Six of the best steel gravel bikes for sale in Australia in 2023
/There are so many gravel bikes available today that it’s easy to get overwhelmed. To help you out, I’m going to briefly review six of the most common ones available on the Australian market. I’ve limited myself to steel-framed bikes simply because I like steel and it’s a great choice for a gravel bike. Some of them I have ridden and some I’m giving an educated opinion on based on spec sheets and my knowledge as a professional bike mechanic.
KONA Rove $2500
The Kona Rove is a solid, reliable choice at a reasonable price, and is a great entry into the gravel bike market. It’s an all-steel frame and fork with a burly feel. Combined with those wide tyres, as well as plenty of mounts—3 bottle mounts on the main triangle, rack/mudguard mounts and 3-pack fork mounts—it’s ready for adventuring on road and off. The frame finish on Konas is usually very nice, and the dropouts have a clean, simple design.
The Shimano Sora 9-speed drivetrain is more basic than the other bikes on this, but it is also the cheapest bike on this list. This is not necessarily an issue, it works just fine, however it would be nice to see a gravel specific crankset. The crankset specc’d has a ‘compact road’ chainring configuration with 50-34 chainrings, and when combined with the 11-34 rear cassette, most users will find it over-geared for the kind of riding this bike is made for. This means is that (unless you’re extremely fit) when bikepacking with luggage, you’ll find yourself grinding up hills in a high gear, and you’ll rarely use the highest gears available.
This makes the crankset an early candidate for upgrading, particularly now as the version available in Australia comes with a Prowheel crankset and bottom bracket rather than the Shimano one from last year. There is no reason to believe this won’t function just fine, but Prowheel is a cheaper, more generic brand. Another option is upgrading to the other models in the Rove range, the Rove DL or Rove LTD, which do come with gravel specific drivetrains. Other than that The Kona Rove is an excellent bike, and there’s good reason it’s become popular in recent years.
KEY FEATURES
Frame: Kona butted chromoly
Fork: Kona Project Two Chromoly Disc, three-pack mounts, rack/mudguard mounts
Wheel size: 650B
Shifting: Shimano Sora 2X9
Brakes: Tektro MDC550 Mechanical
PROS
Good quality, reliable
Ready for all surfaces and luggage carrying
CONS
A little on the heavier side
Over-geared
JAMIS Renegade S3 $2500
I’m able to go into a bit more depth with the Jamis Renegade S3, because I’ve owned one since 2017 (when it was called the Jamis Renegade Expat).
The thing that really stands out about the Jamis Renegade S3, and what originally caught my attention, was the way it rides. It’s surprisingly quick, and it feels beautifully balanced, controlled and intuitive when cornering. I’ve heard it described as a ‘sleeper’ bike, meaning fast without looking fast. If I haven’t ridden my Renegade for a while, and then I get on it, I’m smiling straight away. I still get surprised by how well it handles.
This could have something to do with the Renegade’s gravel racing origins, as well as Jamis’ ‘size specific design.’ Size specific design means that Jamis has three different fork offsets, BB drops and rear-centre measurements, as well as different tubing thicknesses, depending on the size of the bike. In plain English, this means that they take more care to tailor those finer design details to different sizes. Many other manufacturers, for example, use the same fork across all sizes of a particular bike.
According to Jamis, this allows the frame to “handle on or off road conditions while maintaining a comfortable and consistent ride,” as well as handle well whether running 28mm road tyres or 40mm gravel tyres. I’m not always convinced by marketing copy, but having ridden this bike in different configurations and in many different scenarios, I think this claim is valid. It also makes this bike a great choice if you want to do some faster road riding on it.
The Jamis Renegade S3 is also good value. It’s a bit pricier than the Kona Rove, but you get some significant upgrades such as a Shimano GRX hydraulic groupset. This results in better gear shifting, better gear ratios for gravel and adventure riding, and significantly more powerful and virtually maintenance-free braking. The full carbon fork also shaves some weight and makes for a more agile bike. The only downgrade are the Joytech hubs compared to the Shimano ones on the Kona.
