sup fellas, i bought a trek fuel 70 onsale at my local lbs...its a decent bike i love the color and the frame design...however its not the lightest and has pretty crappy parts.....for a tad more i can get this khs with decent parts?
should i return my fuel and get this???
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I say go for it. It comes with dics hubs which can be a plus if you want to upgrade w/o spending a $hitload. And btw, local lbs is redundant cause the l in lbs is local.
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Keep the Trek, change the parts.
As far as I'm concerned, the frame IS the bike. I don't buy a bike based on the component group because I know I can and will change it over time. The KHS doesn't seem like a good deal at all by comparison.
The Fuel is an excellent bike and I assume you're going to be keeping it a few years and changing some parts.
Incidentally, I have a TREK 8000 which I bought stock and changed to the following parts in the subsequent 2 years I've had it, and in this order:
Shimano 959 pedals (for performance and weight),
Bontrager Race Lite saddle with titanium rails (the Bontrager FS2000 that came with the bike was the best saddle I ever had at that point but it developed a rip and I was told that they didn't have another to replace it with right away so I paid the difference for the very high end saddle. Though I would have been more than happy with the first one, I have to say I'm very happy with the racing saddle, but that's just me),
Shimano XT crankset and bottom bracket (the Bontrager crankset is pretty good except for the fact that it's made out of cheeze and broke on me--a non-technical rider. I don't think you're likely to have a problem with it, but it could happen. I love the Shimano XT and am more than glad that I got it regardless of my Bontrager problem).
Shimano XTR brake and shift cables (never thought it would make a difference but gave it a try and, WOW!, it's like I paid big money for better shifters and brakes--but all I changed was the cables and housings).
Panaracer Trailblaster tires (hands down the best tires for off-road I've every had and I pay big money for good tires. They're not so great on the road though if that's a concern. By contrast, the Jones AC tires my TREK came with may be the worst tires I ever used except on any kind of granual surface such as sand, limestone pebbles, wet sand and so forth--really made for certain areas of the West Coast.)
yadda, yadda, yadda
moral of the story is that you should go for the bike that offers the best frame and replace components as you can afford to. With the Fuel you'll do great with it as is and if you upgrade components you'll end up with something better than a Fuel 100 which would have cost you a lot more and not given you as great performance.
As far as I'm concerned, the frame IS the bike. I don't buy a bike based on the component group because I know I can and will change it over time. The KHS doesn't seem like a good deal at all by comparison.
The Fuel is an excellent bike and I assume you're going to be keeping it a few years and changing some parts.
Incidentally, I have a TREK 8000 which I bought stock and changed to the following parts in the subsequent 2 years I've had it, and in this order:
Shimano 959 pedals (for performance and weight),
Bontrager Race Lite saddle with titanium rails (the Bontrager FS2000 that came with the bike was the best saddle I ever had at that point but it developed a rip and I was told that they didn't have another to replace it with right away so I paid the difference for the very high end saddle. Though I would have been more than happy with the first one, I have to say I'm very happy with the racing saddle, but that's just me),
Shimano XT crankset and bottom bracket (the Bontrager crankset is pretty good except for the fact that it's made out of cheeze and broke on me--a non-technical rider. I don't think you're likely to have a problem with it, but it could happen. I love the Shimano XT and am more than glad that I got it regardless of my Bontrager problem).
Shimano XTR brake and shift cables (never thought it would make a difference but gave it a try and, WOW!, it's like I paid big money for better shifters and brakes--but all I changed was the cables and housings).
Panaracer Trailblaster tires (hands down the best tires for off-road I've every had and I pay big money for good tires. They're not so great on the road though if that's a concern. By contrast, the Jones AC tires my TREK came with may be the worst tires I ever used except on any kind of granual surface such as sand, limestone pebbles, wet sand and so forth--really made for certain areas of the West Coast.)
yadda, yadda, yadda
moral of the story is that you should go for the bike that offers the best frame and replace components as you can afford to. With the Fuel you'll do great with it as is and if you upgrade components you'll end up with something better than a Fuel 100 which would have cost you a lot more and not given you as great performance.
