# Look 281 vs. 381



## my327vette (Jul 16, 2002)

Hi, Can anyone tell me what the differences are between the Look 281 and 381 framesets? Will the ride/handling of a 281 be noticably different than a 381? 
Thanks.


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## Dave Hickey (Jan 27, 2002)

my327vette said:


> Hi, Can anyone tell me what the differences are between the Look 281 and 381 framesets? Will the ride/handling of a 281 be noticably different than a 381?
> Thanks.


I've owned both. The ride difference is not very noticable. The biggest differences are the 381 tubes are more tapered than the 281 and the 381 has an intergrated headset. Do you know what fork is on the 281 your looking at? Some of the older forks are pretty noodley(sp?). There is a beautiful 281 on Ebay right now.


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## my327vette (Jul 16, 2002)

*Fork...*

The frame I am looking at has a Reynolds Ouzo Pro fork on it. Do you think that will match well with the 281 frame??? Also can I assume that the geometry and handling characteristics will be the same as a 381?
Thanks again.


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## Dave Hickey (Jan 27, 2002)

my327vette said:


> The frame I am looking at has a Reynolds Ouzo Pro fork on it. Do you think that will match well with the 281 frame??? Also can I assume that the geometry and handling characteristics will be the same as a 381?
> Thanks again.


The reynolds fork would be a great match. The geometry is the same on both frames. FYI, used 381 frame/forks go from $900-$1300 with 281's going for a lot less


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## my327vette (Jul 16, 2002)

*how much?*

Thanks for the info. What would you consider a good price for a 281 with the Ouzo Pro fork? I was hoping to find a 381, but so far haven't had any luck finding a size 52 on this site or ebay.


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## Dave Hickey (Jan 27, 2002)

my327vette said:


> Thanks for the info. What would you consider a good price for a 281 with the Ouzo Pro fork? I was hoping to find a 381, but so far haven't had any luck finding a size 52 on this site or ebay.


That's a hard question. The used market for LOOK frame in funny. I've seen lesser models(Kg241, Kg231 or KG221) go for $400 on Ebay but there is a 55cm KG281 right now on Ebay that has an opening bid of $400 and on bidders after a few days.

Personally, I pay $400-800 for a 281 depending on condition. 

TeoTeoTeo used to have a 52cm or 53cm 381 that he was trying to sell a couple of months ago. I'm not sure if he did. I know he had it listed on RBR classifieds


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## mahoneyjoe (May 31, 2002)

a couple of things on the ouzo pro fork--I had one installed on my 54cm 281 and made two mistakes, although i don't notice it; first, i changed the rake to 43 from the look spec'd 40; second, the ouzo is somewhat taller from dropouts to crown(?), the net result is a slightly sloping top tube from front to rear; i can't see it, but this came up on the old forum about the height of carbon forks, so i put a level on the top tube and its there; the increased height effectively changes the head tube angle; you'll need someone else to explain how, if at all, i changed the intended handling; it seems fine to me.


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## filtersweep (Feb 4, 2004)

The trouble with Look is they keep renumbering their frames. You could still buy a 281 new two years ago, then the 381 replaced it and has already been replaced by the 481?! They really destroy their resale value- unlike a Trek were they keep churning out their OCLV frames and the year dictates whatever subtle differences there are.

On the flip side- I ride a 281, and it has continued to satisfy my bike lust. It is a great ride.


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