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New All-Rounder/Commuter

4K views 24 replies 13 participants last post by  steinercat 
#1 ·
For those who don't follow the "How was your commute" thread, on Monday morning I was hit by a fellow student while on campus at UTSA. As a result of this I am now in the market for a new commuter and all-purpose enjoyment bike.

At this point I know pretty much what I'm looking for in the bike, I just am trying to compare the geometries of the few that I'm considering. The three front-runners are the All City Macho Man Disc, Salsa Vaya 3, and Salsa Fargo 3. It seems that All City and Salsa size their bikes by using seat tube length and ETT, respectively. So, that means that 54cm Vaya is about the same size as a Small Fargo and same thing with the 49cm Macho Man.

What I need is a bike with approximately 54cm ETT and able to be set up with a saddle to bottom bracket length of about 73cm. Does my comparison of these three bikes make sense?
 
#3 ·
Those are all within the realm of 'small', depending on the type of bikes they are. A 54 is closer to a medium, and a 49 is closer to an XS, but again, I'd impress that these manufacturers do funky things with sizing, sometimes. Best bet is to throw a leg over it to find out.

As far as other things to consider, what do you want? Drops? Flat bar? Single speed?
 
#5 ·
Recently test rode a Vaya and a Kona Rove. I bought the Rove because it felt way snappier than the Vaya. ETT and ST similar to the Vaya.

My usage is 90% commuting (mostly paved), 7% d!cking around on gravel or trails, 3% touring if I get permission.

I'm happy with it for whatever that's worth.
 
#6 ·
The issue with trying them out is that there are no shops in my city that carry either brand.

@mack_turtle if you are that height and ride a 54cm Vaya then I think either the 49cm or 52cm Macho Man should work just fine for me. The 49cm is nearly identical to your Vaya.

@wschruba I'm trying to replace my commuter, which was a Novara Buzz that I had converted to drop bars. After having that bike set up with drop bars for about the last month and a half I'm pretty sure that a drop bar cyclocross bike would work very well for the riding I do. I'm also looking for a geared bike, and I would like to stick with a steel frame.

I think the Fargo is a bit more dirt oriented that what I want. Mainly I threw that into the mix just for size comparisons. I sent an e-mail to the people at All City Cycles and will hopefully see what they have to say come tomorrow.
 
#9 ·
I'm looking for a drop bar specific frame. @TenSpeed, the reason why I don't want to go with another buzz is because I really like the drop bars, and I don't want to go through the effort of stripping the frame and changing out the drive-train again.
 
#11 ·
Thanks, Harold. I too ride mediums and I figured the 54cm Vaya would be the right size for me. But, I actually was able to find a really good deal on last year's Raleigh Tamland 1 so I pulled the trigger on that. The bike shop is getting it shipped in, and luckily if I don't like it after the test ride there is no penalty to me if I don't want it. I really hope this bike fits well, because if it doesn't then I have no idea what direction I'm going to take.
 
#14 ·
Some pics of my old bike

I figured that I would include some pictures of my old bike to show what happened to it. I should be able to salvage the derailleurs and possibly the brifters, but with the force applied to everything else I don't trust the BB, hubs, headset, etc. It can't be seen in these two pics, but the entire frame is slightly warped.


 
#22 ·
Interesting that the fork was bent to the right. If your weight was planting the tire the fork should be bent the other way. So that and having your left leg intact, suggests you dismounted to some degree. A bumper immanent on collision can incite a person to action!

It doesn't take much to total a bike. I could salvage the hubs (Campagnolo Records), the crankset, the handlebar and stem, the rear calliper, and the saddle and seat post and rear reflector.
 
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