Yet another CCX owner

[linklemming]

Another soon to be CCX owner, ordered it as a christmas present for myself.

I work from home so dont really need it for commuting (I agree its really well setup for this).

Im basically going to turn it into a gravel bike. I have never really understood the whole gravel bike thing as I think a rigid MTB is better for that
purpose. Silly road bikers trying to do something new! No offense to any road bikers, I did it for many years until I saw the light of MTBs.

Anywho, mods to the CCX will be

Gravel Oriented Tires (Surly Knard 700cx41 tires), some reviews show them at 46mm wide.
Going to try tubeless again (used it several time on MTBs and went back to tubes with stans due to burping issues eventually causing a bad crash, tubes/stans has worked well over 10 years i.e. no flats on my MTBs)
42T front chainring - lots of hills where I live and I find 42x11 works well enough, usually when Im going this fast its downhills anyways.
Remove Rack/Fenders/Lights - I want it as minimal as possible and have my own high powered offroad lights collection and rear lights
Considering a rigid front fork.

Basically this is going to be equivalent to my curent DIY speed pedelec 'gravel bike', a 94GT zaskar MTB with 52V TSDZ2 mid-drive conversion running opensource software,
rigid front fork, Conti Traffic 26x2.1 tires (width actually measures 46mm). While I like this bike alot, the TSDZ2 can be a little noisy and the mid-drive while
working up to 30mph probably isnt the most efficient at higher speeds.

I almost went with a 2017 Raleigh Redux IE or IZIP Moda(same basic bike) with brose motor which I can get locally for $2200. I LOVE the silent brose motor on my Bulls eMTB but want to go with the larger battery on the CCX.

 

[SirJonathan]

You will love it. I've had mine for about 10 days and have four rides on it. Holidays cut short long rides I'd hoped to have completed by now. I intend to do around 30 miles tomorrow and would like to put together my thoughts on this excellent bike here on this forum very shortly. Other people that have posted ride reports here helped me tremendously on my decision process and I have not been disappointed with my purchase.

 

[linklemming]

Looking forward to your report, wish my bike could get to Colorado as fast as you got yours.

I do appreciate your initial thoughts especially regarding size, Im guessing we have similar torso height (Im 6ft with 32 pants inseam) and was torn between the L and XL. The XL had sufficient standover height and the effective toptube(EFF) looked about what I wanted (I usually like 23.5") but took your advice and went for the large. That being said, EFF doesnt always tell the whole truth(it has fooled me before) and I havent yet wrapped my head around the newer types of measurement (stack/reach). It also seems newer MTB designs are using longer toptubes and shorter stems so that confuses everything. Since your from a roadie background Im assuming you like a more aero position and are not one of the old geezers here who like their bars a ft above the saddle but I do find myself raising the bars higher every couple of years.

 

[Feliz]

Be carefull.....there's more of us old geezers on here than you young bucks. Enjoy your new ride.

 

[linklemming]

Hah, I got a bite on that, all is good

 

[SirJonathan]

Looking forward to your report, wish my bike could get to Colorado as fast as you got yours.

I do appreciate your initial thoughts especially regarding size, Im guessing we have similar torso height (Im 6ft with 32 pants inseam) and was torn between the L and XL. The XL had sufficient standover height and the effective toptube(EFF) looked about what I wanted (I usually like 23.5") but took your advice and went for the large. That being said, EFF doesnt always tell the whole truth(it has fooled me before) and I havent yet wrapped my head around the newer types of measurement (stack/reach). It also seems newer MTB designs are using longer toptubes and shorter stems so that confuses everything. Since your from a roadie background Im assuming you like a more aero position and are not one of the old geezers here who like their bars a ft above the saddle but I do find myself raising the bars higher every couple of years.

I think you'll be fine with the Large. I'm 6'2 with a 34" inseam and it fits me fine. I would consider the fit to be compact. That's really the only word I can use to describe it. I don't feel like I'm swimming in the frame but the reach is close. I do prefer the road-bike type of fit as almost all of my miles are on road bikes. I weigh about 155 but never felt comfortable in the drops.

The thing about the CCX is that it is heavy. I'm still not completely comfortable with it. I am so used to flicking my road bike around (20 pounds) that this 50 pound monster feels unwieldy to me still. I think the key is that the weight doesn't match the speed for me yet. I've been on tons of mountain bikes but even at 25 pounds you're only going 15mph most of the time. I don't like downhill mountain biking after I broke my arm 20 years ago so it's usually slow speed on them for me.

With the CCX you're going 25mph and it's a big heavy bike. I constantly feel like I'm not 100% in control of it because it doesn't have the maneuverability of my road bike at those speeds. I'm sure I'll get used to it. I have only around 80 miles on it since new so there's a getting-to-know-it period that I'm still in the middle of. I intend to do a 30-40 mile ride in the next couple of days and will report back. I'm sure I'll acclimate to the size/speed shortly.

