Fifty Plus (50+) - Just bought a new bike

I excepted the fact that I can't ride a bike with drop bars,so I bought a Jamis Coda Elite. I'll get it next friday. I'm concerned about the gearing on the bike and the guy said he would put anything I want on there. It has a 52/42/30 and 11-32 rear. Most of my riding is going to be flat land except when I go to the Texas hill country,which will be a few times a year.Do you think I should just leave it be or get maybe a 26/36/48 with the 11-32 in the rear. Any replys will be appreciated,thank, George

George,

Changing the the front chain rings makes the most sense. Leave the rear cassette alone. If anything, switch the 52 to a 50 or 49. The 30-32 combination should let you climb a wall, let alone a few Texas hills. Now, to open a can of worms--- will you install a Brooks saddle on this Jamis?

There are an awful lot of road bikers who tackle significant hills with the same gearing as you have on the Jamis. I would wait until I put it to the test before changing anything.

Oh, and congrats on the new acquisition. I hope it works out for you.

You'll have to add some carbon fiber bar ends to it. After all, it is such a nice, lightweight bike that it will demand high quality bar ends.

Oh, and congrats on the new acquisition. I hope it works out for you.

You'll have to add some carbon fiber bar ends to it. After all, it is such a nice, lightweight bike that it will demand high quality bar ends.

I know where you can get some for $189.95 a pair. :D

Yes it will get the B17,but I have another question. The dealer said he may be able to get a 05 for the same price. He claims that it was a better bike. What do you think????

Yes it will get the B17,but I have another question. The dealer said he may be able to get a 05 for the same price. He claims that it was a better bike. What do you think????

Did the dealer give you any reasons for his claims?

DG he said that the newer ones had the middle of the top tube made of CF and the older one was all steel.

The gearing presently on that bike will be more than ample for any hills. There comes a point that if you ride any slower then you cant keep the bike upright. A 30x32 is just about at that point at a reasonable cadence. Congratulations!! My touring bike is a Jamis and I have enjoyed it for years.

Congratulations!
Now it's time to...
Kick out the Jamis
brothers and sisters!



(Thanks to M C 5)

Hey BikerJoeP,thanks. do you think I should take the 05 or 07 thanks.I got until tomorrow morning to let him know.

Getting up hills will be much easier on the gearing that you are getting than if it had a double crankset.

Hey BikerJoeP,thanks. do you think I should take the 05 or 07 thanks.I got until tomorrow morning to let him know.
I dont know enough about this model bicycle to comment on this George. Sorry:(

Is he offering the 2005 at a reduced price? I googled a bit and found a couple of dealers selling the 2005 for $999 vs the 2007 for $1199.

I bet Jamis considers the carbon fiber insertion to be an upgrade over the old bike. But I could understand some preferring the all-steel tubing.

Did you test ride both of them?

Tom I test rode the plain Coda that's all they had there and it rode as nice or better than the Novara. They have to bring the Elite in from Cal. He said the same price for the 05 and I told him to sharpen his pencil. Then he said he would save me a few hundred. I don't know if I can get the 05 until tomorrow morning. If not I'll be getting the 2007 and I'm going to make this one work.

I vote for the all steel frame...

Good job in not just accepting a 0% discount on a bike that has gone unsold for 2 years. Any product, that isn't a collectible, that sits on a sales floor or in a warehouse for two years, should be discounted.

I vote for the all steel frame...

Doesn't it feel good to vote on George's bike after DG has stiffed us in his bike selection process?

I wasn't gonna say anything, but....:D

George, I found these comments on another forum:


Quote from first poster:

Originally Posted by saddle tramp
The 2007 Catalog is now online.

http://www.jamisbikes.com/

Looks to me like they cheapened up the Coda Elite?

Gossamer external comparable to Truvativ Elita external?

Different carbon forks?

BB5's comparable to BB7's?

Quote from second poster:

Yeah, a bit cheaper components, but they did drop the price from $1400 for the 2006 to $1200 for the 2007. I purchased a new 2005 Coda Elite last month for $900, although I was thinking of waiting for the 2007. Glad I took the "older" version (prefer the silver paint on the 2005, plus the BB7).

I seen that Tom thanks. I'm kind of hoping that I get the 2005,but we'll see. I know that you get a lot more bike for the money than the Bianchi Strada. Plus I can pronounce Jamis better.

I bet you didn't know Jamis is properly pronouced, "YAY-MEEZ " !

That's why I bought a Trek when I started, neck, drop the N and add T. I think !!!

But after you get it and go crazy about it you can say," Yay ME!"

George, that looks like a very nice machine, I hope you like it a lot.

This is all well and good for George, but what kind of bike should I buy? :D

This is all well and good for George, but what kind of bike should I buy? :D

Rans Crank Forward
http://www.ransbikes.com/

Quality Bicycle Sales
3952 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
Suite B
San Diego, CA 92117
ph. 858-270-2412

Go for the `05, George. I had the same choices on the Coda Sport and opted for the `05 model. Not only did I save some dough, I thought the `05 model had better specs in key areas such as rims and BB. It was better lookin`, too. Love those "Nice bike" comments.

The LBS just called and I did get the 2005 Elite and I must say I'm pretty happy about it. He came down to $925 and I'll have it by Wed. or Thur.. I got to go and polish the saddle, talk to you later, and thanks for all the replys and good wishes.

