An Extremely Good Value Gravel Bike - CUBE Nuroad 1000 Miles Later

[@UKBROOKLYN]

Hats off to Cade Media.. once again proving that you don't need to mortgage your house to get into cycling.

[@TBATTIECYCLING]

Cheap cycling is fun

[@eduardoschneider2010]

I got the 2025 Nuroad. It’s sooo good for the money. Best value bike ever. All new 2025 models from cube are a proof that bikes are not and don’t have to be expensive to be super good

[@andrew6889-p5c]

Complaining about expensive bikes is easy. But huge respect for taking the time to see what’s truly good at the affordable end of the bike spectrum.

[@bedcurt]

nice review , good to hear you say £1,000 bike is expensive. Other channels would call this bargain basement

[@newttella1043]

@@bedcurt The insane costs of bikes is a barrier for a lot of people. What a shame, especially for active families.

[@ickebins6948]

@@newttella1043 You get great bikes for little money... But you have to be honest, you've never gotten a decent bike for €($)200-300.

[@CJT02]

As a University student I didn't have much money but I wanted to get into bike packing. So I bought a second hand Trek Domane AL2 for £300 and installed a GRX 600 groupset for £350 myself, then put on some wider tires for £80. Now I have a very capable bike that cost me £730, yet has a spec that you would have to spend at least £1500 on if you were to buy a brand new bike. I'd highly recommend the DIY/2nd hand approach for anyone looking to get into bike packing/cycling. Now I'm planning on doing my first bikepacking trip with my brother sometime next year. Watching your videos has been a great showcase of bikepacking and is very inspiring :)

[@lucamorningstar4018]

I love your value bike vids! Bought a Triban Rc 500 because of your videos. Made some upgrades but i'm very happy with it.

[@emielb.1547]

Welcome to the roadbike club

[@stephensaines7100]

This is the kind of review that many (most?) of us crave and respect. Very informative.

[@colinmaceachern9]

I'm glad I purchased my Cube a few years back. It's been an excellent purchase.

[@mantasgaivenis-lp2ny]

I got Cube Nuroad Pro 2018, hydraulic 105 group set, bought it used, had it for 4years. No issues at all. 58cm frame and I am 191cm. Love it!

[@brettkilian9855]

I’m a bike mechanic at a shop with cube bikes and I just saw that Nuroad EX today, and with my 40% discount it has me thinking I don’t need my next pay check..

[@L.amanda]

You guys are the only channel I've found that puts out consistent quality content about affordable bikes and I love you for that ❤

[@thealliest]

Love that you have been focusing on regular people bikes. You folks have the best bike content on the web! And, you got a Cube! Love love love my Cube! Such a good value!

[@neildraper2613]

So love the reviews of these so called lower end bikes, not all of us can afford to spend thousands on bikes and accessories. Good honest reviews prove that you don't have to spend a fortune. After watching these trips and being inspired I'm also now looking at getting my own value gravel bike. Keep up the great work. So much better content than on GCN

[@markbailey2130]

Love my 2022 Nuroad Ex.. Full GRX groupset. Hydraulic brakes, TLR wheels , Schwalbe G one all-round tires. Great specced bike. The only things I changed was the saddle, a Selle Italia novus boost gravel and wheels (have two pairs! Mavic all road pros and DT swiss GR16000 with Winter and summer tires ) .. Top top bike

[@mircosferrazza4340]

I have the cube newroad 2020 model. I have made some modification 105 shifter., hydraulic break calipers and a XT casette and tubeless wheels. And i love it. I traveled 1000km trough germany and 1500km with 10000m of elevation trough italy and i was totally confident.

[@no_vux]

Love that you guys still have a realistic view on low budget options and not just dive into "expensive is better" attitude!

[@richardhfl]

Got myself a used Triban RC 520, which barely shows any signs of being used and only cost 650€, has 105 groupset and the TRP HY RD brakes as well as a carbon fork. Could also be used for gravel, pretty big tire clearance and is in fact also available as a gravel version, wasn’t mentioned from you guys in the end of this video, but just wanted to say that also for the current price of 1299€ for the gravel version it’s an absolute steal.

