Marin Gestalt X10
Its progressive frame design and decent spec wins out
All four bikes this month are very capable on gravel, but they do have their strengths and weaknesses.
Saracen’s Levarg has the fun factor of a 650b mountain bike wrapped up in a gravelready ride. It loves being off road, and runs on some of the very best gravel tyres for poor conditions. It’s less happy on tarmac though.
The State Black Label is at the other end of the gravel scale, owing a great deal to the road endurance bike. State’s own (branded) groupset and funky brakes are talking points and the drivetrain impresses: it’s a worthy stopper, providing you’re prepared to fettle and adjust the brakes. It can’t match the offroad comfort of its rivals here but if your all-roading is more on road than off, it’s not a bad option.
Merida’s new-generation Silex brings the long front-centre geometry from the original Silex and gives it bigger tyre clearances and a much sportier ride position. Its frameset is the most evolved and well developed here, but the odd specification of a road-derived Sora drivetrain on the Silex 200 means it struggles in the rough. We’d be tempted to buy the pricier Silex 400 with same frameset but Shimano’s gravel-specific GRX. The brilliance of the Silex design still shines through on the 200, however, making it a close runner-up to the Marin.
Finally, Marin’s Gestalt X10 has a long, slack frame shape that looks like it shouldn’t work on tarmac, but it’s surprisingly sprightly. In the rough where it belongs, it lets you revel in one of the best frame designs for rowdier gravel endeavours. The drivetrain is excellent for the money and so is the solid finishing kit. Only the brakes have less feel than the bike deserves but they don’t lack for power. I’d be happy to ride the X10 anywhere as it stands, but as the basis for upgrades, a custom X10 could be one of the best-value, best-performing and most fun gravel bikes this year.
“In the rough, it lets you revel in one of the best frame designs for rowdier gravel endeavours”