I very recently purchased the Motobecane Nemesis. This is a tri-specific bike sold by bikesdirect.com ($995 shipped) and a few ebay vendors as well as a few brick and mortar stores named cyclespectrum. My source was sprtymama on Ebay ($987 shipped). I went with Ebay because it was $8 cheaper and also if there were any problems I could use the Ebay rating system as leverage.
I bought this bike because I had a tight price ceiling of $1k. I couldn't find many used bikes I was happy with and to buy a true tri-geometry bike with bar-end shifters in June at a local store, I couldn't find anything for as little as $1k. Even then, the cheapest bikes were Shimano 105 9 speed. Enter the Nemesis. It promised to give a full 10 speed Ultegra drive train with Dura-ace bar end shifters, 1520 gram wheels (that weight from xerowheel.com) and a decent frame.
FYI, this bike's frame seems to me to be the same as the 07 Fuji 2.0, which is the same frame as the 06 Fuji 1.0 (1.0 is better than 2.0). The Nemesis has a component list almost exactly the same as the 06 Fuji 1.0 and superior to the 07 2.0. The 2.0, BTW, sells for around $1500 in local bike stores (I called one that sells them).
I read good reviews about this bike and all the Motobecane bikes. The only negative was that the manufacturer's customer service appears through email only and those who've had to use it report its service not the quickest in the world. It all seemed to good to be true. How was this bike, and other Motobecane bikes, selling around 60% of what a similar one in a bike store would cost? I figure that people just don't trust online selling, want a local store with its free 150 mile tune-up, like to test-ride, etc.
So, is it the real deal? Yes. This bike came as promised with the promised components. I've ridden about 250 miles now. It's solid and rides as I would expect it to. I believe I can fit myself on a bike as well as any free bike-fitting-with-a-bike-purchase is likely to give anyway, so the only problem was construction.
Motobecane claims that this bike is 90% assembled, which is untrue. I don't have much wrench experience and it took me more like 3 hours. However, with the derailleur instructions (the manual for the bike itself is not even applicable to the bike and quite useless) I got it sorted out and the benefit that now I know the ins and outs of the bike more. The bottom bracket was installed and derailleur's hung, but the front was not adjusted and the bar-end shifters had to go in, some cables routed, etc.
The 54 cm bike weighs precisely 20 lbs assembled. I am 5,11" and bought this size because I feel many people buy bikes too big. In my case 54 was good--I could possibly have done even with 52 to get a proper aero position (but that would have been aggressive). At my height, the 250 mm Ritchey Pro seat post was too short to get properly high. I therefore had to replace it for $30 with an Ebay purchase. Also, IMO, this bike does not come with tires. Let me explain: The Continental Ultra Sport tires are deplorably bad tires. Continental should in fact remove them from the market and offer an apology for them. They flat _like crazy_. Roadbikereview.com reviews back this up. They are horrific tires. I therefore have had to replace them. This is a problem a person could have with a LBS purchase, though probably a local store would replace a seat post too short for a nominal charge.
Pros:
1) This bike offers nothing one cannot get elsewhere except in regards to price. The price is the reason a person buys a Motobecane and its price is absolutely untouchable by any other manufacturer I've seen.
Cons:
1) Final construction is up to the purchaser, although some people bring it to a local shop and pay $50 for them to put it together. IMO, this is not a big detraction, though; it encourages a better knowledge of the components and then you won't become a person who has to go to the local store just to get the cable adjusted.
2) Seat post may be too low for some people.
3) Tires are incredibly flat-prone.
Conclusion:
I am very happy with my purchase. It was, overall, everything I'd hoped for. I would have liked a longer seat post and I think it behooves Motobecane to stop using these junky Continental tires, but otherwise I have paid $1k for a comparitively great ride. I would certainly buy another Motobecane.
I've attached some pics of the build process. One of the pics has a bunch of styrofoam ripped apart. Apparently my daughter likes to do that
I bought this bike because I had a tight price ceiling of $1k. I couldn't find many used bikes I was happy with and to buy a true tri-geometry bike with bar-end shifters in June at a local store, I couldn't find anything for as little as $1k. Even then, the cheapest bikes were Shimano 105 9 speed. Enter the Nemesis. It promised to give a full 10 speed Ultegra drive train with Dura-ace bar end shifters, 1520 gram wheels (that weight from xerowheel.com) and a decent frame.
FYI, this bike's frame seems to me to be the same as the 07 Fuji 2.0, which is the same frame as the 06 Fuji 1.0 (1.0 is better than 2.0). The Nemesis has a component list almost exactly the same as the 06 Fuji 1.0 and superior to the 07 2.0. The 2.0, BTW, sells for around $1500 in local bike stores (I called one that sells them).
I read good reviews about this bike and all the Motobecane bikes. The only negative was that the manufacturer's customer service appears through email only and those who've had to use it report its service not the quickest in the world. It all seemed to good to be true. How was this bike, and other Motobecane bikes, selling around 60% of what a similar one in a bike store would cost? I figure that people just don't trust online selling, want a local store with its free 150 mile tune-up, like to test-ride, etc.
So, is it the real deal? Yes. This bike came as promised with the promised components. I've ridden about 250 miles now. It's solid and rides as I would expect it to. I believe I can fit myself on a bike as well as any free bike-fitting-with-a-bike-purchase is likely to give anyway, so the only problem was construction.
Motobecane claims that this bike is 90% assembled, which is untrue. I don't have much wrench experience and it took me more like 3 hours. However, with the derailleur instructions (the manual for the bike itself is not even applicable to the bike and quite useless) I got it sorted out and the benefit that now I know the ins and outs of the bike more. The bottom bracket was installed and derailleur's hung, but the front was not adjusted and the bar-end shifters had to go in, some cables routed, etc.
The 54 cm bike weighs precisely 20 lbs assembled. I am 5,11" and bought this size because I feel many people buy bikes too big. In my case 54 was good--I could possibly have done even with 52 to get a proper aero position (but that would have been aggressive). At my height, the 250 mm Ritchey Pro seat post was too short to get properly high. I therefore had to replace it for $30 with an Ebay purchase. Also, IMO, this bike does not come with tires. Let me explain: The Continental Ultra Sport tires are deplorably bad tires. Continental should in fact remove them from the market and offer an apology for them. They flat _like crazy_. Roadbikereview.com reviews back this up. They are horrific tires. I therefore have had to replace them. This is a problem a person could have with a LBS purchase, though probably a local store would replace a seat post too short for a nominal charge.
Pros:
1) This bike offers nothing one cannot get elsewhere except in regards to price. The price is the reason a person buys a Motobecane and its price is absolutely untouchable by any other manufacturer I've seen.
Cons:
1) Final construction is up to the purchaser, although some people bring it to a local shop and pay $50 for them to put it together. IMO, this is not a big detraction, though; it encourages a better knowledge of the components and then you won't become a person who has to go to the local store just to get the cable adjusted.
2) Seat post may be too low for some people.
3) Tires are incredibly flat-prone.
Conclusion:
I am very happy with my purchase. It was, overall, everything I'd hoped for. I would have liked a longer seat post and I think it behooves Motobecane to stop using these junky Continental tires, but otherwise I have paid $1k for a comparitively great ride. I would certainly buy another Motobecane.
I've attached some pics of the build process. One of the pics has a bunch of styrofoam ripped apart. Apparently my daughter likes to do that
