Salsa Warbird DI2: 2000Km later

[@ridingtrek5392]

Good point about DT 350 hub

[@willowwatts]

Hi buddy great video..I'm a roadie looking to get a gravel bike for riding through winter months here in the UK and also use it for bikepacking trips..The salsa warbird fits the bill with a 2X grx 810 groupset that retails in the UK for £.3200. How is the ride quality on road/off road particularly for bikepacking. Cheers.👍🏻

[@LeoInterHyenaem]

If you still haven't bought it, here's my experience with the WarBird: the ride quality is quite excellent. It is the most comfortable of my gravel bikes, the other three being the Genesis Datum, the Norco Search XR C2 and the the less laterally stiff, but I would say, a tad less comfortable Norco Search XR Steel. What is surprising - is that despite being a bit more comfortable and sporting slightly more relaxed geometry than all the others (it's noticeable when you ride it), it's also a little faster than the rest. An uncanny combination - even more so if we add its superb looks to the equation. By the way, unless you're buying one of the more expensive configurations, it's better to acquire the frame - and to upgrade it. Much as I love the bike, I didn't care for its original configuration (mechanical Tiagra, a WTB saddle, WTB wheels and tractor tyres, Salsa CowBell handlebars, etc.); even the ride felt very odd that way (N.B.: that's after years riding the Titus FTM Carbon and the Cannondale Caffeine F1 with a Lefty fork). Upgraded with a Sram Force eTap AXS hydraulic groupset, a microfibre version of the Selle SMP Plus saddle, RedShift ShockStop seatpost and stem (the latter was sold later to be replaced with a shorter stem), a semi- flat-tube carbon drop handlebar, a thread-together bottom bracket (Wheels Manufacturing or Token - can't recall which one is in which bike), 32mm rim DT Swiss wheels (later replaced by 40mm rim Visions) and slicker tyres - and, I must say, the WarBird is likely the fastest and one of the most comfortable (and the most beautiful, in my opinion, if only by a hair compared to the Genesis Datum and the Norco Search XR C2) bikes I've ever owned or ridden - obviously not plushy (i.e., the MTBs I rode before the WarBird, but very comfortable nevertheless, especially on tarmac that I prefer to ride on for the most part) - and I have owned over 20 over the years! The one thing you may likely care less for - is WarBird's relatively slow reaction to particularly abrupt road twists. I personally have no issues with that. In two words, I would highly recommend the WarBird, especially with matching / worthy parts. Now, if I could get a titanium bike with 3D-printed lugs (such as in everything Bastion Cycles, the FalkenJägd Aristos R and the J.Guillem Orient) that looks and feels precisely like the WarBird, but for a few degrees greater slope in the top tube to negate the need for use of headset spacers; that would sport Santana Z-couplers, have internally-routed hydraulic housings with a leak-free Brake Break -type hydraulic liner couplers; that comes with a hard case for the bike and the TailFin rack with dedicated hard foam dividers (that also ensure that dirty tyres never come in contact with any other part of the bike!) - that would be a dream rig for extended cycle tours. Unfortunately, transportability is too much to ask from carbon.

[@willowwatts]

@@LeoInterHyenaem thank you for your detailed reply..much appreciated..you could make a separate video on all the pointers you've just mentioned..cheers.👍🏻

[@LeoInterHyenaem]

@@willowwatts You're welcome. Perhaps I should do that. Cheers, mate…

[@aldojavierdalzotto1581]

Sorry what size is this bike.Thanks hello from Argentina

[@bikepackinglight1829]

She is a 56. I normally ride a 54 in a road bike, but found the warbird frame feels better as a 56 vs a 54.

[@Spacesuit_Charlie]

Are you still enjoying the tailfin? Seems to be very durable to survive the accident, glad you are okay.

[@bikepackinglight1829]

A Tailfin update vid is in the works...but yes I freakin' love the tailfin. It's pretty much permanently on by bike now and I really welcome the stability and storage space.

[@Spacesuit_Charlie]

@@bikepackinglight1829 Look forward to the next video! Thanks.

