Price Paid:  $335.00 at GVHbikes

Favorite Ride:
Seatle to Portland (STP)

Bike Setup:
I have a complete 105 setup with dura ace hubs and Mavic open pro rims

Summary:
This is a great starter bike and commuter. If you want a great show bike forget it. The first time you touch something hard the paint will chip. Other than that I have placed 6500 miles on the bike in two years with very little problems.

Strengths:
When I started cycling I was very heavy (280 lbs) and felt a good steel Italian bike would do the trick. And I was right. Even with a large frame(63 cm) I was to get the bike under 22 pounds. The faster I push the bike the more stable it becomes.

Weaknesses:
The paint chipping has to be the greatest vexation I know. Other than htat it is a great bike.

Similar Products Used:
Schwinn, nisihki

Price Paid:  $350.00 at Bicycle Shoppe, Shawnee OK

Bike Setup:
Athena 8 speed with various wheelsets, depending on event or mood

Summary:
Everyone should have one of these. I got mine when i was a broke college student. I rode the heck out of it for 2 years in TT's, road races, criteriums, even a 12 hour endurance ride once. It saw regular 350 mile training weeks and i never felt handicapped by the weight because i generally used tubulars to race. As a race bike, it has been retired, but on occasion i have thrown 'cross tubulars on it and raced cyclocrosses (try riding your sweet-ass Merckx or Colnago in the dirt - it can be done- but who would want to?), right now, the old school dropouts have allowed me to set it up as a fixed gear bike for early season training. Versatility like that has made this one of my best bikes ever.

Strengths:
Low price. Mine has nice pearl paint, and rides like any other good Italian frame. My 53c bike only weighs a pound more than my gigabucks MAX tubed bike(22 vs. 21 - with equivalent tubular racing wheelsets.)

Weaknesses:
not really any for the price, and my dealer, Larry, prepped it with the same care he would a more expensive frame. This is crucial to me and probably one of the reasons i am still pleased with the bike after 6 years.

Similar Products Used:
DeBernardi MAX, Paramount 753, and too many other decent Italian bikes to mention

Favorite Ride:
River road in Rockledge/Cocoa

Bike Setup:
DeBernardi 3T Aelle (1996 model, if there's any difference.)Campy BB and headset. Other components Shimano 105. Ritchey Vantage Comp Road wheelset.

Summary:
This bike is my back-up bike for when my Trek 5200 is in the shop or otherwise indisposed. It is heavy, and the paint job sucks, but it does have a nice smooth, steel ride and nice geometry. I got the frame and fork with BB and headset installed from O'neils (www.oneils.com) online for $405 including shipping back in late 1996.

Strengths:
Low price. Smooth ride. Great bike for the money.

Weaknesses:
Heavy. Frame and fork weigh >6 lbs. Entire bike weighs about 24-25 pounds. Crappy paint. (It chips easily.) There are NO DeBernardi T-shirts, caps, jerseys, etc. available ANYWHERE. Nobody makes 'em, including DeBernardi.

Similar Products Used:
None

Favorite Ride:
morris county

Bike Setup:
full dura-ace 8 speed, ttt bars and stem, open pro rims with titanium spokes, michilen axial pro

Summary:
this bike has always been a rainy day ride or for when friends come to town without a bike. i've had relatively few hours on the saddle, but the time i rode were very enjoyable. lively ride, but still stable and steady during sprints or hard efforts. the weight penalty doesn't make it fly up hills but very nice overall. they gotta do something about that paint!!

Strengths:
good quality entry-level ride. very lively but stiff enough for sprinting. race level geometry. comfortable

Weaknesses:
a little heavy (but not for the price). the absolute WORST paint quality in terms of durability. gorgeous candy red finish but if you look at it funny half the paint falls right off the frame!

Similar Products Used:
mongoose iboc world champion, schwinn peleton, raliegh, litespeed classic

Favorite Ride:
concord rd, carlisle ma.

Bike Setup:
campy mirage, mavic openpro, 32*14g spokes, conti ss ultra 700/23, 3t stem/bar, performance r-2 pedals, control tech seatpost, selle san marco concor lt saddle.

Summary:
it is aelle therefore heavier than the higher end tubesets, but the ride is wonderful, smooth and lively.

a torelli frame using the same tubeset costs twice as much.

this frame can be had for as little as $210 when bought with a build kit. (gvhbikes)

I have well over 1000 miles on it, with no problems, except a few paint chips.

Strengths:
price, ride quality, real italian frame for a good price.

Weaknesses:
paint chips easily

Similar Products Used:
miyata, raleigh