Hi. New to forum, so apologies if this has been discussed before, which I may have missed. I'm drawn to the Q45 for gravel trails such as the Katy and Erie trails. However, most of my riding is on paved rail trails. How much speed am I giving up compared to the S40? I'm hoping not much since most of the trails I ride are relatively flat. I know, the solution is to own both, but I need to start somewhere. Current ride is a Lightning Stealth. Thanks.
Q45 vs S40
- Thread starter Parker135
- Start date
Paul Lacy
New Member
I live near the KATY trail and ride 5-6 thousand miles mostly on my S40. I love my Q45, but usually only ride it when the trail has succumbed to weather related damage. Only then does the Q45 with its suspension outdo the performance of the S40. Given a choice, the overall versatility of the S40 is a no brainer.
Maybe the KATY isn't a good example. My son and I rode it self-supported four years ago, and I was an a DF touring bike with 28 mm tires. It rained most every afternoon, and we did okay. Messy, but a lot of fun. Am I giving up much in speed with the Q45? Is it way heavier (thinking post 2021 models)? The adverts show it with a very upright seat, but I assume it can reclined as I get more comfortable with it. There is a local gravel rail trail that's pretty rough that I'd like to ride on a regular basis. I'd been riding it on a Salsa Fargo with wide tubeless tires, but when I switched to recumbents and tried it on my Stealth (1.5" rear tire) it was a really rough ride. I could do it, but wouldn't call it fun. Since I already have a "road" recumbent, the Q45 seemed like a logical entry into Cruzbikes. Then maybe an S40 to replace the Stealth at some point. I appreciate your comments, by the way. This is really new stuff for me.
bladderhead
Zen MBB Master
Is this gravelly enough for you? Internal width of my rims is 22mm and I have 38mm Gravel King. No rain here for weeks, so the ground is very bumpy and rock-hard. I was leaning forward and going slowly and it was fine. Who is this Katy person? Apparently she likes gravel. So she should get a S40.I'm starting to regret posting my questions here. I contacted Cruzbike via their voicemail and online contact site a couple of days ago with similar questions and I'm still waiting for a response. You guys obviously like your S40 bikes, but I was hoping to also learn a little more about the Q45 and whether it would be an enjoyable bike in day-to-day riding on paved surfaces as well as gravel trails.
Kjameswil76
New Member
I bought a Q45 a year ago to ride crushed limestone trails. It works great. The crushed limestone does slow you down a couple mph though. I decided to sell it because I decided to do only paved trails on a trike from now on for health reasons. The Q45 is perfect for those types of trails. It is good on paved trails too but a little slower than an S40 or V20 though. Great all around bike.
Ah, great to hear, Kjameswil76 and Margo. I have also now heard from Morgan at Cruzbike. I totally accept that the S40 is a faster bike, but I wanted to be sure I wasn't buying a ponderous heavy bike that I wouldn't enjoy on regular paved trails. Before converting to a recumbent, I was riding a Salsa Fargo with 44mm tubeless tires and keeping up with my friends okay, so I'm feeling better about the Q45. Thank you!
Mathew Fy
GRU
The advantages of the Q45 are the shock absorbing rear and foldability for packing in a suitcase. Others like the stiffer feel and the lighter weight (27.2 vs 33 lb.) of the S40. I've ridden both and like them for what they are. There are many who use theirs for road and trail riding.
Jim shared his adventure with us. https://forum.cruzbike.com/threads/q45-across-america.12787/
For another big adventure read this couple's blog. https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/?o=3d2&doc_id=14827&v=3Rd
I believe David now rides an S40 while Julie rides a Q45
Jim shared his adventure with us. https://forum.cruzbike.com/threads/q45-across-america.12787/
For another big adventure read this couple's blog. https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/?o=3d2&doc_id=14827&v=3Rd
I believe David now rides an S40 while Julie rides a Q45
I have both and took them on gravel and pavement before.
S40 is for sure faster on pavement and chip sealed road. Yes it can go on gravel. However, it's good only for very packed gravel. Two weeks ago I took it on loose gravel (small rocks, maybe 1/2 inch in size), and it was miserable for me because it was slow and bumpy. I had 38mm Schwalbe G One with 45psi. Q45 would probably be equally slow but with a more pleasant ride. I have 48mm GravelKing on my Q45. Slow is around 10 mph, by the way. On pavement, Q45 is fairly fast but not as fast as S40.