I am very impressed with the bike and so happy I purchased it. Everything on mine works perfectly - out of the box. Battery charging is easy. The voltage indicator helps so much. 55 volts is 80% so I just charged it and gauged the time and sure enough at 54.8 volts I pulled the plug. No need for an expensive charger for me but that's my use case. I've only charged it twice - once initially and then once after my four rides. I will tell you that this thing could go for MILES before running out of charge. I am so impressed by the battery capacity. On ECO or 1 you literally could go for 80 miles easily.

I know you were kidding but I'm really glad these older gentlemen are on this forum. Tons of experience and they have a little more free time to work on problems and issues and we all benefit from that. I don't think I would have bought this bike without this forum. I don't want to read about the four people on the company website that love the bike. I want to read about the people that have a broken rack, missing battery, controller issues, etc. and how the company responded and how they remedied the issues. Those are real-world case scenarios that really help the buying decision process for me.

Best of luck to you!

 

[Chris Hammond]

I will make a few points for you.
I own the CCS. I converted to tubeless quite a while ago. Very pleased with the results. I have not had any "burping" issues, but I am running much higher pressures than a MTB. You will need to find a pressure compromise for traction and high speed performance. You certainly don't want to be riding this heavy bike at 28mph at 20PSI. My guess is 35PSI would be a reasonable starting point. I am using my bike as a commuter so the only gravel it sees is road construction. I run ~55 PSI in the winter, was at 65 in the summer.
That said, any rain on the road is a quick reminder about cornering a heavy bike at high speed. Riding on dirt will likely give you similar results.
I actually feel entirely comfortable and in control of the bike at 30mph. The brakes are excellent. I had a panic stop last week and honestly was sure I was going to "T-bone" the idiot who turned in front of me; and was preparing myself to be launched over the hood. Fortunately, the rear weight bias I think allows the rear tire to actually help slow the bike a bit during a panic stop. I was pleasantly surprised.

 

[PeteH]

Looking forward to your report, wish my bike could get to Colorado as fast as you got yours.

I do appreciate your initial thoughts especially regarding size, Im guessing we have similar torso height (Im 6ft with 32 pants inseam) and was torn between the L and XL. The XL had sufficient standover height and the effective toptube(EFF) looked about what I wanted (I usually like 23.5") but took your advice and went for the large. That being said, EFF doesnt always tell the whole truth(it has fooled me before) and I havent yet wrapped my head around the newer types of measurement (stack/reach). It also seems newer MTB designs are using longer toptubes and shorter stems so that confuses everything. Since your from a roadie background Im assuming you like a more aero position and are not one of the old geezers here who like their bars a ft above the saddle but I do find myself raising the bars higher every couple of years.

Don't worry about choosing the wrong size. The only difference between the three sizes is the amount of seatpost that shows. The reach is the same. I choses an XL, but now wish I'd chosen an M or L so I could step over the top tube easier.

Enjoy your new bike!

 

[SirJonathan]

Don't worry about choosing the wrong size. The only difference between the three sizes is the amount of seatpost that shows. The reach is the same. I choses an XL, but now wish I'd chosen an M or L so I could step over the top tube easier.

Enjoy your new bike!

I couldn't agree with this more, Pete!

 

[bikerjohn]

I think you'll be fine with the Large. I'm 6'2 with a 34" inseam and it fits me fine. I would consider the fit to be compact. That's really the only word I can use to describe it. I don't feel like I'm swimming in the frame but the reach is close...

I am very impressed with the bike and so happy I purchased it. Everything on mine works perfectly - out of the box. Battery charging is easy. The voltage indicator helps so much. 55 volts is 80% so I just charged it and gauged the time and sure enough at 54.8 volts I pulled the plug. No need for an expensive charger for me but that's my use case. I've only charged it twice - once initially and then once after my four rides. I will tell you that this thing could go for MILES before running out of charge. I am so impressed by the battery capacity. On ECO or 1 you literally could go for 80 miles easily.

... I'm really glad these older gentlemen are on this forum. Tons of experience and they have a little more free time to work on problems and issues and we all benefit from that. I don't think I would have bought this bike without this forum... I want to read about the people that have a broken rack, missing battery, controller issues, etc. and how the company responded and how they remedied the issues. Those are real-world case scenarios that really help the buying decision process for me.
Best of luck to you!

You've expressed the Juiced battery and controller benefits, well!
I especially appreciate The Juiced design which enables easy monitoring battery voltage. Monitoring the state of battery voltage is a plus with this Juiced bike which wasn't a feature on the EG Zurich, my first ebike. Being able to more accurately view the charge condition helps to prolong the useful life of the battery. I am able to optimally charge the CCX battery on the bike using a timer with the charger. Being able to set the limit of discharge via the controller means I can keep battery voltage within it's optimal zones of 80-20% capacity.

 

[linklemming]

Don't worry about choosing the wrong size. The only difference between the three sizes is the amount of seatpost that shows. The reach is the same. I choses an XL, but now wish I'd chosen an M or L so I could step over the top tube easier.

Enjoy your new bike!

Where are you getting this info?

