Here's the bike I got for Christmas--a KHS CX300.

Aluminum frame, SRAM Rival drivetrain, FSA crank, carbon fork and seat post, Avid Shorty 4 brakes, 2x10 gears, Mavic rims, etc.... I really like it, it is way nicer than my 20 year old mountain bike.

Sweet!

Smooth...

You must have been very good or very bad last year.....

Need pic of drivetrain side, against garage door, valve stems hidden behind fork/stays, etc...

Otherwise, seems pretty schweet!

Is there a forum rule regarding the aesthetics of a bike picture that I'm breaking?

Anyway, I'm left-handed so it's entirely natural for me to point my bike from right to left rather than from left to right, hence the orientation noted in my non-professional photo.....

It is a pretty fun ride, I just wish I was over this cold and it wasn't freezing outside so I could ride it, LOL!

That looks like loads of fun. Please provide road reports and pictures.

Ha, not forum rules, just aesthetic guidelines. Some are more picky than others, but I consider it at least a bare minimum to show off the side of the bike that has all the bits on it. Otherwise, it's like watching last night's season premiere of Justified -- naked women flouncing around and you only get to see butts! (I have to confess though, the butts (and the butt-side of your bike) still look pretty good...)

Very nice!!!!

My bike is shy, it's teasing you by just hinting at "the goods".

Nice tie-in with the season opener of Justified, though--I thoroughly enjoy that show! The butts the other night weren't half bad, IMO.....

So far, I've only gotten a chance to ride it a few miles due to weather and having a cold.

My preliminary take on it is that the SRAM shifters take a bit of getting used to, but they are not hard to figure out, and after a short ride, shifting seems pretty natural. Shifts are very fast and accurate, even when being shifted while putting some "oomph" on the pedals. It rides nice and smooth--I didn't feel a lot of road vibration being transmitted to my arms/butt, probably due to the CF fork and seat post. The Avid Shorty 4's stop the bike well and are easy to modulate.

I'll probably trade out the knobby tires that came on the bike for a set of straight road tires because I'm primarily going to use it on the street for general getting around and commuting. I'm looking for something with good puncture resistance and low rolling resistance. Anybody got any good advice on that front? Continental Gatorskins seem to get high marks for both, but I'm amenable to alternative suggestions, especially less expensive ones, LOL!

There is no end of tire discussion threads in the commuter forum. "I want a tire that is light and fast and responsive and comfortable and 100% flat proof in goathead country, and oh yeah, I want to pay only $9.99. A pair". It's too many conflicting goals, this tire doesn't exist. You gotta choose at least a couple goals to compromise on.

I can't quite tell, but your tires don't look all that knobby, many would prefer a tire like that for commuting: wider = lower pressure = more comfortable = better for commuting. For flat protection, my choice is Mr Tuffy liners. $15 for a set (which is less than the extra cost of effective flat protection built-in to a tire) and they can move from tire to tire.

The tires that are on the bike now are 700 x 35 Kenda small block 8 folding tires.

I don't live in goathead country, but some of the streets I ride on have a fair bit of broken glass to dodge and some rough surfaces. Flat protection was my bigger concern than having a "fast" tire, so the liners would certainly do the trick for me. Good call, that, and thanks for the advice. Guess I'll be calling my LBS to see if they have any in stock....

Don't really see many KHS bikes over here ... quite a few emblems too many emblems for my taste.

But interesting, none the less ... love to hear about your tires.

I run cheap 23-622 coloured Kendas on one bike and they seem OK so far for £5 a tire!

They do seem to be rather proud of their company name, don't they? I did see a few spots that they failed to cover in "KHS" logos, though

As far as tires, I decided to look up the set that came with the bike on Amazon.com, and they seem to have good customer ratings, so that's cool. Normally, I'd expect a manufacturer to cheap out on the tires, but these seem like they'll do what I need them to, especially once I get a set of liners to protect against broken glass and such.

Yes, Kenda sells a wide range of tire qualities. I have the impression the small block 8 is a fairly decent cyclocross tire.

For what its worth I have had very good luck with my Gatorskins in terms of puncture resistance. Not a flat since I put them on my bike (knock on wood) and I have run over plenty of glass, etc. They are not cheap, and there are tires with better grip out there, but all tires have a compromise. You can find deals online, and my LBS actually price matched an online price I found.