[@michaelwillis4528]

I bought a Cube Attain Carbon bike 6 years ago, on sale for about £1000, it’s been excellent, I have “upgraded” everything on it over time, not explicitly for better, sometimes for similar level equipment that just makes the fit or function slightly better for me. And some much nicer DT Swiss wheels and it’s honestly better than anything I could buy from any of the big brands.

[@guillaumededecker7119]

I recently bought a Merida Silex 400 for 1500€ brand new. Full GRX 400 and hydraulic disc brakes, lots of mounting points. It's a really comfortable bike, I plan to tour a lot on it around Europe next year

[@richardhaselwood9478]

Yeah, I've had a 400 for a couple of years. I paid $2100 AUD a couple of years ago, so, same ball park price, coming with hydro brakes. I strongly recommend them. The only "Upgrades" I've put on it are better tyres. I do slightly regret not getting the 4000 (Carbon frame), as I was using it a lot at the time, on crappy outback Australian roads, and the CF frame would have given better compliance, and been worth upgrading to 11 speed. But, excellent bike nonetheless.

[@Dandegas1-BRFC]

I have a collection of Cubes. Love them.

[@squeezydelemon3380]

I have a 2021 Nuroad Race (GRX 2 x 11). Frame looks the same but better Groupo, hydraulic brakes.Geometry for 'Small' is perfect. Saddle swapped over to a Genesis one off a Croix de Fer. Most comfortable bike I've owned. You're right about the wheels, rims are solid but the no-name rear hub was knackered after 16 months. Two replacement wheelsets, one set up road, one gravel. A perfect 'everything' bike. Also bought from Start Cycles in Newcastle.

[@BGrumpy]

Which wheelset did you chose as a replacement?

[@squeezydelemon3380]

@BGrumpy WTB i23 rims (don't know hubs) for gravel. Bontrager Paradigm Comp 25 for road (though have used on gravel, perfectly satisfactory for both).

[@BGrumpy]

@@squeezydelemon3380 Thanks!

[@chrisfanning5842]

I can confirm that TRP Spyres come with really lousy pads from the factory, and that changing to just about anything else is a significant improvement. I've had two bikes come with them, and I've bought a third set to replace awful one-sided Avid mechancals, too. I use the Shimano resin pads with Spyres which make them good enough for me to not bother hunting around for replacement brifters to use with hydraulic brakes, and that's on my summer bike that sees the most long-distance rides and steep fast road descents. I've mainly been using hydraulic brakes across numerous bikes for over 20 years, so it's not like I'm in denial about the power or modulation of true hydraulic brakes - it's just that first impressions of Spyres on the original factory pads can be offputting when they're actually very capable brakes offering numerous other advantages over hydraulics.

[@h3n488]

I had Tektro Mira brakes on my Felt cyclocross and the stock pads were awful, no braking power to speak of. Had to squeeze the levers hard to stop and even then I was unsure about riding in traffic. Changed pads to shimano resins, it was a big improvement. Then I changed to BB7s and then to Hy/RDs. Now I'm set 😊

[@jakobm5049]

There are actually pannier packs for the Cube Nuroad. They are Specific for Cube and only have Rails for the panniers, but they are really good. They screw into the inside of the dropout and the bridge of the seat stays. I hat one for a couple of years now and its still strong.

[@hughoreillyy]

Im glad this is the bike I bought 4 months ago (although I got the nuroad race for better brakes). Loving it so far

[@paulmurden7621]

I have a 2013/14 Cube Cross Race Pro, Still use it (mainly commuting and some mild gravel) and it's been mega.

[@XavieRibeiro25]

CUBE's are unbelievably good value for money. That's why I own one (One77 Race) for MTB, and that's why i'll buy one for the road when I finally I need more power and stamina on my legs.

[@TTToni]

1:01 spitting straight facts

[@newttella1043]

Really liking the reasonably priced bike adventures!! Affordable quality bikes mean more money for travel.

[@Piet17]

Perfect vid once again from the Cade team. Nitpicky note: that Claris Scott speedster gravel has an alloy fork 🧐

[@cardiok.oproductionscolomb488]

Hi Cade, greetings from Colombia... I'm going to share an interesting fact: Shimano Tiagra ergopowers are compatible with the Shimano RD.M6000 10-speed rear derailleur and using this combination you can install an 11-42 cassette to have a wider range of cadence when riding with a heavy load or too steep a terrain.

