Originally Posted by
dr_lha
Our difference of opinion is that I don't consider having a carbon fork on my steel bike a "fork swap" any more than I consider the carbon fork on my aluminum bike (it has one, a full carbon steerer in fact) a "fork swap"
Sounds good. Feel free to point to name-brand, LBS-sold steel bikes that include a carbon fiber fork. I've already pointed to numerous examples of readily available steel bikes within the OP's budget that
don't include carbon forks. How many can you point to that do? I know, I know: the Jamis Quest. Can you name any others? I can't....
I don't know the OP's budget, he never really quoted it
I guess you missed this statement
in the very first post from the thread:
Originally Posted by
BrazAd
I'm okay with spending $1,200 for the right bike... maybe $1,500 or $2,000 if I was really impressed.
Pretty hard to miss that if you're paying
any attention to the discussion.
How about the Jamis Quest Comp, that's $979 MSRP and has a carbon fork. I know, Jamis dealer is 50 miles away!
Looks like a great deal for a steel bike that includes a carbon fork and bottom-of-the-barrel Sora components. It also weight 23 pounds according to Jamis, which almost certainly means that it weighs more in real life. Sadly, it I don't think that's going to meet the OP's goal of being lighter than the 20-pound Rivendell Roadeo.