Review: All-City Gorilla Monsoon 

I have this bike in green fade, panaracer gravelking slicks, brooks flyer spring saddle, higher specd components all over, it’s quite simply the best bike I’ve ever owned, rides like a dream. Thanks for the continuously excellent reviews Russ, and greetings from Australia!

Your common sense reviews have helped many of us to make great bike choices...thank you. I've been killing it on my Salsa Journeyman 650b.

Your review is the reason I went to my bike shop and ordered a Gorilla Monsoon! One of the most fun riding bikes I've been on. Love the channel.

Thanks for the review! Had one built up. Really loving it for my mix of gravel road, 4wd road, light singletrack. The video really helped as I'm out here in a market where I'd never see one of these on the shelf.

This is one of the of coolest rigs I've seen in a long time. Definitely one of my new personal favourites. The specs are killer from head to toe.... even has a kick ass colour. For sure will have to pick one up.

You, and your reviews + stoke, are AWESOME!

Awesome review. I honestly think this is my all time favourite bike.

Shit yeah! I love mine, built it up 2x and have ridden both 2.25" Riddlers and 48c Switchback Hills and it's fun as hell in either setup. It's like a tonka truck: Big, orange, and rolls over everything.

That made my new bike decision tougher!

This is a long shot, Russ, but if you're available and you have the inclination, Emma Stayduhar, winner of the rubber chicken (that's the top podium spot) at the inaugural 2018 Dirty Spokanza in the women's GC, is buying a Gorilla Monsoon at Hellgate tomorrow-yes, Halloween- at around 3PM. I think a "new bike guerrilla episode" with a random stranger would go instantly viral, if not moderately bacterial. Thx for all your awesome content!!

AWESOME REVIEW MAN! GREETINGS FROM CAPE TOWN 😉

Great review.

Would be very interested in seeing a review of the Fairdale Rockitship.

I prefer the longer chain stays. Good review.

I will say that as of one week ago, District Bicycles in Stillwater, OK (home of Land Run 100) had a Gorilla Monsoon on the floor. I test rode it but don't know the size. I'm a tall 5'11" and it fit me, as a ballpark measurement of it's size.

If this was standard diameter 8-5-8, I'd buy two. Look forward to the day I can buy a production 650B steel frame & fork with clearance for 50mm+ in standard diameter, thin-walled tubing.

I just received my Gorilla a week ago and it was instant love. If I could put my Rohloff hub and a belt on her, she’d be near enough to perfect.

Thank you for straightening up before filming :)

Yeah, I knew a steel frame would be heavier than aluminum but when I built my Soma hardtail up, I was really disappointed in the weight of the bike. Not all steel tubing is the same I guess.

Suuuuuuuper cool review! I’m close to breaking the piggy bank for a bike like this that ticks the Bikepack/light tour-all around street riding-commute-fireroad riding (if that makes any sense). Any others you would recommend?

Loved the review, thank you! It would be great to see a video on the Niner RLT steel.

Great video, I'd love to see the Marin four corners.

I have one and its awsome

I've ridden the GM around a bit. The only thing I could truly take away from this is its slackness and tire clearance. All-City's best work IMO has been the Thunderdome and Mr Pink. $2100 for "4130" Chromoly, Apex and Hayes mechanical? COME ON dudes. But I will say, that paint job puts me in the mood for a Tequila Sunrise all day...

When you swapped from the 2.4s to the GKs, how much suspension, cushiness did you loose? Did you get noticeably more beat up on rougher, rocky dirt roads?

28 pounds?? Where is all the weight? What does the frame and fork weigh? I’m not s weight guy but why lug around 5-10 extra pounds. Good review. Thanks.

So glad this review is out. This bike is a serious contender for my $. Would swap out the tires too. I've been eyeing the Salsa Journeyman (hard not to like its price point) but wondering if I'd "out grow" that bike too quickly. Mainly looking for something I can ride in the So Cal mountains and hills and that can handle some road riding too. Just curious on one thing... the backend of the bike in the video (@ the 47 sec mark) looks more tucked in yet the photo of the bike on the AC website doesn't. Are my eyes playing tricks?

Dude, you need to check out the Surly Pack Rat, your gonna love that thing!

It reminds me of a Soma Wolverine. I haven’t checked geometry yet, though.

Hi requesting a video review on the new Nimbus 2000!! Thank you!!!

That is a smokin' bike and review! I love these independent reviews. Would it be possible for you to review the Specialized AWOL? There are hardly any real reviews out in RU-vid land.

I think they made 7 1/2 of each size. I rode one briefly and liked the feel. The Hayes CX brakes are pretty terrible though. My feeling was that the top tube was way too high. I was on a 56cm frame, and my 32" inseam had my junk firmly planted on the frame. So I wonder what freakish anatomy would be able to actually use the stealth dropper routing. Otherwise I'm with you. It is pretty close to wonderful, and as elusive as a unicorn.