The only downside to the Jamis Renegade S3 in my experience are some niggly quality issues, although it’s possible some of these may have been resolved since I bought mine. For example, the headset tended to work itself loose sometimes, the bottom bracket creaked a little in the beginning, the seat post binder bolt can snap because of the way the clamp tends to wrap around the seat post too far, and I broke a spoke on the rear wheel, the only spoke I’ve ever broken. I was happy enough to work through these inconveniences because I had the skills to do so, and it was worth it for me for the actual experience of riding it, but it may be overly annoying for some people. None of these issues, however, have turned into long term problems, although I did upgrade the wheelset.
The upshot: I still ride it and I still like it.
KEY FEATURES
Frame: Reynolds 520 double-butted chromoly
Fork: Jamis Adventure ECO monocoque carbon composite, 12mm Jamis MTS (Modular Thru-axle System), three-pack mounts, rack/mudguard mounts
Wheel size: 700C
Shifting: Shimano GRX RX-400 2X10
Brakes: Shimano GRX RX-400 hydraulic
PROS
Excellent handling
Good for road riding as well as gravel
CONS
Possible minor quality issues
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SURLY Straggler $3500
There are a lot of Surly Straggler owners out there who love their bike, so I apologise in advance to them: the Surly Straggler is heavy, bad value, out of date, unexciting to ride and makes no sense.
But first, let’s give credit where credit is due. Surly had a not small hand in launching the whole modern adventure bike craze. They were one of the first brands to make a point of building practical, durable bikes that could ride a lot of places and do a lot of things, and in that wat they were ahead of the curve. But some of the bikes that made them popular back then have hardly changed, which means they are now looking decidedly out of date. The Surly Straggler is an example of that.
The Surly Straggler is the successor and disc-brake version of the Cross-Check, which was one of the first popular adventure/gravel bikes. It was based on a cyclocross design, but with some changes like more tyre clearance, added strength and rack and mudguard mounts. It was a hit. Other brands noticed the success of this platform, and went about doing something similar, except they drove the category in a new and better direction, while Surly kept making the same bike.
For example, most modern gravel bikes have a much higher stack, which puts you in a more comfortable position for all-day riding. It makes a lot of sense, but for some reason Surly have stuck with a relatively low stack for the Straggler, which is good for cyclocross racing, except that the Straggler is very heavy and slow compared to cyclocross race bikes. It’s weight and strength are great for loaded adventure riding…so why persist with the low stack height? It makes no sense to me. If it makes sense to you, please explain in the comments section.
Many of the standards of the Surly Straggler are now pretty out of date. It still has quick release dropouts, a non-tapered steerer tube, Avid BB7 brakes and a single mid-blade fork eyelet. The industry has generally moved on from these standards, and with good reason. If you feel nostalgic and want to capture the spirit of the mid-2000’s cut-off denim gravel scene, then it makes sense. Otherwise…
OK, I’ve had my fun bagging this bike, there are some upsides. The Surly Straggler is very durable. Surly are known for rock solid frames and reliable stock wheels. If you’re heavy, or want to do some heavily loaded riding, it’s a good option. Its weight and raked steel fork will smooth out rough road surfaces more than other bikes on this list. Its sliding dropouts allow you to run it as a single speed, or effectively change the geometry of the bike to suit different riding styles, which is cool. It’s large main triangle will accommodate a big frame bag. It will work with old wheels, if you have some lying around that you really like. It has a classic, old-school look—I’ve seen some beautiful, old-worldy builds done with the Straggler. And hey, if it sells well, why would Surly change a winning formula? It works just fine, and evidently people still like the Surly Straggler. It goes from A to B quite reliably and there ain’t nothing wrong with that.
KEY FEATURES
Frame: 4130 Chromoly, double-butted main triangle, TIG welded, ED coated
Fork: 4130 Chromoly, double-butted tapered fork blades, brazed lugs, ED coated
Wheel size: 700C
Shifting: SRAM Apex 1x11
Brakes: Avid BB7 Road
PROS
Durable
Will work with older parts
Classic look
CONS
Heavy and slow
Out of date design
Poor value
No three-pack mounts
NORCO Search XR S2 $3200
The Norco Search XR S2 is a zippy, premium gravel bike that offers balanced capabilities and value for money. It’s one of the lighter bikes on this list, with agile handling, so it will work well for people who ride aggressively and cover a mix of sealed and unsealed surfaces. It still retains plenty of capability for off road adventure and exploration though, and will happily take you off the beaten track.
