Genesis Vapour 2013 or Whyte Kings Cross 2012

[pembo]

I've finally got my decision down to these two, building my own bike is going to be left for a bit but I might still give it a go on the side.

So I'm planning to use the bike for commuting mainly with the occasional cyclocross race, possibly more if I really enjoy it.

I've got it down to these two but would like some of your opinions.

I have seen the genesis disc in green in my local shop and loved the look but in the pictures this looks a little different with a thinner frame and the black is possibly a bit boring.

I really prefer the look of the Whyte but will it be a decent alternative? Sora instead of Tiagra and probably a bit heavier with the alloy instead of carbon forks. How much of a difference will this make? does anyone have any experience of these two bikes or info on their weights? I've been searching but can't find much.

Thanks

[Jimbo.]

The alloy forks *may* result in a harsher ride, although this'd be barely noticeable on fat or CX tyres.

EDIT: I was looking at CX bikes not long ago. Looking at those two, I'd plump for the Genesis, all things considered (and assuming you fit). Better group set, better fork, easier to source/fit a rack and guards to if such things matter.

Edited by Jimbo. on Thursday 4th July 19:20

[pembo]

The rack issue might be the deciding factor then, I can't see anything about the Whyte having the connection points for one and it looks like panniers would be the safest way to take my laptop to and from work.

At the moment I have my mtb suspension forks locked out to make the hill climb easier so at least I'm getting used to the harsher ride so would carbon forks have a little more give than the alloy ones?

[Jimbo.]

pembo said:

The rack issue might be the deciding factor then, I can't see anything about the Whyte having the connection points for one and it looks like panniers would be the safest way to take my laptop to and from work.

At the moment I have my mtb suspension forks locked out to make the hill climb easier so at least I'm getting used to the harsher ride so would carbon forks have a little more give than the alloy ones?

The Whyte has rack and guard mounts You'd need a disc-specific rack, but Topeak cater for that particular market.

Half of what's said about carbon vs. aluminium is either marketing bks, plain old bks or HUGE generalisations. GENERALLY speaking, a carbon fibre fork MAY take the edge off the bigger hits you're likely to encounter. That's not to suggest you'll have something equivalent to suspension, mind; you won't. Any difference between carbon and aluminium forks can usually be accounted for by fatter/softer tyres.