That makes sense about the alu-carbon frames but I figured it was a neat idea. Also good to know about the geometry of the Nashbars.

The budget is hopefully less than $400 but I'm also willing to accept the fact if that's unrealistic. I have seen those no-name Chinese carbon frames but they just make me nervous as far as defects go. Seem like an incredible deal but have any of you had experience with them or heard of defects? Personally, carbon frames frighten me and I'd much rather just deal with aluminum but I'm beginning to warm up to them.

Thoughts?