Traitor Cycles Slot Steel 29er
Posted By admin On 12/04/22From Traitor's site:
'The Slot is our 29er built to rally trail as well as the rigors of adventure touring. The Slot takes gravel grinding to another level and is the ideal bike for someone that wants to go camping with their bike as well as hit up singletrack trails once they setup camp. Say goodbye to driving your car to the mountains, the Slot can handle miles of pavement riding as well as getting dirty. We've included all the right brazeons for front and rear racks and our custom forged dropout keeps the brake out of the way so mounting rear racks and fenders is a snap. The Slot geometry will have you feeling super comfortable on singletrack trails or grinding backroads fully loaded and exploring every path you see.'
I'm selling the bike because it is a L and I needed an XL. The bike MSRPed at $1400, and as far as I can tell, is no longer available. It is an incredible bike for commuting, bikepacking, and old-school style single track riding. I bought this bike as a frame set and built it with a combination of parts from the Traitor factory spec and from a 2015 Cannondale Trail 4. I've listed the specs on a sheet in the photos section. The bike probably has about 500 miles on it. I used it to commute about 30 minutes each way and took it on a few all day mountain bike/gravel grind rides before realizing the the cockpit is too short for me. I loved this bike so much I bought the XL version and have since used it on some long rides, including a trans-Sierra bikepacking trip, at which it excelled. I have been running a steel fork, but many people have put suspension on the front.
I’ve had a more than a few people ask what we’d recommend as the ideal San Francisco starter bike, and I’ve always thought a geared steel 29″ hardtail with a rigid fork was it — except I couldn’t think of anyone that offered a production bike with those specs. When I saw the Traitor Cycles Slot, my first thought was, “that’s it.”
Looking to start a new commuter bike build? Cop the Traitor Slot Frameset &Fork and create the ride of your dreams. With a soundly constructed frame and custom forged dropout, the Traitor Slot serves as the perfect base to build out the ultimate around-town cruiser. This is a riding review of the Spot Brand Longboard 29er single speed. Spot is synonymous with the single-speed genre—heck, Spot was there from the beginning—and the Longboard represents the present evolutionary peak of the species.
Although there seem to be a number of inexpensive geared 29ers available, most come equipped with cheap, heavy suspension forks. If you want a rigid hybrid, you’re stuck with zero tire clearance for actual mountain biking, should you get the bug.
The Slot is a bike from an era that seems long past. Unlike my first real moutainbike, which was also a steel rigid bike, the Slot has a threaded 1 1/8 headtube, is a disc brake specific, double butted and designed to accept 29″ tires. The rim size for 29ers happends to be the same as 700c, so if you want to stick full on road bike tires on it, that’s an option.
Rack and fender mounts? Check.
It comes equipped with a matching chromoly disc fork with eyelets for racks and fenders, making it ideal for an every day commuter or for adventure touring. Off-road adventure gravel grind bike camping (hyphen-hyphen-hyphen) seems to be so hot right now, and if that’s your thing, the Slot is ready to go.
Kenda Small Block Eight tires in the 2.10 variety roll quickly.
Want to make it a flat bar road bike? Buy a set of 700x 28c tires and tubes and you’re ready to go. Want to try your first cyclecross race? Then make those tires 700x 35c. Want to try your hand at mountain biking in Golden Gate Park, McLaren, Twin Peaks or over the bridge? Yep.
I’m personally not a fan of triple drivetrains, but once this bike is loaded with bags, that small chainring is going to be appreciated.
Cyclocross bikes are often put into use as commuters, and while the various options for hand positions are nice, their STI shift/ brake levers are prone to damage upon contact with the ground. They’re great for long distance pedaling, but aren’t ideal for quickly avoiding cars and traffic. You’ll never confuse a CX bike with a legitimate mountain bike either, as most won’t accept larger volume tires needed for real mountain biking.T
The only thing that seems off is the choice of the 26.8mm seat tube, which seems like a bit of a throwback. On the bright side, Gravity Dropper does offer a model that fits, so you’re not completely out of luck should you look to add an adjustable height seat post if you find yourself fond of this mountain biking thing.
A cool looking headtube badge.
Traitor Cycles Slot Steel 29er Bike
The Slot complete bike retails for $1399 — learn more about the Slot at TraitorCycles.com