down to 3 bikes...what do you all think

Oh. I thought you meant that you had decided that you were somehow going to get by with only three bikes, and you wanted our help deciding what 3 were necessary.

I have 5 plus my 20% share of the family tandem. I could use another.

what are you planning to do?

are you just trail riding or planning to race XC?

i PLAN to do some XC races. my wife just got a Gary Fisher Advance and is going to be competing in off road triathlons but i'm just not a fan of that running garbage lol.

I test rode the FSR XC last night and the Fuji Outland PRO this afternoon out of the box i liked the FSR XC a bit better but I know that the Fuji has more adjust ability and a much higher end component group,

It's the bike the owner of the shop has been tooling around on at the local trails and it has some scratches and scuffs on it so I'm probably gonna offer him 1500 and if he'll do that I'll probably go with it cause deep down I know it's the better bike

If the FSRxc is your favorite and the dealer won't come down on the Fuji, what about a FSRxc Expert? Same price as the Fuji, nicer components than the Comp, and if the FSRxc feels better to you, you shouldn't discount that.

Was there anything you didn't like about the Fuji? Alternatively, what did you like better about the FSRxc?

The FSRxc is a longer-travel bike than what most people around here choose to race on, but not by much. How serious are you planning to be about racing? Do you want a bike that's more fun on trails, or a more effective racer?

I really think it all came down to suspension settings, and i got back on the FSR XC and i think i liked it more for pavement then i would for the trail as there isn't even any grass bumps around the shop to try it on. Then again it's the same thing where I rode the Fuji but the fuji did feel more effective bike in power delivery and I plan on going in today or tomorrow and seeing if we can play with the pressure settings on the rear shock and see what kind of feeling i can get out of it with a little bit less pressure in the rear suspension.

As far as being and effective racer let me put it this way...i won't enjoy the bike if it can't climb pretty close to a hardtail and thats the thing really pulling me away from the FSR XC, I really don't think it will be a great climber and a more effective racer is much higher on my list than a bike that would be more fun on the trails is.