Jamis Exploit, etc.

Hi. New to the forum. Has anybody here had a chance to ride the new Jamis Exploit? I'm considering it, the Raleigh Tamland, and the Kona Rove. (Also thinking about the new Kona Roadhouse, which seems a bit more road-oriented but still gravel compatible.)

I'm looking for a comfortable bike to use mostly on the rails-to-trails we have here in Michigan, i.e. the Kal Haven.

I've never owned anything other than a steel bike but I suppose I'd be open to other frames, if I can afford them. I'd like to spend less than $2500. My current bikes are an old steel frame Bontrager hardtail MTB (a beauty) and a steel frame Marin around-town bike. 

I've attached a PDF that Jamis sent me.

jdd - It looks like they may have hit the sweet spot with a steel frame/carbon fork bike!  The geo has typical angles for the genre, and the 5800 groupo with Hy/Rd cable/hydraulic brakes is fine for most.  The 40mm tire clearance is OK (but could be a bit more), the BB is probably low enough (71-73mm drop), and it has a reasonable chainstay length of 430mm. They even spec an EVOMAX bar that seems to be a copy of the much loved Salsa Cowbell.  Don't know about the wheels.

Any info on the pricing or weight?

Thanks, levity. The Jamis person said the MSRP was going to be $1949. No word on the weight. I'm sure any of the bikes I'm looking at would be fine for my purposes, but this one does look appealing.
J.D.

Hi welcome to the forum,
That Renegade Exploit looks nicely specced. What is the MSRP? I am guessing around $1500-1600 that is what other comparable bikes like the GT grade,Diamondback Haanjo, Kona Rove are going for.

I have a  2015 Kona Rove Aluminum, it is exactly the same geometry as the 2016 Rove steel. The 2016 Rove steel is offered in a 1x11 drivetrain.  They also changed the headtube from last year. 

My Rove is a very comfortably riding bike but the components are entry level. It is a great all around bike, gavelly roads,paved,dirt, trails, beach cruiser etc..40c plus tires Most of my long rides to date have been on rail trails and it does just fine and fits me very well. The fit as you know is very important.  


The Jamis Renegade geometry is similar to many of the gravel bikes on the market.

Some things that stick out

Internal External headset? Haven't heard of that before. Int on top ext on bottom
Bars
Saddle 
Carbon Seat Post
Tapered Fork
Thru Axle up front
Trp Brakes
50mm fork offset 
Really nothing to dislike about it. The new Rove I believe is $1600.00 http://konaworld.com/rove_st.cfm

RoverAl wrote:Hi welcome to the forum,
That Renegade Exploit looks nicely specced. What is the MSRP? I am guessing around $1500-1600 that is what other comparable bikes like the GT grade,Diamondback Haanjo, Kona Rove are going for.

I have a  2015 Kona Rove Aluminum, it is exactly the same geometry as the 2016 Rove steel. The 2016 Rove steel is offered in a 1x11 drivetrain.  They also changed the headtube from last year. 

My Rove is a very comfortably riding bike but the components are entry level. It is a great all around bike, gavelly roads,paved,dirt, trails, beach cruiser etc..40c plus tires Most of my long rides to date have been on rail trails and it does just fine and fits me very well. The fit as you know is very important.  


The Jamis Renegade geometry is similar to many of the gravel bikes on the market.

Some things that stick out

Internal External headset? Haven't heard of that before. Int on top ext on bottom
Bars
Saddle 
Carbon Seat Post
Tapered Fork
Thru Axle up front
Trp Brakes
50mm fork offset 
Really nothing to dislike about it. The new Rove I believe is $1600.00 http://konaworld.com/rove_st.cfm

\n\nThanks, RoverAl. How does the aluminum compare to the steel? My LBS caries both Jamis and Kona, so I should be able to check out both.\n\nI'm probably a little too specced out right now (I've been looking at reviews, etc., for months). I've come to believe I need thru-axles, hydraulic brakes, etc., though I have little understanding of what practical difference these will make. Still, I'd like to get a bike that's the best I can get in my price range. \n\nWhat do you think of the Kona Roadhouse? \n

I don't know the difference because I haven't ridden a modern steel bike since forever ago. Years ago I had a steel panasonic road bike but I don't remember the ride. Steel will be more durable. Then there are the different types of steel. My next bike will be a steel one. 