Great! Let us know how you like it.

Hey keytree could you tell me what kind of wheels you have on your bike.I was wondering if I should upgrade from the ones that are on there now. Thanks George

Hey keytree could you tell me what kind of wheels you have on your bike.I was wondering if I should upgrade from the ones that are on there now. Thanks George
Congrats on your Elite, George. I`m still riding on the original 36H Alex eyeletted rims. I jump curbs, ride some of the trails here in Austin and often carry 20 or 30 lbs. of crap and so far they`ve stayed good and true. Your Elite already has some high quality rims and I frankly can`t see any need to upgrade until replacement time. The Codas come pretty well spec`d for their intended purposes when you ride`em out the door. Great bikes. All I`ve done to mine is add some bar-ends and put on some better brake pads. Hell, the thing`ll probably outlast me. :lol: Enjoy that jewel.

The LBS just called and I did get the 2005 Elite and I must say I'm pretty happy about it. He came down to $925 and I'll have it by Wed. or Thur.. I got to go and polish the saddle, talk to you later, and thanks for all the replys and good wishes.


Now starts the problem- Ask DG about this- but what sort of Bar ends to get? Then there is sorting the saddle position, And all those tight bearins to run in, And any other new parts to fit or change.

It takes time to sort a new bike and a simple items like tyre pressures can make a world of difference to any bike.

I bought a new Road bike last year and all I had to change were the pedals to SPD's and the bar stem. Luckily these were both in my spares box, but I might be up for a new stem again shortly. My major problem with the new bike was "Wearing in the Newness". More like wearing out the tightness in the bike but at long last it is starting to perform. Bottom bracket will now allow the cranks to turn freely- Wheel bearings are finally loose and the headset has finally stopped being twitchy.

Enjoy the ride but get that 1,000 miles on the thing quickly so that you can ride the Bike without worrying what is going wrong with it.

Dont worry about hills on that set up,worry about the Goatheads.Posters in Texas say they are eating their tires for lunch down your way.Tell the LBS to slap some of those Serfas,or other flat protected tires on to get you through Goathead season.Its hard to climb the Rio Bravo if your tires go pffffssst.

You should also get out your can opener and give it a good 1"-1.5" scratch as soon as your return period is over. Then you can stop worrying about the first big scratch.

:)

George, I just took a look at that bike, and I gotta tell you, that's one sweet looking machine. I'm delighted for you and just a bit envious. Have fun!! :)

That's one of the reasons I didn't buy the Bianchi. They say that the paint is real soft. That scratch part is really going to hurt. I've been looking for touch up paint to match my Treks matte silver with no luck. The brake cables wear the paint off. I hope this new one has a harder paint. I don't like door digs either. I've given Dent Busters a few bucks for that as well.

Thanks DG I really appreciate it. I can tell you this,it has been killing me. I wanted to step up so bad I could taste it. I finally came up with the solution. Everybody can't have dropbars. I've read so many post, that you can't go over 15 miles on a hybrid. I proved that wrong,and I'm going to run the wheels off this thing. I don't know why I just said move up to dropbars.I should have said to move up to a new bike,dropbars don't make the bike.Thanks again Gary, and good luck finding a bike.

The brake cables wear the paint off.

George,

Identify all the places on the frame where your cables will touch the paint on your new bike, and wrap those sections with like-colored electrician's tape before your first ride.

Thanks Paulie, I wrapped it with black tape to match the cables. The new one will have white.

I wonder if they would swap the handlebars for the ones they use on the Commuter models.

I've read so many post, that you can't go over 15 miles on a hybrid. I proved that wrong

You and thousands of others!

Nice bike George, I'm sure you've made the right decision That bike is going to do everything you want it to do for you. Congratulations. :beer:

I wonder if they would swap the handlebars for the ones they use on the Commuter models.

Isn't that sort of a North Bar variation?

For some reason I felt more comfortible on the Jamis than the Trek. I didn't have a stem riser on it and it felt great. I'm not sure,but I think the handle bars may have been curved back a little. I'll know next week and update you.
I was going to change the gearing to a 38/36/26, but I think I'll wait and try what's on there.

I mean a 26/36/48 and I don't even drink. I guess I could blame it on age, or start drinking again,nan.

I mean a 26/36/48 ...
This is a great front gear combination. I've used it for almost 2 years with a 12-28 rear cog, and have never felt shortchanged on either the top end or the bottom end. Nice gear spacing in the middle as well. Very practical!

Best of luck with the new bike George. Way to go buying a 05. Been there, done that, saved lots of $$$ and if feels REAL good. Who said you couldn't go over 15 miles with flat bars? I never heard that one.

Thanks Paulie, I was on the computer for 5 hours looking at different gearing and called the dealer up and told him to change it to 26/36/48. Then after a few more hours I called him again and told him to leave it. I hate doing that. I'm going to ride it for awhile nad see what feels right to me. I a pretty good guy, and said anytime you want it changed just bring it in. That's good service and I like it.

I forgot, one guy PM me and he said that he did the same as me and he was getting a lot of flats and had to put liners inside the tires to stopit. I was thinking that the tubes may be dry rotted and to change them out, but again, I'm going to wait and see what happens.