8bar’s mixed-surface steel Mitte & urban alloy Krzberg bikes both get substantial overhauls, adding more tire clearance & versatility. Between the two, 8bar expands the affordable possibilities for everything from urban fixed gear to adventure gravel bikepacking builds.
8bar Mitte Steel v2 versatile all-road gravel bike
The 8bar Mitte has always seemed like a great modern concept to me – a single, affordable bike that could shift from all-road to cyclocross to adventure gravel riding through a shift in two different forks and adjustable sliding drop-outs. First available as an alloy frame with carbon forks, 8bar added a smoother riding, equally affordable steel version with much the same features last winter.
Really, it’s just a versatile gravel bike, the same one we spotted at Kolektif Berlin as a pre-production prototype, just back from completing the Atlas Mountain Race adventure bikepacking race.
And now the Mitte Steel gets a version 2.0 update, moving to a few more modern standards like a tapered steer fork and even bigger tires… surprisingly also with lower pricing.
Mitte Steel v2 – Tech details
Much of the core details remain the same. This is still a TIG-welded, double-butted Reynolds 520 chromoly steel frame. It keeps a 68mm threaded BB, a 27.2 seatpost, full-length external cable routing, a post mount rear brake due to its sliding dropouts, plus a full range of rack & fender braze-ons and three sets of bottle bosses on the frame.
It does now get a straight 44mm headtube for use with tapered steerer forks (both aluminum & carbon forks are available with fork leg cage mounts), 12mm thru-axles (for the carbon fork or QR for steel/alloy options), and boosted clearance for up to 700x45mm or 650×2.1″ gravel tires.
Mitte Steel v2 – Geometry updates
While geometry basics like head & seat tube angles and the adjustable chainstay length remain the same, 8bar has tweaked the sizing to generally be smaller, with extra standover for better rider fits. At the same time, reach lengths have shortened a bit, and stack heights have increased for more comfort, and less BB drop improves off-road clearance.
Mitte – Pricing & availability
A big selling point of the Mitte is its flexibility. Most riders won’t be swapping back and forth in setups that often, but can customize setup for how they want to ride. (There is still the 3in1 option for both framesets & complete bikes that gives you both length forks to swap in & out.) So, there are a lot of build options, then even 8bar’s online customizer.
For black v2 Steel framesets, prices start at 500€ with either the original steel or new aluminum gravel forks, 600€ with a full carbon fork, or 650€ with 2 forks. The shinier color usually adds another 50€ on top of that. Complete bikes start as low as 1500€ (on sale now) and climb to around 2350€, plus the option for customization.
8bar Krzberg v7 aluminum urban fixie commuter bike
If you are looking to stick to the city streets, generation 7 of 8bar’s alloy fixie, the Krzberg, might be more your bag. Not a huge departure from years past, this is a mainstay of Berlin’s fixed-gear urban cycling culture, from commuting in the city streets to crit racing go-cart track and old airport runways!
The low pro bike (with forward sloping top tube) is still meant to be a stiff, triple-butted 6061 aluminum frame with subtly aero tube shapes that can be a daily city fixie commuter, or a weekend crit race bike.
Krzberg v7 – Tech details
Much of what’s new this year in the alloy Krzberg v7 urban fixie is about improved usability, like bigger tire clearance and a long awaited addition of seattube bottle bosses for practicality.
While fat tires are a no brainer in gravel bikes, few options can match the new 8bar Krzberg’s space for 30mm tires. And anyone who rides the rough streets of Berlin, or the cobbles of many other European capitals will attest to how much better life is with modern high-volume road tires.
The 1700g frame uses a 68mm threaded BB, a 27,2 post, a 1.5″ tapered steer fork, and gets 8bar’s custom stainless steel plate track end horizontal dropouts. The frameset also gets brake mounts for those riders who want better control or just for their knees to last into their thirties.
Krzberg v7 – Geometry updates
Geometry for the new Krzberg v7 is updated as well, with a degree slacker headtube, a few mm less BB drop, and a bit longer stays to fit those big tires. All around it makes for a bike that is more stable around the city, but still ready for fixed gear criterium racing.
Krzberg v7 – Pricing & availability
Like the Mitte, 8bar builds in a lot of opportunity to make the singlespeed Krzberg v7 your own. Framesets start at just 350€ with an alloy fork, or 500€ with a full carbon fork, and come in three colors – matte black, matte raw, or deep sea blue metallic (which adds 50€).
Then, when you start to look at complete bikes, there are the dropbar Krzberg v7 Crit or…
Krzberg v7 Urban builds. Either option starts with entry 960€ Comp level components (806€ now on sale) or more premium 1435€ Pro level builds (~1190€ now). Both let you customize details to suit your style, with it easy to create builds pushing >3500€.
One-off 8bar showroom& prototype bike sale
As 8bar are clearing out their Berlin showroom to make space for new projects, they have a few unique bikes that they are parting with for great deals – ranging from pre-production prototypes to simple display bikes. It started off with about ten, and is now down to six complete bikes: a custom green small Kronprinz, a red medium Mitte Steel Commuter a black medium Mitte Urban, a raw medium Mitte Urban, a black medium Mitte Steel Urban, and that new medium black Mitte Steel v2 from the photoshoots above.
All are single bikes, so available until someone snaps it up, either online or in their Berlin shop, with worldwide shipping possible.
8bar is another brand trying to help cyclist get all the gear they need in a time of less access to your local bike shop. So, until further notice free EU shipping is offered for every online order (no matter how large or small) with code “free8bar” at checkout.