[@RAG0407]

Impressed u showcased an affordable bike

[@holgerssonoutlander]

Fantastic to be following your adventures. You have given me lots of great advice and inspiration. Eventually got a "budget" titanium gravel machine, Sonder Sedona, great all rounder. If you fancy I invite you to doing a wintertrip through southern part of Sweden? Lots of forests and lakes,and probably some snow and ice.

[@M4TTCR4V3N]

Nice I have the same bike and just done 1000 miles in six months. No major problems - only the back wheel needs truing now also 🤝

[@wheyaye07]

Bought last year's model from the same shop and love it. Agree with your comments on the brakes, they are a little ropey to say the least. Wish I'd waited and got an extra small. I'm 5:6 and the small I purchased was a little too long. Had to change the handle bars, but these are small gripes. Lovely ride and lovely review.

[@arcoulant87]

You have to get Jagwire compressionless housing to get the best results for cable disc brakes

[@pphaneuf]

Agree, with good housing like that, it's pretty good (maybe not 100% as good as hydro, but close enough not to be a bother), with less than good housing it all goes poorly very quickly!

[@moobaz8675]

I use Paul Components cable brakes. Amazing!

[@justsomedude7556]

I had the TRP HyRd on a bike and used them for about 4 years. Great product. Sold the bike, new owner still uses them, and they are approaching 10 yrs worth of use now.

[@billincolumbia]

Did you ever have to bleed them?

[@justsomedude7556]

@billincolumbia nope. Closed system

[@billincolumbia]

@@justsomedude7556 Nice!

[@woodax]

Great video! Ordered a carbon Nuroad 1x setup and cannot wait to ride it in the spring. Value for the money seems quite mad.

[@MarwanRashad]

I have 2021 version.. exact specs and I love it. I was thinking about upgrading to GRX shifters and brakes but might just get those semi-hydraulic TRPs instead.

[@macvos]

Nice review, thanks! Small tip: @5:03 it'll probably help with the crap feeling and low power braking if you'd centered and angled the brake calipers correctly ;)

[@alexandergilmour8451]

I am 6ft 3ins and 105kg and I have to say that the BB7 cable disc's seem perfectly solid although the bike is fitted with Tektros V brake drop bar levers brought up on friction gear shifters and still prefer barend gear levers

[@davidrussell6261]

Mr Vieri let slip where you're off to next at Rouleur Live after a few mineral waters. I won't spoil it, but massively looking forward to the next travel series!

[@henk014]

HY/RD tend to leak, which in my case was irreparable. All in all a pretty bad experience after 1 year of use. They also tend to block at low temperatures in winter (-5 degrees Celsius and below). I switched the brakes completely to hydraulic and very happy. Better keep it mechanical with some expensive pads or change it to any hydraulic brakes.

[@kramrenrut950]

Steel touring bikes are definitely where the value for money is

[@keithevans5667]

Thanks for the update on the bike x

[@paulo1978ish]

I love my Nuroad, had it 3 years - take it everywhere / ride it more than carbon my road bike / stick my son on the back to take to nursery!

[@markhay1664]

Nice to see a budget bike. As we’re not all minted bike riders 👍

[@hananas2]

2:09 had me giggling out loud

[@alexanderh2715]

I have a 2025 cube roadbike. Saw the new lineup and went to the store and I think I got the first model they sold. 1399€ for Shimano 105 mechanical is awesome. I love the frame even though it's aluminium and I'll upgrade it with a set of mavic wheels that will cost as much as the bike. The new gravel bikes look awesome too.

[@MuffinMario-nv8rq]

I had a Nuroad Pro, my first bike ever.. loved it. PS: it has hidden Mounts at the back for a Rack...

[@Countrystock]

I’ve got the 2019 model and it’s been brilliant.

[@lolbubs11111]

I've also noticed the grippyness of the e.g. Power Mirror vs regular Power saddles. I like it on the road but it's been a hindrance in track racing, where I need to stand up to get power out, then sit down without freewheeling. It's much harder to return to a comfortable position than with a more slippery saddle.

