hyperRevue

In response to the fork rake I assume.
Well, 28mm was a rough estimate that I came up with in the following manner.
I currently have the fork off my friend's Windsor sitting on my mantle along side a Soma fork (which by the way is for sale). Soma's website says their fork's rake is 28mm and when I compare the Soma fork to the Windsor fork, they look fairly even.
Definitely within a few mm.

ZappCatt

BikesDirect IS the mfgr of the Motobecane, Windsor and Mercier bikes. They bought those names, and either buy extras from other companies(KHS/Fuji) or have built their frames in Taiwan. Therefore they can set whatever they want as the MSRP. They sell these bikes through bikesdirect.com, and a couple of eBay stores(sprtymama, bikesdirectbikes, etc)

On their road frames, they often include some good components, but I guess here on the Track side they can get away with lower quality parts.

If the fork is actually 28mm, I definatley am going to put this back on the potential list.

rlgosa

first of all, post # 14 says it best i think. I just got one of these recently for $309 off ebay thinking I would use it as a winter beater. The comment about the rear hub being junk is true in my opinion. The bearings are about as smooth as the cheapest shot of scotch. The threads on the rear hub are paper thin leaving too much room for stripping . . . . in fact, when I took it for the initial test ride, the cog slipped within the first 10 peddle strokes. Bad news. Sure it would last a little while but who wants to risk that. As for the other components, front wheel sealed and ok, rims are blah, crankset is cheap but could work for a while, stem is ugly, badly welded garbage, headset and BB will only last a short time (very low quality) and the seatpost is fine I guess. Now for the frame and fork. The fork is a cheap, run of the mill, low rake track fork. It's fine I guess. I replaced it with a generic straightblade from Bikeworks NYC. I am pretty happy with the frame though. It's nice and stiff, pretty tight (short wheelbase) and with the straightblade handles pretty well. I believe that it is a cheaper version of the Fuji track. Anyone who buys one should pay close attention to the sizing chart (they run small) and expect to upgrade at least some of the components. Cheers.

orand

What would you guys say a fair price would be for one of these Windsor Hour frames used?

clipped

if it's anything like my daily rider mercier....take it all apart immediately, grease everything, throw the tires away, then work on gearing, seat and riding position. very reliable, fun fast commuter...and easier to hike up and down stairs than anything i've got.
do all that, then just ride it.
top tube got a little ding when my other commuter, a fixed raleigh grand prix attacked it out of spite. the old won.

hyperRevue

DW laid it down.

koyman

An aside re: The Hour -

The moving description of the bike ends with "Can you beat Eddy's time?"

Unless I am thoroughly mistaken as to what the hour actually is, this makes no sense.
Thoughts?

chicagoamdream

Ha! Good eye. Yes, that makes no sense.

I don't know what we'd talk about on BF if these auctions weren't so ridiculous. They're so long and they're generally misleading, but it seems like, after a lot of research, people still buy them. Do they really need to claim that they have an MSRP of $800? Has anyone ever just bought anything because the MSRP was higher than the selling price?

Do they really need to put Motobecane, Mercier, and Windsor stickers on these things?

It seems like they would sell just as many, without all of the confusion, if they just sold it as a "Generic Track Bike, Good Frame, Decent Components." There are plenty of actual positive testimonials from people who ride these that they could use, rather than reviews of other bikes that they drop on the auction page.

tlupfer

I can at least match it.

ZappCatt

DW, I am hoping to get into track riding/racing.

There are not many budget/affordable track bikes out there. I would love to fly to your house and have you make me a custom frame to my specs, but it ain't going to happen.

Many of the track forums that I have found online are lacking in information for a beginner regarding track bikes/frames. This ss/fg forum is the best I have found for talking about these bikes, but as you can see, the majority of participants are of the messenger/fixie conversion crowd.

At this time the current crop of bikes that I have found in my price range are the Windsor/Motobecane/Mercier line, the Bianchi Pista, the Fuji Track, Specialized Langster and the KHS 100.

Many people say that the Windsor is the same frame as the fuji, and with the "track fork rake, I am guessing that they are using Fuji's geometry. I was checking to make sure that they were not throwing a cheap road fork on there.

The Specialized langster is more of a messenger bike with it's slack angles and road fork rake.

The IRO bikes are out of the price range, and are geared more for the messenger crowd.

The Pista was my #1 choice, but people have said it's wheels need an instant upgrade..so I could get the Windsor and a set of IRO Deep V's for the same price as the Pista before the upgraded wheels....

I hope that explains where I am coming from.....
Oh yeah, I am 6'3" 210 with a 36" inseam...so I need a large frame..not many available on eBay/CL.

ZappCatt

DW, Thanks for continuing the discussion. I actually am very interested in your opinion and am not trying to be snide or rude.

I would LOVE to get a used bike. I have contacted local riders, been to the local stores, but have had no luck so far. I "need" a track bike with a 60cm top tube(the Pista actually is a little short, but a slightly longer stem could be made to work) I would be interested in looking at bikes from 58+ I guess(beggers can't be choosers.)

Hellyer rents bikes for the beginners sessions. I have done 2 of them. The first one on a Langster(newest bikes in their fleet) and this past weekend on an OLD Bianchi(seemed more stable..though that could have been the fact that I was more comfortable).

They do NOT allow their rental bikes to be raced. Most training sessions(not beginners sessions) do not rent bikes.

