gundogblue

I've been riding a Schwinn LeTour Sport for two yrs now and feel Im ready to move up to a better bike, my Schwinn has the standard Sora, and Tiagra components. I was all ready to step up to a Cannondale CAAD 10 5, but I was looking on Bikes Direct sight and found a Gravity Pro 20. For the price $899.00 it seems impossible to beat, it has Ultegra 6700 components all the way around, an aluminum frame and carbon fork, and seatstem, the list price is $2400.00! Im sure that list price is probebly way over inflated, and the old adage "you get what you pay for" is for the most part true. But that does'nt mean you can't occasionally find a good deal or two. Now I've never heard of Gravity, but I did get on their web sight, so have any of you ever heard of Gravity bikes? if so what do you think of them? Also my concern for buying a bike on line is, what if it needs warrenty work, I don't know of a Gravity dealer near Chicago, also the bike would have to be assembled, and adjusted, how do the local bike shops feel abut assembling bikes bought from someone else? I think even though the the bike may be a good deal, my concerns for buying online are legitimate. If any of you can shed some light on the quality of Gravity bikes, and buying a bike on line I would really appriciate it
Thanks,
Paul

generalkdi

Never heard of Gravity... But heard a lot about CAADs! Honestly, you can't go wrong with the CAAD. But what could go wrong with Gravity, a lot of things, but it could end up being a great bike too. If you buy online, you don't get the pro fit, you don't get the free year of service, don't get that "easy warranty" you can get from a LBS. The size could also be wrong for a reason or another... 900$ is a lot of money for something you never tried and don't know if it'll fit. CAAD10 5 comes with 105 I think? It's really not that bad. You won't have any problems with 105 components!

Personnally, get the CAAD.

Right Said Fred

If you are not 100 percent confident about buying a generic frame and assembling, adjusting, and fitting it yourself, I wouldn't buy from Bikes Direct.

hhnngg1

Haven't used Gravity bikes per se, but here's the deal in general - before the mods shut this thread down for another BD thread.

- BikesDirect has a lot of happy customers. It got a lot of flak 2+ years ago for some questionable forum posting masquerading as advertising, but it has had a huge number of positive reviews since and they sell a lot of bikes.


- You will not beat BD pricing on components unless you buy a used bike, and even then, it'll be tough. BD specializes in selling components on cheaper frames. They thus can undercut the standalone price of the groupset, as they buy ultegra in bulk with no individualized packaging/etc. and just install on frames. So yes, that Gravity bike is a hella good deal for the hardware alone.

- Despite what folks think/claim, bike frames aren't hugely different from each other, at least in terms of speed, but even in sizing. CAADs get a lot of love here, but they dont' handle dramatically differently than a generic frame, and they almost certainly do not go any faster. You could say the same for basically any frame, not just CAADs. Now this will get tons of folks here up in arms and they'll want to come flame me for have said this, but this is why there is no one preferred bike in pro bike racing anywhere. It's not like in swimming, where the Speedo LZR racesuit was so much faster than anything else that so many world records fell after it was introduced that they ended up banning it from competition. The guys who are beating you on the bike, even by a little bit, will beat you on pretty much any real road frame out there, including a Schwinn or a Gravity. (Walmart bikes are not 'real' road frames, unfortunately, and often weigh 50% more.)

- Buying online has it's own hassles and is generally recommended to folks who know their size and are comfortable with basic adjustments. Lots of LBS advocates absolutely hate online stores. But if you're up for it, you'll probably do fine. BD has been through the ringer around here, and there have been very few rants about lousy products from them in the past 2 years.

jrobe

I bought a Bikes Direct bike for my wife last year - they have their place.

Their business model is to tease them with the components and hope they will buy a cheap, no-name frame. Then only include half the name brand components and use cheap no-name stuff for the rest (wheels, brakes, cranks, bars, stem, saddle, tires, etc.).

You would be far better off buying a high quality frame that you can own for many years. Then have it fit to you perfectly by a local fit expert. One or two steps down in the component ladder will shift exactly the same if you or the local shop has it adjusted properly. When the components wear out, simply replace them on your high quality frame.