If you upgrade the wheels, change shock, chaining and cassette, you can get Q45 much lighter and fast. I am selling my Q45 as I can't upgrade the components without incurring my wife's ridicule.
S40 is for sure faster on pavement and chip sealed road. Yes it can go on gravel. However, it's good only for very packed gravel. Two weeks ago I took it on loose gravel (small rocks, maybe 1/2 inch in size), and it was miserable for me because it was slow and bumpy. I had 38mm Schwalbe G One with 45psi. Q45 would probably be equally slow but with a more pleasant ride. I have 48mm GravelKing on my Q45. Slow is around 10 mph, by the way. On pavement, Q45 is fairly fast but not as fast as S40.
If you upgrade the wheels, change shock, chaining and cassette, you can get Q45 much lighter and fast. I am selling my Q45 as I can't upgrade the components without incurring my wife's ridicule.
Always-Learnin
Vendetta Love
I believe that the Cruzbike offices are closed this week for needed vacation.
I understand about wheels and going to an air shock, but what upgrades would you consider for the chain ring and cassette? Would you be going for lighter or different ratios?I have both and took them on gravel and pavement before.
S40 is for sure faster on pavement and chip sealed road. Yes it can go on gravel. However, it's good only for very packed gravel. Two weeks ago I took it on loose gravel (small rocks, maybe 1/2 inch in size), and it was miserable for me because it was slow and bumpy. I had 38mm Schwalbe G One with 45psi. Q45 would probably be equally slow but with a more pleasant ride. I have 48mm GravelKing on my Q45. Slow is around 10 mph, by the way. On pavement, Q45 is fairly fast but not as fast as S40.
If you upgrade the wheels, change shock, chaining and cassette, you can get Q45 much lighter and fast. I am selling my Q45 as I can't upgrade the components without incurring my wife's ridicule.
Mainly different ratioes. If I keep current 11/42, I would change the front to 38 to climb hills. I think ideally, I would keep the 42 but change the RD to 12 speed and go with 10/52. This way you can go fast and climb hills.
woodguy
Well-Known Member
I refrained from posting earlier because you asked about comparing the S40 & the Q45. I only have a Q45, so can’t really compare, but I’ve ridden it since 2018 on both roads and trails. Mathew Fy linked to my Coast to Coast ride report above, and that was all paved (the chip seal in Texas feels worse than gravel sometimes). I do ride some unpaved trails near home, and the shock does help. I still have the original spring shock, gearing & wheels, but if I’m riding relatively flat roads I switch the chain ring to a 50 tooth which helps the high end a lot. You are right that the seat can be adjusted somewhat, but since I do some long rides, I put on a Thor seat which is more comfortable.
Black Hawk Down
Senior Rookie
I am also curious about the Q45. I have an S40 that I rode around the perimeter of the US last year. I have 26" by 2" schwalbe marathon tires and Ultegra DI2 component group. I will attest that it does very poorly on gravel. I took several spills and had to travel very slowly on many rail trails. Because of my weight, the 40 degree seat angle is too steep and caused continuous butt pain on the whole trip. I had previously replaced the seat with a Thor Carrier seat, which helped but didn't solve the problem. I'm wondering what the lowest seat angle is available for the Q45, as it doesn't say in the specs. My V20 seat angle makes the ride super comfortable for even 100 mile trips. I'm also interested in how well the shock absorber works and how wide the tires can be. Can it be converted to 26" wheels? I was disappointed to see that there is no frameset for sale. I would have to purchase a complete bike and throw away the component group and wheels. I do like that it is packable. Packing my S40 for shipping was a real bear and quite expensive to ship.
I believe the pre 2021 model can be adjusted to lower than 40 deg. My 2021 model can only be adjusted down to 40-45 deg, which is a bummer. I don't know about 2022 model. I suppose you can put 26 in wheels on as long as they have thru axle hubs (2021 and later).
Black Hawk Down
Senior Rookie
I was thinking that the disk brake mounts may not work with a 26" wheel, but I guess there's no reason they wouldn't. The rotors would still be the same. The 26" wheels have lower gearing and stiffer rims. Also, there's usually more room for wider tires and fenders.
Thanks for your reply. Perhaps my wording in the original post wasn't very helpful, but the S40 seems to be the gold standard for paved surfaces (excluding the V20 of course) and I wanted to get some idea of what I would be giving up in comparison. So far, it sounds like a reasonable trade-off for my riding intentions.
Mathew Fy
GRU
I remember when you were planning for this. Did you write a blog or something? I like to travel vicariously while hoping to do my own trip sometime.