The Norco Search XR S2 has plenty of premium features for the price, and like with the Kona Rove, they haven’t skimped in those less obvious but important areas. The frame is made from lightweight Reynolds 725 tubing and is matched to a carbon fork. The braking and shifting is provided by Shimano’s RX-400 GRX gravel-specific hydraulic groupset. The hubs and bottom bracket are all Shimano, and it’s got Sapim spokes and tubeless-ready tyres. It even has a colour-matched stem, which is totally unnecessary but cool. What all this means is that you’re unlikely to have any quality issues down the track, or feel the need to upgrade components any time soon. I’m all for that.
A minor downside is the lack of three-pack mounts on the fork, which to a small extent limits your luggage carrying options. Instead there are only normal bottle mounts, although there is a three-pack mount in the main triangle. All traditional rack and fender mounts are included.
KEY FEATURES
Frame: Reynolds 725 Chromoly steel
Fork: Mid-modulus carbon
Wheel size: 700c
Shifting: Shimano GRX RX-400 2X10
Brakes: Shimano GRX RX-400 hydraulic
PROS
Fast, lightweight
Quality build
Good value
CONS
No three-pack bosses on fork
CURVE Kevin of Steel From $5800
Melbourne based company Curve Cycling have been at the forefront of the Australian bikepacking scene in recent years. Known for their innovative designs, Curve bikes have been developed and tested by serious adventure riders in some of the world’s most demanding conditions. You can be sure that a good deal of that experience and thought have gone into the design and build of the Kevin of Steel 3.
The Curve Kevin of Steel is made from Columbus Zona chromoly steel tubing which is light, durable and smooth, and matched to a Curve carbon fork. There is clearance for up to 2.2 inch tyres on a 650B wheel, or 45mm tyres on a 700C wheel, which makes the Kevin ready for rough terrain. And the Kevin has all the luggage mounts you would expect on an adventure-focused bike, including three-pack mounts on the forks, three bottle cage mounts on the main triangle and rack/mudguard mounts.
The Kevin will suit those wanting to pack light and go far. It’s the lightest and most refined bike on this list, so those used to riding, say, a high end road bike will find plenty to like in its ride quality. Curve offers buyers the option of a number of high-quality wheel and groupset options, allowing you to customise it to your budget and intended purpose, and being a local boutique company, you can expect good after sale support.
KEY FEATURES
Frame: Columbus Zona Chromoly
Fork: Curve Ride 400 carbon
Wheel size: choice of either 650B or 700C
PROS
High quality
Light
Reliable
Good ride quality
Off-road capability
CONS
Pricey
BOMBTRACK Hook EXT $3900
The Bombtrack Hook EXT is another high quality, off-road adventure machine. It shares some similarities with the Curve Kevin of Steel such as a Columbus tubeset (Columbus Cromor), plenty of tyre clearance (up to 650BX2.1), and a SRAM Rival 1 hydraulic groupset.
There are a few differences though. The Hook EXT is a bit beefier, with a heavier frame and wheels. That chunky downtube in particular makes me think that the Hook EXT is designed to handle heavy loads. There are a few more luggage mounts too, with three-pack mounts on the forks and two in the main triangle, and well as a bolt-on top tube bag mount.
The Hook EXT seems a little more “pack a pair of sandles and take your time” rather than “take one pair of socks and ride ‘till you start having visions of bunyips,” which is more the Kevin’s style. An excellent frame finish tops it all off to create a gravel bike that’s both very capable and great to look at. The Bombtrack Hook EXT is one of those alluring bikes that asks you to pack up your life and hit the road.
KEY FEATURES
Frame: Columbus Cromor double butted tubing
Fork: Bombtrack full carbon
Wheel size: 650B
Shifting: SRAM Rival 1 1X11
Brakes: SRAM Rival flat mount hydraulic
PROS
Rugged, expedition worthy
Good quality
Off-road capability
Plenty of luggage-carrying options
CONS
No extra small cog
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