Duo

Trek 2200 Road Bike, carbon seat stays???

this is an older bike in good condition, appears to not have been ridden much. any ideas on the durability of this machine, any likes/dislikes.

znomit

Carbon seat stays were the style at the time. Often the riders would tie an onion to their belt, which was the style at the time. Kids these days on their fancy mono material bikes don't even wear belts. You have to wonder what keeps their pants up when they have no belts? And where do they put their onions? Don't trust em.

rpenmanparker 

How do you breathe with your head under the sand like that?

grizzly59

I have an all aluminum 2200, great shape, nice ride, 300 frogskins on craigslist. I had to put in a new freehub at $21 and a new cone in the rear wheel (from the parts box). Triple on the front is great, lots of hills here. If you inspect the carbon parts with a magnifier and all is good, why not if you like the bike. How much they want, how much you offer?

Duo

they are asking 275, in barely used shape. not too eager to buy used carbon though.

the bike is a 56 size and i ride 54, a bit of a stretch for me and that is another issue. been looking for an aluminum road bike as what i ride now is a steel trek touring bicycle.

Steve B.

I doubt you’d have problems with this design and you might have signs of damage if it had been crashed, scrape on the paint, etc... the whole carbon seat stay glued to an otherwise aluminum or titanium frame, was to leverage the feel of carbon and supposed shock absorption.

But it might be too big and swapping stems to get it to fit only works to a point. My rule of thumb is I can adjust down to a 55, or up to a 56, smaller or larger then that doesn’t work, I’ve tried it and I know.

rpenmanparker 

Wrong size is a much bigger problem than carbon.

Duo

the appeal of these bikes is the Ultrega components at a skimpy used price. the LBS suggested a stem swap for a better fit, but thought it may be a tough find.

coming from steel road bikes to this thing, seems to be like going from a chevy to a sports car. in the end, probably an aluminum bike of some kind may be a good step forward on days when i have a need for speed.

Duo

probably; and being used, well they said no returns.

i picked up a used Schwinn Aer Dyne bike while shopping last nite at the LBS, one size fits all on that thing. it was the original steel tank from the 80's. now no more spring down periods on the road from winter's debilitating effects.

edit: found this remark online of someone who tested carbon stays: carbon stays are the cycling equivalent of the emperors new clothes, as he found no value in them, and most do not.

thanks all, back to testing simple medium priced used all aluminum bikes! if only the CAAD 10 was more affordable.

rpenmanparker 

Well, as Tevya would (loosely) say (in reverse), "Carbon stays are no great honor, but they aren't any shame either."

If that bike fit, it would be a fine choice for the price.

Duo

the price was more than right for a LBS, it looked like a bike owned by a poser who didn't ride. it is hard to find higher end bicycles in the midwest used. currently i have a steel 9 speed touring bicycle and would like to move into 9 or 10 speed aluminum. staying away from bleeding edge tech has always paid rewards for me personally and 9 speeds are more than sufficient for this Flatland.

thanks for the advice. something will eventually show up.

exmechanic89

'Wrong size is a much bigger problem than carbon'.

^This is exactly like I feel. The too-large size would make it a no-go for me..

a1penguin

I still have my 2003 Trek 2200. I had zero trouble with it; shifting is great for old Ultegra. When I got the 2012 Ultegra, it didn't seem all that different to me (well, the 2200 is triple, the Synapse a compact double). What felt different was the frame. I test rode a number of carbon fiber bikes and they all felt snappier than the Trek. But it's still a great bike!

IIRC, the 2200 had carbon fork but not seat stays.

Beware that sizing can be different with old school horizontal top tube bikes and ones with sloping top tubes. I recommend test riding it before purchasing, otherwise pass.

What year 2200 is this bike? I think it's a great bike for $275. Quality components, nice ride. But it really needs to fit.

jfh

I still regularly ride my 2004 2200 (carbon fork and seat stays) as a commuter. The frame/components have held up well, the low-spoke wheels developed some cracks on the rims, so I replaced those a few years ago.

