So damn the economy...I enjoy riding a bicycle more than any other form of exercise on a regular basis so I began to research and here is what I have come up with...
For a road bike I am buying:
http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/road/1_series/12/ (http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/road/1_series/12/)
And for a mountain bke I have narrowed it down to:
http://www.bianchiusa.com/bikes/mtb-off-road/doss-5100 (http://www.bianchiusa.com/bikes/mtb-off-road/doss-5100) <--My most likely choice depending on how soon the local Bianchi dealer can have it here
http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/mountain_hardtail/3_series/3900disc (http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/mountain_hardtail/3_series/3900disc) <--Close second
http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?spid=45757&eid=4340&menuItemId=9253 (http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?spid=45757&eid=4340&menuItemId=9253) <--Tied for close second
http://www.cannondale.com/usa/usaeng/Products/Bikes/Mountain/Hardtail/CO2/Details/1293-0FS8-F8 (http://www.cannondale.com/usa/usaeng/Products/Bikes/Mountain/Hardtail/CO2/Details/1293-0FS8-F8) <--Tied for a close second
http://www.schwinnbike.com/usa/eng/Products/Mountain/Hardtail/Details/1449-S10FROEX-Frontier-Expert (http://www.schwinnbike.com/usa/eng/Products/Mountain/Hardtail/Details/1449-S10FROEX-Frontier-Expert) <--Unfortunately, the Schwinn reminds me of my roommates WalMart Special Schwinn...This will be my absolute last option.
SO any first hand experience with any of these choices? I am sticking with my first choice for road bike as I have ridden one and I liked it alot. Plus I am not getting in way over my head on a bike I may or may not stick with.
Well, bikes are pretty personal, so I am pretty sure your subjective assessment of those bikes is what really matters. Having said that, any bike you get will only be better if you get the best fitting saddle you can find, bike shorts, clipless pedals & matching shoes, and a good helmet. Less important but still really nice are some biking gloves and a bike jersey. Seriously, a good saddle and shorts are the difference between a bike that gets ridden and one that is a towel rack.
(http://www.the900shop.com/catalog/images/escape_81.jpg)
I gots one of these..... love it Haro Escape
only now it's been darkducified
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t180/bobspapa/100K7430-1058_100.jpg?t=1267826104)
Haro...that's a brand I haven't considered...time to do some research.
The big thing on the Bianchi though is that it is a local dealer who throws in a year's worth of free maintenance for free and is a friend of a riding buddy(bicycle riding buddy).
Get one of these. If it breaks you can just grow a new one in a couple of weeks. ;D
http://www.calfeedesign.com/Bamboomtn.htm (http://www.calfeedesign.com/Bamboomtn.htm)
(http://c0388982.cdn.cloudfiles.rackspacecloud.com/calfee-6.png)
I have the Specialized Hardrock Disc. But I turned it into my "urban assault" bike, so I don't have any input on how well it does offroad. I'm no expert on bikes, but I'd say the Hardrock is on the lower end in quality for the price range you are in ($4-600+). I never owned a disc brake bike before, but there is something about the breaks on it that I don't like. I don't feel confident in them.
If you haven't been there already, mtbr.com has pretty good bike reviews.
I have the 2008 Trek 1.5 and was a great bike for the price; the 1.2 is pretty much the same except for the derailleurs. I have Sora/Ultegra and the new 1.2 has Sora/Sora. It's a great training rig and will serve you well [thumbsup]
But now I'm looking for a tri-bike soon so the 1.5 will be sold after my next century
There is already a bicycle thread, but I would go with an IF, hands down. ;) Single speed of course. [evil]
(http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa91/chiflado/RR066.jpg)
(http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa91/chiflado/RR068.jpg)
I am not much of a roady, so my suggestion is to ditch the skinny tire shaved leg look and buy a $1,500 MTB. You can always throw a set of slicks on the MTB and ride on the road. Of course roadies would disagree (But they'd be wrong... ;D) I got some great double-take looks riding the MS150 on my dual suspension MTB and will probably do the ride again this spring. It is a pretty good feeling to pass a guy on a light weight carbon road bike while spinning your dual suspension XC bike!
