The State Titanium All-Road is an admirable but flawed attempt to build a titanium gravel bike for the masses

Titanium has long been revered in the cycling world for its exceptional ride quality —smooth yet lively, and almost magical in its ability to blend comfort with performance. It’s a material synonymous with prestige. However, this legendary reputation often comes with a price tag to match.

State Bicycles is the latest in a slew of brands trying to change that perspective by making titanium bikes accessible to the masses with the release of its Titanium All-Road. At a starting price point of $2,499.99 for a complete bike and $1,299.99 for the frameset, the Ti steed was designed as an accessible gravel bike that can grow with you, with modern tyre clearance, UDH dropouts, an expensive and durable finish, and a rock solid titanium frame construction that won't corrode even after many years of bike ownership.

For our test, the Titanium All-Road came with a full slate of proprietary components from State —from the drivetrain to the finishing kit and wheels. By utilizing State’s proprietary components throughout, the Titanium All-Road balances the higher cost of its premium titanium frame with a more accessible price point, offering an impressive value.

While some of those components would ultimately be the most challenging aspect of the bike by a long way, it does get you rolling on a quality frame for an unbeatable price.

Over the course of the testing, I did not arrive at a definitive conclusion about the bike but rather another question: why make a cheap bike with a premium material if many of the benefits of the material are lost under the weight of poor componentry?

State Titanium All-road frame construction

The All-Road, gravel and off-road categories are broad and unspecified. In my hometown of Phoenix, Arizona, gravel means riding the paved roads to miles upon miles of tamer trails with some dusty Sonoran Desert double tracks thrown in. Fortunately for this test, my home is the same as State bicycles, which has its headquarters a mere ten-minute drive from my house, thus I’d imagine my riding aligns very well with this bike’s intended purpose.

In testing this bike, I did my best to cover as much of that mixed surface ground as I could muster and be true to the all-around nature of how the bike was conceived. I also made an effort to be true to the price point and used the bike as a regular commuting option to see how it would handle the more utilitarian city miles.

Despite the brand’s intentionally disruptive premise of 'what if we did titanium cheaper than anyone else,' the Titanium All-Road is traditional in its frame design. It sits firmly in the category of traditional adventure-oriented gravel frames with a tall head tube, slack trail figure and long wheelbase.

I am a racer at heart, so the upright geometry was a sticking point for me, especially on road sections linking the off-road sectors together. At 6 foot 1, I typically prefer a 56cm frame. According to State’s sizing, I was a size large, also called a 55cm. Even though the bike was theoretically smaller than most of what I have ridden, it felt very large and rather cumbersome.

The State felt tall, slack and long in ways that all hindered speed. However, on rough terrain, this geometry translated into a smooth and stable ride. For those who might be interested in riding the bike aggressively, I would highly recommend sizing down, especially if you're planning on running a suspension fork, which would increase the already lofty stack height.

Crucially, the Titanium All-Road pivots from its other All-Road siblings by adopting a UDH dropout and increasing the tyre clearance. Going up from its previous models, the Titanium All-Road has a stated tyre clearance of 50mm and comes stock with 47mm Vittoria Terreno Dry tyres. This move aligns with the off-road sector at large as the industry moves toward increasingly larger volume tyres.

Specifications

• Frame: State Bicycles Co. Titanium All-Road
• Fork: State Standard Black Label Fork
• Groupset: State All-road 1 Groupset
• Power Meter: NA
• Wheels: State All-road
• Tyres: Vittoria Terreno Dry 47mm
• Bar: State All-road
• Stem: State All-road, 100mm
• Seatpost: State All-road
• Saddle: State Black Label Series
• Weight: 23.4 pounds with Shimano XTR Pedals
• Size tested: Large
• RRP: $2,499.99

The State Titanium All-road ride quality

Away from the pros and cons of the frame geometry, the elephant in the room of this review is how the bike is built to meet that $2,499.99 price point: the components.

While the value case is easily made, for me, the State-branded componentry distracts from the minutiae of the frame and the benefits of titanium construction. Why go through the trouble of making a titanium bike with smaller margins if the titanium benefits are negated by the very components that make it affordable?

The problems started with the brakes, which are cable-actuated hydraulics rather than fully hydraulic. When the journey gets rough, whether on jeep trails or singletrack, the stopping power is unreliable at best. I often found myself slowing down early and cautiously, making the bike much less capable than it would be under any other hydraulic braking system.

While less of a safety concern, the drivetrain was similarly distracting. While the frame is UDH capable, State doesn’t currently offer a SRAM built. Instead, the State-branded groupset is a mechanical double tap-adjacent, 1x 11-speed mechanism with a regular derailleur hanger. The stock gearing comes with a 42t front chainring with a 11-42t rear cassette. The shifters are clunky, but they get the job done when not under load. The derailleur is reliable, and the gear range is passable, but it is limited when compared to the more recent SRAM and Shimano offerings.

Weight aside, I took no real issue with the State-branded finish kit, which consists of 44cm flared “all-road” handlebars, a 25mm setback seatpost, a 170mm crank arms and aluminium “all-road” wheels. The finishing kit is easy to swap to one’s preference and I did swap to narrower bars and a higher-end saddle.

Given the move to more tyre clearance, I find the rims of the State All-Road wheelset to be rather narrow. I measured the internal rim width at just 19mm – a far cry from modern gravel wheels that feature 25mm internal or bigger.

The problem with rims this narrow is that wide tyres will not have the same feel and comfort over rough surfaces, and they’ll be exposed to more pinch flats.

Given the lower-tier components on the complete build, the frameset option may be the more attractive choice. The frame itself is sturdy yet maintains a reasonable weight, especially when compared to other steel and aluminium alternatives at that price point. It’s also designed with versatility in mind, featuring all the necessary attachment points for fenders, bags, racks and other accessories.

At just $1,299, the frameset offers a solid foundation for creating a rugged and capable adventure bike at an excellent price. To keep the build both affordable and well-suited to the frame’s intended use, I would pair it with a mechanical GRX groupset or a SRAM Eagle mullet setup at the Rival/GX level. For those interested in going wireless without breaking the bank, State offers a SRAM Apex AXS Mullet groupset upgrade for an additional $999 when bought directly from the brand's website.

Verdict & Value

The State Bicycle Co. Titanium All-Road has the potential to be a standout, budget-friendly titanium bike, but the proprietary components come up short, leaving the complete build feeling underwhelming.

The $2,499.99 price tag is hard to beat, yes, but extracting the bike’s full potential will require additional investment.

Ultimately, this bike seems best suited for those just beginning their gravel journey or riders looking for an affordable titanium frameset to customise. Either way, some tinkering and component upgrades will be necessary. As it stands, much of the bike’s performance capability remains untapped, making the bike a starting point rather than a final destination.