Hybrid Help
05-16-18, 03:13 PM
#26
Senior Member
The Roam is a super versatile and comfortable flat bar bike, with great tire clearance . Apparently a 50c/2.1" tire is not out of the question....and suddenly that 65mm of travel gets you better damping/comfort than what you'd get on a solid fork running the same tire. Comfy: your hands . elbows and shoulders will thank you.
Hardtails (outside overbuilt aggressive geo) are actually suited for all purpose riding, smooth trail and pavement . Great MTB riders can do amazing things on Hardtails, but truth is for the average rider The Roam can handle most of that outside of technical courses.
Rougher trails with roots, rocks and drops are suited for FULL suspension mountain bikes. You already know if you are shopping for a hybrid that you are not interested in dirt jumping and downhill racing.
I have 3 road bikes, 14lb,15lb and 16'b-ers....and yet i still love to ride my Roam with its 'boat anchor' suspension fork. Its weight is fine, heck its still lighter than most mountain bikes .
Whether you use the suspension or not all the time is not a matter of losing sleep. Just know that measly 65mm of travel could be the difference between dipping through an unexpected technical drop (and worse case bottoming out the suspension) vs getting slingshotted over your handlebars for not having any at all.
Hardtails (outside overbuilt aggressive geo) are actually suited for all purpose riding, smooth trail and pavement . Great MTB riders can do amazing things on Hardtails, but truth is for the average rider The Roam can handle most of that outside of technical courses.
Rougher trails with roots, rocks and drops are suited for FULL suspension mountain bikes. You already know if you are shopping for a hybrid that you are not interested in dirt jumping and downhill racing.
I have 3 road bikes, 14lb,15lb and 16'b-ers....and yet i still love to ride my Roam with its 'boat anchor' suspension fork. Its weight is fine, heck its still lighter than most mountain bikes .
Whether you use the suspension or not all the time is not a matter of losing sleep. Just know that measly 65mm of travel could be the difference between dipping through an unexpected technical drop (and worse case bottoming out the suspension) vs getting slingshotted over your handlebars for not having any at all.
06-05-18, 01:33 PM
#27
Senior Member
the guy at the shop brought up the idea of getting a mountain bike and throwing different tires on it in case I ever wanted to get into mountain biking the frame would hold up. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Good ? Bad? Indifferent? I'm not opposed to the idea just not sure how a mountain bike would handle with road tires on it.
06-05-18, 07:40 PM
#29
Senior Member
Yep, I did - fantastic deal. I wanted to get a backup set of the CX Comps also, but they were out of stock. And shipping across the pond didn't take as long as I expected. It probably helped that my son was born in the meantime, so my mind was on other things for sure.
06-06-18, 09:31 AM
#30
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I'll pass along a good piece of advice I received; all those bikes are similar, so go with the shop you like best.
06-06-18, 06:52 PM
#31
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I ordered mine on a Friday evening. CRC sent them on the next business day (Monday). They flew to, and arrived in, New York City on Tuesday. There they sat, apparently in customs, until some point on Thursday. They were assigned a USPS tracking number on Friday, but I'm not sure they actually made it to the USPS on that day. Then the following Monday was Memorial Day. I think I got them the following Wednesday or Thursday. In all, it took two weeks to get here, but they were in this country the next business day. It was a combination of customs delays and weekends/holidays. Good tires, either way.
06-06-18, 08:47 PM
#32
Senior Member
CRC sent them on the next business day (Monday). They flew to, and arrived in, New York City on Tuesday. There they sat, apparently in customs, until some point on Thursday. They were assigned a USPS tracking number on Friday, but I'm not sure they actually made it to the USPS on that day. Then the following Monday was Memorial Day. I think I got them the following Wednesday or Thursday. In all, it took two weeks to get here, but they were in this country the next business day. It was a combination of customs delays and weekends/holidays. Good tires, either way.
But yeah, the tires are great. I can't get over how much of a difference they make in the ride.
06-06-18, 10:07 PM
#33
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I too am trying to decide on 2 different hybrids: TREK Neko 3 versus TREK FX3. The main difference is that the Neko has suspension forks and the FX3 has carbon forks. Basically the female versions of the bikes you are looking at. I have been told that the best way to decide is to take the bike out for 30-60 minutes and really get a feel for the bikes. In the female model there is a 3 lb difference with the suspension fork. I will review my long rides and my decision. Waiting for both bikes at my LBS.
06-07-18, 08:42 AM
#34
Senior Member
I too am trying to decide on 2 different hybrids: TREK Neko 3 versus TREK FX3. The main difference is that the Neko has suspension forks and the FX3 has carbon forks. Basically the female versions of the bikes you are looking at. I have been told that the best way to decide is to take the bike out for 30-60 minutes and really get a feel for the bikes. In the female model there is a 3 lb difference with the suspension fork. I will review my long rides and my decision. Waiting for both bikes at my LBS.
06-15-18, 02:03 PM
#35
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Well, after riding and thinking a LOT, I am going with the FX3 in a size 13” frame. The frame is a little smaller, and the bike is SO responsive with the carbon fork instead of the heavier front suspension. I have a Specialized rock hopper that has the front suspension, so this will give me a wider range of biking instead of 2 bikes with front suspensions. Hoping to pick it up this week!
06-17-18, 01:11 PM
#36
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Well, after riding and thinking a LOT, I am going with the FX3 in a size 13” frame. The frame is a little smaller, and the bike is SO responsive with the carbon fork instead of the heavier front suspension. I have a Specialized rock hopper that has the front suspension, so this will give me a wider range of biking instead of 2 bikes with front suspensions. Hoping to pick it up this week!