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229 Posts
Are you crazy?
No!
No!
I think the color of the KHS is prettier, and i like the little flame thing too. but seriously without knowing exactly what components are on each bike it's hard to say. are they both stock, and what year are they? according to the khs website the 04 704xc runs mostly xt/lx stuff where as the Fuel 70 is alivio/deore. if that is the case then it would probably be worth it to go for the khs, becuse imho lx is a fairly significant step up from deore/alivio. according to the websites below the khs retails for about $1000 more.
http://www.khsbicycles.com/04xc704rspec.html
http://www.trekbikes.com/bikes/2004/mountain/fuel70.jsp
http://www.khsbicycles.com/04xc704rspec.html
http://www.trekbikes.com/bikes/2004/mountain/fuel70.jsp
the fuel is 04 the khs is a 03...and yes it has xt rear...lx front..and lx shifters...the trek has deore rear..alivio front and alivio shifters..thhe trek has a manitou axel fork and the khs has a sid race fork....the khs is lighter at 26lb..the fuel is more like 32lb?....i priced the parts to make like khs but have fuel frame and its gonna cost a bunch!....i do like the fuel frame better...but the khs is more bang for the buck...plus the trek is 8spd..khs is 9bacchanal said:
i do like the trek but feel i'm getting more for my money..with the khs...dunno but i was gonna return it tomarrow
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863 Posts
Go for the KHS. Its still a pretty nice frame, and for just a little bit more (How much is a little bit by the way?) It seems like the parts on the KHS are just a lot nicer, and put it in a different league than the Fuel. Although the Fuel may arguably have a better frame, the frame is still just another component that you can change over time if you don't like it. I'd say return it.
If it were me, i'd go with the khs no question. they're pretty similar frames, and would both serve you well. It's not like you're married to your frame. Weight and component quality considered, the khs would be a much better ride RIGHT NOW...no need for upgrading...until you want to that is.
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2,548 Posts
A rather foolish statement, if I may say so - the frame is the essence of the bike - components are mounted to the frame, and there's a great chance that if you view a frame as a replaceabble component, you're going to spend a sum of money to replace parts that don't fit your new frame when you wish to replace that perticular "component". The frame is the backbone of the bike (higher grade components may sell lower grade frame, but a higher grade frame can always be upgraded - swapping out to a different frame is not an even deal ....sonnysISadope !!!sonyisdope said:
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863 Posts
I'm not saying that you can just swap out the frame instantly, but I'm saying that down the line, if you want to change the frame, it is possible. If it is not that much more for the KHS, the nicer parts far outweigh the frame. The KHS frame is still a pretty nice frame too! You can argue that virtually anything is the essence of the bike, but in this case, the overall package is a better deal. . .FuelSUCKish !!!Fuelish said:
whats so bad about the khs frame?
i dont see much khs stuff posted here and just wondering why? i've been looking at that bike for weeks...has best parts, lightest..i would prob only change the seat and stem,grips..on the trek i'd have to change everything
i dont see much khs stuff posted here and just wondering why? i've been looking at that bike for weeks...has best parts, lightest..i would prob only change the seat and stem,grips..on the trek i'd have to change everything
i think it has more to do with reputation than anything. trek is just better known, has more engineers, and sells more bikes. i doubt there is much if any difference in quality, and just from looking at the two i don't see much difference. both gussetted, similar rocker arms, similar pivots...I wouldn't think twice about getting the khsMach said:
ture, but the difference between the components on these two bikes is very significant, where as the difference between the two frames is more or less negligible as far as I can see. it's a $2000 bike vs. a $1000 bike...i don't think MOST people put $1000 or more worth of aftermarket upgrades into a $1000 bike...they would generally upgrade to a different frame as well as component group. It's a lot cheaper to buy the components as a bike, rather than separately.Fuelish said:
well thats the thing....msrp on the khs is $1999 or 1799 and the trek is $945...i'm getting more bike for my buck ..but i dunno seems like khs is hated here....but i dont even get the good alloy in the 70...wouldnt it still be kinda heavy modified anywho?
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