[@LeoInterHyenaem]

An astute observation (a very important detail most people overlook), but somewhat incorrect: they did away with the fork crown headlight mount on 2020 models (all of them!). The 2019 models, upon the other hand, all have it. So, the omission of the fork crown headlight mount is not frame colour-specific, but model year -specific. Speaking of wheels, I am now eyeing a Spinergy Stealth FCC 47 Disc, a Spinergy GX (more gravel -oriented), a Scope R5 / R5 and a Bontrager Aeolus wheelset. The latter is My last choice (the Spinergies & the Scopes look much better!). The main defining characteristic of these wheels is the absence of a max. system limit (i.e., a load max. for the total weight of the rider and the bike). Good to know if you plan on doing loaded tours / heavy bikepacking or yourself weight over 110 kg. (not that you appear to). While the Scope R5 is likely a remarkably fast wheel, the Spinergy Stealth FCC 47 Disc (and even more so, the Spinergy GX) are likely among the most comfortable aero / semi-aero carbon wheels, according to users: they use the allegedly tougher but more compliant (and colour-customisable!) PBO spokes instead of steel ones. The carbon rims are French-made and are patterned, rather than unidirectional. The Scope wheels use unidirectional, but textured carbon, and the decals are gradient colour that change from one to another colour, depending on the angle of view / light angle. The spokes are thinner (less visually appealing), but likely faster.

[@bikepackinglight1829]

Thanks for the details on the fork crown mount, they probably did away with it because people kept asking to mount a rack there, and probably some did unknowingly. It is clearly not designed for any kind of weight bearing applications. Those Spinergy wheels look beautiful, I have been eyeing the GX 650b wheelset myself. Thanks again for your insights and thoughtful comments!

[@mer476]

Can you get a dynamo hub to charge the the system?

[@bikepackinglight1829]

Yes, there fork and frame have routing options for dynamo hubs. It's best to charge a USB battery with the dynamo hub, then charge your shifters off the battery. The fluctuation in current probably isn't the best for the Di2 battery directly off the dynamo.

[@18MRpsi]

What's the max clearance for front and rear?

[@bikepackinglight1829]

45MM when running 700C 53MM(2.1") when running 650b You can obviously mix/match those front/rear have same clearance.

[@twgreene4600]

I run 47mm Teravail in winter on my '20 Warbird.

[@brettmorgan9797]

Being riding a 56 what height are you mate and keep up the content 👍🏻

[@bikepackinglight1829]

5'9"

[@LeoInterHyenaem]

Funny. I have exactly the same bike (the Tiagra assembly, converted to Sram eTap AXS) and a TailFin X (a little different, with a removable AeroPack & panniers). The WarBird 2019 / 2020 is a beauty! I prefer the 2019 fork (it has a fork crown mount for a headlight and an internal dynamo cable guide; the former is missing in the otherwise just as delightful 2020 models). I don't think the Open UP is any more beautiful than the WarBird (I'd say, almost as beautiful, but certainly not more). I also doubt it is faster, as it looks a tad more upright. A bummer for the original frame. Not because it looks better than the black one (I'm not a fan of camo paint jobs), but because the 2019 and newer WarBird frames are simply gorgeous; it's always sad to see such a beautiful frame crack! I disagree with you on the electronic shifting. The rubbish cable-actuated GRX 810 / 812 on My Norco Search XR C2 (another beauty of a bike, in My opinion!) started acting up yesterday. Now it won't shift past the second largest cog (it will shift between the two largest cogs only). Monkeying about the cable adjuster yields no effect. :/ The bike will have to go to a bike workshop. The Sram Force eTap AXS (2x), upon the other hand, works impeccably now. However, for the first six months, the chain would keep dropping on upshifts (and twice - on downshifts, too). I tinkered with the front derailleur for hours, adjusting an re-adjusting it a hundred times, but to no avail. The bike spent months in various bike shops, but they, too, couldn't find a solution to frequent chain drops (literally, on 5 front- upshifts out of 10, the chain would drop). I ended up sending the bike to the shop where I'd ordered the groupset. It took them another 3 months of trial and error to deduce that the chain drops were a result of wrongly set plastic wedge / spacer between the frame and the front derailleur. I'd had installed a mudguard and had the wedge in question press against it. Turns out, it is supposed to press against the frame instead. The issue is now resolved. Make sure to use the spacer / wedge included with the groupset (provided one comes with a Di2 kit). Use a frame protection film on the area of the seat tube where the front derailleur leans against when shifting up. Use the said wedge or spacer to prevent chain drops. I expect, it should resolve your issue. It's also likely that there are 3rd party spacers for the task, but I can only guess. Good luck!

[@bikepackinglight1829]

For the record I was comparing to the Open U.P.P.E.R, not the regular UP. The UPPER frame is lighter and much more expensive than the Warbird frame, which is why I'm happy when people mistake my bike for an UPPER :P. I was commenting on the weight and frame price, rather than the aesthetics. I agree with you on the crown mount, I'm now back to handlebar mounted lights, which is less than ideal when I have backpacking bags. I don't know what it is with front mechs, but I tend to always have odd issues with them, mechanical or electronic. Interesting to hear your experiences, thanks for commenting!

[@LeoInterHyenaem]

@@bikepackinglight1829 Thank you for the clarification. :)