Build Breakdown - Jake's Specialized Crux

[@jasonmarkley6164]

Jake is the best!

[@GokkunGuru]

Loved Jake’s commentary and Carter’s input. Awesome video. Awesome bike.

[@betterbolts]

Thanks! 👍

[@FelipeSalum]

I got the new 2025 S-Works Crux LTD, with pedals, bottle cages and sealant, size 56, weights at 16 lbs. Lighter than my S-Works Tarmac SL7. Very surprising.

[@reinholdachleitner2069]

16 lbs for a Gravel bike is amazing,it must climb like a mountain goat.

[@FelipeSalum]

@@reinholdachleitner2069 I climbed some very steep gravel hills this weekend and the light weight and the gears helped a lot.

[@phillevin6651]

Loved all your choices.. run very similar on both my road and gravel bikes

[@schmty8947]

that front ring looks so nice! i got a gold expert as well and just got the gold mtb cassette and chain, love all the gold details! such a fun bike

[@dropbaran]

FYI, Garbaruk has relocated to Poland from Ukraine where they originally from

[@jonathanray]

Nice ride! A lot of your upgrades are similar to mine with my Crux Expert. I have the Dove Grey/Lime colorway and I love the pop from the rainbow Better Bolts throughout. I also have a Garbaruk chainring (black)/Force crank combo. Digging it. I caught that tiny tease on the brake mount in the works... do a rainbow, and take my money :)

[@betterbolts]

Thanks! Keep an eye out we’re actively working on it so you might see some teasers soon. It will most likely be produced by our sister company Freedom Coast Cycling but you will no doubt hear about it from us!

[@lenolenoleno]

Great vid and detailed run through! Misnomer about frame stiffness - compliance from a bike is almost entirely horizontal, not vertical. You can't want "a stiffer BB" and a more compliant frame at the same time. It's literally more compliant because of how laterally stiff it feels in the BB.

[@iqbalmansor4424]

+1 about weighing the bike with pedals & sealant. Hope they wont change crux to an internal cabling soon 👀

[@VineetGairola21]

Financially Irresponsible? Hell Yaaa 🚴

[@betterbolts]

That’s the best kind of responsible 😉

[@alexrobles6492]

Amazing ride. Awesome breakdown on the video👍

[@betterbolts]

Glad you liked it!

[@felixjackson2670]

Lovely bike. Aiming for perfection….

[@betterbolts]

According to Jake he got pretty close…

[@andrew9579]

Beautiful bike. I’m tossing up between 56 or 58. Do you mind sharing your saddle height and setback?

[@iansellers1251]

AC Jersey 👍👊

[@jerrybuffington6473]

Nice Crux! I have the black one which is the other color way for the Expert model. I like yours better but the shop gave me an amazing deal on it so black it was. Trying to figure an accent color for it (seat collar, headset, etc) has been challenging. Wolf Tooth has an espresso color kit that might work.

[@betterbolts]

With black you have basically unlimited options for accent colors! Everything looks good on black. Rainbow always ends up looking good but if you’re looking for something a bit more subtle I would try our copper color!

[@jerrybuffington6473]

@@betterbolts I guess it isn't solid black, just the writing is. The other color is called "gloss carbon" where you can see the carbon layup under the clearcoat. Sram has a rainbow Red AXS flattop chain that would look good with a rainbow kit from you guys. I've been meaning to pick up another chain since I wax them and having a spare ready to go seems like it be would easier. The gold chains Sram does for their Eagle line would be cool too to go with cooper/ gold accents but they don't seem to offer those for AXS cassettes.

[@bobtilton3024]

Very detail oriented build from mechanics to aesthetics and enjoyed the thought process behind the decisions. If it was mentioned I missed the following: handlebar and pedals? Did you work with Erik Nohlin at Specialized? I have the Gloss Carbon Expert model and love it (far more than my 2018 Diverge)! Just finished installing S-Works Pathfinder 42, XPLR Force cassette, Roval Alpinist seatpost, Power Mirror saddle, Rival Crankset Power Meter, Roval/S-Works stem, Roval Terra handlebar and ENVE computer mount. Next big purchase will be Roval Terra CLX wheelset like you. Currently in talks w Carter to fully murder out the bike with black Better Bolts! Thanks for sharing the build!

