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I want to buy a bicycle which I can ride on road (through City, between two cities etc...), but I want a bicycle for offroad (not rough offroad). Something like SUV in car world.

I know I can't find perfectly bike for both. Last time I bought bike(29"x2.1, 21" bike with 3x9 speed) I didn't hit exact what I wanted. Now, that bike is little bit small for me(I guess I should buy 23" next time) and general appeal of bike is not nice(for me).

With current bike I can hit 30km/h with 3x7 speed and hold that speed for a long time. Also I can ride offroad without any problems. But with not nice appeal current bike has problems with fork(cheap SC fork I guess) and front brake pulling air somewhere.

I found Ghost Kato 9.9 with next specs:

  • Fork: Rock Shox 30 Silver Poploc 100 mm
  • Rear derailleur: Shimano XT RD-M8000 11-S(11T-42T)
  • Front derailleur: Shimano XT FD-M8025
  • Drivetrain: Shimano XT FC-M8000 36-26 (26T-36T)
  • Brakes: Shimano XT BR-M8000 2/2 Piston 180 mm Disc

I Know those specs are more on offroad side than road side. After I'll buy Thudbuster LT seatpost, change drivetrain(3rd gear) from 36T to 40T and put new tyres(29x2.0).

Will my plan work? Does anyone have better idea? I really love to ride offroad but in same time I ride on road. With wide tyres I can't go fast on road, but I can ride offroad. With narrow tyres I can fly on road but offroad is like suicide. Thanks a lot on help!

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  • It's not really clear what you're asking. You haven't described the kind of off-road or on-road riding you want to do so, really, we have no clue if the bike you mention is suitable for your needs. Ultimately, though, if you want to ride on rough off-road terrain and also go fast on the road, there is no single bike that will do what you want. Note also that recommendations of specifc products are off-topic, here.
    – David Richerby
    Mar 30, 2019 at 15:57
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    I want a bike for on road(city) ride and in same time I want the bike for off road(casual, not rough off road). I don't want bike recommendation, just to find the best for me.
    – Pararera
    Mar 30, 2019 at 16:02
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    Will you be doing mixed riding - on and off road at the same time? If so then you have to find a compromise. If you have off road expeditions and then come home and do on road you might be able to get away with two sets of tyres - or two sets of wheels.
    – David D
    Mar 30, 2019 at 16:08
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    For dirt tracks, things like forest roads, you could consider a gravel bike or cyclocross bike. You don't need suspension until you're doing actual MTB trails and these are closer to road bikes. Don't forget in your SUV analogy they're inefficient - and when you're the engine there are limits to how much harder you can push
    – Chris H
    Mar 30, 2019 at 16:51
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    Are you recording your rides with a cycle computer? I race at a high enough level to get a lot of my gear for free from sponsors and I couldn't do what you describe. 35 km/hr might be a bit too ambitious.
    – Carbon side up
    Mar 30, 2019 at 22:50

2 Answers 2

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You will not be able to change the 36T chainring to a 40T chainring and get it to work well with the front derailleur on the linked Ghost Kato 9.9. The Shimano XT FD-M8025 does not have the top gear teeth capacity nor total capacity needed, see https://bike.shimano.com/en-EU/product/component/deorext-m8000/FD-M8025-E.html

Consider a bike with a front chainset with wide range (48-38-28) gearing if you want to be able to reach 35km/h on the road, since you will otherwise quickly run out of gears with only 36T (or even 44T) at the front.

I would then consider weight as my second objective, and front suspension as my third objective.

Do not be afraid to step down from XT M8000 level of drivetrains and brakes. From your description the XT two-piston brakes will be an absolute waste of money, and drivetrains wear out eventually. Correctly setup Deore drivetrains, or even Alivio, are very good.

Finally wide tires are not necessarily slower as explained at https://janheine.wordpress.com/2018/01/03/12-myths-in-cycling-1-wider-tires-are-slower/

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  • Thanks for answer! Now I see 38T is max. It is not worth to go from 36 to 38T. Then I guess I'll one day(maybe year after) make custom drivetrain(28-40?) I want good quality brakes. Now I have Tektro and they are bad af. Good quality brakes from now, even if I won’t use them at 100%
    – Pararera
    Mar 30, 2019 at 19:03
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Is there a reason you're stuck on the idea of one bike? A hybrid commuter for road, and a 23" frame MTB might be the answer here if your budget can stretch that far.

There's a long-standing theme of "N+1" in cycling, where you always want another bike. Of course funds and storage can make this a challenge.

Or buy one bike for the type of riding you do the most (on road or off road) and then work to make your existing bike more suitable for the less-common riding by changing the tyres etc.

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  • In the comments SilvioCro indicated that he would be doing on and off road riding at the same time. Not doing an off road ride then going home to get a different bike and then going for an on road ride. This requirement indicates that two bikes would not meet the need. To answer the question you must propose a single bike that is a good compromise.
    – David D
    Mar 30, 2019 at 23:05
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    ... which is a bit unlucky, as road and off-road call for very different tire widths and pressures. Any compromise will be slow on both.
    – cmaster - reinstate monica
    Mar 30, 2019 at 23:12

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