Originally Posted by phidauex
I checked out a few of the department store choppers, like the Jesse James and the new stingray and stuff. Generally neat things, but heavy, and with poor components. Bikes like that seem to come on and off the shelves at regular intervals, but the people making their own just keep on working in their garages.
There are a few interesting components off the department store choppers though, like some cool triple-tree headsets and hugely fat rear tires. I'm hoping that we'll be finding some in the alley in coming months as kids tire of them.
peace,
sam
Well, I have ridden almost all of them: the Stingray Spoiler, the Nirve Cannibal and Switchblade, the Kona and the Giant Stiletto. I can offer these impressions:
The Nirve and Kona are nice looking and relatively easy to ride (the Kona has wickedly long forks) with the edge going to the 3-speed Nirve in both looks and ride. It's relatively light and easy to handle. It doesn't have the eye-candy appeal of other bikes, however. I parked it on a busy street and watched from a distance to see how many people noticed it and few did.
I love the looks of the Spoiler and it is certainly an attention grabber (especially at 7' 6"). Performing the same parking test, it drew crowds that rival the attention both the Stiletto and Firebike receive. Surprisngly, it rides and handles better than you think, but at 65lbs (approx) and single-speed it is impractical for anything but flat roads. The ratio wasn't bad (equals about the 3rd gear on the Stiletto), but going up even gradual inclines was an effort.
The winner, in my estimation (and the one I bought) is the Stiletto. It is not as aggressive looking as the Spoiler but is nicely designed and solidly built without being excessively heavy (about 50lbs and exactly 6' 9" long). When complimented with a bullet light, maltese-cross mirrors (to match the factory maltese cross headset) and maltese cross pedals it is very eye-catching and attractive (imo). The rear fender is gorgeous all on its own and even the graphics are tastefully done. The ride is very smooth and handling is exceptional due to the more modest length and rake angle of the forks. The dual chain makes getting up to speed no more difficult than any regular road bike and with 7 speeds it is the fastest chopper on the market. I've already raced it against the Nirve Cannibal and it wasn't even close. The smooth slicks it comes with make the ride much more comfortable than you might think. My only disappointments are that the seat is too hard and needs additional paddiing: the seat could also use a little more flair in the design and if the frame was about six inches longer, more than three positions could be offered. I use it to commute with daily now (it's faster than any of my other bikes: Fuji Shangri-la 3-speed cruiser, 3-speed Firebike 'Bling Bling') and at 5' 10", my knees are bent more than I'd like during regular pedalling, but only by a few inches. It is easy to slide back on the sloped seat, however, in order to gain full leg extension. Because of how far forward the pedals are, it is possible to generate considerable power and considerable speed. It's a winner in my book.