There is no better travel companion than a bicycle. When I’m heading out on a weekend excursion, a few days by the beach, or even a camping trip, my first thought is “Which bike should I bring?”. Heading up to Maine last week for some R&R was a perfect opportunity to break out the FIT.
The Montague FIT is a true endurance road bike that folds for easy transport or storage, and I’ve customized this one for even more off road ability with wider tires and aero positioning with drop handlebars.
The setup was great for the mix of freshly paved rolling hills, gravel roads, and light trails that I found along the Mid-coast of Maine.
While this area along the coast is not exactly “mountainous”, it’s definitely hilly. Riding here is a constant mix of short climbs and descents. I was averaging almost 1000 ft of climbing every 15 miles!
Turn down a random side road and you’re likely to find yourself on gravel or dirt roads. It’s a lot of fun to rip over this terrain without a car in sight.
The FIT comes stock with 28mm tires. While these are fairly wide for road bike tires to begin with, I’ve put a pair of 35mm semi-knobby tires on this bike. There’s clearance!
Serenity…
Spotting harbor seals.
A post ride swim is a welcome luxury here.
And being in Maine, the obligatory Moxie recovery drink.
That is a very nice custom set-up that you have.
I can see that you have at least upgraded to a SRAM force compact system and install a road-bike handlebar.
Did you start with just the frame or modify the full bike ?
Any advices on the most efficiencient and economical way to acheive the a similar bike design ? I am looking at the cost of doing the changes before buying a FIT folidng bike.
Thanks,
Olivier
I started with the complete bike and modified it. We don’t really sell frames individually, but starting with the complete should also be more cost effective. Buying all the little parts individually can add up very quickly. Taking a stock FIT and replacing just the handlebars and shifters/levers would get you a pretty similar setup without spending too much.
Nice upgrade! I like it very much 🙂 .
I understand that you used SRAM systems. Do you think than Shimano road setup will be good too?
And I had seen in different Gravel frames rear space O.L.D. 142 mm. Does yours frame has this rear space?
Thanks!
German
We spec Shimano parts on all of our bikes and they’re great. A road setup from them would be a fantastic option. This is just a custom bike we wanted to try something different on.
All our frames have 135mm rear spacing, except our single speed Boston.
Hi, congrat the “Gravel” loocks great!
One question: do you have enough space,
to fold the new race handlebar, close to the frame?
Or is a 180° turn not possible?
Greetings from Switzerland
Dany
The bike can still be folded but the size is a bit wider with the drop bars. Since the bars are physically deeper, they stick out from the side of the folded package a bit more than flat bars. The bike still fits nicely in the trunk though!
On the one I just built, I did notice the handlebars can make it a bit wide, but it did still fit in my trunk. I just have to be careful with the levers, and though with my Paratrooper, I lay the front wheel on top (with a buffer of course), with the drop bar fit, I slip it under the bike. Tomorrow, after work, I’m going to try on a pair of 650b/47c wheel/tires at my bike shop. If that fits well, I might get those. The frame I have tops out at 30c in the back, and a little more volume would be sweet.
The 47c tire rubbed in back, same as a 700×32. Right now I’m running two wheelsets, one 650×42 and a 700×30 (32 in front, as there’s plenty of room with the Soma Cross fork) The former came in very handy on a nearby rail-to-trail that’s currently covered in leaves and pine cones for long stretches. Otherwise I prefer the handling of the latter.
Hello,
I would like to know wheels details (brand, dimensions, slick….)
Thank you!
All the best
Max
On this custom build are Whisky Parts No. 9 carbon wheels (700c diameter) and 35mm Kenda K935 tires.
It would be nice to know what is the official maximum tire width for this frame. Is 35 mm the maximum width possible, or may be one can put 40 or even 42 mm there?
On the FIT frame, 35mm is the maximum tire width. The Allston which ships with a 38mm tire has clearance for about a 42.
Similar question as Maksym, which is the widest tire size that fits the Montague Paratrooper (Pro)?
Thanks!
Our current mountain frames can accommodate up to a 2.4″ tire.
Would you be able to share what parts were used or could be used to convert to a dropbar? I have a 2017 Montague Navigator and was thinking of converting it!
Hi Joe. There are a series of posts on our blog about the build. The full parts list is here (these same components were later moved to the new style FIT frame): https://www.montaguebikes.com/folding-bikes-blog/2014/06/folding-gravel-bike-build-part-1/
If you’re converting an existing complete bike, you wouldn’t need all of that. You could likely get away with just new handlebars, shifters/brake levers, and cables. You might need a new stem depending on the setup and handlebars you’re looking to use.
Is the Montague FIT tubeless? Is there a recommended 35mm brand tire that would make the fit better for gravel roads (occasional).
Also are the rims upgradable? Is there any concern with the FIT not being double-walled, which make it susceptible to damage to potholes, etc. compared to the cheaper navigator? If upgradable, is there a recommended double walled rim?
The FIT does not use tubeless tires but you could use a conversion kit on the stock rims, which are in fact double walled. If you wanted to upgrade the rims and tires you could do so with a variety of aftermarket options. I don’t have a specific tire to recommend, as personal preference and the terrain you’re riding on has a lot to do with selecting a tread pattern.
I know the post about tire width was written back in 2018, in 2020, knowing that the FIT comes with 28mm tires, does it still support an aftermarket upgrade to 35mm tire size at 700cc without any worry about the tire hitting the fork and degrading performance of the bike? Also, do you know if there is such thing as a 28mm tire at 700cc that would make it feel better on rougher terrain like the one ridden on in the post?
Hi Samantha. Yes, the FIT can still accommodate a 35mm tire. If you wanted to stay at 28mm and have a tire more suited to rougher terrain, you could likely find a 28mm tire that has a more knobby tread profile. That would perform better on loose dirt and gravel.
Would you happen to know what the weight of the Montague FIT is with the RackStand? I see the Allston is listed at 30lbs with RackStand, while Montague FIT is 26.5lbs without Rackstand. If I ordered a FIT and added a rackstand after, that would put it at 31.5lbs if it was 5 lbs correct? Let me know if I have the weight of the Rackstand incorrect.
The RackStand with integrated fender and front fender would add about 2.25 lbs.
I like the wheels on the Montague Navigator because it the semi-knobby-ness. Does the tire from the Navigator “Kenda Khan 700c x 35mm semi-knobby” fit on the Montague FIT?
The current FIT frame should be able to accommodate any 35mm tire, including the Kenda model used on our Navigator.
Hi. I know its been four years since this post was created, but do you have a photo of the bike folded? (with the drop bars)
Thanks
Here is a photo of a different drop bar build, folded: https://www.instagram.com/p/vB8x5VrCM4/
It doesn’t fold quite as flat because you’re dealing with either the width or the depth of the bars (when turned 90 degrees from there they are in that photo). This is the reason we use flat or riser bars on all of our bikes, however, in my experience the bike still fits in the car trunk nicely!