Originally an aluminum cyclocross race bike, the 2022 Turner Cyclosys Ti switches materials and focus. With huge tire clearance and an updated geometry, it follows the trends into capable-yet-racy dirt road territory.
The new frame is made of titanium with double-butted top and down tubes, tapered chainstays, and CNC’d head tube and bottom bracket. But there are a few other touches that make it more unique…
The chainstays get a CNC’d “mud cutter” bridge in front of the rear tire to reduce mud accumulation. At the back is an oversized dropout with their overbuilt derailleur hanger, which should keep shifting crisp and be more durable in a wreck.
The seatstays are shaped and ditch the bridge to add a bit of compliance, enhanced by a 27.2 seatpost diameter.
All cable routing is internal, and it’s 2x compatible. There are three water bottle bosses on the front triangle, with the lower one (under the down tube) being a three-position “Anything Cage” mount that give you the option for using it as storage. Top tube bag mounts add more options.
One of the key differences between Turner’s Cyclosys and other ti (or steel, or alloy, for that matter) gravel bike is the flared seat tube. It maintains the same fore-aft thickness, but expands to fill the width of the bottom bracket shell to maximize power transfer and torsional stiffness under hard pedaling. The flare transitions to round in time for a clamp-on front derailleur mount for 2x drivetrain builds.
The Cyclosys fits 700×45 tires (shown in top photos), or up to 650B x 52 (shown directly above). Dave Turner explains the concept way better than we could paraphrase, so here’s his explanation of the geometry and overall design:
“The Cyclosys Ti started in 2019 and has been updated for 2022. It is a gravel bike that can be raced CX…or is it a CX bike that can be ripped on the gravel? There is such a broad range of gravel nowadays. I have positioned the Cyclosys to be a gravel bike without being a total dog on the race course.
“The definition of that is: Tire clearance for 700x 45 or 650×52, lunch box on top tube, anything mount under downtube. Head angle that is not so steep as to be scary at speed thru the woods on a bitchen single track. A taller head tube / stack so that it doesn’t require 50+ mm of spacers under the stem to be ridden over an hour. A BB height/drop that is low enough to be stable but not so low that when you get off the ‘gravel’ and into the single track it’s pedal smacking time.”
“The CX ability is: Massive tire clearance for the now-legal for Masters 38mm tire, a head angle that is not so slack as to make the chicane’s impossible to nail, a BB height that is not so high that the bike is tippy on the off camber sections. Maybe the Euro pro courses need a higher BB, but Turner Bikes is not currently sponsoring any European based cyclocross racers.
“With stealth fender mounts and an ENVE G Series Adventure Fork with same, using it in the winter with full-length fenders makes cold rainy rides almost enjoyable. The anything mount can be used to haul a thermos of hot beverage and the lunch box a carne asada burrito for a mid ride snack!”
Well said, Dave. You had us at “burrito”.
Price for the frameset is $2,695, which includes the ENVE fork and a Cane Creek headset, plus stainless steel hardware and alloy thru axles.