A lot of the change in feel due to the different tyres probably came from the weight reduction. Rotating weight is supposedly worth 3* static weight, so even slight decreases can have a big impact on liveliness.

Nice review. I have a few weeks in on mine and love it. I was worried that it would try to be too much (pavement, gravel, dirt) and not do any of it well, but it actually finds a nice balance and handles it all nicely. I like your description of how the front end rides - it's hard to explain without riding it. It is stable, but is responsive when you need it to be. Having added this as my skinny tire bike, I was enjoying the 2.4" tires. Grippy on the dirt, cushy and comfortable. I could see for more gravel/pavement switching to something skinnier would probably be preferred.

Have you looked at the Genesis vagabond ? In my world 29 wheels are better then 27.5 for Gravel/all road /adventures. But perhaps it's because I'm tall like you have mentioned. Thanks for some good reviews.... Happy trails! Peace ✌️

Really wanted to get a GM and build it up with a 46/30 double (maybe the new GRX groupset), but because of the short, bulging chainstays and mountain bike 73mm bottom bracket that isn’t possible. Bummer.

Most excellent video! Thank you! I also have the Apex 1x11 with 40t chainring and 10-42 cassette on my Vitus Substance V2. I am going to switch to a smaller chainring for fully loaded touring in hilly to mountainous terrain. The 40t is definitely too big. I am thinking about going for a 34t Absolute Black oval, however, I am not sure if the 32t or even the 30t would be a better choice. Which would you go for personally? The 30t, 32t, or 34t? :)

I want this bike sooo hard

@5:32: Ever consider getting a cheapish luggage scale for weighing bikes? I wasn't up for investing in a bike scale, but the luggage scale set up in a bike stand makes a serviceable bike scale with the nose of the seat through the loop that is supposed to grab the luggage handle.

So fresh

great info! been looking at this bike for awhile in green (ala- logan watts) drool level very deep!thanx again for great review,how bout review of all-city "electric queen",just sayin!

Love path less peddled great reviews.im a lynskey man but really fancy a salsa cutthroat

Hey Russ! Thanks for sharing. I've been curious about sizing. I understand this is specific to a bike's geometry, but we have the same height and inseam and I would never be able to standover a 52 cm top tube with standing on my toes when I'm at rest. With the Gorilla Monsoon, someone with our inseam would barely clear even on the 49 cm that you review here. Can you provide me with some insight here? I've always been under the impression that you should give yourself at least an inch of clearance just in case you need to bail.

Thank's for posting your bike reviews.. Was set on a custom build Midnight Special, but the GM appeals..After a do it all bike & would be looking at full panniers for the odd tour..The Cowchippers look great, what width were you riding in your review? Was going to put 1 ring on the front, but perhaps a double would be better..Thanks again.

Decent stand over? It could take a pretty huge frame bag! Wish it had 3 bolt mounts on the forks. Could be the one

What size should I use for a GM if I'm 5'6 and half then inseam is 29 inch. I'm more on road and dirt. 49 or 46?

Nice I hate it when I lose course after hitting a baby head.

Is this l like 90s mtb geo or not similar at all? How does it compare to the Cutthroat/Fargo?

One question Will it stop?

Looking at the QBP website now. And it looks like there are few 49s 58s and 52s (full build) in stock. So if you can find a dealer your in luck.

Other than changing the tire to affect the handling, is there anything else that could be done to make the bike feel a bit snappier and less slow/stable in the front end? Would a shorter stem make a difference?

Someone at All City is a wrestling fan 😂😂😂😂

Great video! IMO for $2k they could do better than the Hayes mechanicals, pretty under-powered for what is essentially a 30lb drop bar mountain bike (but what do I know). This bike naturally descends like like a ton of lead and I've glazed a couple sets of pads bc they really aren't made for fast descents, more of a casual romp in the woods. I've owned mine for about 3 years and over all it's been pretty fun and comfortable to ride, no regrets. PS All-City really needs to own up to their rather weird sizing on their website instead of a couple sentences in the FAQs (i.e. 55cm is way too big for someone that is 5'8", 31'' inseam).

What handlebar bag are you using there? It looks really nice.

Why don’t you like the handlebars? (Thanks for all the GREAT content BTW)

What are folks' thoughts on toe overlap on this bike? I hopped on one for a quick parking lot ride, and that was what bugged me immediately (I was super psyched about this bike). Proper foot placement, stock wheelset & tires, and I have very average-size feet, and it was very noticeable for me, and that made me concerned on a bike that should hopefully handle some chunky stuff. I'm also just personally used to a longer wheelbase. Worth it to suck it up, and just learn to deal with toe overlap? Has this bugged anyone else this much on this bike?

how would you compare it the Soma Wolverine?

