Originally Posted by
veganbikes
Back in the day when Jamis fixed gears were solid machines. Why they had to go to friggin' pipe steel is beyond me. They still use 520 and 631 and even good ole' 853 from the venerable Reynolds, for their other bikes why not for their SS/FG?
I assume it's because the SS/FG crowd are very budget conscious. I think that the old/good Sputnik was one of those hidden gem kind of bikes that you just don't see very often - where a manufacturer stumbles onto something good before they realize it's not really sustainable.
It's not just the materials, though - the new ones just don't look as nice to my eye. I kinda wish that they had changed the name when they changed the look and spec, but that doesn't change the fact that it's a very lovely bike.
It's light, lively, responsive, and not too too punishing. The only thing I kind of wish was different was the head tube - an internal tapered headset would give a wider variety of options for an upgraded fork (and a move to disc). But I have so much fun when I ride it, even though these days I have to be careful about how hard and how long I push myself on climbs.
Glad the bike is still working out for ya, keep it well maintained and hopefully we will see it forever.
In priniciple I'm planning to sell it and my Gios next year. We'll see if I can actually do that...
