As you may know, I bought a Crust Lightning Bolt with cantilever brakes in the winter of 2022. The much-vaunted CantiBolt! It took me a year or so to assemble all the parts, prep the frame and ultimately build up the bike. You can read about it here, should you be so inclined. Now, after a year and a couple of thousand miles riding it, I thought I'd do a retrospective review.
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Crust Canti-Bolt
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Below, for reference, is the current build list. It's essentially the same as the original build, though some details have changed. Stepping out the door for yesterday's ride, the bike weighed 31.2 pounds, including two full 21 oz. Camelbak Ice water bottles, phone, wallet, snacks, etc. I've even got a modest cable lock in the bag. That's summer time ready-to-ride weight. Winter would weigh more because more clothes, but I tend to ride my Cycles Toussaint in the winter, since it's fendered and has the larger Acorn Boxy Rando bag affixed with a decaleur.
Build List
The drivetrain definitely seemed like a risky "mullet" proposition, mixing the Velo Orange sub-compact crankset (road) with the MicroSHIFT ultra-low-geared rear derailleur (MTB). I had to switch from the elegant Silver bar-end shifters I was planning to use for the MicroSHIFT MTB barcons, which have more cable pull. I am happy to report that the system works swimmingly. With friction shifting, all things are possible. I can't imagine a better shifting, more versatile system. With a low gear of 30t (front) x 42t (rear), the Cantibolt is a climbing beast. Though I've fantasized about swapping to the Velo Orange "Drillium" crankset, featuring a 48t x 34t, I find that I'm not so limited by the 46 tooth top gear that I really need it. I think I'd rather have the low 30 tooth gear - I'm not getting any younger.
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Mullet drive train to conquer any climb
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Brakes, handlebars, shifters, etc., haven't changed since I built up the bike, but I've added the front bag and the frame pump.The bag is a cheap(ish) Korean Zimbale brand bag I bought from Amazon. Though I liked the design with its low profile, I disliked its sticky zipper and poorly laid out leather/Velcro rack attachment points. I actually returned it and got my money back... twice. But it seems to be one of those notorious products the company doesn't want back. Or they went out of business right in the middle of my transaction. Not sure. I returned it twice and it came back to me both times. Ultimately I figured it was meant for me. And it looks pretty good on the bike, don't you think?
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| Zimbale front rack bag. |
I modified the attachment straps so they worked with my rack, and gave the zipper a good lubing. It's still not my favorite bag, but it does the job, so I'll keep it on the bike until something better comes along, or I finally get around to installing the decaleur I have sitting in the parts bin, so I can use my Acorn bag. Combined with the now discontinued Brooks Isle of Wight saddle bag, in which I keep extra tubes, tools, etc., I can carry a lot of stuff without having a gigantic bag. I've got plenty of room for everything I need.
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Selle Italia "Man" saddle, Brooks saddle bag, Silca pump and Avid Shorty brakes.
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COMPARE & CONTRAST
It is interesting to note the differences between riding a 700c x 25mm racing bike, and a traditional steel 650b x 42mm rando rig, but it's a bit of a false equivalency. The two styles are optimized for different objectives; pure speed for the racing bike; comfort, versatility and efficiency for the randonneuse. In a way, they represent a natural progression for many a seasoned rider as we move from our thrill-seeking youth to a more mature, sustainable riding style as we age. At least that's how it has been for me. I'm 61 years old - my 53/39 years are behind me.
The only fair comparison I can make is between the Crust CantiBolt and the Vélo Routier, as they are both low trail, 650B bikes made from lightweight, TIG-welded steel and ride on similarly wide tires (42mm for the Lightning Bolt and 38mm for the VR). But the comparison kind of ends there, because to be a fair comparison, all the components on the two bikes should be matched, and they're not.
But I'm not gonna let that stop me!
The Vélo Routier was my first "rando" frame and the first bike I assembled more or less by myself. I bought it as a DIY kit, with all the parts chosen by Cycles Toussaint, though I ended up using a stem and handlebar combination from the parts bin which shortened the reach a bit. Still, the resultant stack and reach of the two bikes are very close. The Routier's total price came to about $1,350 (US) plus shipping, or just a bit more than the Crust's frameset alone. So, let's say it was the epitome of an "entry level" spec. A good way to get started, but I'd never do it that way today. Knowing what I now know, I'd choose individual parts, though of course I'd spend a heckuva lot more money to do so.
