Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent value, June 10, 2008
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...
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Road Bike, September 25, 2009
The Limited is a fast, responsive bike suited for agressive road riding or racing. The frame geometry features a short wheelbase for extra responsive. It is a standard frame diamond as opposed to trendier compact frames. The stem is an aheadset, threadless type, so you cannot adjust the height. You have to bend low. If I do not look down, I could not tell the difference between this bike or my Team Miyata bike equipped with Dura-Ace and Ultegra components. The shifter is smooth, but the up-shift lever is on the hood unlike all other STI shifters. This is not necessarily bad, but takes getting used to. The toeclip pedals are pretty old-fashioned. I imagine most people would switch to clipless pedals. The bike is only designed for very skinny tires. It will not fit tires wider than 25 cm. The gearing is sensible. The high gear is 12R/50F, which is as fast as most people would every need, except for racers. The cassette has a low of 26, which is fairly standard for road bikes.
The bicycle was fairly easy to assemble because 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, would recommend having a professional assembly and fit the bike.
Aesthetically speaking, I find it 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 to tone down all the stickers. The GMC name is odd, considering that GMC makes trucks. There's noting SUV about this bike! If you stick with the GM motif, Chevy Camaro is probably a better name!
Since Kent (the manufacturer) also makes road bikes that are many times more expensive, why is this bike so inexpensive? Here are some compromises Kent made to get to this price point:
1. Plastic seat (comfy though not leather)
2. No-name rims and hubs with conventional 32 spokes and schrader valves. A comparable Schwinn at Walmart had radial laced front spokes. (but 32 spoke wheel is easier to true)Shrader valves leak air pressure after every pump. Presta valves are better for high pressure tires. Conversion should be simple.
3. No-name carbon fork with alloy steerer.
4. Low-end shifting system. (there are some complaints about SORA in terms of long-term durability, ghost shifts, and falling out of adjustment)
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)
However even with the compromises, it is the best value of all the comparably priced bikes I could find. However, suggest you shop around, Amazon did not offer the best price.
6 week update: Still rides very well after 3 weeks of daily 7 mile riding. Wheels are strong and has stayed true despite many miles of rough city roads. 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. Braking is responsive and secure. The shifting required a little bit of adjustment, but this is probably due to cable stretch. So far, have not noticed any ghost shifts. The shifting is as smooth as Ultegra. 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 STI levers, HG cassette, deraileurs, and chain. For example, upgrade to Shimano 105 would cost as much as the bike itself. 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. So love it as it is or leave it! I would speculate that since this bike came out in 2007, they will upgrade it soon to a 9 speed Sora to keep it up to date.
Starting to wonder why people pay so much for road bikes, because this bike rides so well and is so fast. I doubt I can ride any 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, 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. If you don't look down, its impossible to tell this is a $500 machine vs a $1000 machine. 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, however, since they can assemble the bike right, adjust the bearings, provide a tune-up, and fit you properly to the bike. A friend joked that GMC is exiting the car business and getting into the bike business! 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.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
bang for your buck!, October 3, 2009
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. If I could turn back time, I would still buy this bike for what it costs. 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 sexy 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!
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