[@milanb.6022]

Excellent review. I wish all of your reviews were on this level, going into performance/quality of each component. I find especially with entry level bikes there can be some hit or miss choices that consumers should be aware of. For example, I had the exact same experience with TRP Spyres on an entry level cannondale topstone, although they work perfectly fine on my wife's Liv Avail. I think the culprit might be internal vs external routing.

[@XJ1345]

Get a Brooks C13/C15 depending on rails and call it quits! Best bikepacking saddle imo

[@Ronald-qj5nx]

I have found that the cause of bearing roughness in most new budget wheels (and also pedals) was a case of the preload on the bearings was too high. The majority of budget wheels tend to use cup & cone bearings which are a bit more fiddly to get right, so I guess being at the budget end of things means that this just doesn't happen. Take the effort to spend some time with the cone wrenches and those wheels would probably be as smooth as a much more expense set.

[@_Zane__]

When I was assembling bikes, I could get the mechanical trp spyres setup with really really really tight pad & rotor clearance, and you have to make sure the brake cable has no slop or play in brake lever.. mechanical are a pain but some of them are really good when you have them dialed them in

[@Natan9000]

I just bought a cube Nuroad c62 2025 full carbon including handlebar and seat post It has one by 12 GRX 822 rear derailleur, GRX 400 hydraulic rim brakes, grx 610 crankshaft. All integrated cables. 10-51t casette. With 50 mm tire clearance and schwalbe 45mm g one all round tires for €1999! 😎

[@derx6666]

Love my 2022 Cube Nuroad Race. That was 1650 euro with 11 speed grx + hydraulic brakes. Did get a set of DT swiss alu wheel to replace the standard ones. The new 2024/2025 model is even better specced with full 12 speed grx for 1499,-. And they say bikes are getting more expensive...

[@erikk7643]

Amazing series! I would love to see you guys get a Devinci hatchet. One of our best kept secrets. Originally a mtn bike company

[@od13615]

For the wheels its likely cup cone bearings with a tad too much preload. This should be a fairly easy fix for any mechanic, but should ofcourse be done at factory. My Cube branded MTB wheels last fine. Most rims unless super entry level are all tubeles nowadays, so I can hardly imagine them not being tubeless. Great to see somewhat affordable bikes get exposure

[@EditioCastigata]

4:35 Try some Growtac Equal. Due to where the JPY is, 204 € for a pair imported directly from the emperor. (plus shipping and taxes)

[@christianb.1028]

More range is not a problem. GRX 400 easily fits an 11-40 cassette. Running it myself without any issues.

[@catshoemike]

That's interesting - I also have GRX400, currently on 11-36, but next time I need a cassette I'll give it a go

[@barneyklingenberg4078]

Have to give to cube. That 1x12 successor is a very very good speced bike for the money.

[@catjohnston9748]

My latest bargain is a felt broam 30. 12 speed grx, hydraulic brakes. Reduced from £1800 to £1,100 😁

[@paul_hiles]

I nearly bought this last year but ended up getting the Tifosi Rostra with Tiagra. Similar spec but came with Mavic allroad wheels.

[@wayneclement7201]

What a great positive review, so much bike for the money, especially the 2025 range, I wonder if this will get Hy/Rd's or something else? Look forward to the verdict on alternative pads, hopefully the future upgrades are all price conscious/value for money worthy real world additions!

[@jo_magpie]

Be able to vary seating is 100% more important then one "magical" bike fitting seating position. All serious research on sitting and back pain focuses on variation and not static seating. To quote a Pdh I read "The next position is the best position".

[@ENRIQUEGOITIA]

Surprised that it was all positive. I'm looking into a Orbea h30 aluminum with grx820 should be fine

[@markmitchenall5948]

I'm not sure I 100% agree with being able to fix cable actuated callipers by the road-side. I had an unfixable issue with the front calliper that came on my 2020 Triban RC500 about 100 miles from home where no amount of messing with the cable would've helped and needed to be completely replaced. After riding home with just a rear brake, decathlon customer service were extremely good, and replaced both callipers with Hy/Rd ones for just the cost of fitting new cables (about £20), which was exceptional customer service in my book as I'd been happy to pay the difference, and for the extra rear one. I just didn't want the callipers it came with anymore as lost a lot of trust in them after that front one failed horrendously while braking down a steep hill, coming to a junction for a main road.

