Hi all

Just thought I would tell you about my new bike. Picked it up last Thursday and it is great!!!

http://www.kleinbikes.com/assets/asset_upload_file702_1465.jpg

Background.

I live and work in central london (UK) and needed something quicker to get around town and to use on roads out of town at the weekends. Before deciding on my Klein I tested a number of road bikes from manufacturers such as Giant, Specialised and Klein. Evans in Waterloo and Cycle Surgery in Holborn were very helpful and patient whilst I tried out a number of bikes. In the end I made a blind purchase I.e. I bought the Klein without trying it! This was because non of the stores had it in stock. Bit of a risk but well worth it !! :cool: I have taken it on a couple of 30 + mile trips and have also used it to commute to work.

Positives

It is blisteringly quick and reasonably light. Sure its not as light as say a high end Trek Madone or anything like that. But which kind of fool wants to travel around central london with its many potholes on a bike as hard and as rigid as that! The Klein Reve has a suspension component in the back which just soaks up the bumps and as far as I know its the only suspension road bike that I have come across. Specialised also produce a comfortable road bike however it looks plain terrible. I test rode a 04 klein Aura and although my reve has similar geometry the Aura was a real bone shaker. Not a pleasant ride.

The Reve X comes with Compagnolo Veloce components which I was quite apprehensive about considering we now live in a Shimano world. But to be honest they are great. I especially like the thumb shifters which are not as confusing to use as the Shimano dual puropose levers (great design idea though). The italian components and wheels all make the bike a little more special. Something different in the sea of ordinary bikes out there.

The paint work as with all Kleins is amazing. The Reve X comes in Silver Thunder and if the truth be told its not a classic Klein colour (the 04 Aura is far far prettier!). Not my first choice of colours but hopefully it will not look too dated in the future. Electric Lime Green would have been great.

The welds on the frame are smooth as a babys bottom and the whole bike feels very responsive and sure footed. The best bit is watching the bike beat the pants off every other cyclist in town. I mean this thing really flys! So far nothing has caught me on it.... but I just know that I will run into a trek madone sooner or later with some lance armstrong wanabe on it.

Cons

Very few.
- For a ?1600 bike you dont expect to see the little klein logo on the front look like it was glued on as an afterthought. Looks likley to drop off at some point but I will invest in some superglue should that happen.

- There is no need for a triple at the front. I mean you really need a very steep hill to make use of the smallest front cog. I personally have had no reason to use it yet. But I can live with it there.

- As reported by other Veloce reviews, you really do have to push the gear shifter a long way to change the front cog. But how often do you do that!! Something I can definatley live with.

- Constanly living in the fear that someone will want to steal my beautiful bike.

Myths


Someone else on this website has mentioned that he hasnt got faith in this new fangled suspension arrangement. Well let me tell you it works! It really works and this is no fairy bike either. It goes like a rocket make no mistake. Also the frame comes with a 3 year warranty so worry free cycling.

Contrary to rumours elsewhere on this website I have not experienced a single squeak or groan.


Overall


I am no Klein officianado (my other bike is a cannondale) nor do I have any axe to grind about my new bike. But if you were a friend then I would recommend this bike to you. It is great. You should see the smile on my face each day I ride to work.

By the way if you live in Central London then please do not buy this bike. I want mine to be special! ;)

Congrats on the new Klein, I have a 2005 Q-Pro with the Purpley/blue fade paint. It is an awesome fast bike. I guess being in London these days you need a quick bike, huh? You don't see many Klein's and yours is really nice. The paint isn't bad, just not as flashy as usual. What size is yours?

Hi there,

Thanks for the compliment. The Q-pro is an awesome bike. I compliment you on your most excellent taste. :) I guess in virginia you have a lot better weather than us here and so you really must enjoy your bike. I have heard the countryside in your part of the world is pretty ace. The bombs have definatley got a lot more cyclists out on the road here. Cycle racks at work are full, full, full.

You say you have a 05 bike, do you try to keep the chainset nice and clean? Is yours still nice and silvery or is has it picked up a lot of grime? Have you washed, relubed it buying it? Mine has picked up a lot of grime with less than 100 miles on the clock. :(

S

Congratula tions!:)

Hi there,

Thanks for the compliment. The Q-pro is an awesome bike. I compliment you on your most excellent taste. :) I guess in virginia you have a lot better weather than us here and so you really must enjoy your bike. I have heard the countryside in your part of the world is pretty ace. The bombs have definatley got a lot more cyclists out on the road here. Cycle racks at work are full, full, full.

