I was looking at Fuji - based on Bicycling magazine buyers guide they are stiff and light - as a new bike for later this year or spring. My LBS didn't have much good to say - not durable he said and didn't recommend at all. Seems to be pushing Opus, Trek and Giant. I currently ride a used Opus Allegro and really like it, but the fit is just not exactly right. I've got about $2,500 to $3,000 to spend, so doing my homework over next 2-3 months for a new ride. Apparently I can save a few dollars by placing an order in September/October for next year. Anyone riding a Fuji and how do you like it? It is fair to request my LBS order in a Fuji so I can try it? They normally don't carry that line of bikes.

For those of you riding a 15-16lb bike - how does that hold up when you hit a pothole?

I'm looking for something stiff and light - without breaking the bank. I'm 5'9", 190lbs (down from 205) and hopefully dropping another 10 lbs. I plan to ride about 3,000km per year and the roads are a bit rough in spots. No serious racing but I do train hard and our club has weekly TT and road races. Any advice on best brands in the $2,500 to $3,000 range? I thought the Fuji fit the bill nice.

Thanks,

Fuji's are fantastic bikes. Probably more bang for your buck than Trek, Giant et al because they don't have the populor brand to drive mass sales. I love my Fuji Roubaix Pro...it's a quality classical road machine, light, stiff and professionally built.

And the best part....I know there aren't 2000 other sheep out there riding it. Trek, Giant and Specialized bikes are absolutely everywhere, but I've yet to see another Fuji in my area.

Do your home work. I do know that the old fujis were beyond nice know a guy who road the same one for 20 years original owner of the bike. And it took getting hit directly from behind to trash the bike. Crushed the rear triangle. His was obviously steel.

In your price range you got litterly every brand known to man open to you so you have plenty o homework to do. Pick out say 5 to 10 bikes various models and brands and maybe get a test ride on each. Then research them all online as well as asking multiple bike shops in yur area what they recomend for your price range.

Do all that and you should find a bike that you will love and will also be a good one for what you want to do. If you dont race still get one that can be upgraded to race worthyness just in case.

I have a Fuji track bike and have ridden several. They are nice bikes with a good ride - not too stiff and handles well. One word of caution - they are sized differently than most. They are measured from center of the bottom bracket to the top of the seatpost. Most frames are measured to the center or top of where the top and seat tube join (either C-C or C-T). So a 58 cm Fuji fits more like a 56 cm for most manufacturers.

If your LBS doesn't carry that brand, it's no wonder they are pushing ones they currently have in stock. My advice is try and test ride several different brands. For that amount of money you should get a relatively high end Dura-Ace equipped bike, especially at this time of year when new models are coming out shortly.

The main difference with bike weight in terms of durability are wheels. A 15-16 lb bike likely has lightweight rims with low spoke count. They will not hold up like moderately deep rims (like Velocity or Mavic CXPs) or standrad box rims, both built with 32 spokes. With your weight, you are probably pushing the limits for light weight wheels.

have heard almost nothing but good things about Fuji....

the lbs wants to sell you a bike and since they are a trek/giant dealer they won't be singing praise about fuji....

I almost bought a Fuji, well actually I did last fall. It was their tandem though. I have heard great things about them. I ended up with a Giant this year due to a huge closeout deal.

If you are patient, keep an eye out towards the fall. Fuji slashes prices in the fall to dump the year's models. that is how we picked up our Tandem. It is basically a big closeout until stock is gone. We got lucky since tandems aren't as popular. Other models sell out fast.

-D

Which model were you looking at?
Not durable? Was he referring to the frame, components, wheelsets?
I have two Fujis - 05 Team Issue framset built with Ultegra 10sp and Ksyrium SSLs and an entry level Newest, used as my rain/commuter/beater. I have about 3k on the Newest and 2k on the Team Issue without any problems. The Team Issue is stiff and light (around 17#).

I have an 06 Fuji Team Pro. Great bike.

I expect you COULD say that Fuji's aren't "reliable" if you're talking in terms of lifetimes.

All super light AL bikes are suspect but we haven't seen a lot of failures yet. That doesn't mean they won't occur but don't worry about your Fuji falling apart within it's warranty period.