Juiced doesnt publish a reach measurement

They do publish effective top tube to be 22.4/23.0/23.7 for the M/L/XL

 

[PeteH]

No one wants to believe me ! No respect from my kids, either. Anyway:

https://www.juicedbikes.com/products/crosscurrent-x

Choose your size
One of the most crucial decisions in buying a new bike is selecting the size that will work for you. The chart below is as easy as it gets.

 

[SirJonathan]

From Pete's reply to me in another thread I found this graphic and used it to determine if a large would fit me. I'm very glad I did. It's only the seat tube that is different. Makes sense. In a YouTube video there's an interview with Tora somewhere and he states that he normally rides an XL but the L fits him just the same. Something along those lines. I thought that was a weird statement until I saw the above specs.

 

[linklemming]

No one wants to believe me ! No respect from my kids, either. Anyway:

Well sorry but I dont believe you, take a gander at the 2nd to last line in that picture you so nicely posted (BTW, I have had that up on my computer for the last month).

On the line labeled Top Tube Horizontal (otherwise known as effective top tube (EFF)) you will see different numbers), did you even bother to read my last post where i quoted those numbers.

 

[linklemming]

From Pete's reply to me in another thread I found this graphic and used it to determine if a large would fit me. I'm very glad I did. It's only the seat tube that is different. Makes sense. In a YouTube video there's an interview with Tora somewhere and he states that he normally rides an XL but the L fits him just the same. Something along those lines. I thought that was a weird statement until I saw the above specs.

Thats a nice 'technical' answer....just the same, well its not the same

For some, maybe, if your handlebars are a foot above your seat, you wouldnt notice a difference.

I do and in fact have completely replaced a frame on a MTB to make up for a longer Top Tube (like this bike, everything was the same except for the top tube length and the extra 0.75 inches made a BIG difference in how the bike handled)

The L CCX looks to have the same dimension as my Bulls eMTB so I can make it work. I took that bike in a few weeks ago for some service and got a nice loaner Bulls eMTB with a 20mm longer Top Tube and liked how the front end felt MUCH more. Same handlebar width and stem length between the two bikes.

I can eventually make it work with the right stem length/handlebar width but my experience has always favored a longer top tube.

 

[PeteH]

The handlebar height is the same for all three sizes, 41.5 inches. Your seat height will depend primarily on your inseam and how high you like your seat.

As you say, the bars can move to where you want them with a different stem. I'm about the same size as you. I'm using a 130mm road stem pointing down around 30 degrees. Longer might be even better, but that's what I had laying around.

The seat is about the same height as the bars (picture below). It's pretty comfortable for someone used to road bikes. BTW, I sawed about 1.25 inches each end of the bars, which also made it feel better.

As I mentioned in the other thread, I measured the horizontal distance between the center of the head tube and the center of the seat post at right around 60 cm. AFAIK, this is the definition of the of the effective top tube length. From the diagram and table, you can see this is the same for all three sizes. I can't really say if this should be called Medium, Large, or Extra Large. But I'm sure almost anyone over 5'6" or so can find a stem to get them comfortable. As for handling, pardon me if I don't go there!

 

[linklemming]

Thanks for the pick, that helps alot...nice MR2 as well, I wanted to buy one a few years back and put in the higher power celica motor. I have a turbo track miata.

I dont see how you are saying that what is being stated as horizontal top tube(EFF) is the same as it clearly says 22.4"/23.0"/23.7" for the M/L/XL. See attached pic

Sure hope I dont have to run a 130mm stem and cut down my bars like you did, I would hate how that handled. Did something similar years back on a frame that was too small (EFF) and hated the setup.

Im hoping for more along the lines of a 80-90mm stem and 720mm handlebar

The CCX and my Bulls eMTB seem about same dimenstion wise although I would prefer a little long top tube

 

[2wheeler]

I have the CCX and am 5'11" and 32i inseam, the L was the right size. Especially for reach to the handle bars, any further than that would not be acceptable to me. As it is about 2in taller and 2/3in back would be perfect for a true upright riding position that I prefer. I'm still thinking about a riser or an adjustable quill. I think the adjustable quill is the answer but I want a few more rides to be sure.

 

[SirJonathan]

I've got a large and several others have an x-large. I'm happy to take any measurement you would like down to the mm if that helps. If somebody with an x-large can do the same you'll have your answer.

 

[PeteH]

I've got a large and several others have an x-large. I'm happy to take any measurement you would like down to the mm if that helps. If somebody with an x-large can do the same you'll have your answer.

Good idea. I measured my XL and it's the same as the table, +- 60mm. The table says that if someone measures the M they're supposed to get +- 57 mm.

I think the only possible way it could be different would be if the head tube length or fork length is different -- but from all the photos I've seen, they're the same. Notice that the wheelbase, seat tube angle, chainstay length, and head tube angles are all the same. With a little analysis you can see that the head tube/top tube intersection MUST be the at the same height (which agrees with handlebar height spec) And since the seat tube angle is the same, and the bottom brackets are in the same place, the horizontal distance from the seatpost to the intersection has to be the same.

Of course, experiment trumps theory. So it would be great if someone measured it, and maybe checked the wheelbase as well.