Customer Reviews

GMC Denali LTD Adult Road Bike

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Limited is a fast, responsive bike suited for agressive road riding or racing with upgrades described below. The frame geometry features a short wheelbase for extra responsiveness. It has a standard frame diamond as opposed to trendier compact frames. The stem/headset is an Aheadset, threadless type, which standard on all higher quality bikes. Stems of various lengths to suit your body are readily available. Due to the fixed stem, you cannot adjust the height, and you have to bend low. The SORA shifter is smooth and reliable, but the up-shift lever is on the hood unlike all other Shimano STI shifters. (Campagnolo has the same arrangement) This is not bad, but takes getting used to if you use other STI groups. Because there are no buttons below the lever like the higher groups, the lever is thinner, and you could wrap some fingers around the hood while braking - a big plus. The toeclip pedals are pretty old-fashioned, clumsy, and difficult to use. I imagine most people would switch to clipless Look or SPD style pedals. The bike is only designed for tires no wider than 25 mm. The high gear is 12R/50F (compact gearing), which is as fast as most people would every need. The low is 23R/39F (standard gearing), which is appropriate for flat riding conditions only. The wheels are very light and fast, especially with upgraded tires. But wheel durability is questionable, considering I'm a light 135 lb rider, and still having some problems. See update below.

The bicycle was fairly easy to assemble because the Taiwanese build was pretty good. The rear derailleur was already well-adjusted and the wheels were very true. The brakes and front derailleurs required adjustment. It took less than an hour to unpackage and assemble. If you are not experienced in bike-assembly,I would recommend having a professional assemble and fit the bike. Ask the shop to check spoke tension.

Aesthetically speaking, I find it somewhat attractive, but the crankset has a steel spider which makes it look cheap. There is also a sticker boasting it is 16 speed. Might be impressive 10 years ago, but since most road bikes are 18 or 20 speed, this is odd. It would be classier and more tasteful to tone down all the stickers. The stickers look a little dated compared to the newer Denali Pro, which I also own.

Since Kent (the manufacturer) also makes road bikes that are thousands of dollars, why is this bike so inexpensive? Here are some compromises Kent made to get to this price point:

1. Plastic seat (relatively hard, but somewhat comfy though not leather)

2. Generic rims and hubs with conventional 32 spokes and schraeder valves. The cassette works well, but is not genuine Shimano. A comparable Schwinn at Walmart had radial laced front spokes. (but 32 spoke wheel is easier to true) The spokes are good quality stainless steel type. Shraeder valves leak air pressure after every pump. Presta valves are better for high pressure tires. Rim strip is low quality and should be upgraded immediately to avoid tube puncture at one of the 32 holes in the aero rim. Changing out the rim tape and presta tube is simple and inexpensive. Spoke tension was too low. Low end machine-built wheels such as these are not as durable and can develop annoying problems. See update below.

3. No-name carbon fork with alloy steerer. The better forks are all-carbon.

4. Low-end shifting system. (there are some complaints about SORA in terms of long-term durability, ghost shifts, and falling out of adjustment) The brifters have more plastic parts than the higher groupos.

5. Ugly low-end crankset with steel spider and chain guard. Looks more like a MTB crankset than road bike (a comparble Forge bike from Target had Tru-vative crank which looks nicer) I have since upgraded to a Campagnolo Veloce 53/39 crankset. It is one pound lighter and prettier.

6. Cheap low end Kenda tires with a maximum pressure of 90 psi. At this low pressure, it is susceptible to snake bite flats. Suggest upgrading after this tire wears out (500-1000 miles) to something smoother and more durable.

7. House brand everything else. This saves cost, but is the reason why this bike weighs 22 lbs and not 17 lbs.

However even with the compromises, it is the best value of all the carbon seat stay/fork bikes I could find. However, suggest you shop around, Amazon did not offer the best price at all times.

1200 mile update: Still rides very well after 1200 miles of demanding riding and 2 century rides. I am growing attached to it, like an old friend! At certain times, wheels have developed some spoke issues; one spoke came entirely loose in the front wheel. This also happened in the rear wheel. At times I notice an annoying pinging sound. The factory spoke tension was probably too low. The carbon fiber frame and fork is as light as an aluminum frame, yet as supple and comfortable as a good chromoly frame. It is stable at high speeds. I ridden up to 40 mph with no resonance. Braking is responsive and secure. All kinks seemed to be worked out, and performed flawlessly in the last century ride. Now, I have changed 3 sets of tires, crankset, pedals, cassette, brake shoes, rim tape, and many tubes. New Continental 4000 tires are working flawlessly with the wheelset.

The shifting required a little bit of adjustment due to cable stretch; this is normal. So far, have not noticed any ghost shifts. The shifting is still as smooth and crisp as Ultegra when shifted sensibly but has shifted roughly at times under high-load emergency shifting. I really like the thumb button on the brifters now that I'm used to them. I changed the cassette to provide a low 28T. The rear derailleur accepted it with no problems at all; this is a big plus.

Although the frame is worthy of component upgrades, the upgrade path to standard 9 or 10 speed components will be very expensive due to the need to change the right brifters, HG cassette, and chain. Fortunately the hub can accept 8-10 speeds. Upgrade to Shimano 105 would cost as much as the bike itself. But the shifting is already very good and accepts 28t gear, so upgrade is not really necessary. There is also no easy way to significantly lighten the bike from 23 lbs to sub 20. Changing any one component would shave only a miniscle amount of weight. The components are already alloy (except for crankset), so upgrade to $$$ carbon or titanium components would be necessary. (Exception is the crankset. I shaved a pound upgrading to a Campy crankset)

This bike is perfect for those who are starting out, and may or may not get serious. If you do get serious, you would quickly wear out and replace the bad aspects of the bike, and replace with higher quality equipment. This would probably add $200 - $300 to the cost after 1,200 miles. The total cost and performance would be comparable to a higher priced, better quality bike. This is what happened to me. If you don't get serious, you wouldn't have wasted $800 or more.