My brother picked up a Newest frame somewhere and gave it to me. I built it up into a bike and it rides REALLY nice. As you can see from my .sig I have some pretty good bikes but the Fuji rides second best.

Friend of mine just bought a lightly used Fuji on ebay and we took it out for its first ride on Monday morning. Light, quick, good handling machine. Looked well built and solid.

Snapped up this '04 Team Issue Frame/Forkset late last winter...built on Ultegra 9spd.



It's been a very light, quick and responsive bike thus far. I feel it's a fairly aggressive riding position as I would prefer the head tube to be .5cm taller, but not a big deal really. Some arm fatigue on rides of 80 miles or longer but it's quite bearable. Carbon stay does help to take some bite out of rough roads. I've seen four Fuji's since I got this one and only one was at this level...it was a Fuji Professional.

Have an '05 fuji team sl... I've crashed it once rather hard and it held up without flinching (had the frame measured and checked out by two different mechs). Love this bike.

I have a 2004 Fuji Team SL. When driving to Utah, the bike came off the roof rack and bounced down the freeway at 75 mph.

I was sick to my stomach. The fork, handlebars, brake levers, and saddle were gone. Amazingly, the rest of the bike was fine.

I bought a new fork in Salt Lake City and ordered the rest of the parts overnight from Performance. Here's a photo of the bike after installing all the new parts.



I have put about 16,000 miles on the bike so far, no problems.

Wow! Beautiful view to ride on your trainer. It sure beats my view of looking at junk in my garage.

Not durable? Is there really any major manufacturer today that is not durable? Fuji has been making bikes for 100 years. I'm sure whatever you buy for 2-3K will hold up just fine. If I heard a bike shop employee tell me a manufacturer wasn't durable, I'd probably walk out.

I have an 05 Team Pro and love it. I ride at least 4 days a week and recently it has been racing 2-3 times a week too. I'm not easy on bikes and this one has held up nicely. I'm planning on picking another one up in the winter.

My '01 Fuji Team is still going strong, after 10,000 miles +/-. It's currently at 16.4 lbs., race ready with a mix of Ult/105 9sp, tubulars and an Easton Superlite fork. This year it was relegated to back-up, foul-weather, criterium duty as I've moved on to another bike. However, when my new, carbon/aluminum frame failed, the Fuji was still there for me.

I would say it probably IS too much to ask your LBS to order a fuji bike just for you to try out if he doesn't sell Fuji's... he isn't going to get a dealer break on it and probably would really try to get out of it any way he could.

Now, if you said "I'll buy it no matter what" then yea he can prolly order the bike for you.

Rock

Good point. I didn't read the OPs post clearly and overlooked that the LBS is not a Fuji dealer.

Go find another LBS that is a Fuji dealer or try out a Madone 5.2 or TCR Composite 1 from the LBS. For $3k, that's well within your budget.

Here's my 05 Roubaix Pro:

I have an 05 Roubaix, LOVE IT. It is my racing bike, and I couldnt love it more! I can name 3 local teams all sponsored by FUJI, they all have Fuji's and LOVE THEM, they have mostly the 2-3k ones, the team models and what not. They are beautiful bikes for sure. I would go with a fuji if I was you, I think trek is just a name, all the big names are just names, and the prices follow accordingly. Fuji is a great bike for a great price. I think some of the less expensive Fuji's look nicer than the Treks! FUJI all the way. dooo it.

Quite a coincidence. I was just at a bike store looking at a Fuji Newest 2.0. I haven't ridden it yet, but it's MSRP is $700, and they have it on sale for $600. I may test ride it later this week. This must be an omen.

I have an 04 Newest WSD, 54 cm. It's aluminum with 105 components, and I LOVE IT! It's the first road bike I've ever had, but when I'm in the market for a new one, I'll definitely be looking at Fuji again. Maybe a carbon one this time...

Was looking at the Fuji Team SL - a 15lb bike MSRP $2,370 US - it just seems like a nice light bike at a reasonable cost. Thanks for the comments. I figured the bikes had to be great bikes.

I just bought my FUJI NEWEST 1 month ago - '05 leftover at the LBS for $600 US
Great price for a $900 list - I have put about 300/mi on her so far and no problems whatsoever!
I am far a small guy - 230# and the wheels are true even on these Boston suburban streets full of potholes!