Duo

thanks all. well i should know better: Yes a bike Should fit. but the price and Ultrega components turned my head. Really would like to have an aluminum high end bike with 105 or ultrega on days when there is a 'need for speed'. other days the steel Trek touring bike is more than just good.

don't know what year it is, just a 9 speed and yellow. the low spoke count on the wheels turns me off, if i bought this thing new, then there is no excuse not to build a more durable wheel.

that Should Not happen.

if you pay for a high end bicycle, the wheels should at least last a life time. my high spoke count wheels do; sounds like these aero wheels are somewhat ripoff wheels. making wheels that are durable isn't Rocket Science???

anyway, thanks all: Bicycle Fit should be number one and then look at the price.

Edit: i don't trust myself with a Carbon Frame. over tighten something and crack the frame, uh, no thanks, give me steel or aluminum, and leave the high end carbon for the real athletes and the Cash Crowd.

rpenmanparker 

Where did you get the absurd notion that longevity is an important characteristic of a bicycle. Hardly anything lasts a lifetime, and bicycles aren't even good candidates for that from the outset. If you polled the participants here, you would find a large percentage for whom longevity doesn't even register. Bikes, like automobiles, are made to be used up. Bikes have the advantage over cars of lending themselves to updating and upgrading, but they are not intended to last forever. Frames can go on for many, many years, but the components just wear out. That includes wheels.

As for wheels specifically you couldn't be more wrong. Wheels are consumable items, expected to be replaced when the brake track wears out. Even a wheel for disk brakes will likely eventually need to be replaced due to rim damage from one too many encounters with pot holes, curbs, etc.

Low spoke count wheels are not for everyone, but the pleasure gotten from riding them far outweighs the costs associated with replacing them. And low spoke count wheels are not more prone to rim cracking than high spoke count wheels providing properly specified rims are used for the build.

Duo

rpenmanparker you may have a point.

longevity is an important characteristic of a bicycle to me. where i live, bicycles tend to be decades old. both of my Road Bicycles are Touring bikes and Cromoly steel to make sure they keep running for 50 years or so. My Trek 620 touring bike (32 years old) seems to be even more durable than my Fuji 9 speed. it still has original wheels, spokes, derailleurs, but i did have to replace the brake pads.

low spoke count just seems to be a Golden Invitation to some kind of disaster, it made me shudder just reading about the cracked wheels on a Trek 2200. we ride Tandem bicycles too, again solid Cromoly steel with the Schwinn Duosport name on them, they ride great and i can easily fix them. why would i buy something that would not easily last 20 or 30 years including the wheels and deraileurs.

>>>damage from one too many encounters with pot holes, curbs, etc.

our rural county roads don't have many 'pot holes' and they sure don't bother installing curbs. we do have ditches though.

this is a good set of wheels if my touring wheels ever break: Vuelta Corsa HD 11-Speed Road Wheelset Vuelta Corsa HD 11-Speed Road Wheelset - Nashbar wasn't able to paste the picture in on this.

36 14-gauge stainless spokes laced 3x (both front and rear) creates a super-strong wheel. that is my kind of wheel, the kind that if a spoke breaks, you may not even notice it for awhile. and it may not even be fixed for months of longer. my Fuji Touring bicycle has a broken spoke, but it will still ride ok till i bother to do something.

doubt the wheels on the 2200 could say that.

>>>Low spoke count wheels are not for everyone, but the pleasure gotten from riding them far outweighs the costs associated with replacing them.

well i guess not for me. they seem like something that would be hard to true and expensive to repair. the only value of planned Obsolescence and non durable components seems to be to manufacturers. most of us really don't like constantly buying new stuff to fix all the failing old stuff.

rpenmanparker 

We all have our beliefs.

a1penguin

https://www.bicyclebluebook.com/sear....aspx?id=35689

You can find info if you google "2001 Trek 2200".

It looks like that is a 2001. $275 does not seem unreasonable if the bike is in excellent condition.

Duo

true. it's a fraction of the 1680 new price; excellent condition. but it does not fit, the handlebars to far forward. the standover is fine. it has the older handle bars that don't refit easily.