that had em and am pretty sure Mike Varley chose the external gussets in part because its a nod to some 90s frames he rode or worked on. Im guessing the other reason they are external instead of internal or integral into the tubes is because cost is lower.
If the head tube were 34mm instead of 44m, I think the look would be even better and that Wilde Wayfinder fork could be used. That would be super slick looking.
A Whisky MCX fork would be a cool swap since it matches the stock fork's rake, has a 350mm steerer, and the AtoC is pretty close to the stock fork's.


Geometry between the Secan and ModZero isnt wildly different, at least in my size(61T and 59 respectively).
The Black Mountain would not be quite as 'lively' from a quick feeling perspective, but it also wouldnt be sluggish or boring-
- ModZero stack is 15mm higher which isnt a big deal since I have spacers on my Secan and that would just mean fewer spacers.
- ModZero chainstays are 8mm longer.
- ModZero seat tube angle is 1 degree more relaxed.
- ModZero trail is 4mm higher...so not really an issue.
- ModZero wheelbase is 30mm longer.


I am 6'5 and PBH is 97.

[dmitrik4]

I have a Secan on order and I can't wait for it to show up. I took a long time deciding on the frame size; I'm just under 6' with a 31.5 inseam and a 6'2" wingspan, and the 56R geo lands right between my Gunnar cross/gravel bike and my Roubaix roadie, but my 47yo brain said "maybe a 56T because you're old and inflexible." But the R it is.

I was pretty set on either a Flaanimal or a Wilde Earthship (or maybe an Argon18 Dark Matter), but the detail and thoughtfulness of Fairlight's approach hooked me (not to mention not a bad word about it in any review).

[Papa Steel]

Originally Posted by mstateglfr

Fairlight as a brand- love it. They cater to the geek side of things with all the detailed design info they provide- tubing spec, cable and hose routing changes thru the years, tweaks to tubing and why etc etc.

Secan as a bike- love it. It is on the lighter side of what I could get for a production disc gravel frame. Even then though, it isnt lightweight relative to a custom build gravel frame. The DZB downtube is stout- I bet it could be rolled over by BigFoot(is that still around?) at a Monstertruck rally and not be dented. The frame has to pass failure testing, so its overbuilt even for me at 6'5 225#.
Anyways, it is super easy to build up and maintain since routing is fully external except for the front brake.
The geometry for the 61T was exactly what I wanted as it pretty closely mimics my main road bike in terms of stack, reach, and trail(when tire size differences are accounted for). It feels more like a wide tire road bike than a a slacked out adventure bike built for heavy singletrack use. Since most of my rides with it are a mix of paved and unpaved roads- a wide tire road bike is exactly what I wanted.


My first purpose built gravel bike used a Black Mountain MC frame. I still have the frame and it is now built up with a 3x9 drivetrain, fenders, and a large basket for commuting. Love the frame and versatility of it, but wanted to try a carbon fork, disc brakes, etc whcih is why I bought the Fairlight.
Anyways, while I was looking at frame options before buying the Fairlight, I heavily considered the Black Mountain MCD frame. At the time, I could have bought that frameset and a 1 1/8 carbon fork for the same cost as the Fairlight frameset. This was early '19 and there werent many 1 1/8 steerer tube carbon gravel forks with a long enough steerer(350) for my need...I think it was just 1 or 2 options. If the Wilde Wayfinder fork had been around back then, I likely would have gone the Black Mountain MCD frameset route. Brakes would have been janky with 1 flatmount and 1 postmount, but whatever.

The Black Mountain ModZero frameset is really cool because he consolidated two frames that were very similar(MCD and Road+), he adopted flatmount for brakes, and he has a headtube that can accept a ton of tapered carbon forks.
I dont love the look of the external gussets, but I do recognize others dig em and I can appreciate the nod to some 90s frames that had em and am pretty sure Mike Varley chose the external gussets in part because its a nod to some 90s frames he rode or worked on. Im guessing the other reason they are external instead of internal or integral into the tubes is because cost is lower.
If the head tube were 34mm instead of 44m, I think the look would be even better and that Wilde Wayfinder fork could be used. That would be super slick looking.
A Whisky MCX fork would be a cool swap since it matches the stock fork's rake, has a 350mm steerer, and the AtoC is pretty close to the stock fork's.


Geometry between the Secan and ModZero isnt wildly different, at least in my size(61T and 59 respectively).
The Black Mountain would not be quite as 'lively' from a quick feeling perspective, but it also wouldnt be sluggish or boring-
- ModZero stack is 15mm higher which isnt a big deal since I have spacers on my Secan and that would just mean fewer spacers.
- ModZero chainstays are 8mm longer.
- ModZero seat tube angle is 1 degree more relaxed.
- ModZero trail is 4mm higher...so not really an issue.
- ModZero wheelbase is 30mm longer.


I am 6'5 and PBH is 97.

Amazing info. Thanks for the detail.

[ridethecliche]

Originally Posted by dmitrik4

I have a Secan on order and I can't wait for it to show up. I took a long time deciding on the frame size; I'm just under 6' with a 31.5 inseam and a 6'2" wingspan, and the 56R geo lands right between my Gunnar cross/gravel bike and my Roubaix roadie, but my 47yo brain said "maybe a 56T because you're old and inflexible." But the R it is.

I was pretty set on either a Flaanimal or a Wilde Earthship (or maybe an Argon18 Dark Matter), but the detail and thoughtfulness of Fairlight's approach hooked me (not to mention not a bad word about it in any review).

Did it show up yet?

[dmitrik4]

Yes! And it's been great so far. I've got the fit pretty dialed, and it's been great in every setting--road to singletrack. Mine isn't super light, but I have a dynamo, aero bars, and have taken no weight-saving measures. Sometimes on steep climbs it feels slow, but then the data shows I set a PR. I'm getting used to it, but it's been flawless on all kinds of rides.

I bought it for Michigan C2C, and it's going to be perfect. It could be a "one bike" for sure. I'd say it's the most capable bike I've owned, and the attention to detail in the build is amazing. It is a thoughtful bike.

[acorn_user]

Originally Posted by ridethecliche

I don't have a ton of experience with steel frames other than my 84 trek 760 and a Peugeot from college... Those used to get bendy just looking at them! Hah!

Major thread nostalgia here, but I'm pretty sure I remember that Trek from the ACC/ECC joint race in Phily many moons ago!

[ridethecliche]

Originally Posted by acorn_user

Major thread nostalgia here, but I'm pretty sure I remember that Trek from the ACC/ECC joint race in Phily many moons ago!

Hahaha, holy crap yes! That was me. Are you still in the area? I actually live in philly now.

I actually sold that bike to a school teacher during the early part of the pandemic since I had something else and he wanted a bike. I think I owned that bike longer than just about anything other than a gibson SG I bought in highschool...and sold like two years ago.