What is it about the Midnights rear geometry do you think that make it that much snappier? Chain stay length?

How do the three FRAMES compare?

What should someone expect to pay for GM, used in a 58?

How would you say the Gorilla Monsoon compares to the Ritchey Outback?? I am torn between witch of these to buy.

New Subscriber..

Can you elaborate more about why you like the Cowtipper bar?

Yay, Gorilla Monsoon coverage! How's the toe over lap on 49 Monsoon with 2.4s? I've been searching for small framed monstercross frame for awhile now!

I very much appreciate your reviews, but there's one category that I'm not clear about. The language of "front-end handling" is clear enough referring to steering, but what you mean when you talk about "the rear end" of a bike? You may have addressed this elsewhere. My question might be more clear riffing on an example. Does "a quick rear end" mean a) the bike accelerates quickly b) the bike *feels like* it accelerates quickly c) the bike accelerates quickly *because of the rear-end geometry* d) the bike *feels like* it accelerates quickly *because of the rear end geometry* e) something else I distinguish between actual acceleration and feel of acceleration because in my memory, research on wheel size and weights shows that lightweight wheels contribute much more to the *feel* of a bike as light and quick, than actual measurable quickness of acceleration. Similarly, we often think that a bike with short and stiff chainstays accelerates quickly *because of those chainstays* but a LWB Jones spaceframe has chainstays that are neither short nor stiff, yet it feels like it accelerates quickly (and I think is *actually* quick, as well).

So.... would you give it 4.5 burritos out of 5 than?

I have to say, you make a point of mentioning that the rear end of the GM is less responsive than the Surly Midnight Special, and this seems like less than an objective comparison. According to the geo charts on the websites, there is a 5mm difference in chainstay length between the two bikes, which seems like kind of a "princess and the pea" scenario. It's a half a centimeter.

Midnight Monsoon or Gorilla Special?

Salsa Fargo, All City Gorilla monsoon, or Jones bike for all arounder?

so a Midnight Special rear with a GM front, with Niner 853 steel construction weight? yeah *dream*, doubt it ever happens though.

How do you get to use these bikes for a review?

Can you explain what sets the salsa cowchipper handle bars apart from the rest? Why are they your favorite?

Totally off topic, but how did they get the rights to "Gorilla Monsoon"? I heard the WWE is hella litigious. :))

Kona Sutra LTD!!!!

Shame they’re always out of stock on frames at Qbp 😭

Can I have the Riddlers you pulled off this bike?

As spec'ed this is odd bike. 27.5 x 2.4 tires? That's MTB enduro/trail size - yes, but without the beefy knobs. Not much point running a steel frame too with so much rubber cushioning. Weighing in the high-20#'s - same territory as MTB FULL suspension trail bike and quite likely heavier than a lot of XC MTB and hardtails. But hey, folks like dropbars - I get that. But 1x11 gearing with 36T chainring. That's about the same top speed gearing I have on my 1x12 enduro bike - which I don't need to get into an aero-tuck to spin out. Don't get me wrong. There is place for gravel/adventure bikes. This my friends is a rigid mountain bike with dropbars and road geometry. So it doesn't really make sense to me. Yes you can swap things out, but as spec'ed...doesn't make sense.

did you just say "if you hit a baby head or something" lol

Please tell me that I’m not the only old guy that knows where the name comes from...

Watching the road over handlebars doesn't tell much. You need to have a video showing the whole bike in motion as well as some body cam shots

You have more hand movement than an orchestra conductor.

bikethony cycletano

It's too bad ride quality is so subjective...i've only ridden one all city, a macho man, and it was one of the worst riding, sluggish, and least fun bikes I've ever been on. But I'm really intrigued by this one. Maybe I should just go ride one!

The front end is a rip-off of the Thorn Nomad.

WTB Riddler 45c. Those are NOT 2.4 inches, they are 1.77

WWF? R.IP.

Jesus, my old steel hardtail from 1992 is lighter than this.

Am I the only one who is worried that Russ is hitting babies' heads when riding? Sounds like a messed up place!

Have to disagree on the aesthetics, especially the fork. Ugh. Even the nice paint job couldn't make up for it but with a name like Gorilla, you get what you came for. Different strokes I guess. Thanks for the video though.

Will you stop?!

You really should buy proper scales. Complete GM in 61cm is ~28 lbs stock according to FAQ on All-City site. I just built 55cm with parts very similar to stock and it came in just over 25 lbs. So there is no way 49 cm stock weighs 28 lbs.

I like your reviews and your channel, but you burn more calories with head and hand movements than you do riding your nice bicycles. Sometimes I just listen to the audio.