Bike Focus: All-City Zig Zag 105
Timeless aesthetics with modern capabilities – the All-City Zig Zag is an instant classic in our eyes. Whilst it might be the raciest bike in All-City’s lineup, their famous ride quality and comfort hasn’t been sacrificed. Focused on fun and ride quality, this endurance-centric roadie is right at home on any kind of adventure, whether that’s a quick spin to the café or crossing continents!
We’re not afraid to say that we’re big fans of the Zig Zag, and here are our reasons why:
Steel Is Real
It looks good, it feels good: the All-City Zig Zag’s steel construction harks back to the days of old when ride quality was the priority, rather than podium places and marginal gains. Using their in-house A.C.E tubing, All-City have tailored the diameter and wall thickness of each tube for each frame size. This allows them to maximise strength without making the bike a deadweight, so weight weenies rejoice, you can achieve a surprisingly lightweight Zig Zag build even with modest components!
As you’d expect from steel, the Zig Zag delivers a super smooth, supple and comfortable ride with excellent handling characteristics – ideal for long days in the saddle where road vibrations can take the sting out of your tail at the pointy end of a ride. Pair that with the full-carbon Whisky No.9 fork and some chunkier rubber and you’re on for a year-round winner.
A Bit Of Everything
More than just an endurance bike, the Zig Zag likes to wear a few different hats. Unique would be a good way to describe this steel stallion – in a world of matt black and composite construction, the Zig Zag stands out from the crowd. It holds its own on the Sunday Best club run, but deep down it loves a bit of grit and grime, as the smooth-riding steel is perfect for the broken and poorly maintained roads that we are so accustomed to.
Increased clearance makes way for up to 35mm tyres (32mm with mudguards), plenty of space for a bit more cushion or grippier tread should you venture off the beaten track. The Zig Zag is by no means a dedicated gravel bike, and whilst it won’t be on the podium at Dirty Reiver any time soon, it’s more than happy to venture onto bridleways and get rad between the tarmac – we’d call it a road bike with gravel tendencies!
Of course, long days in the saddle are where the Zig Zag shines. Their endurance geometry opts for a shorter reach and slightly taller headtube, putting the rider in a sustainable position for all day comfort, but is more than capable of getting speedy when you need it to be!
Attention To Detail
Modern features don’t have to come at the expense of class, which is something the Zig Zag certainly isn’t short of. From the brazed seat collar to the signature dropouts and traditional head badge, we could sit and stare at this bike all day long.
Paintwork is a vital part of the process that All-City take pride in, spending a great deal of time pooling inspiration to inform their artistic decisions and taking no shortcuts in the production process to guarantee a high-quality finish. Driven by quality rather than cost cutting, All-City opt for a more labour-intensive liquid paint applied by highly skilled technicians to bring their visions to life. This culminates in a frame that will not only stand out from the crowd now, but in 10 years time too!
