The Cube Nuroad Race FE provides amazing value for money and is one of the better equipped bikes at the £1,250 price point. However, to be that agressively priced, and be fully equipped (hence FE in the name) with a rack, mudguards, dynamo, and front and rear lights, some corners had to be cut and some compromises made.
This list isn’t meant to be a review (though I do love my one) but rather a collection of information I’ve come to learn about it over a year’s worth of riding, indoors and out, on tarmac and gravel.
Wheels
Speed sensor
You can’t put a speed sensor on the front hub as the dynamo hub is too big for most rubber band mounts to go around. A speed sensor can be fitted to the rear hub instead, which - even though it is slightly conical - works fine.
Rims
The stock rims are made by Alexrims and are tubeless compatible. The manufacturer’s max tyre width is quoted at 42mm, and minimum at 35mm. 32mm tyres work fine.
Tyres
Although the stock rims are tubeless compatible, the 40mm OEM Schwalbe Allround tyres are not. They differ from retail Allrounds by being specifically tubeless incompatible. Still, they are a decent tyre and roll well on hard packed and tarmac surfaces. On mud or slick surfaces they have a tendency to slip.
Tubes
The OEM tubes seem to be solid, and I’ve only ever gotten slow punctures in them which were usually found at home, and patched at home. Always carry at least one spare inner tube.
Axles
This bike uses harder to find and more expensive Syntace X-12 axles. The front is a 100mm M12x1.0 axle, and the rear is a 148mm M12x1.0 axle. Source spares as a broken axle or stripped thread means you won’t be riding.
Drivetrain
The Tiagra 4700 series groupset is generally compatible with all of Shimano’s 11-speed road and gravel groupsets. It’s basically a slightly heavier 105: gear cable pull ratio is the same, chains are the same width, cassette cogs are the same distance apart, and brakes and shifters are compatible (just set your limit screws correctly to avoid that 11th gear throwing the chain into the spokes if you find yourself using an 11-speed shifter with a 10-speed cassette).
The main difference between Tiagra and 105 is that the Tiagra shifters have 10 gear clicks in them and the 105 shifters have 11. Described another way, to convert a 10-speed Tiagra to 11-speed, change your rear shifter to an 11-speed 105 one, remove the spacer from your rear hub’s splines, and replace the 10-speed cassette with an 11-speed one.
Derailleur pulleys
You can use either the Tiagra or 105 guide and pulley wheels as a replacement. 10-speed 105 wheels seem easier to find, are cheaper, and work just the same.
Chain
The stock chain is a KMC X10 equipped with a quick link and is perfectly fine, for about 2,500km of riding - after that, my chain was due for replacement, as outer plates had started to split and snap on rides.
The Shimano HG95 mountain bike chain works perfectly (even though Shimano says it shouldn’t), offers smoother shifting compared to the KMC, and is a very affordable replacement. 11-speed Shimano road chains will also work fine as Tiagra is so similar to Shimano’s 11-speed groupsets (see above).
Always carry a spare quick link and chainbreaker with you. I’ve used two quick links out on a ride: one to replace a quick link which failed, and another to join the KMC chain after it started snapping links. The chain tool can be used to hard link your chain if your chain snaps again. Just make sure to replace the chain when you get home if it’s snapping links…
Derailleur hanger
The rear derailleur hanger also provides the hole where the rear axle is threaded into. The replacement part number is 8654. Always carry a spare as a bent hanger can make your bike unrideable, and straightening a hanger mid-ride is difficult and risks damage to your rear derailleur. It’s also worth carrying a spare in case you ever strip the axle thread, which would also make the bike unrideable.
Handlebars
Dynamo light mount
The Cube light mount is a bit flimsy, and it is very easy to strip the bolt/nut when tightening. Tighten the mount to finger-tight only as mine stripped with my torque wrench set to 1nm.
Alternatively, you can replace the stock mount with a Busch & Muller 470LHKAB. The bolt for the light is a very tight fit, but it fits. This mount is more robust and offers two contact points with the handlebars, so much better for offroad.
If you would like to free up the space on the handlebars, the stock fork has a threaded hole on the crown, allowing you to mount the dynamo light lower.
Bar tape
The stock bar tape is so similar to Ribble Level tape that I honestly can’t tell the difference. Cinelli sell their Kush Star Fade tape in a black and blue colour for an alternative but matching look.
Otherwise, go black for a super stealthy look.
Frame
Chainstay protector
The bike comes with a chainstay protector sticker, but if you’re going off road this is inadequate protection as the road-oriented Tiagra derailleur does not provide enough tension to avoid chain slap, and you will damage your paintwork.
The Cube Protect HPX chainstay protector in back and blue is a perfect match for the bike, easily fitted with zipties, and made of thick plastic.
Front mudguard
Remove this if you are going on chunkier gravel, as large stones can be kicked up into the guard and cause it to break off. The replacement Cube part number is 93369.
Rear mudguard reflector
Salzmann diamond grade reflective stickers are the perfect width for applying to the rear mudguard, and reflects light very well. The adhesive is strong, but if applied cold the sticker’s plasticity provides some resistance to bending. Use a hairdryer at low heat to form it to the mudguard and promote adhesion.
Rear mudguard integrated light
The rear light integrated into the mudguard and rack is a Cube 93148 and runs off 6v AC power provided from the dynamo hub.
Seatpost clamp
The seatpost clamp is proprietary, and I haven’t been able to find a replacement part number or equivalent spare part. Be very careful when adjusting your seatpost height and make sure you only ever tighten the clamp’s bolts with a torque wrench.
The bolts that come with the clamp are rubbish, and round off very easily. I highly recommend one of the first things you do is buy some 8mm long M5 bolts with a cap end. The cap end is important - it can fit a larger hex key (less likely to round out) and provides something to get pliers around in the event these ends round out.
Saddle and saddlebags
The stock saddle is perfectly adequate and fits the black and blue aesthetic nicely.
If you intend to use a Topeak Fixer F25 clip for use with Topeak saddlebags, it will require the saddle to be moved as far backwards as it can possibly go. Try and find a Fixer 11 clip which mounts to the angled part of the rails rather than the flat part. Although they don’t seem to be made anymore, they can occasionally be found on eBay.
Tall saddlebags such as the Topeak Mondopack Hydro can interfere with the rear mudguard and wear the plastic and bag. Raise your seatpost or use a strap to prevent the bag from sagging and making contact with the guard.
Rear rack
The rear rack is serviceable and rated for 25kg. It has no ability to mount top bags, and pannier pairs which are joined in the centre probably won’t work well with this rack. Use two individual bags.
Indoor use
I use the bike indoors on Zwift during the winter and when the weather is bad.
Wahoo Kickr
The bike can be mounted to a Wahoo Kickr with one consideration: the kickstand must be down, or it will interfere with the flywheel. Having the rear mudguard fitted does not interfere with the trainer so it is safe to leave on.
A neat storage hack you unfortunately can’t use with this bike is flipping it up 90 degrees (pivoting about the rear hub) and resting the hoods on a wall behind the trainer. The rear rack interferes with the Kickr’s carry handle, and to solve this you’d need to remove the rack, the mudguard, and the light.
Use a sweat catcher or bike thong to prevent your sweat, spilled drinks, etc from landing on and corroding the frame.