[@betterbolts]

Hi Bob! Thanks for sending us your bike it looks awesome and we’re stoked to be adding some bolts to your bike! For handle bars I went with roval terra bars because they have about 12 degrees of flare which is my preferred angle and I went with Shimano xtr pedals for adjustability and reliability As well I did not get to work Erik during my time at specialized

[@bobtilton3024]

@@betterbolts it’s an awesome Crux build with all the goodies! Stoked to have murdered out my Gloss Carbon Crux w all black Better Bolts! Thanks for all the help!

[@techstryker]

❤❤❤❤❤❤ awesome... Alhamdulillah ❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@ajbarnes777]

What’s that spray being used on the chain and bike? Looks like it works great

[@betterbolts]

To clean the chain I used white lightning chain degreaser and I use squirt for my chain lube To clean frame I use SSB

[@KoreaRides]

Nice bike! I just don’t like the gold chainring. Love the Crux.

[@betterbolts]

Nice comment! Don’t really like the middle part. Love the end though!

[@BikeLife154]

@@betterboltswhat a childish response!

[@millermiller75]

Does the chainring line up pretty center w the cassette? Any issues w chain angle losing effeciency at the extreme gears? Thx.

[@betterbolts]

That is something I had to play with a bit and adjust with some spacers but now the chain line is almost dead center with a slight bias towards the smaller gears, you do get a little bit of noise on the two biggest gears but it quiets down significantly after the first couple weeks of riding.

[@millermiller75]

@@betterbolts would be interesting to get a video of the centering process and thoughts on extreme chain angles.

[@hmbl5.769]

What size would i need for the Specialized tero 3 stem and frame bolts?? That bike is awesome

[@betterbolts]

@@hmbl5.769 reach out to [e-mail] and we can get your bike dialed in!

[@brianwilliam8971]

I didn’t catch what size the tires are on it, was it mentioned?

[@betterbolts]

The tires are 42 c S-works pathfinders

[@Mabbsg]

46T on the chainring will be versality for like 70% road and 30 % gravel? (flat). Sometimes im going for mountains 8-15%.

[@betterbolts]

(Jake) I’d say it’s about 60% dirt with about 40% pavement, however it is primarily fire roads and less than 12% inclines typically, I have done as much as 18% off road but strongly advise against it . If you are running primarily dirt with single track often I’d run 42t, if you are more of a slow cadence rider 44t and if you are a fast cadence rider I’d go 40t

[@Mabbsg]

@@betterbolts or maybe go for 2x12 and it will be even more versality? is it possible with this frame?

[@adamossowski7627]

It’s a bit of overthinking between 50-52😂 otherwise great setup

[@consciousmeat1539]

what size bike is that? / how tall are you?

[@betterbolts]

The bike is a size 58 and I am 6’2 / 189 cm

[@jasonwalker8991]

Would an e13 helix r 9-50t work for you? Might give you the speed you’re looking for.

[@betterbolts]

Yes it would! In this case the 10-50t sram cassette looked the part a bit better.

[@aruba4lyfe]

Great bike but I really gotta know where did Jake get those chocolate chip shoes??

[@betterbolts]

Jake says they’re Vans in the “Chocolate Chip Desert Storm” colorway

[@jesusarcellana]

is there a caliper bolts for shimano similar to these ones

[@betterbolts]

Not for the caliper bodies yet but we do have the bolts for mounting to the frame!

[@GokkunGuru]

Where can I find those SWAT under seat bolts for Specialized saddle?

[@betterbolts]

They are our low profile water bottle cage bolts! Typically the 12mm version works for most mounts but it just depends on what you’re going to be bolting on there.

[@MrBolonio]

the better Bolts made the whole bike lighter and cool..

[@Simon-Simon-Simon]

nice ride I live in AUSTRALIA we have had AUS road and mountain bike team riders on the group ride on there mountain bikes people take take the group ride bike to seriously

[@Michael-fi6ve]

The spirit of gravel is truly dead

[@Csdhlhcky1213]

What is the spirit of gravel?

[@Mr_Zzzeee]

@@Csdhlhcky1213 the whisper from the wind of our ancestors