[Leo21]

Hi everyone
I have a 2004 Gary Fisher dual sport 229 MTB ( 29 ‘ wheel) which I use it primarily to commute to work, about 42 miles round trip ,which includes 9 miles total off road ride and the rest is bike trail and roads. I am fine with my bike, but it’s slow especially on the roads and hills . Recently in my LBS I saw a 2004 Bianchi Axis cyclocross bike for 779 $ around 470 $ off the original price. Since I ‘ve never had a cyclcross bike, I was wondering if you can tell me that It would be a good replacement of my MTB, or in reality it won’t be too much differences. Thank you for your help.
Leo

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[BlastRadius]

That's a great deal for the Axis. However, you may not see much difference in speed. It depends on how flexible you are. The Axis could give you an aerodynamic advantage since it has drop bars and a more road-like geometry but you need to be flexible enough to move the saddle down and back and fold your torso forward more. Otherwise the two bikes are comparable. In fact, the 2005 Axis uses the same tires as your 229 (maybe narrower though).

[moose1]

i went from riding a '98 Trek 7000 MTB to the '04 Axis. i think the simple fact that it's got bigger wheels and thinner tires naturally gives you more speed and more roll. for me it *was* like hopping on a road bike. not only will you get to work faster, but you can take the Axis pretty much anywhere you take your MTB. the only thing is that braking is a pain because of where the levers are located (you could just add inline levers on top of the bar).

and for that price, you're getting a real nice bike.

[Leo21]

Thank you so much for your help.