So i ordered a 25" Trek 7.3 fx from the LBS last weekend and was told it would be ready today. I get a message today saying that Trek is "out" of the 7.3 in a 25" and it'll be until August before they can get one. they have plenty of the 7.2, but i really don't want that bike as i don't think it's quite the value of the 7.3. needless to say, i'm pissed and disappointed.

so, is there another bike comparable to the 7.3 fx by another company? i know someone recommended the jamis coda in another thread. i'm just worried about being able to find something else in a 25" that i won't have to wait another month to get.

thanks in advance.
--Matt

sorry 'bout that. sucks.

But at least you now have the chance to make a better decision, which is what I'd gauge the Jamis Coda to be.

There have been a number of threads of late asking about deciding between these bikes. Hopefully you'll find a useful one if you do a quick search.

Good luck.

Will they be willing to upgrade the components to those of the 7.3?

Look for something in the Coda line up. They are much better bikes than the Trek to begin with.

thanks for the feedback. one problem with the coda is that they don't make a 25".

i'm going to 1.) see if the shop will upgrade all the components or 2.) see if the 7.3 FX Disk is available in the 25".

I know this is the time of year where Trek (among others) has ceased production of the 2007's and is getting ready to roll out the 2008 bikes. You might check around at other bike shops that carry Trek if you really want the 7.3. If I remember correctly the 7.2 has totally different gearing than the the 7.3; you might also look for a deal on a 7.5.

Peekay,
the problem with the 7.5 is that they don't make it in a 25". any idea when the 2008s come out? i want to get something soon before the summer's over.

I'm with Peekay on this one.

Go to the Trek website and look for other dealers in your area. Call and ask them if they have one, or ask your LBS if they can find you one in the dealer network.

We found my son's bike that way. Drove 50 miles one way, but he got what he wanted. And since it was a year end model, the got a deal on the price.

Giant FCR...

well, i called the LBS yesterday to speak with the manager and he said they were indeed out of the 7.3 FX. i asked if he could check another store in another part of the country and he said he would. he called back two hours later and said he found one (in california) and it'll be in tomorrow or thursday. i guess he had to buy it from another store, as this is an LBS.

i suspect he was trying to get me to buy the one 7.2 they had left in the store because he didn't want to pay to have the 7.3 shipped to DC from cali. could this have been the case? i don't want to think i was getting jerked around.

If your LBS is going to pay for shipping, it'll seriously pwn his bottomline. Food for thought.

He wanted to sell you inventory he had on hand. When he realized that it was either get you the 7.3 or lose a customer he did the right thing.

Good for you, Phil. It pays to insist upon what you want. Congrats on the new bike and I hope you have miles and miles of fun on it.

Call a few other stores. My wife had her heart set on a 16" Trek 3700 in Purple. The LBS said "sorry, Trek is out of purple, I'll get my Trek rep on the horn and see what we can do" so we milled around the store and he came out and said "Trek sold out of the purple ones at the factory, we can back order one but they aren't even made yet so it could be a few weeks, if you want you can pay for it now and we'll call you to pick it up when it's in".
We said "uhh we'll think about it."
Went to another trek dealer, they had many purple 3700's in stock in many sizes. We asked the manager there about the "shortage" and he said "what are you talking about? we've had no problem getting purple ones..."

i wonder if it would do any good to call them on it, in a humorous way. say something like, "having a hard time getting rid of that 7.2, eh?"

i'm more inclined to say, "thanks for trying to screw me with the floor model."

I don't really think they were trying to screw you. The store did not have what you wanted. They could not get one from the manufacturer. They offered you the next best thing that they had.

I believe that happens in all business channels every day between supply houses, manufacturers, distributors, retailers, even over dinner between momma and the kiddies.

Besides, they did make the effort to find you one when you assured them that is what you really wanted and would not be satisfied with less.