[Nigal]

Originally Posted by Mike1jw

I am seriously thinking about getting a road bike soon. I have a 22 year old Giant Sadona mountain bike (with 1.5 road tires) that I've been using for 25-30 mile rides on the road. I have heard some good reports from real people (not on the internet, but second hand through a friend) about buying from Bikesdirect.com. I noticed that in the manufacturer section of this forum Motobecane is not listed. Is there a reason for this?

I'm not in a rush for this since the season is near its end and I also want to buy Speedplay Frog pedals and some shoes to get used to on this old bike of mine before crashing with my new road bike.

I have definately been bittin buy road cycling, and can see myself going all out in this sport/hobby, but the funds are low and Motobecane seems like my best option. Any suggestions?

Thanks
Mike

If I'm not mistaken the Motobecan that Bikesdirect sells are not actual Motobecans. There is Motobécane and then there is Motobecane USA. They have nothing to do with each other.

[AlterCow]

Originally Posted by Nigal

If I'm not mistaken the Motobecan that Bikesdirect sells are not actual Motobecans. There is Motobécane and then there is Motobecane USA. They have nothing to do with each other.

That is correct. Basically, Bike's Direct bought the name rights to the French Motobecan, send their specs to Kenisis factory for frame build and add the components stateside.

I bought a 29er Fantom Pro from them 2 summers ago and I am most pleased with the bike. Assembley was easy for a complete dumbass like myself.

After a good tuneup from the LBS the bike has been stellar. I would buy from BD again. I often go to their website and look at the road bikes and full suspension bikes and contemplate another purchase...but that probably won't happen for another year or two.

The only downside I have had with this bike is the paint job is not top notch. The coat is thin and scratches easily. This is not a huge problem, because if the frame lasts 5-10 years of rocky mountain XC abuse I will sandblast it and repaint it. Who cares about the cheap stickers on it, ya know?

[firesound]

Received last week from Bikesdirect a Motobecane Le Champion Team. Dura Ace gruppo. Ritchey saddle, seatpost, bars, shimano 105 pedals. The bike without pedals weighed just under 16lbs.
First: dealing with bikesdirect. About 2 months ago I ordered a bike from bikesdirect (BD) and had to cancel the order. I just refused delivery when it came and BD was very gracious and returned my payment promply. Great. This bike just received arrived boxed, and well packed. I can only do basics in repair: true wheels, fix flats, maintenance stuff. The wheels were true out of the box. I assembled the bike in a liesurely hour. The derailleurs needed no fine tuning, shifted perfectly out of the box. I replaced the saddle with my Specialized Toupe and was good to go. The I have 150m on the bike now and riding like a dream.
I did a lot of research before dropping $2,800. I'm a clydedale at 235lbs. Been riding a Specialized Allez Elite for 7yrs (put 36,000m on it). Initally after reading all the pros about carbon fiber, that was my inclination. After speaking with my LBS, and discussing fully, they convinced me that with my size and the wheres and hows of my riding, I'd be wiser to choose titanium for a frame. So the research began. I'm 62 and ride 25m 6x wk. So like anyone, I want the best bang for my buck. After reading many threads and forums, one thing stands out, the mouths of the cycling world hate BD, but their customers for the most part are very happy. This to me speaks to the fact that in many case the LBS can't compete with BD in certain areas.
My Moto Le Champion Team Ti is a case in point. The frame is made in Taiwan where many of the "Big Names" have their frames built. The component group is Shimano Dura Ace, Mavic Krysium Elite wheels, Vittio Pro tires, Ritchey saddle, post, bars, Shimano 105 pedals. Price seperately it would seem to total around $5000. Now the bike costs $2800. There's a markup there that it would seem that many can't compete with, so the "sour grapes" attacks and flames are directed en masse at BD.
Meanwhile, I'm really enjoying my ti frame, dura ace equipped bike fully, and am totally satisfied with all aspects of my transactions with BD. Hope this helps. John

[Industry_Hack]

Some folks refuse to believe that your $2.8k bike is the same as their $5k bike, even though they came from the same factory. While I do like Bikes Direct, you have to find some balance, and support your LBS as well with accessories and service. For what it's worth, that markup happens along the distribution route, plus marketing/advertising, sponsorships, and warranty costs. Your dealer is not making a ton of money on a similar bike.

[firesound]

I feel I have a friendly and supportive resource in my LBS, business is business. Business models need to adapt to compete. The LBS don't give deep discounts because they like me, why shouldn't the reverse hold true.

[jeepster93]

My BD Motobecane road bike is now 2 years old with near 4,000 miles on it. I have gone through 4 tires and an easy 10 tubes.
The bike is still perfect. Some scratched paint. It will need new handlebar tape very soon.
I did need to get a wheel truing stand too, as the wheels did get tweeked, but the wheels are racing wheels with a very low, bladed spoke count, so expected.
The components are still functioning perfectly too. I DID change the chain($40) at 3,000 miles, not because of an issue but because I do not want an issue.
The saddle that came with the bike was the single worst thing I ever sat on, so that got replaced early on. It came with no pedals at all, so I needed to deal with that.


After 2 years and 4,000 miles on my Motobecane...
I would still recommend one.

[AndyPanda]

Sorry to dig up an old post ... but this post still comes up while searching google for the relevant info ... and I wanted to add my experience/info on the subject.

