[autumn acid]

Hey guys, I need to make a choice out of the following 3 bikes:

- Trek 6500
- GT Avalanche Expert
- Giant XtC3

The style of riding is basically light off road, with a bit of road use. No plans to take on drops, freeride, etc.

 

[damion]

Any of the three.

Are they all at the same shop?

Did you test ride all of them? If you have, and one does not stand out to you, go with the shop that you are the most comfortable with.

Personally, I say Trek, but I work for a Trek dealer, so I see first hand how they treat customers.

Giant is my second choice. Giant bikes are hard to compete with as far as price and the parts spec go.

I am unsure about the GT, but that is probably a knee-jerk reaction to their going through so many re-organizations and sales of the company.

 

[autumn acid]

I've ridden the trek, and it feels awesome. Haven't ridden the gt yet.

Problem is that both bikes are from two seperate stores and both stores have awesome service and customer support.

I think the discriminating factor may be my ride on the gt. If it feels better then the trek, I'll go for it. If it's the same as the trek, I will basically go for the bike which I can get a better deal on. I need gloves and a proper helmet as well.

Bascially, just wanted to know what peoples experiences are with these bikes. The Giant looks very underspeced, but both trek and gt have very similar componentry and warranties.

 

[scooterman]

giant xtc3? what year is that bike

 

[autumn acid]

giant xtc3? what year is that bike

It's either current, or 2006 model.

 

[All Mountain]

The Giant XTC3 has a good frame, but has XC geometry. Have you decided on which one has the best geometry for your needs? Essentially, you are buying a frame and a good fork is a bonus. All the rest of the bits will get wornout and replaced eventually.

 

[autumn acid]

The Giant XTC3 has a good frame, but has XC geometry. Have you decided on which one has the best geometry for your needs? Essentially, you are buying a frame and a good fork is a bonus. All the rest of the bits will get wornout and replaced eventually.

a lot of riding, with aspirations to race xc....

 

[All Mountain]

a lot of riding, with aspirations to race xc....

I would recommend the Giant, GT, and TREK in that order.

 

[autumn acid]

Just wondering - why would the trek be your last choice?

I know what you mean, r.e durability of the components, etc - but the trek looks like it has a better fit out of parts then the Giant.

GT and Trek I thought would have been in the same ball park.

Are you coming from the mindset that the Giant has the xc geometry frame, as opposed to a total package bike?

 

[Xioz]

Last year I test-rode the Trek 4500, the GT Avalanche 1.0 & Scott Yecora (to help a friend choose).

The GT Avalanche 1.0 definitely came out best. Great bike.

 

[All Mountain]

If you get the Trek 6700 I might put it first. The GT is definately kitted out. You could toss a coin between it and the Giant. The Giant frame to me is tougher, lighter, and race proven over the GT frame. Not much of a Trekkie, sorry. Just never had one or rode with people who had one, so its just personal with the Trek.

 

[autumn acid]

If you get the Trek 6700 I might put it first. The GT is definately kitted out. You could toss a coin between it and the Giant. The Giant frame to me is tougher, lighter, and race proven over the GT frame. Not much of a Trekkie, sorry. Just never had one or rode with people who had one, so its just personal with the Trek.

even then, the gt has the almost the same componentry as the 6700... at a lower price

 

[All Mountain]

It's hard making a decision sometimes. I'm debating about getting a new 130mm fork on a budget. Fox Vanilla seems to be the best choice, but Rockshox has some good new forks such as the Recon 351 (cheap price) or the Revelation. I've spent most of my time on Manitou and would like to move on from them. Mazocchi All Mountain series looks excellent but the axle to crowns are too tall .

 

[Xioz]

If you get the Trek 6700 I might put it first. The GT is definately kitted out. You could toss a coin between it and the Giant. The Giant frame to me is tougher, lighter, and race proven over the GT frame. Not much of a Trekkie, sorry. Just never had one or rode with people who had one, so its just personal with the Trek.

I disagree that the Giant frame is more 'tougher' and 'race proven' than the GT frame. The GT frame is extremely well-engineered and very strong/stiff. As an owner of a Giant ATX frame (precursor of the XTC) I must admit that the GT frame is definitely stronger, but the Giant frame is lighter.

Furthermore; the GT frame is based on the GT Zaskar, which is a very succesful frame by GT which has been around for a long time, and will continue to do so. The GT Zaskar sure is a race-proven design.

To conclude all above posts: Opinions over the three bikes differ much. So I think it's important for you to test-ride all three bikes. One thing is for sure; you won't go wrong on any of these three bikes. I personally would probably choose the GT, but it's all up to you.

Regards,

 

[All Mountain]

You can't compare an ATX to the new XTC frame. Completely different.

GT and Giant are both strong and pressure/fluid formed. Giant is lighter, and that is why I chose it for aspirations of XC racing.

However, lighter frame is only a factor when the components are top shelf. If you don't have top shelf, you can make up for the weight in smart tyre/wheel choices in the rotational mass which makes more of a difference.

GT is a smart choice for components. If you get it, you can save weight by selling off the heavy (but reasonable) Deore disc brakes and get some Juicy 5's.

 

[autumn acid]

Thanks a lot guys!

I have a feeling that I'm going to opt for the GT... very specced up bike at a great price. Also, I've heard great things about the zaskar.

I'll need to do a good test ride though!


I'll leave this thread open to suggestions as my big purchase will be on the 01/15/06.