jakubl

hello everyone. first post on here. i am getting ready to buy a new bike and am having a terrible time deciding which to get. i have it narrowed down to three. apparently it's not okay to post links so use your googling skills if you wan't to help me out.
just started road riding a couple months ago and LOVE it. thinking of a cross bike to use for cross season and then put 700x23s on it and a bigger chainring for road riding. i just did a crit last week and plan to do more road/crit next season with whatever bike i get. a little worried i wont be totally satisfied with a cross bike for road but really unsure.

2008 Jamis Xenith Race full carbon frame, ultegra shifters brakes front derailleur, dura ace rear, fsa carbon crankset 53/39
it's a climbing, sprinting, power machine go to jamis website and look at this year's. there is a "view 2008 model" 17.5 pounds $1800

2008 Pinarello fp2 alluminum with carbon fork, seat stays, seat post, 2009 105 shifters, brakes, front and rear derailleur
handles like a ferarri looks gorgeous red and black 18.9 pounds $1500

and the cross bike that will pull double duty if i get it
09 Jamis Super Nova super strong light kinesium frame , carbon seat stays and fork, SRAM rival double tap, carbon brake levers 18.2 pounds $1750

each of these bikes is brand new from a friends bike store.

i know that a throwing road tires and bigger chainring on the cyclocross bike won't make me 100% performance happy, but what percent could i expect?

thanks for everyones help,
jakubl

Univega

For me, taking the bikes for a ride helped. If this guy is a friend, take each bike for a ride and note the road feel, the handling, how you fit (the geometry). That should help. The website may show components, but will not tell you how you well on the bike.

scattered73

I love my cross bike and it's both my on road and off road bike. Though it handled a bit differently than the cf road bike I had and the only time I ever noticed this was in really fast sharp turns. Other than that I never felt the cross bike had any other performance issues though I should add I don't race. I would recomend taking the cross bike on test ride with slicks and tearing up some corners if the shop will let you.

MONGO!

Well, your choice seems to be whether or not to race cross, since if you buy a road bike you won't be able to race it offroad.

If you go road bike I'd get the Xenith, lighter and more comfortable than either of the alu bikes you list.

I did a couple of early season road races on my cross bike and all my winter road training with Conti GP4000, 23c tires.
Handling was fine but the riding position is pretty different on a cross bike, longer headtube and more upright position.

If you directly compared a cross bike on the road with a road bike you would definitely notice a difference but riding a cross bike in a race is not something that's going to hold you back any.

Saltybeagle

carbon over Al, have a Jamis xenith team, no complaints, just hitting 1800 miles and no issues, fun to ride.

mzeffex 

Jamis. Better frame, components, and price (Comparitively). You'd be paying for the name if you got the pinarello.

Lamp-Shade

I would definitely consider a cross bike if you are unsure of what you want, simply because a cross bike can do everything well. I bought an 07 tricross in.....07, and I am just now getting a legit road bike. Not because I feel the cross bike is holding me back, no way, just because I want to use the cross bike for cross.
A good cross bike, flipped and fit like a road bike, with skinny tires is better than a bad road bike, anyday.

benajah

Got to test ride them. Try to forget about brands as much as possible and just see which one fits your body best.

benajah

But Jamis versus Pinarello? I myself have a hard time ignoring the Pinarello name and history

bigtea

Just say no to subsidizing excessive marketing and advertising budgets......get the Jamis. It's lighter and better equipped than the bottom of the line Pinarello.

jakubl

i test rode the xenith race and pinarello on friday. he built up the jamis super nova cross bike for me this weekend and i will be testing it sometime this week. i just wish i could test it with road tires and maybe a bigger chainring. i love fast corners and descents, so loss in cornering ability worries me. but... there is no hope for cross without a cross bike. ugghhh. decisions. how much cornering ability will i lose with a cross bike frame?

scattered73

I should mention that the cross bike I was comparing was a soma double cross to khs flite 900. The soma is advertised as a commuter/do all than a full on cross racer. Can't really tell you if the jamis is more race oriented unable to read geometry differences. With cross tires the corners on road will feel like crap do you have a pair of road tires you could take with you or even just buy a pair at the said shop (which you will end up using which ever bike you get anyway) I would imagine most any bike shop would let you do this. I personaly wouldn't bother changing the gearing for the test ride.

MONGO!

You won't lose any cornering ability, the only thing you will find is that a road bike will be "snappier" in changing direction but it likely won't be an issue.

jakubl

he said we can throw on a set of 23's for the test ride. i agree, bigger chainring for the test ride won't be necessary.
geometry is as follows:

JAMIS XENITH RACE 54cm JAMIS SUPERNOVA 54cm

CENTER of BB to TOP of TT 18.74 19.92

EFFECTIVE TT LENGTH 21.42 21.45

HT ANGLE 73degrees 72degrees

ST ANGLE 73 degrees 73degrees

CHAINSTAY 15.94 16.73

WHEELBASE 38.07 39.50

FORK RAKE 1.69 1.77

BB HEIGHT 10.67 10.86

HEADTUBE 5.51 5.12

STANDOVER 30.16 31.02

2WheelFury

The FP2 is supposed to come with Ultegra/Most components. That said, it's a damn good bike, IMHO. Can't compare to the Jamis though (haven't had the pleasure of riding one).