DaveD1

Hi all,

Its been years since i owned a bike and i'm currently in the middle of ordering one through my local bike to work scheme.

The bike won't really be used for commuting, more so for fitness and getting out and about with the kids. I will be on some small trails around my local park.

I had settled on getting the 2016 Specialized Crosstrail Sport Disc but when i went to order it yesterday i was told it won't be available for at least another 3-4 weeks, but my LBS could get me the Crosstrail Disc within a week. They said the main difference between the two is the Sport has hydraulic disc brakes whereas the Comp Disc has mechanical discs. The Crosstrail Disc is cheaper too.

Any thoughts? Based on my intended use i'm kinda been swayed towards just going for the Crosstrail Disc, or should i wait? I'm not sure i'll need hydraulic brakes. I'm assuming the mechanical discs would be superior to the normal V (?) brakes that would have been on my last bike (15+ years ago).



Spec of both:

Crosstrail Disc

FRAME

Specialized A1 Premium Aluminium, Fitness Geometry, fully-manipulated butted tubing, IS disc mount, fender/rack mounts


FORK

Custom SR Suntour i-NEX, custom Multi-Circuit Damping, custom coil spring weights, 63mm travel, hydraulic lockout, preload adjust, 1-1/8" steerer, alloy lowers, Hi-Ten 28mm stanchions, post disc mount


HEADSET

FSA, semi-integrated bearings


STEM

Forged alloy, 4-bolt, 10-degree rise


HANDLEBARS

Specialized, 6061 alloy, 8-degree backsweep, 5-degree upsweep, 25mm rise, 25.4mm


GRIPS

Specialized Body Geometry XCT, lock-on


FRONT BRAKE

Tektro Aries, mechanical disc, organic pads, 160mm rotor


REAR BRAKE

Tektro Aries, mechanical disc, organic pads, 160mm rotor


BRAKE LEVERS

Tektro


FRONT DERAILLEUR

Shimano FD-M191, top swing, dual pull


REAR DERAILLEUR

Shimano Altus, 8-speed


SHIFT LEVERS

Shimano SL-M310, RapidFire Plus, 8-speed


CASSETTE

Shimano, 8-speed, 12-32t


CHAIN

KMC X8, 8-speed, w/ reusable MissingLink


CRANKSET

Specialized Stout, forged alloy, 48/38/28T, w/ chainguard


BOTTOM BRACKET

Square taper, cartridge bearings


PEDALS

Nylon, w/ reflectors


RIMS

Alloy, double-wall, disc


FRONT HUB

Specialized, Hi Lo disc, QR, 32h


REAR HUB

Specialized, Hi Lo disc, QR, 32h


SPOKES

Stainless, 14g


FRONT TYRE

Specialized Trigger Sport, 60TPI, BlackBelt protection, 700x38mm


REAR TYRE

Specialized Trigger Sport, 60TPI, BlackBelt protection, 700x38mm


SADDLE

Body Geometry Targa Sport, steel rails, SWAT compatible mounts, 155mm


SEATPOST

Alloy, 2-bolt, micro-adjust, 12.5mm offset, 27.2mm


SEAT BINDER

Alloy, 31.8mm


Crosstrail Sport Disc

FRAME

Specialized A1 Premium Aluminium, Fitness Geometry, fully-manipulated butted tubing, IS disc mount, fender/rack mounts


FORK

Custom SR Suntour i-NEX, custom Multi-Circuit Damping, custom coil spring weights, 63mm travel, hydraulic lockout, preload adjust, 1-1/8" steerer, alloy lowers, Hi-Ten 28mm stanchions, post disc mount


HEADSET

FSA, semi-integrated bearings


STEM

Specialized, 3D forged alloy, 4-bolt, 6-degree rise


HANDLEBARS

Specialized, double-butted 6061 alloy, 9-degree backsweep, 5-degree upsweep, 15mm rise, 31.8mm