http://www.cannondale.com/usa/usaeng/Products/Bikes/Mountain/Hardtail/Flash/Details/1289-0FS3-F3 (http://www.cannondale.com/usa/usaeng/Products/Bikes/Mountain/Hardtail/Flash/Details/1289-0FS3-F3)
http://www.specialized.com/zz/en/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?spid=45867&eid=4342&menuItemId=9247 (http://www.specialized.com/zz/en/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?spid=45867&eid=4342&menuItemId=9247)
http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/mountain_hardtail/6_series/6700disc/ (http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/mountain_hardtail/6_series/6700disc/)
http://www.scottusa.com/us_en/product/8280/44735/scale_50 (http://www.scottusa.com/us_en/product/8280/44735/scale_50)
Bicycles are nearly as bad as Ducatis. You can never spend too much money on one. If you up your combined price range to about $2,000 I'd start directing you towards some pretty capable dual suspension bikes. As it is, these hardtails are fully capable of riding daily, racing (if you are into that sort of thing), and riding on the road with just a set of slicks. I'd go for the Cannondale ;) Also, a MTB makes a better urban assault vehicles than a road bike ever would.
I used to ride for a living.
I rode a Specialized for 7 months straight, 4 days a week. They make a nice bike [thumbsup]
8 hours at a clip.
I punished that bike!
No complaints. The discs are nice you just have to pay attention to the adjustment on the caliper to keep the inside pad close to the disk.
Have you checked out Kona? If they have a dealer near you, they make great bikes. I have a 2001 Muni Mula that I use both off and on road by switching tires. It isn't ideal but it has worked for me. Right now I'm looking at a felt f75 for road riding.
My wife has a trek pilot 2.1 road bike and it has been a great bike. SHe had it 4 seasons now with no problems.
Quote from: desmo_drum on March 06, 2010, 06:14:46 AM
Have you checked out Kona? If they have a dealer near you, they make great bikes. I have a 2001 Muni Mula that I use both off and on road by switching tires. It isn't ideal but it has worked for me. Right now I'm looking at a felt f75 for road riding.
word
I carry both Kona and Felt at my shop. Felt Q520 is a comparable bike as is the Kona Fire Mountain Deluxe. The Q620 and Kona Blast or Blast Deluxe have great up grades if you've got a couple hundred extra bucks.
Quote from: kopfjäger on March 05, 2010, 08:34:02 PM
There is already a bicycle thread, but I would go with an IF, hands down. ;)
IF FTW! I've had a total hard-on for an XS (carbon tubes with Titanium lugs). Probably overpriced but totally awesome. And then I just found out that they support the Wounded Warrior Project. I think I might have to bite the bullet and buy one after my next rotation.
Quote from: Dannyboy on March 06, 2010, 06:51:18 PM
IF FTW! I've had a total hard-on for an XS (carbon tubes with Titanium lugs). Probably overpriced but totally awesome. And then I just found out that they support the Wounded Warrior Project. I think I might have to bite the bullet and buy one after my next rotation.
If you do, you will never want to ride anything else. [thumbsup]
Quote from: kopfjäger on March 06, 2010, 07:10:22 PM
If you do, you will never want to ride anything else. [thumbsup]
I've never ridden one but I already don't want to ride anything else. It's like the two wheeled, self-propelled version of the Ferrari 599 GTB.
^^drooling over that IF. Very nice setup.
I own a 2009 1.2; good bike, but I wouldn't recommend it. It has some very low end components compared to other bikes in that price range imo. The front derailleur (sora) is a piece of crap and that FSA crankset suffers from creaking noises and feels like noodles. Maybe is my 180 lbs weight because my wife has the same bike and she has not complained. I upgraded the derailleurs to 105; huge improvement. Take note that the aluminum construction of the bike makes it very stiff. This is good, but your butt will feel it. Upgrade to nicer tires makes a huge improvement as well. I plan on upgrading the crankset and wheelset soon. I really like the geometry of the bike and Trek warranty is excellent. Very nice looking bike, but I really want a Salsa or a Soma. (steel is reel)
Well I ordered my MTB. It will be in sometime this week. But I discovered ALOT more options for a road bike and even test rode a few.
