Trying to find a decent bike for my friend for under a grand, came across the listing in Flagstaff and I think we're about to 'pull the trigger'. Only thing is I don't know much about Fetish frames..I understand that they're made in Taiwan but so is everything else right? Anyone have an opinion on these bikes? Are they good enough for training rides?

Here is a link to the bike

https://flagstaff.craigslist.org/bik/1055546368.html

Here is a link to the frame on the Fetish website

https://www.fetishcycles.com/road/penna/index.html


Any feedback is much appreciated

- Tariq

I had considered one of their modestly priced Alum frames a few years ago. So when I had the opportunity to see one up close, I asked the rider what he thought of it.

I got out of him that the build quality was acceptable and that the ride was "about what you'd expect for an all-alum frame". A very mediocre review. I got the impression it was a bit harsh riding, but that can be subjective.

Based on this, I would think it would be fine for your intended purpose. Someone with direct experience might be able to give you a more definitive answer.

Now I do not know anything about fetish frames but I figure if its a rather new aluminum frame, how bad can it possibly be? I currently ride a 2004 Felt F35 with basically that same build, 7700 Dura ace and Ksyriums. I baught it for 800 on ebay and I consider it a very good deal. Now your build does come with better bar/stem and a newer frame so I say go for it.

DURA Ace 9 or 10 would be the deal maker or breaker.
@ 1g okay price for a D/A 10 bike, way too high for a d/A 9.

So in real dollars, how much is that extra gear worth? And/or what other improvements in D/A 10 (or 11) are worth paying extra, maybe lots extra?

I watch CL and ebay for Campy and Shimano 9 speed b/c it's fine for me, and usually goes really cheap.

The color scheme and components on the bike look pretty good. As mentioned above, it will probably be an average ride for an aluminum bike. You can always move everything over to a different frame later. I have Fetish's carbon fiber frame and it rides real nice.

I've got a Penna. It's an awesome crit bike. It's incredibly stiff, and with a Reynolds Ouzo Pro fork on it (43mm rake) it handles very tightly. It's also cheap and if you drop it, it's not like you are killing a $10,000 Colnago.

The downsides, the stickers come off (well okay that might be a plus for some). The finish is average and I needed a good amount of work to chase/face the BB and align the RD hanger when I first assembled the bike.

The other downside is this is not a bike for all day rides. After 2-3 hours on it, it would feel like I'd had 10 rounds of Mike Tyson belting me in the kidneys.

Cool thanks for the feedback guys, I think we're gonna go for it, it seems to suit his needs as of right now, like palesaint said if he wants to upgrade in the future all he will really need to do is get a carbon frame

I have a Fetish TT frame, the belleza with sram red/force on it, it flies and the customer service from that shop is outstanding.

Only thing I can say is son's GF has one of their Mt. Bike frames and it was a great deal and a very nice bike.