You say you have a 05 bike, do you try to keep the chainset nice and clean? Is yours still nice and silvery or is has it picked up a lot of grime? Have you washed, relubed it buying it? Mine has picked up a lot of grime with less than 100 miles on the clock. :(

S

Shaieb,

I love my Klein, actually it's my second Quantum Pro, I also have a 2000 in Chameleon greenish purple without carbon stays. I'm a bike ****, I have a couple of IF's and a Moots and a Pinarello Prince and 2 Cannonballs. I'd like to get a Colnago someday. But....there's something about a Klein that you can only appreciate when you own one and have put a few miles on it. Cannondale's are great, stiff bikes that are priced right but I really like my Klein.
Back to your questions my British friend, I do keep my chain clean but it's diffuicult to get that factory applied oil off the chain. I clean and reclean with Simplegreen, no dilution, then wax the chain and wipe off. That usually gets the job done. When the chain is gunky, the chainstay will usually get filthy too and you have to wash the whole bike. Get one of those chain cleaner kits with the brushes.
What size is your Reve? It looks like a 58 to me. Are you 6' tall? I actually rode one the other day and liked it although it was too small. I'm about 6'1" and it was a 56 cm from a local Va USA shop.
How's the general mood in London with all the terrorism? I know the feeling, I was right around the corner from the Pentagon in 2001 and I still feel strange when on business there.
Back to cycling, your Klein looks great and I like the paint. Do you have clip in pedals? Be careful where you lean it, the paint chips easily.!!!!

K

Hi,

Yep you have good eyes... it is a 58 cm frame. I am 6ft and the 56 cm that you tried would have been to small for me. You really do love bikes! Thats quite a little collection you got there. Living in central london I only have space for this bike, I have a cannondale mountain bike too which I keep parked at work.


Everyones still a little jumpy at the moment. Real sad state of affairs. The day before the 7/7 bombings London was celebrating winning the Olymics (2012) and everyone was on a real high. Then this stuff happens. You should see the American embassy and the American ambassadors house in London its like Fort Knox. Guys with machine guns, police baracades etc. All things considered we still have it pretty good. I mean look at the poor guys in Sharm Al Sheikh Egypt or everyday Iraqi families who have to put up with this cr*p.

If everyone rode bicycles i think we would all get along great :) Everyone would be in a chilled out mood and there would be much less agro in the world. Thanks for the tips on the chain cleaning. I am going to give it a shot this weekend. :)

Thanks Dude! :) !!!

Looks great but have it fitted! That seats is soooooooooo far forward, looks to be past the BB actually. The farther back the seat the better just about everything is. Not to mention you must have a ton of weight on your arms. Scoot it back and you will have to support yourself less on your arms. I run an Arione which has the worlds longest freakish rails slammed back.

K

Looks great but have it fitted! That seats is soooooooooo far forward, looks to be past the BB actually. The farther back the seat the better just about everything is. Not to mention you must have a ton of weight on your arms. Scoot it back and you will have to support yourself less on your arms. I run an Arione which has the worlds longest freakish rails slammed back.

K

The seat is out of place, I do agree with IU. Seems like your stem is about a 130 is that right? I'm surprised they let you out of the shop like that. Maybe it's an optical illusion? Is the seat the Alliante Sport? What's your email address, I'll send you a guide.

varoadie

You are right about the seat, Aliente Sport. Any advice would be appreciated. Will send you my email address through private messages. Really appreciate it.

What do you mean about the 130?

Very observant. I had thought it looked too far forward. And you are right about the weight on my arms. I did a 30 mile trip at the weekend and my shoulders were really starting to pain. Will definatley give it a go. Any other tips??

You are right about the seat, Aliente Sport. Any advice would be appreciated. Will send you my email address through private messages. Really appreciate it.

What do you mean about the 130?

Thanks, sent an email to both addresses and at least one got returned as undeliverable, did you get anything?

Thanks, sent an email to both addresses and at least one got returned as undeliverable, did you get anything?

Shaieb, what I meant by "130" was 130mm (or 13cm) stem. Maybe you could try a 110 then you could move the seat up.