[@kazaroth]

Is this the only channel on the whole internet that actually reviews bikes. Like - doesn’t just showcase review models supplied by manufacturers that the creator is then too nervous to annoy by providing real criticism in case it stops them getting the next thing to ‘review’ ?

[@AG-el6vt]

I ride the Cross Race, i.e. the CX version of this bike. I also swapped the gears for the 2x10 GRX. It's also great, if having less tyre clearance than its Nuroad cousin, and I use it for commuting, weekend rides and the occasional light gravel use. 5:46 Yeah, the Cube stock wheels kinda suck. But, if they happen to be cup and cone hubs, it may well just be excessive preload. I think Cube just assume riders are gonna upgrade the wheels at some point anyway.

[@FlipperInc]

Can't say this enough, get compression-less brake housing! Such a good cheap upgrade if you have cable brakes of any kind

[@_rakkim]

Motorcyclist crashed in me in India near Mangalore and broke exactly this bicycle model 2021! All the same specs, I had to buy new bike, luckily I was not seriously injured or hurt!!

[@Lucas-li6ss]

9:30 There will probably be a direct successor to the Nuroad Pro. There have already been a few leaks. Cube probably can't show the model yet because components were used that shimano has not yet published.

[@debroekzakbandiet1844]

Nice review! I bought the carbon version a year ago, but a massive crack suddenly formed in the chainstay near where the brake hose enters the frame. Cube said it was my own fault and after a 2 months delay decided to not accept it as warranty. So yea, good value but I feel like you get what you pay for and customer service is not their strongest point.

[@stevekelly6544]

The longer you ride the Fizik Argo Vento 3D printed saddle, the more shiny, and buffed out it will get, and it won’t be so grippy- but it takes a while, 6 months or more- but mine is all buffed out from riding and I can move around on it pretty easily now…

[@pancaked7777777]

Imagine saying "aluminum" like that with a straight face

[@lawrencehallett5669]

Get some compressionless brake cable outers, vastly improves cable braking

[@wordpress4373]

It has rack mount on the back, but they are on the inside of the frame.

[@nicolajjacomo6488]

Yup, they have all the mounts you need. But not standard mount points allround, so you'll need to buy cubes stuff. Luckily their prices are very reasonable

[@TBATTIECYCLING]

Cheap cycling is fun

[@Radelbande]

Most definitely!

[@Theo-iu4kj]

You can fit a front and rear rack from cube them self on the bike, problem is just you have to use their system stuff.

[@c3as84]

I have a 2023 nuroad race that comes with grx 11 speed, hidraulic brake and tubeless wheelset.

[@hkp9257]

The 2025 models of cube are an absolute steal. Also they only have non hydraulic brakes in the lowest (sub 1000€) bike for 2025. (edit: road bike, max 32mm tires Cube Attain)

[@scheraph]

The 1by options (nuroad ex) are also incredible. Hydraulic brakes and gr 822 with 10-51 cassette. Price 1399€

[@hkp9257]

@@scheraph Personally Iam more of an roady. And the Cube Attain has such an good value. Specially the 105 alu, 105 cf and di2 ultegra with carbon wheels. I will probably go with an Cube Agree Pro next season.

[@GeekonaBike]

try the cheap plastic mesh saddles. You get the ventilation of the 3d ones & the flex of a broken in leather, all at crazy low price PS pretty light weight for a saddle w/ durable steel rails too

[@Mikadobiscuits]

Had thr base Nuroad with 8sp Claris, and it was an excellent bike for the Price. But the brakes were seriously lacking, i sold it rather than upgrade Cube are making some nice bikes

[@Adam_Antium]

Did the mechanical disk brakes already come with "compressionless" brake cable housing KEB-SL by Jagwire? This usually eliminates most of the spongyness. That would just leave the cable routing and dirt between mechanical components as performance leaks. Good Video! Informative, as always. Thanks!

