Jmmag805

I ride city streets , hills , and sometimes encounter gravel . I am trying to decide which is right for me. I don't really like the position of a road bike yet and much rather prefer a hybrid style .
Trek 7.3 trek 7.4 & to disc or not to disc
Tia

If suggesting other than trek I only have $500. I have trek credit so I can spend a bit more on a trek

Little Darwin

I like my 2011 7.3 FX for the gravel and crushed stone I ride.

Unless you plan to ride in the rain, I personally wouldn't pay the extra for disc brakes. I have ridden in the rain a few times, and do fine with rim brakes, but if I wanted to ride in the rain regularly, I would feel better with discs.

You should ride the 7.3 and 7.4 on surfaces similar to what you plan to ride, and see if you can feel a difference. If not, save your money and get the 7.3, if you do feel a difference, only you can tell if it is worth the extra money for you.

Jmmag805

Thanks for the help , I appreciate your input , I'm really considering buying a used 7.3 for $440 and saving for a road bike

elcruxio

If you do get the rim brake model, for the love of everything that is holy, get some better pads for it! The stock pads are a joke. Kool Stop or swisstop should work nicely

Wanderer

I think the 7.4 Disc, is the sweet spot in that line, and will hold resale should you decide to switch.

theveterans

Go with 7.4 non disc unless you live in rainy areas. Rim breaks on a light fast hybrid is more than enough on dry environments

Grey.

Just don't tell Wanderer that, in his mind disc brakes are so amazing they'll even cure cancer.

Wanderer

LOL - but you have to admit, disc brakes are the future, and you will never be able to buy them as cheaply, when buying new. Plus, the major manufacturers are putting top notch hydros on their mid lines now!

A plus, is that thy will never wear out rims, and new replacement discs and rotors are relatively cheap now. And, price will continue to come down.

And, they work, dry, wet, or snowy!

Aqua_Andy

Disc brakes are great if they are needed. For the vast majority of riders out there rim brakes are perfectly adequate and disc brakes are a solution looking for a problem. How many hybrid owners do you know have worn out a set of rims? I would bet out of all hybrids sold less than 1% will ever get ridden enough or in conditions that will wear out a set of rims in the lifetime of the bicycle. Disc brakes may be the future but only because the manufacturers marketing department are forcing the product on the industry.

elcruxio

Then again, the discs they are putting on these low end bikes really aren't worth the effort. Useable hydraulic starts at shimano deore at $100 a pair. Useable mechanic starts at avid BB7's which are also about $100 a pair with good cables & housings. An extremely good set of vees, kool stop pads and cables & housings on the other hand can be had at $60 a pair.

Also, if considering touring for example, 135mm rear wheel without a disc hub builds a stronger wheel. The front wheel is also always more durable than a disc wheel.

ColonelSanders

Not with the colour of the 2015 model.

Hopefully this problem will be corrected with the 2016 model which should be out in two months or so.

MRT2

You are not kidding. I am usually agnostic on color schemes, but I would hesitate on buying that color scheme. Don't really understand why a huge company like Trek can't come up with a better color scheme. FWIW, I was in my LBS looking at some of the new Jamis hybrids and noticed their color schemes looking rather generic and unattractive. When I asked, the owner of the bike shop didn't really have an explanation.

ColonelSanders

Yeah the current Jamis range seems to have regressed for 2015, hopefully they will sort themselves out with their 2016 models.

steve_cay

I love my hydraulic disc brakes, I admire the feel and stopping every time I use them!

And everybody knows that Carbon Black and Butadiene (used in making rubber) are listed carcinogens! So perhaps Wanderer is right about the health benefits of switching to metalic pads

Raivyn

This is good advice.

If you think you might want disc brakes, get a bike that already has them. Forget this talk about it not raining enough or stopping power; even if others believe you don't "need" them. If you think you want them, price wise it will be much more expensive to add them later, and the bike will have better resale value on the used market if you decide to sell.

They won't be the best disc brakes out there, but upgrading to hydraulics is quite easy. I switched mine to Shimano XT on my Trek FX 7.3 disc for only the cost of the calipers and levers because they used the same size rotors.

Jazz00

This is the one reason I am not buying 7.4fx disc. It looks so boring

Jmmag805

I'm going to wait till July 4th and see what sales they have , also the 2016 colors are ugly only a orange and a white ����

looking at a cyclocross - crossrip

Jmmag805

Averaging 20 miles on my current bike , really thinking of getting the crossrip or 7.4

dgunay

Do you know what are the new colors of 2016 FX 7.3 and 7.4?

I would love to buy an orange FX instead of ugly matte blue escape

If you already have Trek credit, i would buy nothing but Trek.

Jmmag805

They guy showed me a white and a orange 2016 , I rather have a flat black . The green and grey ok

yashinon

Crossrip looks sweet!

Jmmag805

They don't have them at my lbs , I'm going to wait till jul 4th sale and either get a black 7.4 or crossrip