In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...
Quoted message said:Hello, All-- I have a Lightning Stealth (aka, Phantom) that's four years old and worn out. It
needs wheels, brakes, seat webbing, seat stays, some welding work on the frame, and paint, among
other things.
IMO it probably needed new brakes 4 years ago.
Quoted message said:For years, I've been considering an upgrade to a P-38, and if ever there was a time to do it, it's
now. Does anyone have experience with both of these bikes? Can anyone give me a comparison? Here's
what I've gathered so far:
I have only test ridden the Stealth/Phantom so, my opinions are limited to P-38s. Although, 'out of
the box', I would not consider a Phantom except as a frame.
Quoted message said:(1) The frame and fork of the P-38 are 2.5 pounds lighter than the frame and fork of my Stealth.
Source: Tim at Lightning Cycle Dynamics.
I think those 2.5 lbs that are shaved off are in the right places to translate into a faster bike.
Quoted message said:(2) The P-38 is extremely stiff; so much so, in fact, that every twig one runs over sends a shock
through the frame and into the rider's bones. Source: Two different persons who test drove the
same P-38.
Not true, In fact, I think just the opposite. While the frame may be stiff in a longitudinal
direction, the 'space-frame' triangulation allows for a lot of later flex. For example, if you grab
the back of the seat and shake the bike, it jiggles like Jell-O. If the angle of attack is good, I
usually hit RR tracks at full speed and hardly notice the bumps. I have ridden my bike on all kinds
of roads for 7-8 hours a day and have done this for 6-7 days in a row. I have not noticed any tiring
of my body due to bike induced shock. Just as I said in my preface, I can't comment authoratively on
the Phantom since I have only done test rides. I would not consider strongly any opinions of people
that have only 'test ride' experience.
And now for some 'warts': Someone mentioned swapping out the wimpy foam seat pad for a Thermarest
sport seat. This is perhaps one of the reasons I can ride 8 hours aday for days on end.
LCD brakes are [censored]. This is due in part to the mis match of the outmoded brake levers to the
Odyssey 'A' brakes. A P-38 H/B requires a specially bent lever to matck the curve of the H/B. This
is not a bad thing but the brake lever supplied with my P-38 (RitcheyLogic) were never satisfactory.
I have heard that the Tektro are not any better.
A P-38 with a 700c rear wheel gives very little clearance in between the chain stays for brake arms,
fenders or wide tires. The 26"(559) rear wheel has none of these problems.
The Performance option also puts a skinny fork on the front that limits tires choices to one and
only one tire (Conti GP)
Front Suspension is not worth the extra $350. Mine was DOA (not a rare occurance I understand) and
even when I had a functioning one, it did not seem to be that much better. I now have a
Non-Suspension Fork and really can't see any difference in comfort. IMO Suspension forks are
slower. I noticed a great jump in speed when I switched from a 16" sus=fork to a 20" non-sus fork.
(I will grant that some of this improvement may be attributed to the fact that 20" wheels are
faster that 16".
Quoted message said:Can anyone help me with other comparison characteristics? Thanks in advance. --Chris
--
Cletus D. Lee Bacchetta Giro Lightning Voyager clee.orgclee.orgOpen ↗
- Bellaire, TX USA -