With some upgrades, you can easily keep up with similar ability riders on more expensive machines. Having ridden with lots of different (non-club, non-racing) people, I'm one of the faster riders with this bike. I doubt I can ride much faster on a full carbon, Dura Ace bike. Road bikes are relatively simple machines - if the wheels are sturdy and light and the frame geometry/riding position is right, and the gearing is appropriate, it will be a quick machine. The last major innovation on road bikes happened 20 years with integrated shift/brake levers. The limiting factor is the rider. I can only conclude that the higher price of other bikes is due to the local bike shop middle-man and the prestige factor. The bike shop adds value since they can assemble the bike right, adjust/repack the bearings, adjust spoke tension, provide a tune-up, and fit you properly to the bike. Also, road bike fit is very important. I'm lucky to be the right size for this bike. It seems to only come in 22". My colleague was impressed and would buy one except he's too short. This may be another factor why its cheap - mass production in one size only.

Was originally looking to spend only about $300 on a bike, but changed my mind when I saw this. A frame with carbon fiber fork and seat stays at this price was too good to pass up. The colors are attractive, it's a metallic gold with reddish-orange. As far as looks go, the grey tires and the handlebars really look out of place - don't let the picture fool you, the handlebar tape is bright orange and yellow tiger-striped.
I've put over 50 miles in the short time I've had it and I'm happy. I recommend you pay to get this assembled and tuned at your local bike shop. The main reason this is less expensive is due to 2200 series Shimano shifters and generic hubs. If you really do want to get more performance, go and get some Look KEO classic pedals and some good cycling shoes.
Also, this is made by Kent, not Triton Workshop Systems...

Overall a decent beginner's road bike. It's on the heavy side, 24.5 pounds after taking off the fluff (reflectors, stand, crank ring). I upgraded the pedals to Look Keo Easy's and ride with Shimano R160 carbon shoes. The frame is aluminum & carbon combo, which is more of a gimmick than a benefit. My wife has a high quality all aluminum entry level name brand bike that's lighter than the Denali, although her frame size is XS. I wish they had omitted some of the cheesey labeling and I could do without the GMC branding. All components are pretty low end and the cassette is only 8 speed, however I get great exercise on this machine and after a year of riding it have had no problems. The tires lose air faster than I like but this is common with Shraeder stems. Presta would have been better. The Sora shifters are fine and after my initial tune up from a local shop there are no shifting problems. There have been 3-4 times however when the chain has derailed from the front crank and i've had to get dirty on the road coaxing it back into place. Despite the shortcomings it's a good value.

I love this bike it is reasonably light shifts smooth and rides well. the carbon forks provide a smooth ride. I like it so much I going to buy one for my wife.

With better weather coming for road biking, I wanted a lightweight bicycle that was fast. This Denali LTD has carbon composite front and rear forks, aluminum tube frame, comes with integrated toe clipped pedals and multi function brake/shifter, intelligent and comfortable saddle, rear kick stand. It has a bright yellow and orange-red frame that gets positive attention when I ride it.

And it is fast, easy to pedal, it feels like all the energy you put into the pedals is driving the bike without a bit of wasted output. The bike fits most average sized men from 5'8 to 6'4 with adjustment of the seat post.

This is a bike I will use for getting out on the weekends and doing those long rides. I have my urban mountain bike for commuting and shopping. This bike doesn't like rainy roads, sand or pot holes, one feels the road very intimately when riding.

I purchased two red water cages, a seat pack, light set,frame pump,small front handlebar pack and wired computer for the bicycle to allow me to ride longer, with space to put food and water as well as tire tools and spare tube.

The bike comes boxed and one must assemble and set the bike's front brake. I found the rear wheel was slightly untrued. If one doesn't have the tools nor know how to fix bikes, it is best to have a bike shop assemble and adjust the bike, true the wheels, etc.

With an hour's work getting the bike put together and adjusted, I was riding it during a mild spell this Winter. I took off down a long stretch of flat road and without much effort hit 28 miles per hour. This is what I was looking for.

I got the version shown in the picture here. Some people said they got those orange-yellow striped tapes on their handle bars. Gearing for this version is 50/12. The crank consists of 50/39 chainrings, and the cassette has 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 19, 21, and 23 tooth cogs. Everything works well. Shifts smoothly, rides quietly thanks to carbon fiber fork and seat stays. Shorter (closer) wheelbase provides more responsive handling. One comment for its performance - it kicks major bootie! It really measures up against more expensive bikes of up to around a thousand dollars.

This bike turns heads and draws compliments all the time when I commute around campus. I could not be more proud to own this. I would not have any other bike at this price. Orange bikes are the way to go. Seriously. All 3 of my bikes have some varying degrees of orange paint job on them, and they all turn heads and eyes!

Edit (10/20/09):
I recently added yellow tape to the bar, red tire to the rear wheel, and yellow tire to the front. It looks smoking hot right now. It keeps receiving compliments and looks everywhere I ride it. There is not a single drivetrain or frame problem after undergoing hundreds of miles; of course, manufacturers are not at fault for tube problems, so it is rather foolish for some reviewers of any bicycle to complain about them. I will post the most current photos of it soon... they have been posted!

This bike is absolutely fabulous, as described in other reviews accurately. It's light, fast, and looks great. It is made by Kent with license from GMC.

Amazon was selling it for $[...] during last Nov-Dec but the price has been cranked back up now. You can still get it for cheaper at the site linked below, along with free shipping and a free helmet -
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