leonem

The Specialized is a great bike -- I test rode it at LL Bean before I got my Volpe. It felt great on the road. If didn't do (1) my twice-a-year (week-long) national park rides (which mix road and occasionally pretty messy trail) (2) rides with panniers and (3) my regular cab-and-pothole-dodging in NYC, it would have been one of the two bikes (the Bianchi Axis is the second) at the very top of my list.

Both the Tricross and the Bianchi Axis are great on the street and light trail, but just too sharp and aggresively geared (and not really configured) for the hill climbs that I end up on, especially when loaded with some weight.

The price difference was also a huge factor -- I got the '07 Volpe in 2008 so got a break on the price, but even the current Volpe is just a bit more than half the price of the Tricross or the Axis.

As for the weight, the seat and knobby tires add a lot of it; I switched those out for city use, which lightened the bike quite a bit. If I start ending up on more group road rides with the road bike guys (I usually ride in a pack of two--my fiancee and I, there's always the option of switching the crankset to something more aggressive, mounting a carbon fork and a lighter headset.


Oh and thanks everyone for participating in the discussion!! I'm usually not a forum user, but am discovering how nice it is to engage in conversation with you all!

apricissimus 

FWIW, my '08 Bianchi Volpe is about 23 pounds with stock components.

knobster

Seriously? wow. Wonder if they changed the steel. Mine was HEAVY. Comparable to my old Trek 520 I had.

leonem

Hi All,



I took this picture when I was heading out on park roads in Queens, so I've got a pump and a little pack attached to the back.

The pump is actually pretty silly, since my tires are inflated to over 90 psi and the little hand pump could never re-inflate to that pressure in case of a flat; I take it along when I'm not on public roads, however, so that if I do get a flat and have to switch tubes, I can at least inflate the tube well enough to try to ride back for a short while.

Also -- (ATTN: mthomas) -- note the installed fork-crown-mounted cable housing stop).

As for the weight, the bike is really quite light. The 23 lbs sounds about right, and even that number drops with new tires, seat and seatpost.

mthomas

Here is a pic of the ugly brake booster if you're interested.

tballx

Did you try the tri-cross triple? I can't do a double crank with a 12-25 cassette on my route either with my big a## hills. The triple is about $600 less than the comp as well and was pretty much out of my price range. With the comp, you pretty much get what you pay for since the comp has better wheels, frame and group but the triple has a forgiving triple crank and a more touring style 11-32 cassette.

Tapeworm21

I just picked up a 1992 Volpe today for $200. Hardly any miles on it but will serve me well for what I need it for. I'm hoping to maybe sell my car soon so the Volpe is a nice step in the right direction. My other bikes never see a bike lock, nor will they. I need a bike that can carry some weight, inexpensive, and fun to ride. I think I found it in my Volpe. The kicker? 7 speed STI shifters.


There she is, in all her glory.

knobster

I had been looking for a 2007 model Tricross Comp. It came with a triple, but apparently Specialized got a lot of complaints about it and the funky paint job that came on that year and the 2008 model they changed it back to the 2006 model. I changed out my double crank for a triple and it's been very good for hills here in Oregon.

I've owned one of the Sport models and while they are a good enough bike, I just didn't like it. Stuck with the old Comp.

dphilips

As a new Volpe owner this thread has been very informative. I recently bought a 2008 Volpe on closeout and with stock components my 55cm bike weighed 25lbs according to my bathroom scale. Switching the tires to 700x32 Paselas reduced total weight by a pound. So far I've been very happy with the bike and can't wait to get more miles on it.

JHarris

My Volpe weighs in at around 33 lbs but that's with fenders, B17 saddle, rear rack, and a Mini U-lock attached to the rack. Shouldering it up 5 flights of stairs isn't bad but putting the rack and lock on the back made a noticeable difference in heft.

I suffered from the front brake squeal as well until I had a friend toe it correctly, and true the front wheel. He used to be a wrench for many years so maybe he just has the Midas touch. Actually since he tuned it for me, it rides like a totally different bike now. Better stopping, better acceleration, etc.

volpeDC

Hi everyone,
first post ever. ever. I bought an 08 Volpe a few months ago. I love it, first new bike I ever buy. I commute to work everyday and I go on longer week end rides... 40/50 miles right now, working to get better. I have a question: bike came with rather heavy wheels (WTB DX23) and average tires (all terainausaurus 700x32). I ride mostly on road / streets of DC and well maintained trails. I am thinking of switching to skinnier tires... simply to go faster. Any idea how skinny i can go by keeping those wheels? More importantly: will it really make a difference? OR should i change the wheels AND tires (and keep the heavier / fatter set for the occasional "dirty" trails and other adventures in Maine...)?
Like many of you in this forum I love my volpe and I am really pleased i bought this machine... just trying to make it a little faster (or should i just keep working on those leg muscles... maybe that's it)
Thanks for your tips if you have any,

keytree

Congrats on your new ride, VolpeDC. You`re gonna love it. As for your questions, if you can afford it, then, yeah, I`d switch the wheels. The stock WTBs are kinda heavy. I had some Mavic Open Pros w/Ultegra hubs that I put on mine, with a noticable improvement in both ride and performance. Plus the silver color looks better on the Volpe, too.

If you`re sticking with the stock wheels, it`d still be good move to swap the tires for something with a smoother tread(I threw the WTB tires on my cross bike). Performance Bike has the 700x35 Forte ST Cross/K road tire that`d be a good match for the WTB wheels and you can usually get `em for less than 15 bucks apiece. They`re great commuting tires and you`ll notice an improvement in rolling resistance. Hope this helps and enjoy that sweet jewel of a bike.

sancap6

Hi everybody,
I finally found you on this forum as enthusiast of the Volpe like me; I bought one 2008 model (with his wonderful sand colour!) from U.S. to Italy... imagine how much I payed as shipping fee, import taxes, VAT, etc... just to tell you about the enthusiasm I have for it!
Anyway I'd like to ask you an opinion about a reasonable max load capacity (front and rear) can have this bike with this strong wheel setting I made: two Sun Rhyno rims 36 holes with Phil Wood touring hubs, Swiss DT spokes double butted (2-1,8-2), I weigh 68 kg and I'm going to mount for this long Asian trip a couple of Marathon XR (unfortunately 37; I wanted the option to mount the 42 tires, but it seems that the rear fork allows a space for a max 37, can you confirm it? What's the maximum tire width I can fit on the Volpe?).
Thanks a lot in advance

duffer1960

Nice bike; I considered one too & give it a 'top 5' recommendation.

You might want to send a PM to the respondents of interest ... this thread is one year old.