GRIPS

Specialized Body Geometry XCT, lock-on


FRONT BRAKE

Tektro Auriga, hydraulic disc, resin pads, 160mm rotor


REAR BRAKE

Tektro Auriga, hydraulic disc, resin pads, 160mm rotor


BRAKE LEVERS

Tektro, hydraulic


FRONT DERAILLEUR

Shimano Altus, top swing, dual pull


REAR DERAILLEUR

Shimano Alivio, 9-speed


SHIFT LEVERS

Shimano SL-M370 RapidFire Plus, 9-speed


CASSETTE

Shimano, 9-speed, 11-34t


CHAIN

KMC X9, 9-speed, w/ reusable MissingLink


CRANKSET

Specialized Stout, forged alloy, 48/36/26T, w/ chainguard


BOTTOM BRACKET

Square taper, cartridge bearings


PEDALS

Nylon, w/ reflectors


RIMS

Alloy, double-wall, disc


FRONT HUB

Specialized, Hi Lo disc, QR, 32h


REAR HUB

Specialized, Hi Lo disc, QR, 32h


SPOKES

Stainless, 14g


FRONT TYRE

Specialized Trigger Sport, 60TPI, BlackBelt protection, 700x38mm


REAR TYRE

Specialized Trigger Sport, 60TPI, BlackBelt protection, 700x38mm


SADDLE

Body Geometry Targa Sport, steel rails, SWAT compatible mounts, 155mm


SEATPOST

Alloy, 2-bolt, micro-adjust, 12.5mm offset, 27.2mm


SEAT BINDER

Alloy, 31.8mm

avidone1

I don't know where your getting your information from but it's all wrong. Unless perhaps your from some country I'm not familiar with.
Both the comp disc and the sport disc use hydraulic brakes. the comp disc, which is the more expensive model uses shimano's while the sport disc
uses tektro. there are other differences as well .
Here are the 2016 specs.
Specialized Bicycle Components

DaveD1

My apologies, i've been looking at the Specialized website for too long and got the models mixed up

The 2 bikes i'm looking at are the Crosstrail Disc (mechanical) and the Crosstrail Sport Disc (hydraulic).

I've edited the original post.

swoodjr1

I would spend the extra coin and wati for the better bike. More gearing options. Superior brakes. Better derailleurs.

travbikeman

How much riding do you foresee yourself doing? If your just going to go on short rides with the family, then the Crosstrail disc should be fine. The really big differences between the Disc and Sport disc as I see it: rear derailleur, gearing and the brakes. The Sport disc is better, but if your only going to put like 15 miles a week or so, the regular Crosstrail disc should be just fine.

Comparison:

Altus vs Alivio - Alivio in my opinion is a bit smoother to shift and stronger. Altus will need to be adjusted more often, but has worked well so far on my Wife's bike

Gearing: The Sport has more gear ranges that helps better with going up a hill. I've also noticed it helps more with going slower if you have a child that is slow on her bike (like my daughter).

Brakes, My son has these mechanical ones and they work well. I have the hydraulic and really the only major usage difference is how easy it's to pull the brake levers. But I have also noticed that cleaning and adjusting my hydraulic brakes are a whole lot easier than the mechanical. Taking the pads out of the mechanical is a bit of pain since Tektro uses a pin that needs to be bent rather than a screw.

If your willing to wait a few weeks, I would choose the Sport. But that's my preference knowing that I've been riding upwards of 200 miles a month now. IF your riding just like 40 or 50 miles a month. Then save your money and get the regular Crosstrail disc.

BUT, this is your decision. A happy rider is one that will keep riding!

Mattyb13

If weight is in any way important to you then WAIT for the comp.
My fiance has the Sport disc, and I had the Comp and now have the Expert disc. The weight difference from the sport up to the Comp or the Expert is dramatic and well worth the additional investment imo.

Wanderer

Of your two, I'd wait for the sport. A better bike, all around. Maybe the best buy in that group.