I was just looking through the forums and noticed a thread about my new bike! I bought the Podium 3 at Dick's for the $899, down from $1399. 105 in the front, Ultegra in the back. So far, I'm really liking it. I have about 800 miles on it since early July. It's light, responsive, and I can really move on the roads/trails. I should mention that my previous bike was a 28 year old Schwinn Super Le Tour with downtube shifters, so almost anything would seem nice probably. I jumped on the Podium 3 after shopping around and realizing the groupset was amazing for the price. I looked at bike shops that were selling the 105/Ultegra combo for $500+ more. They were better brands from more knowledgeable people, but I like deals so I got the Podium 3.
It comes with some cheap Shimano clipless pedals, so I just bought some SPD shoes to go along with them. Note that the platform on one side of the pedal is supposed to be removed, as it's really only there for store floor testing purposes.
I've had a few issues up to this point though. Thankfully, I got the 2-year service plan for $60, which includes unlimited check-ups (like alignments and stuff), and 1 full tune-up. I've had to take the bike back to Dick's twice for the following reasons:
-Got a flat within the first 3 miles. Bad tire (tear across side wall), or maybe just ran over something. Dick's replaced tube and tire for free because of service plan (weren't supposed to but made an exception considering the mileage).
-Deraillers needed major alignment, even though the guy who sold it to attempted to tune it before I walked out the door. Only one Dick's in my area had a mech that was good enough to fix road bikes properly according to other Dick's stores that I visited, so I had to drive to a more distant Dick's to get it looked at (only about a half hour, not too bad). Now it shifts pretty well, but apparently the front 105 works for a double or triple crank so you have to be careful about shifting with a double, as to not shift to a non-existent gear.
-Creaking noises coming from seatpost, and stem/steerer junction. Greased seatpost and that went away (louder of the two noises). Haven't disassembled stem to grease yet because I have a ride coming up and don't want to screw anything up.
When I get a full tune up I'll have them look at the freehub. Very occasionally (maybe a dozen times over the 800 miles), when I first start pedaling, the hub seems to skip a ratchet or something. Not as violent as chain skip, but I don't like how I need to go easy for the first few revolutions before punching it. Anybody have any experience with an issue like this?