The Exploit looks like it has drop outs in the back. I would like thru axles on my next bike too but I probably don't need them. Stiffer front end is the standard line, 142 in the back makes it easy to line up the wheel for changes along with stiffness. I rode the heck out of a MTB with regular drops and it was fine so it is not a deal breaker for me. Hopefully others that have actual experience with thru axle benefits will chime in.


I lean more towards touring and trail riding at my own pace not racing. So while the Roadhouse is a great looking and well specced bike. The  shortish wheelbase, chainstays and front center takes it off my short list. I am more of a Sutra LTD kinda rider. Ride is everything though, You are lucky to have a shop that has them both and available inventory to get a test ride. 
The Exploit is a nice looking bike and you can put racks on it and a 40c is plenty of tire for most riding.
The 1x11 on the Rove can be interesting and is becoming more popular. What makes it difficult is making sure you are going to love it when you get it. 
I like the downtube and top tube angles on the Exploit for some reason.

FWIW, I put a 1x8 setup on my Marin around-town bike and I like it (though I'd like it more if I'd used better components). I'd probably be fine with the new Rove's 1x11. \n

I have a steel Jamis Dragon 29er mountain bike.  Jamis makes very nice steel frames.  This is something they've done for decades.  Without having ridden or even seen these new steel Renegade bikes, I have a feeling that they are going to be very comfortable.

Well, its not quite finished at my bike shop.  My wheels are done, HEDC2+, Hope EVO 2 Hubs, and Sapim spokes to be tubeless, among some other upgrades.  After my MTB races this weekend, I hope to get on her! Sorry about the pic, it's not sideways on my PC.

Cool! Can't wait to hear how it rides.

We weighed her out of the box at slightly over 24lbs, I'll get that down considerably with wheels and some other adjustments.  Haven't ridden a steel  steed since my Bridgestone RB1 and I sure do miss her.  I'll post more after I get her home and ride her. 

So I just picked her up Friday afternoon and did a 20 miler to a bike packing class at our other shop.  Very happy.  I can only compare her to my 1990 Bridgestone RB1 steel bike.  She rides like a 1975 Cadillac Elderado, strong and solid with a touch of authority!  I had my shop custom make HEDC2+ Rims to Hope EVO2 Hubs and Sapim spokes.  Replaced the 105 rear derailleur with a long cage Ultegra, and added a chain catcher as well as reroute the crazy pulley system that Jamis put on(and some fluro cable housing too).            

Sweet Looking Bike. I placed an order for a Renegade Expat. Guy at the shop I am planning on ordering from that the Exploit and Tamland are near identical in the ride quality he feels. Also commented on the fact that the new Tiagra is better than the 10sp 105 and he said he cannot really feel a touch difference in the component groups except weight. Really excited to get my hands on this type of bike and for 1,200 its a helluva deal. That Exploit was out of my range, but the quality and specs are good for the $$. Just gotta wait for Jamis to get more in and then ship out. Said their ordering website is unreliable at times


Are you going to put a frame bag on? Looking for any ideas if you have any since the geo is the same. 

Good luck to you

Just curious, I know a few years ago, Jamis had issues with quality control. I had a Jamis Parker mountain bike that had issues with the chainstays snapping. This was a common issue at the shop I worked at. How have they been in recent years? I know Kona backs their product and warranty issues are well looked after for customers. Kona also seems to have excellent build quality. That means alot to me.  

Jamis has a lifetime warranty on most bikes. Guy at the shop I placed my order from said Jamis is a great company that stands behind its products. He said if a bike has a warranty issue, its going to usually present itself in the first 1,000 miles. It would take me a long time to get to that point to be honest, but he's right. Most bike shops will go to bat for a customer over a warranty issue, but I did learn a lesson on here is usually you want to go with the high volume dealer in an area. 

I went to two bike shops that sell Jamis. One sells them over the counter, and the other sells them on the side. I wasted a 1.5 hour drive to the side dealer thinking I could at least see what the bike looks like, but they didnt have one. Despite calling 30 mins before showing up and them claiming they had the bike. They even admitted that they really just order from them when the wind blows a certain way. Not going to really step up if a warranty issue arises IMHO.

