I’ve been riding one since July and agree with your observations. Feels much snappier than my Cutty, but not harsh either. Also didn’t think the Down tube storage would be that useful, but it holds everything I need for day rides. The sleeves also keep things organized and rattle free. I also didn’t like the bars initially, but after installing my normal PNW tape they grew on me. I opted for a rigid fork model, and am glad I did. My Rival bike is 19 pounds with the additional weight of the AXS dropper and RK 2.2s. I’m sure it could easily shed a pound with little effort. Overall a fun bike that will stay in the stable for the foreseeable future.
@jackrobinson3392 continental raceking black chilli protection 2.2 tires. They are my go to tire. Super fast, light, tough and relatively cheap. They fit in this bike but BARELY. Switching to Terraspeed 45s once they are back in stock
Love the concept, but like you, most could not afford the $7700 for that build. And as you say, it seems under-gunned to be a tour divide-like adventure bike. For much less, I upgraded a Salsa Cuttthroat with a SID fork and 12 speed mechanical single-speed group. More tire clearance, more travel, more frame bag space, and I doubt much more weight. I"m sure it is a great gravel bike without the suspension fork (join the club).
Looks like a nice bike...way outside my budget or what I'd pay for a bike, though. I guess if some have the money, go for it! Cycling is like any other hobby/endeavor. Unfortunately, it's become a bit more pricey, even for a mid-range component set-up. Nice review and thanks for sharing, Neil 🍻
Recently went down from 52mm bars to 44mm and honestly don’t feel any compromise in handling or stability at all on rough stuff. The wide bars playing a role in a fit issue for me - I think an under-discussed topic is that when using wide bars you are effectively increasing reach, and probably need to run a shorter stem.
circling back months later, how has it handled on the road? Do you think it's a decent option to serve as a road & gravel 1 bike setup? Or do you think the slack geo will feel too slow for rides that are completely on road?
It depends on what you've been on before and your perspective. I think if you went with the carbon fork option, it is very well suited as a mixed surface bike.
thank you for the nice video. I´ve bought the stigmata and I am really looking forward to ride it. I am planning a bike packing tour and would like to have the same packaging stuff as you have. Can you please tell me what the name is from the axle and which bomb you have. thanks
I think the sus fork and 50mm tire clearance helps, but as I mentioned, it's still a gravel bike. Geo certainly play a roll too, you are much more upright on the cutty, where as the stigmata is still designed as a gravel race bike. But compared to say the Warbird, the Stigmata is a much more comfortable and capable bike.
Well, it's really hard to fit handlebar bags between narrow bars, that's one reason, I also like the feel and the confidence wider bars give me, but it was evident testing this bike that it was not as important as I once thought.
Which is better Salsa Cutthroat vs Santa Cruz Stigmata. I was looking at the warranty on Santa Cruz carbon frames and sorry, it's not as you say, that the warranty is for life. The lifetime warranty is only for factory defects, the warranty is for 5 years.
An XC mountain bike (full-sus or hardtail) with Gravel tires might do just as well for a better price. My Gravelbike is full-sus Specialized Epic with 700x43 Panaracer Gravel KIng SK tires. Fast on pavement. Excellent on gravel. Totally capable on easy to medium singletrack. You can get a full-sus Canyon Lux World Cup for $3500.
Nice bike, geometry is very aligned to the Specialized Diverge I've ridden since June 2020. Does the dropper post have some sort of cushioning to counter the lack of flex? Also, I know they're highly personal, but would love a video/article on your team's favorite saddles for long miles... still looking for that elusive all-day saddle for my bikes. Not a fan of giant shammys.
Thanks for your useless comment. Please, if you comment here, use your brain and tell us why you don’t like it. Otherwise leave your garbage comment on another channel. Is it for everyone, no but it’s not useless by any means.
Well, as the owner of the V3 with the force groupo & a cable dropper post & reserve wheels, I can assure you that here in the Purcell mtns this bike is FUN to ride & anything BUT useless.They killed me when they offered the suspension & factory dropper the very nxt year after I bought mine. A lot of money for sure but if you ride it a lot you can make the investment worthwhile. I tell my wife we could've taken up flying ...