This is the most important. Ignore any advice from someone that tells you all frames ride alike. They obviously haven't ridden very many frames.

lesdunham

For a few $$ more you can have carbon seat stays, Ultegra 6700, and better crankset. https://www.bikesdirect.com/products/...e/sprint_x.htm
I bought a Moto Immortal Pro 6 years and 19,000 miles ago and it has been a great bike. If you can place/assemble handlebars, seat n post, and probably install the front brake caliper then BD is a choice worth considering. No bike shop is going to turn you away due to your source of purchase. True you may not get service free ( like if you purchased from them) but the offset in money saved at purchase is something only you can assess. If you have any doubts than let your lbs tweek it out of the box. But a competent experienced rider with knowledge of mechanics can be riding new in 20-30 minutes. The deraileurs are pretty much dialed in already. Of course with any cable stretch some minor barrel adjusments can be made easily.

John_V 

If your wrenching skills are fair to good, then I will have to agree with this statement 100% regardless of the on-line store you got it from. I have never heard of the Gravity brand, but then again, I don't buy my bike related purchases on-line unless it's an accessory where size or fit will never change and I can't find it locally. I don't have anything against buying on-line, I would just rather my local businesses get the money instead. The price you quoted is a good price, however, the MSRP they stated is grossly overstated. For an aluminum frame with CF post and forks, the most expensive name brand bikes with 105 groupos average in the $1,400.00 range. $2,400 gets you in the low range of CF frames. I don't think you can go wrong with the CADD from your LBS, even if it's a little more money and you will have a place to return it for warranty work, should you need it.

As for your question on LBS's building bikes they don't sell . . . I can't speak for all shops but there are two very good bike shops within 10 miles of me. The smaller shop will build the bike for you but will charge a higher price for the labor than what he normally charges. The larger shop will work on any bike, but will not build one from a box for you unless it is a brand that they carry. If you are not good or don't trust your wrenching, I would call the LBS's in your area to see what their policy is before buying the bike and taking it to them only to find out they won't touch it.

All that being said, I think the bottom line comes down to what you can afford and what you want to settle for. Getting opinions on this forum can help you to decide, but from what I've seen on the 41, the common responses are "get what I ride" or "get something more expensive."

hhnngg1

Hah. That would be an awesome name for a new bike. The IMMORAL pro! LOL

on the path

I can't say for sure but I'm pretty confidant the CAAD frame is lighter than the Gravity and has a more comfortable ride.

3 months ago I was faced with the same decision. I got the CAAD. I paid $1275 plus local taxes. I got to ride the bike before I bought and the shop even threw in a (cheap) set of pedals for free. Now I've got ~1000 miles on the bike and love it as much as ever.

Whatever you decide, I hope you're happy with your choice.

Juan Foote

Gravity bikes are straight copies of Giant, from the reading I have done.

canam73

A note on Gravity bikes or anything else at BD. Other than BD, I've never heard of Gravity either so they may be a BD house brand. But that doesn't make them any worse (or better) than any of the other bikes at BD that you may have heard of before like Motobecane. The names you recognize at BD have gone out of business and BD bought the naming rights and puts them on their own frames.

But like most entry level bike frames, including the ones at your lbs, these are produced to spec in east asian factories and then matched to components. It is true that some of the bikes don't come with a 'full' component group (shifters, brakes, crank & BB, fd, rd, cassette) from shimano or sram, but if you look at the specs on lower end bikes at your lbs you will find plenty of house brand brakes and fsa cranks, too. And BD does list every part so just make sure you read the list and there won't be any surprises.

I agree with the above posters who say BD is not for everybody. You need to be sure you can pick the proper frame size and then be able to make your own adjustments which may include swapping a stem. Have you watched the BD set up video to see what is required?

As for the Gravity 20, if it were me with $800 I'd be more interested in the Condor S5D because I like the shape of the frame better. But that's just a looks thing.

