Another week and yet another five cool things. This time around we've got Microshift's Sword gravel groupset which looks set to undercut the drivetrain giants, as well as a cool, extra curvy drop handlebar from Deda Elementi. On top of that, we're going to take a look at a toolkit from PRO, Altura's latest Ridge Dirt Bag and an old school MTB, I mean gravel bike from Marin.

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But first off, there has been some cool stories on the site this week, so let's dive into those. Lance asks the question, is Greg Minnar the best downhiller ever?, in The Greg Minnar phenomenon. He also takes a look at MTB bar ends - the rise and fall of MTB's earliest trend. Then in our weekly Sunday video, we follow Alex Holowko as he rides the Tour de Gnar.

Moving onto reviews, and it's been a choc-full week, reaching all corners of the off-road cycling universe. First thing we checked out was OneUp Components' EDC V2 tool and Threadless Carrier, awarding it 4.5 stars for packing a bike repair punch in such a small package. We then went further into the realms of mountain biking with a review of Bell's latest Sanction 2 DLX Mips full face helmet, then took a turn to look at Seido's Acceleron gravel wheelset and the Marin Gestalt XR gravel bike.

Tech news has been pretty strong too, with Shimano's GRX gravel groupset finally taking a leaf out of the brand's mountain bike range as it now comes with 12-speed shifting. However, for the rest of the news, I'll leave that for Saturday's Tech of the Week feature.

Marin DSX FR

£1,545

2023 marin dsx fs 5ct.jpg, by Liam Mercer

The very first item to make it into this week's five cool things is Marin's DSX FX and even the brand is unsure whether it's a gravel, or a mountian bike. However, it looks like it blends the two very thoroughly as it's equipped with skinny WTB Raddler tyres and a bike ol' chainring. However, it's gravel inspiration stops there as it rocks a Shimano /SLXDeore 12-speed drivetrain, an SR Suntour suspension fork with 60mm of travel and yep, flat handlebars.

We're looking forward to seeing how this bike blends both styles of riding.

• www.marinbikes.com

PRO Starter Toolkit

£140

2023 pro toolkit 5ct.jpg, by Liam Mercer

With the cost of living crisis taking a firm grip on people's expenditure, we reckon it's a great idea to start learning how to work on your bike. To do so, you're going to need a decent tool kit and that's where PRO's Starter Toolkit steps in. 

It comes with everything to give any budding home mechanic a leg up, including a chain whip, lock ring tool, a chain tool and a cable cutter. On top of that there's a pedal wrench, tyre levers, a quick link tool and two y-wrenches featuring Allen keys from 2mm up to 6mm. All of that is stored within a nice carry bag, making it a prime travel companion too.

• www.pro-bikegear.com

Altura Ridge Dirt Bag

£50

2023 altura ridge dirt bag 5ct.jpg, by Liam Mercer

Coming soon to Altura's range is the Ridge Dirt Bag. This clever bit of kit doubles as a waterproof kit bag, and a changing mat. This combination means that any rider can come off of a sopping wet ride, stand in a dry area, rip off any filthly clothes when the bag is in its mat configuration, then to fold the bag up to take advantage of its waterproof storage properties without spreading muck into your car or van.

The Ridge Dirt Bag uses a nylon ripstop fabric with a TPU fabric and the base is made up of a 10mm close cell form, making for a comfy pad to step into. There are also side straps ideal for helmet storage, and it folds down to a small size when not in use.

• www.altura.co.uk

Deda Elementi Gera DCR Carbon handlebar

£324

2023 deda gera handlebar 5ct.jpg, by Liam Mercer

One thing we love about drop handlebars is the absolute array of shapes and sizes they come in, and Deda's Gera DCR Carbon handlebar is the perfect example of a bar that takes ergonomics to heart. The brand reckons that it defines a new standard for gravel handlebars thanks to its extreme range of angles.

It's equipped with a 16-degree flare at the drops with a 12-degree backsweep and a 7mm rise. That's not all as there's a 40mm reach and a compact 100mm drop. It's then compatible with bar extensions to further boost comfort. The Gera bar is sorted with Deda's DCR system (Deda internal cable routing), so riders can fully integrate all of the cables into the bar when used with a compatible bike frame. This bar is available in 44, 46 and 48cm widths and we've got the 46 on test.

• dedaelementi.com

Microshift Sword groupset

£372

2023 microshift sword 5ct.jpg, by Liam Mercer

Where brand's are creating mega fancy, top of the range groupsets, Microshift believes that there's still space for solid, cable actuated shifting. With that, Sword has been created to offer modern ergonomics with a wider cassette range in both 1x and 2x options.

It's been designed for flared bars, with Sword's hoods coming with a rounded outer curve to help support the hand and reduce pressure points. Those hoods then get raised traction patterns to boost grip. The brake lever has been built with a high pivot in order to deliver more leverage while reducing brake lever rearch. Microshift also says that the design has been updated to pull slightly more cable than a standard road level for a bit of extra braking power.

Sword the features lower gearings with the 2x setup with a gear that's said to be 24% lower than a compact road double and the 1x with a 40t chainring is 17% lower. There's a lot more to this drivetrain, so we'll leave that to our story to explain, but we're excited to see how this stacks up against its pricier competition.

• www.microshift.com

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