This Argon18 Dark Matter is a fun gravel bike that was going to be used for commuting and taking on fire trails. The set up of the saddle was matched across from a road bike position using previous retul bike fit data and the front end of this bike was raised up to make it much more conservative and comfortable for commuting to work. The final result was a high-quality bike with a conservative position that could be ridden pretty much anywhere.
Using Zipp 30 Clincher disc brake wheels, the ability to run wide tyres in a tubeless setup means that this would be a comfortable yet fun bike with addition puncture protection. Being an alloy wheel, they also easily repaired in the event of damage.
SRAM Force mechanical was the chosen groupset, as it had the necessary reliability to take it off-road. As it was a 1x configuration, there were weight-saving benefits to be had, but more importantly, it simplifies the drivetrain, an important consideration for gravel bikes.
A Selle SMP Dynamic was used, as this was the saddle used in the road geometry that was matched. For the other contact points, Supacaz bar tape covers the handlebars, while the Shimano SPD pedal system was used for the cleats.
This bike has a very adjustable front end with multiple options for headset caps to increase the frame stack of the bike while appearing neat. We chose the largest headset cap so that the bike looked neat and the bike would handle well.
The bike is finished with Supacaz bar tape, Supacaz Tron Side Mount cages and Challenge Gravel Grinder TLR tyres for plenty of offroad grip.
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