[Lou3000]

Just took my first ride on it, and wow, I test rode the 2010 F5 and liked it, but I love this bike. This is exactly how it was equipped riding off the showroom floor (well it was special ordered for me, so it never saw the showroom floor). I will be flipping the stem, changing saddles and getting new carbon handlebars, but the frame rides like a dream.

I suggest everyone who wants to buy a true road race bike rush out to try it. I test rode everything in my area, Trek, Specialized, Fisher, Orbea, etc. and for $2000 you cannot find a better bike. It seems that the other makers are dumbing down their frames at the $2000 price point. This is my first new road bike in 9 years (I ride a Trek TTX for triathlons), and coming from an old S-Works Specialized, I was amazed that all of the frames from the big bike builders rode like lazy chairs. I was riding a Madone on a test ride and was blown away at the fact that a bike that has won so many grand tours felt like a fat tire hybrid. I found out that you have to buy a 6 series to get the aggressive geometry that the pros really ride, but with Felt and $2000 you get the same geometry that Tyler Farrar used to sprint to victory in the Vuelta today.

But it isn't uncomfortable, and my first ride out with the stem flipped was the softest 25 miles I've ever put on a bike. I will probably flip the stem positive for long days and centuries but keep it negative for racing.

The only negative is that I saw an image of little Felt cable end crimps, maybe that is only on the F1? Come on Super Dave, where can I find those. Also, mine didn't have white cable housing like the photo, why the change?

 

[Lou3000]

Fixed the photo I think

 

[Don4]

Just took my first ride on it, and wow, I test rode the 2010 F5 and liked it, but I love this bike. This is exactly how it was equipped riding off the showroom floor (well it was special ordered for me, so it never saw the showroom floor). I will be flipping the stem, changing saddles and getting new carbon handlebars, but the frame rides like a dream.

I suggest everyone who wants to buy a true road race bike rush out to try it. I test rode everything in my area, Trek, Specialized, Fisher, Orbea, etc. and for $2000 you cannot find a better bike. It seems that the other makers are dumbing down their frames at the $2000 price point. This is my first new road bike in 9 years (I ride a Trek TTX for triathlons), and coming from an old S-Works Specialized, I was amazed that all of the frames from the big bike builders rode like lazy chairs. I was riding a Madone on a test ride and was blown away at the fact that a bike that has won so many grand tours felt like a fat tire hybrid. I found out that you have to buy a 6 series to get the aggressive geometry that the pros really ride, but with Felt and $2000 you get the same geometry that Tyler Farrar used to sprint to victory in the Vuelta today.

But it isn't uncomfortable, and my first ride out with the stem flipped was the softest 25 miles I've ever put on a bike. I will probably flip the stem positive for long days and centuries but keep it negative for racing.

The only negative is that I saw an image of little Felt cable end crimps, maybe that is only on the F1? Come on Super Dave, where can I find those. Also, mine didn't have white cable housing like the photo, why the change?

It is kinda of surprising that the cables aren't white, as they are presented on the new Felt website. If you look closely at the picture there, it appears that the little Felt cable end crimps are also shown on the F5, both for the brake cables and the derailleur cables.

It's possible your LBS skipped the cable end crimps, or removed them, *maybe*, but I'm thinking the cables themselves is all Felt.

My wife's 2010 Z2 has Di2 shifters, and in the official picture on the Felt website, the battery is mounted on the top of the downtube, just forward of the seattube (and right below the water bottle mounts...hmmmmm. On her bike, the battery back is mounted on the bottom of the left chainstay, right behind the bottom bracket.

-- Don4

 

[ColoColo]

Mine has the white cables. I'll chenge the stem for a Deda and the wheels come courtesy of American Classics. I'll let you know how my new rixe turns out!

It is kinda of surprising that the cables aren't white, as they are presented on the new Felt website. If you look closely at the picture there, it appears that the little Felt cable end crimps are also shown on the F5, both for the brake cables and the derailleur cables.

It's possible your LBS skipped the cable end crimps, or removed them, *maybe*, but I'm thinking the cables themselves is all Felt.

My wife's 2010 Z2 has Di2 shifters, and in the official picture on the Felt website, the battery is mounted on the top of the downtube, just forward of the seattube (and right below the water bottle mounts...hmmmmm. On her bike, the battery back is mounted on the bottom of the left chainstay, right behind the bottom bracket.

-- Don4

 

[bentvalve]

what is flipping the stem? don

 

[Don4]

what is flipping the stem? don

The handlebar stem can be removed, and reinstalled "upside down" from original orientation. In the picture on Lou3000's F5, the stem tilts "up" from horizontal. If he "flipped" it, it would tilt down by the same number of degrees, which would provide a lower, more aggressive, and more aerodynamic position.

-- Don4

 

[BuffaloBud]

Mine has white cable housings. Really impressed with this bike.

 

[dcl10]

From what I've seen with Felt a lot of the first bikes to hit the showrooms may not be exactly h brakes. They were generally all improvements or minor changes so it was not much of an issue. I rode a bit higher spec version and these are certainly great bikes especially for the price. Though I do believe Farrar is still using the old F1 sprint by the way, which has different geo. from the new F series.