I recently bought a Motobecane Le Champion Team Titanium .... I spent A LOT of time reading the forums before I purchased. I've been a mountain biker for years and this was going to be my first road bike purchase since 1971 --- so I figured I had a lot to learn.

In researching bikes ... I read so many negative posts about BD ... but they all seemed to be from people who worked at LBS or who hated BD without ever having bought from them... I only encountered a few negative posts from people who had actually bought their bike from BD and most of those posts seemed like the buyer had been swayed by the "pro riders" on the forums who scolded them for buying from BD.

I also read a lot of different forums and websites about bike fit. Most people suggested I get a 56cm frame (I'm just shy of 6', 175lbs and 34" inseam) and for the LeChampion Titanium frame, most posts suggested that those run extra large and that I should go with a 53cm. (People were saying a 56 in this frame was about like a 58 in other brands). But I also read a lot of bike fit info suggesting larger frames for comfort for older riders (I'm 57) who aren't as flexible and don't plan on racing - in fact the Rivendell website was suggesting "huge" bike frames for someone my size.

So I ended up ordering the 59cm --- and I really worried about it being way too big for me ... but I find it to be about as perfect of a fit as I could have asked for. I do have really large hands, feet and long arms (I can almost scratch my knees without bending at the waist, as one of the first posts in this thread joked about). I have a good fist and a half of seatpost showing, I can barely touch the ground with my toes while seated but with my cycling shoes clipped in, I still have a bit of bend in my knees at full extension and I'm not rocking my hips at all when I pedal and I feel like I have a lot of power with the seat this high. And standing flatfooted over the bar in cycling shoes, I can raise the bike about 1 inch off the ground - so it's a bit tall for me but I feel completely safe. I started out with the handlebars low - but after the first 50 miles I flipped the stem and now the fit really feels perfect and my back and neck feel great during/after long rides.

Regarding the assembly ... this is the "team" version so it came with carbon steer tube ... I had to judge how tight to torque the expansion plug inside the steer tube. I actually own an inchpound torque wrench but I ended up doing this by feel instead of with the torque wrench ... I cringe when I think of an inexperienced buyer trying to assemble this bike who probably wouldn't even think of checking the expansion plug in the steer tube ... and if he did, would probably tighten it as tight as he could and crack the tube. Then I had to tighten the headset just enough to take all the play out and then tighten the stem enough to hold without cracking the carbon steerer. Install the front brake on the fork (carbon fork - so again common sense and a feel for how tight is enough) .... put the handlebars on the stem ... put on the front wheel and adjust the play in the Mavic hubs with the provided wrench. the front wheel had enough play to worry me but it snugged right up easily with the provided wrench. The shifting was already adjusted perfectly right out of the box and the brakes were about perfect too. I went with Time RXS pedals instead of the Shimano 105 pedals that came with the bike.

The Ksyrium elite wheels have sharp edges in the hole where the presta valve goes through ... and one of the tubes was sliced into the rubber and wouldn't take any air ... I took both tires off and smoothed up the edge on both rims and replaced the damaged tube (and BD sent a replacement tube without any questions asked). I googled a bit and found many people with the same problem with the Kysrium elite rims - but I haven't had any problem at all since smoothing off those edges.

The bike is gorgeous ... I hadn't expected the oversized tubes or the triangular shape that the top tube and downtube have ... they look great but from the pictures on the website I expected ordinary round tubes. Everyone who sees the bike is amazed at how great it looks and how light it is (about 16.5 lbs as close as I can measure).

I still wonder if I should have gone with a 56cm - maybe I'll get more flexible with more riding - but my handlebar tops are about 2-3 inches below my seat already (with the stem flipped - I could go much lower by flipping the stem back and I've got all the spacers below the stem too).

I mainly wanted to post this reply for other users who are wondering about sizing ... so many of the posts make it sound like the 59cm frame is only for people 6'5".

[firesound]

Hi! I bought a titanium frame, Dura Ace equipped Motobecane Le Champion Team about a year ago. I ride 150 miles a week. This bike is super. Dreambike. I then bought a woman's Moto for my wife and she loves he's as well. I bought online from bikesdirect.com. Their prices blow the competition out of the water , which in my opinion, is the reason Motos get short shrift by "the powers that be" in cycling media. The bike arrives at your door tax free a few days after order. Easy basic assembly. Wheels were true, and setup was spot on.
I think that a sour grapes attitude pervades attitudes of businesses that can't come close pricewise. Check it out. Cost compare.

[SG-1]

A friend of mine got a Motobecane Fantom 29er from BD a few weeks ago. I was very impressed with the fit, finish, and build quality.

He was very happy with the communication through BD. He did compare pricing between his LBS for similar bikes, and felt that he was getting better quality components for the same amount of money through BD. I believe he would have had to pay about $300 more at the LBS to get equal components.

I would rather get a bike from my LBS to support local business, but it depends on how well I am treated and the price difference. If it is only $200 or less and the LBS treats me decently, I would buy local.

[Industry_Hack]

Originally Posted by firesound

Their prices blow the competition out of the water , which in my opinion, is the reason Motos get short shrift by "the powers that be" in cycling media.

That really makes no sense.

Now, if you had said that the media is afraid to acknowledge the excellent value of BikesDirect's brands for fear of alienating their advertisers, I could almost buy that. Except for the fact that the last bicycle magazine I bought had a full review of a Motobecane.