[Circles Tokyo] Wilde Rambler Bike Check

Hello! Otaka from the Tokyo store here.

Another bike check! This time it's not a customer's bike but one on display in the store.

Believe it or not, this frame has a mysterious paint job that changes dramatically depending on the viewing angle, the lighting and how the sun hits it.

In fact, this is the first one I was put in charge of from choosing the parts through to the build.
So, let's get straight into the bike check~.

A commuter-style gravel bike

The frame I chose this time is the Wilde Rambler.
Unlike the SL model with its carbon fork, the Rambler comes with a segmented steel fork as standard.
With slightly more trail and a higher BB height than the Rambler SL, it's a touring gravel bike that places more emphasis on a lively ride and ease of riding off-road.

To make the most of that liveliness, it's set up for city riding, shod with 650B slick tires that aren't too fat, with an all-rounder bar and a leather saddle.
Of course, I've chosen the parts so that you can properly enjoy not just city riding but rides on your days off, too.

The image is the bike a US West Coast skater uses every day.
I aimed for a loose feel that's somehow classic and doesn't try too hard.
(Think Summer Mixtape Funclub, or Calling sick magazine / Geno)

For the handlebar I chose the SIMWORKS Fun 3 CrMo Bar.
At 680mm, a width that isn't too wide and is easy for city riding, with just the right backsweep and rise to give a relaxed feel, it's a classic bar whose unique 3D shape lets you take several hand positions.

The moderate flex peculiar to chromoly bars takes the edge off the shock of curbs and bumps and the jolts of off-road riding.

To go with the bar, the stem is the SIMWORKS Tomboy.
The headset is the familiar SIMWORKS Sim Heads in silver, so it's SIMWORKS, our very own, all through.

The seatpost is likewise SIMWORKS NITTO.
Supporting your backside is the BROOKS B17, a staple for how easy it is to put your weight on and how comfortable it is to ride.

For the hubs I chose Shimano hubs, for their high performance, the easy availability of service parts, and the way they keep the price down.
For the rims I've paired them with the VELOCITY Cliffhanger non NSW Polish, whose squared-off shape is classic and gives a laid-back feel, too.

Not merely classic, the setup ticks all three boxes: tubeless-compatible, wide, and tough.

For the tires I chose the SIMWORKS Volummy Tire 27.5×1.9, with the emphasis on liveliness around town.

Fitting the fattest knobby tires that will just squeeze in is cool too, of course, but the base here is, after all, city riding.
In the end you almost never need knobby tires in town, and on riverbanks or well-kept forest roads, with this much width you can enjoy yourself even on slicks.

Silver and classic around the drivetrain, too

The drivetrain is a combination of the VELOCI CYCLE Rollcii Crank Arm and Shimano CUSE.
With CUSE, only the U6000 comes in silver, which makes it a reassuring presence when you're pulling the parts together in silver, as here.

These days, with almost no silver options in current lineups, it is of course a welcome groupset for bike lovers like us.
Beyond that, CUSE offers its parts so that you can build with either drop or flat bars, so there's also the advantage that if this bike is built up with drop bars in future, you won't have to swap out the whole groupset.

What matters is leaving room with the future in mind.
When building a bike, it's easy to go lavish and keep piling on functions, isn't it.
But I believe that having function you can actually use to the full, plus expandability left over so you can enjoy it for a long time even if you change the style, lets you enjoy it longer and grow more attached to it (this is purely my personal philosophy).

To play to the full in both the everyday and the out-of-the-ordinary

People tend to say there's nowhere to ride in Tokyo.
But if you switch the aim from “riding fast and far” to “playing at your own pace,” the range of fun keeps widening: taking on the little set of stairs on your usual commute, charging onto the gravel path in the park.

And at the weekend you could take a cycle train out to the gravel of Boso or Tsuchiura, or explore the footpaths between the fields at the headwaters of the Tama and Arakawa rivers, and play like a child.

This bike, which makes every day just a little more fun, is on display right now at the Circles Tokyo store. Feel free to ask us about ways to play on this bike, about building up a Wilde, and so on.
We'll be waiting

Otaka

WILDE BICYCLE Rambler Tokyo Complete Bike
L size 175~