Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful.
Best price on the interwebs!
By Marcus Aurelius Maximus Awesomus III
In this review I would like to first mention the fact that as of writing this bike in particular is selling for at least $900 on other online retailers, I picked mine up for about $600 for the 56cm here in Amazon. (I noticed the price varies for the frame size, not sure why, conspiracy maybe?) The Frame: Sturdy Cyclocross type which is surprisingly light and employs a svelte hydroformed top tube with a flattened bottom and top mounted cables for comfortable shoulder carrying, as a proper 'cross bike should. The rest of the frame tubing utilizes a few similar and interesting touches too, it seems to be a well thought out frame. The Two real stars in the package are the Easton EC70 X carbon fork, of which I find to be an incredibly smooth riding piece, and the Cannondale engineered BB30 bottom bracket which to me feels much stiffer than Shimano's current outboard bearing BB setup. I know it sounds sacrilegious, but it's pretty darn stiff and it feels like it helps transmits power the rear wheel better even with the so called "entry level" FSA Gossamer crankset. Mad science indeed. The parts: Here's where the cost savings were made, not that I'm complaining. The drive-train is covered by the Shimano "Sora" 9spd group which isn't bad at all, it's just not the "lightest". Stopping duties are done by an inexpensive and respectable pair of Tektro CR720 canties, they seem to work just fine as I've yet to plow into a tree, light post, or heaven forbid, a car. The low rolling resistance 700x32 Kenda smallblock 8 tires roll with "Equation CX20" rims looped in them and although I never heard of that brand it may be because I'm just ignorant, but they roll just fine. Oh, and the affixed Novatec hubs are of the sealed bearing sort which is always a plus. Handle bars, stem, and seat post are of the Diamondback "DBR" label, which is their house brand. No biggie unless you're brand conscious and want to REALLY impress your friends, or if you do enjoy the finest componentry that your federal reserve bank notes can purchase. My opinion? I like them, they work and look the part, but the seatpost micro-adjust mechanism is rather crude, I'm just whining because my other bike has an EC70 post and I really favor its fine adjustment setup over the DBR.In retrospect I was in the market for a good cyclocross bike and needless to say I'm very happy with this one and plan to use it extensively in future. For a relatively inexpensive and discounted bike that uses all current industry fabrication techniques, including that sweet BB30, the price seemed pretty fair to me... That's just my ten cents.Oh, and here are some specs, because specs are cool:Sizes 50cm, 53cm, 56cm, 59cmFrame DBR CX Fully Butted 7005 Alloy Competition Cyclocross Geometry, Formed Top tube w/integrated HeadtubeFork Easton EC-70X Carbon w/Alloy SteererRear Shock N/ACranks FSA Gossamer Cross BB30 46,36tBottom Bracket BB30F. Derailleur Shimano SORA, 31.8R. Derailleur Shimano Sora 9spdShifter Shimano Sora Dual Control 9spdBrake Levers Shimano Sora Dual Control 9spdBrakes Tektro CR720 cantiGear Shimano HG50 9spd (12-25t)Rims 20h frt / 24h rear Equation CX20Tires Kenda small block 8 700x32Pedals test ride (NOT a brand, the bike comes with no pedals...)Handlebar DBR Drop Bar Road 31.8Stem DBR 3D forged, +/-7 degree rise 31.8Seatpost DBR Performance Post, Alloy Micro Adjust 27.2mmSeat DBR Performance RoadHeadset Integrated "Cane Creek" Size Drop-in ACB 1 1/8"Colors WhiteChain KMC-Z99Hubset (F) 20H Alloy, Sealed Bearing QR (R) 24H Alloy, Sealed Bearing, Cassette, QRSpokes White 14g Stainless SteelGrips DBR Cork w/GelExtras Owner's manual, Chainstay Protector, Clear Coat, H20 bottle mounts(All specs pulled from the Diamondback.com website)Update: I upgraded the wheelset and installed slicks! The new wheels are "Neuvation R28A's" which were a HUGE improvement over the stock ones, the tires are of the "Kenda Caliente Pro" model. I'll write a review for the tires at a later date 'cuz right now I'm too lazy. I will say this though; they're a pain to install when new. Cheers!
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful.
good bike for beginner good value
By tim
this is a good bike for the money, if you are looking to try cyclocross racing or just want to ride unpaved bike paths this bike is a good choice,especially for beginner racers. Good on the road too,just change tires.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
great bike
By augustine11
this was the best buy/investment i have made in some time. I love the bike, i was lucky to find a cyclocross (which i was looking for, for months) in my size for such a reasonable price with great components. the bike is great as i took it to my local bike shop and they put it together the next day and i was riding it around quickly. Only thing i wasnt a fan of was the high tread tires (but thats just personal preference) as i planned to do more stret riding then anything, so i switched out the wheels. This is my first bike since i was 10 so its not anything super fancy, but for the price and what you get its a great buy. If you're looking for a cyclocross, and they carry your size dont pass this up!
See all 4 customer reviews...