Juan Foote

Oh, one other quick note if you haven't figured it out already. There are a TON of CAAD fanboi on this site. I am not saying they are a bad bike, or a bad choice, but there are LOTS of folks here who have a very notable bias to that particular series.

fstshrk

Seeing that Giant actually makes their own frames, I find that hard to believe.
For the OP, I would go with the CAAD rather than some no name brand from BD. And you will get the support from your LBS.
Which is worth a lot more than what you can save by buying from BD.

Juan Foote

I know that Giant makes their own frames. If you do a quick Google search there are quite a few comments made about how the Gravity Liberty (iirc) is an exact copy of the Defy series, same geometry and everything. You actually have to get creative about the search..just putting in "gravity bikes" will get you a lot of info about downhill runs on heavy machines...

2ndGen

Gravity Pro 20 over a CAAD10?
Before you decide, check this out.


Affirmative...
Post #2 shuts the thread down!

Inappropriate...


BikeForums "Approved"...

on the path

...as well as those of other bicycle and component manufacturers.

In my case, I'd never heard of CAAD before I saw it at the LBS. The choice wasn't about hype for me. It was about what I want and what I like. My opinions were formed after I bought the bike and rode it for a while.

2ndGen

Best way to do it.

One of the problems with BD is that unless you live close to one of it's retail stores
(I believe at last count, there were 3 in the southwestern U.S.), how does one know
if they like the bike or not? I kid BD a lot, but in reality, if it works, it works.
I just personally prefer to ride a bike before I buy it. $1,000. is a lot of coin for me.

hhnngg1

The saddest part is that a lot of the fanboi were from back in the day when CAAD were made in the USA, which no doubt had a huge role in why CAADs were so popular on this form (racism aside.)

Now that they're almost all being made in Asia, it's probably just a matter of time until even the CAAD fanbois relent.

hhnngg1

Agree, but folks often have a devil of a time finding the correct size in the bike they want from the limited inventories on hand in their local LBSes. I'd say more often than not you will not find the size AND brand AND model that you had in mind. If you're flexible about brand/model, it makes things easier, but I was surprised when I could barely find anything to fit me even with 5 LBSes in my local area. It's not their fault either - inventory is expensive at takes up a lot of room.

Most stores will be happy to order the bike for you and take it from there, but most of them have some sort of obligation for you to purchase the bike if they go through the trouble for you. Which kinds of negates it all.

I have bought all my bikes at LBSses, but for sure, I would have a far, far easier time finding the specs that suit me online in the brands I favor.

aoto

+1 This guy speaks the truth someone give him an award and sticky his post.

TBH there is a lot of CAAD bias on this forum so when you are asking for advice on buying a bike you have to take that into account. If you really want to "feel" a difference in riding on a bike upgrade your tires. Especially when you are deciding between aluminum frames the biggest difference in ride quality is tires. Also there is nothing wrong with BD bikes, they ride just as well as any other bike except and you have more money in your pocket with a BD bike. BD could take better pictures of their bikes on their website though.

2ndGen

Why?

I find the 10 fanboiz to carry the fanaticism baton just fine; Not the overwhelming majority of 10 owners, but just that fragmented segment that gets so defensive about feeling like they need to defend their bikes being made in Asia which in my opinion doesn't matter since the majority of bikes are made there anyway. I think Dorel is doing a great job with their bikes.

2ndGen

Plus, not all manufacturers' sizes are the same.
One manufacturer's 56cm may be different in actuality than another's.
I shop online for anything then go to my LBS to see if they have it.
I'm willing to pay more to get it from them when that "more" is reasonable.
At my LBS, I generally get stuff actually for LESS than online.
That's why I used to cross a bridge, pay a $13. toll and pass about 10
bike shops to get to the...maybe not so "local", but it was always worth it.

2ndGen

Paul,

Here is your answer: https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...1#post13611857

himespau 

Eh do what you want. Just know that the CAAD will have much better resale value that the gravity as no one else will have heard of it either.

fishymamba

CAAD vs Gravity??? CAAD wins.
Yeah the gravity might have a couple blingy items on it, but as a whole the CAAD winds hand down.
Seriously, close the BD tab on your browser, go to your LBS, and BUY THE CAAD RIGHT NOW