Submitted by
Sara
a Weekend Warrior
from Seattle, WA, USA Date Reviewed: March 5, 2008
Favorite Trail:
Iron Horse
Duration Product Used:
More than 3 years
Price Paid:
$450.00
Purchased At:
Bicycles West
Strengths:
Great the first time out. Responsive but not jittery. Easy to change components (disc-brake compatible). Easily adjusted for fitting. Great all-around first-purchase bike for someone who does a fair amount of riding...and even if you don't, it's still a good investment. Price point is reflective of quality: $450 is a darn good value for what you get!
Weaknesses:
Women's design is nice but the head tube may be too short for taller women -- try the men's AND women's versions before you buy! I find myself having to lube the chain and gears more often these days before my rides but that may be due to the inadequacy of my chosen lube, not the components. The original seat was too hard for my butt bones, so I got a women's saddle, feels fine now.
Similar Products Used:
Trek 800 Sport
Bike Setup:
Trek 4500 WSD
Bottom Line:
I really love this bike, it has stood up to 3 years of riding, both on- and off-road, and for indoor training. (I have slicks for the road, and they're easily changed.) With a tune-up in early spring, I'm good for the whole year. I'm probably getting disc brakes put on this year...we'll see. This bike is a tad on the heavy side, so not the best choice for cyclo-cross. I've ridden it in both road tours and x-c races, and it performs beautifully. Highly recommended bike.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Jane Hodgetts
a Weekend Warrior
from Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia Date Reviewed: April 4, 2007
Favorite Trail:
Mapleton and Gap Creek
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$600.00
Purchased At:
Cycle World
Strengths:
Light for the price, brilliant finish quality, solid components, outstanding geometry and tubeless ready tires.
Weaknesses:
Prone to extreme cable rub near the head tube.
Similar Products Used:
Subtrax 2 (by Avanti), Trek 4300.
Bike Setup:
Stock.
Bottom Line:
This bike was sourced as the last available in the country due to it being last years model and rare enough as it was. The effort and hassle of finding it has more than paid off. The quality of this bike is simply outstanding and is most definitely ahead of my partners Giant Alias. It is quite light for the price of the bike. I would estimate somewhere around the 12kg mark. The forks are quite plush and although they lack rebound adjustment or lockout they perform fantasticall both on the foot path and on the trails. There really isn't much bad to be said about this bike. Perhaps for the money a better front derailleur and some basic hydraulic disc brakes would have been nice, but all in all it's a nice bike.
If your a female, or have a femenine body shape the WSD design is fantastic. Trek have really hit the geometry on the head.
I would definitely reccomend.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Steve
a
from ny Date Reviewed: May 14, 2006
Favorite Trail:
the woods behind my house
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$500.00
Purchased At:
placid planet bikes
Strengths:
quality components. deore rear derailleur. bontrager jones xc tires= good mud shedding
Weaknesses:
flex in the brakes (you get what you pay for)
Similar Products Used:
none
Bike Setup:
stock
Bottom Line:
This is my girlfriends bike and she seems to like it a lot, plus she likes the paint job.=) I think this bike is a good buy for the aspiring mtb'r and someone lookin for a good quality bike. I guess thats it for now. Happy riding!