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| Cycles Toussaint Vélo Routier |
Now that the Crust is completely dialed in, and having spent a bit of
time with it, I can safely say that it is without a doubt the best bike
I've ever owned, and probably the best bike I've ever ridden. That list includes a 2002 Trek 2000, an aluminum "racing style" bike with
105 components, a 2011 Trek Madone (Ultegra components), an '86 Fuji
Allegro seven-speed, and a Cycles Toussaint Vélo Routier version 2. I also spent a week riding across Italy on a Van Nicholas titanium touring bike once upon a time. But the main comparison is to my other rando bike, the Vélo Routier, on which I have around 10,000 miles at this point.
Everything about the Lightning Bolt seems marginally, and in some ways vastly better than any of these bikes. All the lessons learned from building the Vélo Routier were applied to the build of the Crust, and better parts were individually chosen rather than bought as an entry-level set. I can't help but think the better components account for a sizeable share of the different qualities of the two bikes. But can a better headset or bottom bracket really make that much difference? Or is the Lightning Bolt better than the Vélo Routier because of better design, including better geometry, steel, etc. I'm not about to spend the money to match the bikes' components, but I'll engage in a bit speculation...
REAL STEEL
I'll talk about differences in component quality and geometry in a minute, but first things first. Though they look pretty similar in most respects, the primary difference between the construction of the two bikes is the steel. I'm no metallurgist, but here's what I know (which is to say, have found on the internet). The Vélo Routier is made from oversize (OS) .8/.5/.8 4130 chromoly. That's thin-walled by most standards, as I understand it, similar to Reynolds 531C. The Lightning Bolt is made from standard diameter .7/.4/.7 heat-treated chromoly steel. In bicycle terms that's "extra-thin-walled, traditional-diameter tubing. More or less the same spec as the René Herse Kaisei Superlight tubeset or Reynolds 753. The Lightning Bolt's lore has it that Matt Whitehead, Crust's founder, had to sign a waver indemnifying the manufacturer (MaxWay?) from liability for owners doing inappropriate things with this bike. Hence the rider weight limit of 100kg / 220 lbs and the warnings not to "go all Evel Knievel thinking you're Missy Giove bombing this thing down some single track. It's not designed for that."
So, the Crust's tubes are thinner in both diameter and wall thickness than those of the Cycles Toussaint. This doesn't seem to impact the final "ride-ready" bikes' weight much (they end up being within about 16 ounces of each other). But it may contribute significantly to differences in the bikes' "feel". I think. Again, that's based more on what I've read, mostly in Bicycle Quarterly, than anything I can prove.
Is it simply thinner steel that makes the Lightning Bolt feel so much better than my other bikes? Not exactly. The steel may be a large part of the reason the bike is more comfortable than the Vélo Routier, but there are obviously other factors at play. Here's a quick list of the general impressions of the two bikes' handling with my guesses as to possible causes.
STEERING
The Vélo Routier always felt a bit unsettled. It requires constant attention from the pilot, lest it wanders off course. The Lightning Bolt, on the other hand, is much steadier, requiring only light steering inputs, and holds its line quite well. Not quite the "on rails" feeling of my higher trail racing bikes, but definitely striking that elusive balance between responsive and predictable. In short, the Crust's handling is confidence-inspiring, while the Vélo Routier's is a bit twitchy. But is that because of the relatively minor geometric differences, the steel used for the fork, or is it to do with component choices? The stem in the VR's DIY kit was at least 20mm longer than the 70mm Nitto I actually used. The handlebar also had a longer reach, and was wider. The DIY kit came with a needle bearing headset, usually spec'd to dampen low trail bikes' tendency to shimmy at speed. Were those choices made by Cycles Toussaint to compensate for the frameset's inherently skittish tendencies?
Note that the chart below comparing the two bikes displays an anomaly. Cycles Toussaint claims the Vélo Routier's trail as 30mm. BikeInsights.com lists it as a "calculated" 18.8mm. Big difference. I don't know how to sort out the discrepancy, but if it is indeed 18mm, well there you go - that's just too low, and waaaayyy lower than the Crust's 40mm. Could be it. Even if we give the designers the benefit of the doubt, there's a 10mm difference between the two. The Routier's 30mm is considered very low, and the Crust's 40.2mm fits in the high side of the conventional definition of "low" trail.
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| Bikeinsights.com comparison of the two bikes |
Is the difference in trail the reason for the two bikes substantial disparity in steering? Everything else,
i.e., shorter wheelbase, shorter chainstay, shorter stem, higher bottom
bracket, would argue that the Lightning Bolt should be the twitchier of
the two, but that's not the case. So, I'll assume the difference in
trail is the primary element that accounts for the disparate
character of the bikes' handling. One day I'll swap out the NECO headset on the Vélo Routier and see if that makes a difference. I also plan to move the Routier's rear wheel to the absolute longest chainstay length allowed by the semi-horizontal dropout. Maybe that'll help.
