| I have a Bikeology ATB, an Access Team. I got it about a year ago. When I
made the order they were out of stock and said it would be 10 days before
they could fill the order. I had the bike within 10 days. They were easy to
deal with.
The bike came in a big box via UPS. The assembly consisted of cleaning the
wheels (remove any oil from braking surfaces) and putting them on. Pedals and
handlebars (stem, handles, cables, etc all assembled) needed to be installed.
Brakes needed to be adjusted. Drive train was all set up, I did not have to
adjust the shifting. I'm sure there were a few other odds and ends. There
were instructions included. If you have done minor work on a bike and have
some idea of what the systems are all about you should have no real problem
and there is always this notes file. I was off in the woods within an hour.
The quality is excellent. I would do it again but I don't think I will be able
to wear the other one out. Be sure you know your size and see if you can find
a similar bike to test ride before you order.
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I have been riding a Fisher Montari SC for 2 years and have had no
problems. The headset at least on the SC isn't very different from any
other I have seen. The bottom bracket uses casset bearings, but they
are not that unusual. You need a tool which removes the retaining clip
and the whole assembly drops out as a unit. You don't have the
adjustment hastles like you do with cup and cones..
The SC was equipped the Shimano Deore SC group, a Shark tooth, and Matrix
wheels. I haven't altered it save for a Blackburn mountain rack and H2O
cages and a Shark fin to complement the tooth.
I have ridden the bike through h*&& and high water with no problems. I
do pay a lot of attention to maintenance however.
In general if you ride in the dirt, rocks, stumps, water bars etc. you
can spend a bit of time cleaning and adjusting. Although I haven't had the
problem, I have replaced a few deraileurs on other peoples bikes
(giggle Treks). I like to poke fun at them and claim that I have a
better bike, but that damage seems to be luck of the draw.
I have also rented the Trek 850 to try it. The 850 at least, handles
well, but I don't like the shift levers slung below the handlebars. I
have also ridden an old Trek 400 elance (sport bike) for 3 year with no
problems. It was built before Trek moved the 400 down market and it was
also equiped with Shimano Deore componentry. With the exception of the
brakes it has also been an excellent bike. I upgraded them. The only thing
I question about the Trek ATB's is the lugged frame's ability to take a
real beating. My Fisher is a welded chrome molly and is heavy , but it
takes a real beating. I jump logs, waterbars, boulders etc. and the bike
still looks like new. Good luck...
Arthur Couture
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