mcavana

well, right now i commute on my trek 6700 mountain bike,,, with armadillo nimbus tires, rhino lite rims, and a steel fork.. It is a sweet ride, just right for my normal 12 mile each way commmute. but now that i find myself commuting more often, and further distances for different things, i am starting to regret my road bike purchase.... My road bike is a 2004 giant TCR2... i mainly picked it up for club rides... and am very impressed with it. But, it is basicly not practicle for commuting at all. You can't put racks or fenders on it... you certainly can't jump a curb... and even though i have a krytonite forgetaboutit lock, I would still feel very uncomfortable locking it up in public and walking away.... the whole thing is carbon fiber... a kid with a key can destroy the whole dam thing in less than a minute. looking at the road bikes that would be the practicle commutors for me... i see either the Trek 520 https://www2.trekbikes.com/Bikes/Spec.../520/index.php or the XO 1 https://www2.trekbikes.com/Bikes/Spec...XO_1/index.php I wonder what one out of those two specificly would be the better deal for me... i have to carry allot of stuff to / from work... rides will average 20 miles.... i lost a little so now i weigh in right around 250 lbs. If i pick one up... I will have to decide what to do with the tcr2... do i keep it for the group rides? attempt to sell it? I can pick up either one of the bikes above for about half what i paid for the tcr2!!!... man, if i only knew then what i know now!

DogBoy

First, figure out how you are going to use the new bike.

What conditions will you ride the new bike, vs going back to the mtn bike.
If you want to ride the new bike in all conditions, be sure it has clearences for wider tires and fenders.

Do you value stability over a quick-responsive ride?
A cross bike is more likely to be quick and responsive than a 520, but the 520 will be very predictable under heavy loads.

Barcons & Brakes vs brifters: if you brake-down, barcons are more easily, cheaply repaired/replaced than brifters.

Frame material. Will you ride in winter/salty roads? If so, more care will have to be given to a steel frame than an AL frame.

Riding style: do you hop curbs, drive over pot-holes etc. due to traffic, or ride the commute the same way you ride the road-bike? The cross bike will due better for harsher riding styles.

neither the 520 nor the xo-1 will be as quick feeling as your current roadie. You will have to work much harder to keep up on the club rides. If that is a problem, I'd keep the bike. If you get the xo-1 and you are fine with the extra effort, I'd strip the giant of its parts and sell the frame, keeping the brifters, der, wheelset etc. as spares. You could also swap wheels for commute duty vs club ride, with lighter smaller wheels for the club rides and heavier sturdier wheels for the commute.

Essentially its all about the trade-offs. Figure out what you really want to do with this bike, and how it will duplicate the functionality of your existing bikes. Then decide how to move forward. Also, consider other touring bikes and cross bikes than just trek. There's nothing wrong with trek, but if you know exactly what you want to use it for, there may be a cheaper option (like a Bianchi volpe). Best of luck to you.

KleinRider

You might want to check out Surly (for instance the Long Haul Trucker, or LHT as people around here like to refer to it). Basically, do what DogBoy says and decide "exactly" how you'll use it. (I know you can never know literally exactly how you'll use it, but certainly figure out what it's intended purpose is for the vast majority of the time.)

mcavana

wow, dog boy... that was an awesome reply! you really helped me put things into perspective! i think i am leaning more towards the cyclecross bike... i want to be able to be pretty rough with it with potholes and such... i think it would probably be important to have an aluminum (instead of steel) frame living in jacksonville, fl. Allot of my riding is done a block away from the beach... needless to say, rust runs rampid around here. i like the idea of being able to use bigger tires if i decide to... and with this particular bike, i would be happy with the components.... all pretty much 105's... I am not familiar with the brakes though.... i assume this other kind of brake is used to be able to work with bigger tires.... is there any disadvanteges to them as compared to the ultegras on my giant? my only other concern is the gearing... the cranks are 46/38 on the cyclecross.... on my tcr2 my cranks are 53/39... that is a pretty big difference.... but i really don't use the hardest 3 gears at all... so i guess it really wouldn't matter. this bike seems to be offering everything i am looking for... anyone familiar with these particular wheels? Alloy sealed hubs; Matrix Aurora rims? are these bullet proof like they should be on this kind of bike? keep in mind, i am a Fat Ass! One more thought... perhaps if i do get it, i should go right to adding disc brakes... would this be a good idea? would it be worth the trouble?

MichaelW

You should keep your road bike for fun and set your commuter bike up as you need to. Once you fit rack, fenders, lights and bombproof wheels, you will start to appreciate the stripped down lightness of a road bike.
I have a tourer like the 520, but I prefer a more responsive ride and long drop caliper brakes to cantelevers so I use a sport bike like the Soma ES If you for a Surly, consider the Cross Check as a livelier option to the LHT.
You can set the gearing however you chose. Compact doubles make a lot of sense. In flatland, a 1x9 system is often sufficient.

max-a-mill

singlespeeds make damn nice commuters as well! especially if your not in hilly country!

you'll save a bundle on the drivetrain, and you can really save down the road on maintenence!

i built a surly cross check out of a new frame, some used internet wheels, and compoents i had sitting around in my garage. whole thing cost me like 600-700 bucks. rides awesome and the only thing i ever have to do is pump up the tires, oil the chain, and occasionally mess with the brakes.

if you want aluminum and think this might appeal to you maybe check out a specialized langster.... i'd get them to put a more reasonable gear on there though! i run a 44x18 on a basically flat commute with a couple hills. i think they only run like 5-6 hundred???

mcavana

this sucks... the only cyclecross bike i have found so far with the ability to mount a rack is the biachi axis... it is a nice bike... but i am pissed that none of the other bikes i have seen are rack capable!!! (i am not talking about a rack that attaches just to the seat post... i am talking about a good rack mounted correctly that can carry plenty of weight) the only other cross bikes i have seen with fender compatability (like the cross check mentioned above) is steel... i have decided against steel. I never want to have to deal with rust.

dbg

I am not saying you don't need to clean a steel bike, but I've fished some very old bikes out of yards and garbage that looked rusted out. Almost all cases were just surface rust that cleaned up very nicely. I am amazed at how rust resistant CroMo bikes really are. Rust will be minor and insignificant compared to all the other pieces needing attention. Don't rule out steel. It's real.

solo

Do more reading before you rule out a steel frame. I'm on the coast and have used a Jamis Nova cyclocross for more than two years of weekday commuting with no sign of rust. It has rack eyelets front and rear, Avid cantilever brakes that accommodate wide tires (currently using 32mm), and came (in 2002) with Mavic T221 wheels...a very rugged 36 spoke set up that would be a good choice. It's also competetively priced and would probably let you keep your Giant for weekend rides.

urban rider

While riding to work today I noted several of the riders riding their road bikes with the thin tires. I wondered how they were able to get around the curbs, potholes and overall traffic. I have a 450 Trek with the fenders, rack, etc. If I want to go long distances I pull out the road bike. You need more than one bike.

huhenio

I find that comment offensive, we hillbillies like singlespeeds ...

true

-=(8)=-

When I got in from the rain, my only maintainance was
squirting the cow dung off with........a hose

jyossarian

I wouldn't worry about rust so much since a can of framesaver or equivalent sprayed liberally into the frame will keep it from rusting inside out. After a wet ride, just wipe the frame down. A steel ride may be more comfortable on crap roads and can be bent, re-welded, etc. The 520's wheels look better for everyday commuting and carrying loads, but I can't tell if it has braze-ons for fenders, front rack, etc. The riding position of both look uncomfortable for me, but I don't ride road bikes.