Also worth reiterating is that the bikes have different tire sizes. Not sure how much impact this has on steering, but as tire size affects trail, it has to be considered a factor. The Vélo Routier runs on ultralight 38mm Compass/Re Loup-Loup Pass tires and the Lightning Bolt sports 42mm Pacenti Pari-motos.
ACCELERATION
The Crust wins this category hands-down. Input at the pedals sends the bike forward with very little resistance, where the Vélo Routier takes a few pedal revolutions to wind up. The chainring gearing is the same (46/30), so that's not it. The cassettes have different low gears, but I'm rarely starting from the bottom, so I doubt that's it. Is it the cheap bottom bracket on the VR? I did use a high quality IRD BB when spec'ing the Crust, so... Heavier wheels from the Routier's DIY package? Yes, but I've used the same set of wheels on both bikes and there is still a very noticeable difference in the bikes' responsiveness. Is the springiness of the thinner steel responsible for the magical transfer of energy from potential to kinetic? Whatever the reason, the Crust just feels lighter, spins up faster, and gets closer to what Jan Heine might describe as planing.
BRAKING TOO (cantilever boogaloo)
Direct-mount center-pull brakes are the best rim brakes ever made. Right? And cantilever brakes are a horrible, squealing anachronism that should immediately be replaced with V-brakes. Right? Well, the Avid Shorty Ultimate canti's I put on the Crust are just magnificent. These cantilever brakes work every bit as well as any rim brakes I've used. They're light, they're easy to mount and fine tune, they use "regular" road brake pads, and they're black!
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Avid Shorty Ultimate cantilever brakes
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The direct mounted center-pull
Dia Compe 750
brakes that came with the Cycles Toussaint work fine, but not as well
as the Shortys. I should probably figure out how to install the vintage
Mafac Racer brakes I have in the parts bin on the VR, but I'm lazy, so I live with
good enough.
All of which is to say, the cantilever brakes on the Crust are every bit as good as or better than the center-pulls on the VR, as well as the Ultegras and 105 dual-pivot side-pulls that came on both of my racing bikes. I'm sure many would ask, why fuck with obsolete technology when a vastly better technology exists, i.e., disc brakes? Answers:
- Ride quality: rim brakes allow a flexy fork which imparts a sublime ride, likely a large part of what makes this bike better than the VR. As Matt notes in the Lightning Bolt's product description, "This frame is designed to flex and feel like you're actually floating millimeters above the road on top of Dynamic clouds." Too right.
- Mechanical simplicity and easy of maintenance: disc brakes just seem more complicated and difficult to maintain. My riding fantasies are mostly built around long rides in remote places. I want to be able to fix just about anything that goes wrong on the bike, and rim brakes are way easier to adjust. Plus, my bikes will never stop working because they spring a leak or because a battery dies.
"But disk brakes are better, newer, whatever..." Okay, sure, fine, whatever. As the Bike Farmer says, my rim brakes are "good enough for who it's for." Rim brakes were good enough for Fausto Coppi and Eddy Mercks; they're good enough for me. And the Avid Shorty Ultimate brakes are as good or better than I've ever owned. So there.
CONCLUSION
So where does this leave us? Well, dammit, I've become spoiled having a bike that is so much more pleasant to ride. I love my Cycles Toussaint Vélo Routier. It is a very special bike, being the first production bike I have ever seen with bosses for direct-mounting center-pull brakes, usually available only on bespoke frames. But I find that ever since the Crust Lightning Bolt became rideable, that's the bike I grab when headed out the door. These days I only go to the VR when there's a problem with the Crust, or when I need the fenders. But while riding it, I now find myself pining for the ride quality of the Lightning Bolt. Kinda sucks. Like trying fine wine or good craft beer. Once you know, you can't go back.
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| Reflective triangle? Check! |
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Now I find myself asking if I'll ever really want to ride a bike that isn't the Lightning Bolt. I'll always hang onto my 90's Specialized Crossroads Cruz, for around town and as a back-country hunting bike. But unless the Crust is down for maintenance, I can't see riding the Cycles Toussaint, the 00's Trek 2000 or the Fuji much anymore. I'm inclined to let those bikes go, to clear space and maybe pass them along to someone who would use and value them.
And now that Crust is having a very unusual sale on the remaining CantiBolts in their inventory (under 1,000 freedom tickets for the best frameset I've ever ridden?!), I'm struck by the terror that once the current crop is sold, there will never be such a magnificent production bike available. While that would constitute a travesty to me, I'm pretty sure the rest of the world would hardly notice, and Crust would get along just fine selling Bomboras and Evasions.
Crap. It's altogether possible there will be another Lightning Bolt in my stable before too long. This time in Light Sea Green with cartoony doodle graphics and yet another silly typeface. Ugh...
