Submitted by
Jeff
a Weekend Warrior
from Richardson, TX, USA
Date Reviewed: March 19, 2006
Strengths: Sram shifters and rear derailleur, tough frame, held together very well so far, the saddle is excellent, almost everything still works well after a year. Great bike for the money.
Weaknesses: the plastic pedals were shredded after a month, SR front derailleur must be constantly adjusted, and I've had a lot of problems with the rear wheel, spokes breaking and coming out of true, but I do weigh 255 lbs, so..
Bottom Line:
Great bike for the money, easily upgraded, and has handled my weight and hitting many trees at Rowlett Creek. My friends and I bought our entry level bikes at the same time and the Jamis has lasted the longest with no major repairs needed. (knock on wood)Plus the color is awesome, I got the blue one. This bike is great for any weekend warrior or beginner, and is easily upgraded along with your skills. A tad heavy stock, but upgrading the wheels and fork would take care of that.
Similar Products Used: Specialized Hardrock Sport, crap bikes from Academy and Target.
Bike Setup: Stock with a new similar rear wheel, flat bmx style pedals from the lbs, and my honda element sticker. Soon to swap front derailleurs for a sram x-gen and maybe some new wheels.
Strengths: Good value, great parts at price, rigid frame
Weaknesses: fork sucks, but all of them do at this price point. a Rock shox judy xc is a pretty cheap upgrade that really pays you back.
Bottom Line:
I got the 2004 frame when the 2005 came out at the end of the year. Its the flat black and its beautiful. I have moved on to a Prophet full suspension for my off-roading since then, but for the couple of years I rode the Jamis, it blew me away. I still use it today for commuting. I upgraded as I broke things, but I rode hard for over a year jumping and everything before anything needed replacment. My LBS was also awesome in helping and replacing parts at resonable prices (Liberty Bike Shop). Anyway, I would very much reccomend this bike to anyone looking for a low-cost Mtn Bike. It will give you a good entry into the sport, or even just offer a daily commuter like mine started as..but the bug will get you eventually. I have ridden many bikes, and so have all my friends, but a good amount of them bought the 2.0 because of its value, durabilty, and perfect frame for upgrading on.
Submitted by
Jen
a Cross Country Rider
from Las Vegas, USA
Date Reviewed: February 18, 2005
Strengths: SRAM components, frame warranty, value for money
Weaknesses: Fork, front derailleur, pedals
Bottom Line:
This review is for the 2005 model:
My hubby has the Jamis Cross Country 2.0. The fork pretty much sucks, but that's going to be the case with any low end fork. He's a big guy (250lbs), so we had to get the LBS to jerry rig the fork with some elastomers so it wouldn't bottom out. In addition, he's had problems with the front wheel slipping in the fork dropouts... the bike is in the shop right now to try and fix that. He had a few problems with the front derailleur, but that was mostly down to poor technique (he didn't realise that he had to take some pressure off the cranks before he shifted chainrings). That said, the front derailleur is kinda crappy and I want to replace it soon. The pedals are plastic, but he replaced those with clipless a couple of months after getting the bike... I'd suggest doing the same because the plastic isn't very durable. Those are the bad points.
The good points are the fact that it has a 27speed drivetrain so he won't have to relearn his shifting when he gets a new bike. The SRAM components (shifters and rear derailleur) are good quality and he hasn't had a problem with them at all. The brakes are decent (rim brakes, but the frame/fork are drilled for disks), and it comes with a nice comfy WTB saddle as well as other big name branded parts like Truvativ cranks. The frame has a lifetime warranty as well, which is definitely a plus point for an entry level bike.
All in all it's not a bad bike. The fork problems leave me a bit wary of Suntour... but you get what you pay for, and it may perform better with a lighter rider. The rest of the components (barring the front derailleur) make the bike a good all round package for the price.
4 chilis for value, since it really is a decent package for the price.
4 chilis overall... I'll give the fork the benefit of the doubt, though I'd offer 3.5 chilis if that was an option. I don't think the bike deserves as low as 3, so 4 it is.