I originally started looking for a classic roadie to convert to fixie for off season FG workouts, but after realising the costs associated(and inability to ride on some tracks) I thought it would be better to get a (cheap)track rideable bike to make sure that I enjoy this sport. I hope to take advantage of as many rideable track days as I can before the season starts up, while mild we do get a fair bit of winter rains which mean a closed track.

The Pista is my current 1st option if I can not find anything cheaper(that is still safe). It lists for $550 and with a brake and second cog for riding on streets It looks like it will come out to about $650 which is a the top end of my "entry level" track bike budget.

Thanks again for all you suggestions and continued participation in this discussion.

EDIT: I am hoping to make it to your bike show up here. Will make sure I take some towels to take care of the drool.... ;-)

ZappCatt

Cool, thanks!!!!
Truly appreciated!!!!!

Joe Dog

This has been a helpful thread. I was interested in these bikes, too. But then I asked about shipping - they want $200 to get this up to Anchorage. I know that's a long way, but no way am I going to get soaked for that kind of shipping. I'll pass.

mattface 

Yes I'm pretty sure I can do a 45 minute hour.

rwan

i guess i'm playing the devil's advocate.



the hour arrived at my door about 3 days ago. i am actually quite pleased with it. i think this thing is perfect for those of us who stay on the roads. if you're a commuter/everyday rider, you can't go wrong-- especially for only 330.00.

look, the components may suck, but they are very servicable. i mean, it's not like the city streets aren't exactly the appropriate place to be pushing around super aggressive, lightweight frames full of CF and high-dollar parts. the wheelset leaves some to the imagination, cranks, BB, headset, etc. are definately cheapies... but who cares? i mean, we're taking these things to the streets, people. we're talking rain, snow, dirt, gravel, cars, curbs, and life in general. if components wear out along the way, you can replace them easy with higher quality parts. hell, if you're like me, you all probably already have some nicer, spare parts lying around the apt. in the meantime, the hour is cheap and fun, you won't cry if it gets stolen, and it'll get you where you're going.

you all are snobs. neener neener neener.





i put on a brand new brooks saddle, my 36cm chopped horns, look CF post, and a 19t surly cog.




one thing you HAVE to do if you get this bike is replace the cog + lockring. all the other components are functional, but the cog/ring definately have to go.

jamey

i completely agree. as soon as i got the bike i took it apart and greased everything and gave it a full service and after almost a year of riding it everyday the only problem i've had is breaking a spoke. i keep up on the repacking of bearings and all that maintance stuff and i think it's the reason it's treating me right. if you are willing to put time into your bike and don't have a bunch of money to spend on a bike then i totally suggest purchasing this bike.

hyperRevue

To me, that's all the more reason to have nice, quality parts that can hold up to such conditions.
That said, as you can see in my previous posts, I am not against this bike at all.
Just want people to know what to expect.

cogsci

i bought the mercier of some guy on craigslist. He had put some nice continental gatorskins on and a NOS rolles san marco titino saddle I paid 300$ and it was mint. I think he was a little scared to ride fixed in chi.
I put a front brake on cause i am a *****.
Hears the deal, it is exactly the same bike as the KHS (I have compared them side by side).
You decide what it is worth to you.
I am happy at the price i paid.
I am ridding the stock wheels, and for a rider as heavy as i am (200 lbs) they have held up pretty well for ridding round chicago.
Not the best, but not the worst and do you really want the best on ****ty streets?

chicagoamdream

Hells yes.

herst

https://www.fixedgeargallery.com/2005...he_comcast.htm

My heart kind of sank when I read his description. On the bike, I have no opinion, but just wanted to point out that that marketing style does seem to be somewhat effective.

geraldatwork

Just for everybodies info I purchased a Windsor bike from bikesdirect via ebay. It is a better model,the Kennett which is an aluminum frame with carbon fork and stays and Ultegra 10 speed set up and Ritchey for the other stuff. The wheels are Shamino R-550 which I didn't like (they roll like they are riding in mud and arrived slightly out of true) and replaced with Velocity Areoheads with titanium spokes. I found BD reasonable to deal with. They answered all my email questions promptly and there were a lot of them. The bike arrived in perfect condition, even the shifting must of been adjusted as it shifts perfectly. It was mostly assembled. The craftmanship of the frame and paint is comparable to bikes in the $2000-2500 range which to me is very nice. This was 4 months ago.

I needed to get a shorter stem and just last week I emailed them about what size was on the bike (I didn't know how to measure at the time) and within a day or two I got a response. I didn't have a lot of money to spend for a bike and for the price I couldn't touch anything close. Believe me I was nervous until the bike arrived and still there is a small worry if the frame suddenly cracks due to a defect will they really replace the frame as promised. They might now but in a few years I doubt it. What I don't understand is all of the bashing of BD in these and other forums. It always it seems is from people who have not actually done "business" with them. Before I bid I emailed other people who left feedback and they all had similiar positive experiences with BD. Let the bashing begin.

eddiebrannan

and he's also totally happy with his bike.

god help him if he starts coming around here and all of a sudden nothing less than full njs rig or all vintage italian is acceptable any longer

herst

you know? That's my thought exactly.

TheGreenRanger

i personally love mine. i'm 90% sure I bought mine from the same dealer. the back wheel does blow...and my drops were far to wide when i received mine, but long story short, it is the cheapest fixed i found, and works like a dream for me...but then again i don't have much to compare it to minus a runned down beater bike...