[@markandrews2222]

I tried the 3d printed Fizik Vento Argo saddle, and had the same complaints; it was too “grippy”, so it prevented sliding as a method of repositioning. I also found that the extra strain on the fabric caused the chamois stitching to blow in 3 different new pairs of top-end shorts. No Thanks.

[@egonheuson]

Hi everyone, just a little feedback on TRP's Hy/Rd. After owning several bikes with 1) they really aren't as strong as hydraulic disc brakes, but more importantly 2) DO NOT use the Post-Mount version. I've never been able to get them to work properly, even after bleeding them several times, whereas the flat-mount version works fine right out of the box. Clearly, it's not the best braking power you can get/expect, but the flat-mount version is working rather fine. But I really think there's a flaw in the design of the post-mount version. In my opinion, the latter's design limits the fluid's ability to reach the piston from the reservoir, resulting in 1) almost zero braking power when the pads are just starting to wear, and 2) no self-adjustment of pad wear despite TRP's claims to the contrary. I really wanted to like them, for the same reasons as Francis (easy to repair, almost no fluid to bleed, etc.) but I finally opted for fully hydraulic Ultegra disc brakes on my road bike and GRX on my Gravel bike. P.S. The self-adjustment of pad wear doesn't really work properly on the flat-mount version either, although it's much less pronounced and is less a problem though.

[@ohmps01]

The one thing I have heard and seen with cube bikes, especially nuroads, is that the hubs they use in their own brand wheels are sometimes dangerously cheap, to the point of "losing the torque holding the bearings in the hub together" cheap. Had someone in a groupride literally have his wheel tilt like 10° on its axis

[@J0zla]

I ride Spyre's on my gravel bike and full hydraulic on my city electric bike. I think the cause could be the hand grip strength - I have rather big hands and for me the breaks work normally, hydro is nicer but Spyres stop me fine even loaded.

[@elindred]

For the brakes, could you try upgrading the housing with the compression less kind?

[@joshuabuilds3051]

This might help someone someday so here goes. Tiagra 4700 (10 speed) has a super weird cable pull ratio and rear derailleur geometry. This means Tiagra shifters will only work with a Tiagra rear mech. Trust me ive tried using a 105 derailleur with Tiagra shifting and it simply does not work. It shifts fine for 2 out of the 10 gears and then every other shift fails. First local bike shop didnt know why, the second bike shop spotted the issue right away, Tiagra not compatible with basically everything else shimano or sram. So the fact the GRX shifters are shifting a Tiagra mech, I might be wrong, but I doubt you can mix n match GRX with anything but Tiagra. So weird, why not 105, or ultegra specs so we can put some "nicer" uprgades on these bikes without a whole new groupo.

[@BrandonNevermind]

I'm so glad you mentioned the lack of mounts, I've been seeing more and more "gravel bikes" with no mounts and I don't really get it; to me it sorta feels like they're cutting out half their potential audience by not adding in mounts, as it makes touring/bikepacking a lot harder/more expensive than it would be otherwise, and makes the bike much less likely to be a candidate for a daily commuter. Surely it can't add that much to the price to add them in, and cost savings is the only thing I can imagine being a reason that makes sense - but is the loss of potential buyers worth that cost savings? 🤔

[@nickbu]

I'm pretty sure that TREK is an EMONDA ALR alloy road frame, which is funny cuz in the video Francis called it a carbon gravel bike.

[@RazzFazz-Race]

If you donˋt need the racing bar just look at the Cube Nulane. It offers even more value for the money.

[@hambo76]

I'd like to see a review of the Norco Search XR S2 - it's only £250 more than the 2025 Cube and comes with a similar spec.

[@metellone]

Would love to hear your opinion about the Cube Attain

[@andremotard1692]

green jersey on the TDF ride a Cube after all

[@michafedorowicz9370]

Nice to see cube here. Do these trps are set with compression less housing? This is way to go with them. Nice vid.

[@Csapi007]

The Nuroad is just as good on the other end of the price scale. The top end model with the new 13 speed SRAM Red costs 6000€, for the whole bike! Thats’s a 4000-4500€ groupset!

[@scrumartist]

I think something similar budget wise but underrated in eu is the merida silex 400 or 300