NOVEMBER
2001
2002
JAMIS QUEST
Ride - anywhere demeanor. Beautiful ride. Stable.
Do-All, Be-All Road Machine Offers Outstanding Value
THE FRAME'S SO COOL BECAUSE... it's the last of its kind, in a way. At this price range, your choices abound with cheap aluminum frames - and that's too bad because you can't beat quality steel like this Reynolds 631 skeleton. An aluminum frame at this price is amazingly rigid and efficient, but without a lot of extensive shaping or manipulation you can't get a good ride out of it. (And that tuning work costs big bucks.) Steel has a naturally supple ride, yet it's stiff enough to get the job done. Without affordable steel bikes like this one, most beginners never get to experience good ride quality until they've moved up to a mid-level bike. Aside from the quality tubing, the Quest's frame is a pleasant throwback. The socket-style dropouts add a touch of class and improve stiffness by allowing the stays to remain round instead of being mashed flat. The dropout rack eyelets have matching seatstay eyelets, which make rack mounting super clean and easy. (The seatstay eyelets are usually left off, so you're forced to use an ugly seatstay clamp.) There's the oh-so-useful-yet-barely-weighs-anything pump peg, a chain hangerŠand the whole works is capped off by a crown-like braze-on seat collar. It's almost- forgotten touches like these that set the Quest apart, a bonus on top of it's honest performance.
BEST
THING ABOUT THIS BIKE
It's
versatility. The triple-ring crank, rack eyelets and supple steel ride
make it a tourer, but the reasonable weight and graceful cornering make
it a good occasional racer, too.
WORST
THING ABOUT THIS BIKE
There's
no obvious upgrade - if you become a serious racer, you'll want another
bike.
ABOUT
THE RIDE
You
can't beat a steel frame for supple road sensitivity - it transmits enough
vibration so you know what's going on beneath you. Steel avoids the overwhelming
buzz of un-tuned aluminum frames (which are what's available at this price).
The Reynolds pipes keep the ride comfortable and are stiff enough to withstand
big bear mashers & powerful sprinters.
STABILIZING
GEOMETRY
Unlike
some do-it-all frames, which are basically road racers with slackened
head angles, this bike has it all. The head tube angle's on the slack
side (72.5 degrees on our 59cm bike), but doesn't produce slow steering
response. The wheelbase is a longish 100.2cm but the real key is the stretched-
out 41.5cm chainstays, which make the bike track cleanly - the rear wheel's
rock steady, and the chainstays provide stability on corners.
SMARTLY
SPEC'D
There's
a complete Shimano drivetrain and brakes - no generic substitutions here
- and the Ritchey Comp bar, stem and seatpost are sturdy, flex and trouble
free - they're as name-brand a you can get without stretching the budget.
Mavic's $300 Cosmos wheels are outstanding - better than anything you
could expect for the money. It's hard to imagine better spec anywhere
for this price.
REVIEWED BY: Garrett Lai
Jamis Bicycles: 800.222.0570; www.jamisbikes.com
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