Ended up going with my first choice for a MTB. Got the Bianchi Doss 5100. It helped that for the MSRP he included a second set of rims and slicks. I did have to pay for the sprocket set to make it a true quick change. I can now swap both wheels in around 2 minutes and go from full on off-road goodness to a set of slicks.
That along with the 1 year free maintenace made it a no brainer. None of the other local dealers could come close.
He had a few other brands I hadn't considered (GT, Giant, Raleigh). But the GTs he had in stock felt "Walmartish".
With things thawing out and most of the local trails looking ceared and the off road trails reopening, I am really looking forward to getting out and riding.
Quote from: cbartlett419 on March 06, 2010, 01:18:03 PM
word
I carry both Kona and Felt at my shop. Felt Q520 is a comparable bike as is the Kona Fire Mountain Deluxe. The Q620 and Kona Blast or Blast Deluxe have great up grades if you've got a couple hundred extra bucks.
Is the Q620 a girls bike? ;D [cheeky]
Quote from: ZLTFUL on March 08, 2010, 03:30:28 AM
Well I ordered my MTB.
Congrats!!! Since you've got one base covered, I'll just keep to myself the suggestion that you buy a cyclocross bike and call it a day. ;D
While he was checking inventory on the bike I was checking out his stock of kayaks...I love whitewater canoing and there are a few great places in NE Iowa to do that...got me thinking about the possibility of one of those as well...stupid outdoor sports. I think they are the reason I have such a hard time getting motivated to go to the gym!!!
Quote from: ZLTFUL on March 08, 2010, 03:30:28 AM
I did have to pay for the sprocket set to make it a true quick change. I can now swap both wheels in around 2 minutes and go from full on off-road goodness to a set of slicks.
Cassettes will wear with chains. IE if you put a new cassette on a bike with an older chain, it will skip and not shift well. If you end up riding one set of wheels more than the other you may want to swap them out so they wear more evenly. That or replace your chain every few hundred miles (depending on how much you ride in the mud, shift under load, etc). FYI.
Bianchi's are nice. I've had FHE with dealings with most of the big brands- Kona and Specialized are good to work with, Giant would be second (due to some crap QC I've seen), and Cannondale third (I haven't had any experience since Pacific bought them) . You couldn't pay me to ride a Trek.
Just got a call from the dealer..."White is not available in my frame size, however they will send me a black one in my frame size with a scratched seat tube at a STEEP discount."
Only ordered white because I didn't know black was available!
Quote from: ZLTFUL on March 08, 2010, 07:51:21 AM
Just got a call from the dealer..."White is not available in my frame size, however they will send me a black one in my frame size with a scratched seat tube at a STEEP discount."
Only ordered white because I didn't know black was available!
Sounds like a double win to me.....it's going to get scratches soon, might as well save some coin up front.
Quote from: ZLTFUL on March 08, 2010, 06:15:07 AM
While he was checking inventory on the bike I was checking out his stock of kayaks...I love whitewater canoing and there are a few great places in NE Iowa to do that...got me thinking about the possibility of one of those as well...stupid outdoor sports. I think they are the reason I have such a hard time getting motivated to go to the gym!!!
I'm happy to encourage that kind of thinking; I did a fair bit of fishing & roaming around NE Iowa/SE Minnesota/SW Wisconsin a few years back, and can imagine that it'd be a beautiful spot for canoeing and rec kayaking. If you want to find some steeper whitewater, you don't have to go that far East to find lots of fun in West Virginia & Western PA.
Ok. I tried once, but there is already a bicycle thread you can post your new toys. :D
http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=1537.0 (http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=1537.0)
Not to pick nits (ok I am atually) but *this* thread was seeking advice on what to purchase not on showing off what I already have. If that was the case, this thread would be blank as I have spent the last year riding my roommate's Schwinn...
Just sayin'...
Quote from: kopfjäger on March 08, 2010, 07:59:15 PM
Ok. I tried once, but there is already a bicycle thread you can post your new toys. :D
http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=1537.0 (http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=1537.0)
And then you posted pix of your beauteous Indy Fab 1x1 -- somehow you're expecting us to read the words, too? [cheeky]
Quote from: triangleforge on March 09, 2010, 05:58:46 AM
And then you posted pix of your beauteous Indy Fab 1x1 -- somehow you're expecting us to read the words, too? [cheeky]
[laugh] [drink]