Sucked it up and drove 45 mins south to the dealer in the metro area. Got it ordered and its on the way and the guy really took the time to educate me on the bike. In addition, he gave me some similar options on other bikes in comparison if I wanted them and hes going to throw in a bike fit for free since I am willing to pay a bit more upfront since he's passionate about gravel. Needless to say, they got my business and a customer. Jamis cranks out some quality bikes like the big three, but without the big sticker price of paying for their racing teams and advertisements. 

I have to wait until Oct 20 max for the Expat. Worth the wait, and the guy is pretty much excited as I am to get the bike. He even wants to ride it.

"Just curious, I know a few years ago, Jamis had issues with quality control. I had a Jamis Parker mountain bike that had issues with the chainstays snapping. This was a common issue at the shop I worked at. How have they been in recent years? I know Kona backs their product and warranty issues are well looked after for customers. Kona also seems to have excellent build quality. That means alot to me. " \n \nIt his is my 3rd Jamis and my wife has one as well. My shop is the only dealer in town and they have been great. I own a 2013 Jamis Xenith Elite road bike, a 2014 Jamis Dakar XCT full suspension mtb, and now the exploit. I have 14k miles on the road bike and two hard seasons of mtb abuse on the mtb. I know the Jamis rep personally and I have seen them as well as my shop bend over backwards to make things right when stuff happens. Believe me if I had a 6pack of craft IPA for as many big retail warranties for Giant and specialized I have seen I'd have a well stocked fridge. I currently own a very sweet BMCSLR01 road bike as well. I will continue to support Jamis as I feel the bang for buck is awesome. To me, Jamis biggest issue is they cannot supply the demand for the hot bikes ie icon, Xenith sl, exploit, mtb's. They will take care of you, especially when you go through a dealer. \n \nIn terms of Tiagra vs 105, well the new 105 is close to the Ultegra, and Ultegra is closer to Durace, and Durace is the bomb, yes I have ridden red (came on my Xenith) and have Ultegra on all my bikes save for the 105 that came on my Exploit. I had an extra long cage rear derailuir sitting around so I put that on the Exploit. So far she has only seen some road rides, but I have a weekend backpacking trip in October coming up. I have ordered a Revelate Viscacha bag that comes tomorrow and plan on getting a front roll bag as well. I'll post pics soon when I get the seat bag. I'm pretty excited to hit LandRun and DK next year with her. For now I have CX and mtb races to tend to and try to squeeze some gravel somewhere in between!

That's a nice looking bike! I road an Exploit a few weeks back, then tried out the carbon Renegade Expert last weekend. I should have done a back-to-back comparison, but I was more interested in the carbon (or at least I thought at the time).

True to the nature of the materials, the steel Exploit was a bit snappier handling. The carbon Expert was smooooooooth, but a bit too 'dead' for me. I'm used to riding steel and titanium.

Surprisingly, the carbon bike didn't weigh significantly less than the steel bike. For the price, the Exploit is probably the way to go. Hope you enjoy yours.

As for me, I'm now considering the Kona Roadhouse (very hard to find) or the Rove. Haven't had a chance to ride either one yet.

Took her on a two day bike packing gravel adventure and fully packed she sled the gravel roads! Can't wait to gravel race her without 30LBs of gear!

Jumped on a new Renegade Expert from Peaked Sports in Driggs, Idaho. I swapped out the Shimano 105 172.5 mm 50/34 cranks for some 175mm FSA SLK carbon compact 46/36. It's pretty clear that the gearing selection on this bike was set up for those who were going to run this bike both on pavement and gravel. Mine will se 95% gravel so I like the ratio of standard CX gearing. I set up the Clement MSO tires as tubeless, but we could not get the front to hold air even after 4 layers of rim strips, so a a set of USH Tubless are in order.
 

keepamonte wrote:Took her on a two day bike packing gravel adventure and fully packed she sled the gravel roads! Can't wait to gravel race her without 30LBs of gear!

Keepamonte, what size is Your bike? Is it 54? There is a lot of spacers there so I am very curious