# Newbie to SS/FG with new Felt Dispatch



## Billy516 (Mar 4, 2008)

Hey all. Just getting back into cycling for fitness and decided to go the simple route and settled on the Felt Dispatch. I'm also using Adidas El Morro shoes with Shimano 520's (first time using clipless and like it alot). Picked her up yesterday and did a little 8-mile ride this morning. I'm running the freewheel side for now until I can get into some semblance of physical shape and then I will try the fixed side for a bit more of a challenge. I guess not much else to add except, MAN am I out of shape! I really enjoyed it and am looking forward to torturing myself lots more! Oh, BTW, since deciding on the SS/FG thing, I have been checking out all the sweet builds and conversions and am really diggin the bikes! Very cool stuff that reminds me alot of the streetfighter/stunt scene I was into when I rode sportbikes (two nasty street wrecks convinced to leave motorcycling).

Is anyone else riding a Dispatch? Doesn't seem like it, but a fair number of Rush Hours and Langsters out there in addition to the conversions.


----------



## blakcloud (Apr 13, 2006)

You are right we don't hear about the Felts at all around here. Why don't you post a photo and a little review. Someone else posted a mini review of their SE Lager and I thought this was a great idea. Tell us what you like about your bike and what you dislike. Tell us why you bought the Felt over something else like the Langster or Rush Hour. At the very least welcome to the fold of SS/FG.


----------



## asterisk (Oct 21, 2003)

Felt's mid-priced fixed line is fairly recent so not too many out there yet... previous to that they only had the TK1 race frame.


----------



## Billy516 (Mar 4, 2008)

blakcloud said:


> You are right we don't hear about the Felts at all around here. Why don't you post a photo and a little review. Someone else posted a mini review of their SE Lager and I thought this was a great idea. Tell us what you like about your bike and what you dislike. Tell us why you bought the Felt over something else like the Langster or Rush Hour. At the very least welcome to the fold of SS/FG.


Thanks for the welcome. I guess I could do a quick initial impressions review since I've only put about 15 miles on it so far. First a little more background about me...I turn 40 on 5/16 and currently the only thing I do for fitness is surf (if you know about S FL, you know how inconsistent that it is). I have ridden road bikes in the past, and my last one was back in the mid-90's when I had a Specialized hybrid with aero bars that I would commute on as well as weekend warrior rides (typically 30-50 miles per week). Before that I had a Dave Scott Ironman in college that I did some more serious riding on. Anyway, for the last 12 years or so, I have been off road bikes but like I said decided to get back into them to get in shape. I've always done things differently and prefer to keep things simple so after doing some research on the current offerings of road bikes in the sub-$1200 range, I started looking alot closer at the SS/Fixie bikes like the Capo, Langster, Rush Hour and the Dispatch as a fitness bike. Some of the things that stood out for me about the Felt were the aluminum frame, carbon fork, weight (my scale shows 20.5#) the color and the gearing. Now, the gearing is 39/16 (the others are all geared a bit higher) which I thought was going to be a bit low, but it's working out good for now, since I'm so old and out of shape and I can always go up later on. The other thing was my LBS. They ordered one for me and took 10% off right away, without me even asking. Then when the bike came in, took the time to get help me get it set up (even though I have since raised the seat post) and took another 10% off the pedals and cage I bought. Oh yeah, even though I didn't buy the shoes from them, they threw in the cleats for free and mounted them up on the spot for me. Very cool! They also couldn't stop talking about it and both the mechanic and the sales guy were talking about how much they liked it (probably just for my benefit, but still... )

Like I said, I don't have much to compare it to since my only other bike is a crappy Mongoose mountain bike (Wally World special) that I bang around the neighborhood on with my daughter and my wife. The Dispatch seems to ride really nice though and I am digging the simplicity and the discipline of the ride. On the two short rides I have taken I figure I'm averaging about 18 mph. The only real hill is a bridge that goes over the Intracoastal Waterway. Other than that, the A1A ride is basically straight and flat and fairly consistent...unless the wind is blowing. And on those days, I'll most likely be out in the waves anyway!

I'll try and give some more impressions as I get some more saddle time on it, but you can check out the specs on paper here http://www.feltracing.com/08/product.asp?catid=1504,1525&pid=8718 As for pics, I'm a crappy photographer, but I'll see what I can do.


----------



## ridgewoodbob (May 31, 2008)

*Two cents on the Felt Dispatch*

I bought this bike about three months ago and I love it! I'm a NYC commuter, and it suits my needs perfectly. I ride everywhere all year round except for heavy weather. This bike was actually an impulse buy/ awesome test ride. I went to look at Langsters, but was disappointed. Checked out a Paddy Wagon, not much different than my commuter/beaters. It was funny because the salesman didn't really have to "sell" it, because it's so different than bikes it gets lumped in with.The Felt is perfect for city riding- it's quick, light, simple, and doesn't yell "steal me!" at passerby like road bikes, expensive or not. I've come to grips with the fact I'm not a real cyclist- I don't race, ride fixed gear, wear padded shorts, have clipless pedals, etc., but I do ride a lot, and this is a really fun bike! I want to try a century on it in the fall, we'll see...


----------



## RoyIII (Feb 24, 2007)

The Felt is very nice. Good choice.


----------



## Dr. Placebo (May 8, 2007)

I contacted Felt about this bike as I'm interested. People searching for info may like to know the following:


Felt Bicycles said:


> Thank you for your interest in Felt Bicycles. Tire sizes vary a bit from
> manufacturer to manufacturer, but we have routinely fit 32mm tires in the
> Dispatch. There are a few 35mm tires that would likely work as well.


This may be meaningful for anyone crossshopping.


----------



## Billy516 (Mar 4, 2008)

Since this has been bumped thanks to the good Dr's tire info, I thought I would update my Dispatch review by reporting that I have made the jump to the fixed side. I love it! I "get it" now and feel that it is truly a more engaging ride fixed than free. Still love the bike overall.


----------



## Eyorerox (Feb 19, 2008)

A review from Cycling Plus (UK)

http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/bikes/urban/product/dispatch-31951


----------



## JeffN (Sep 19, 2006)

Thanks for the impressions of this bike. I saw one at my LBS tonight and I really liked the look of it. Some of the DFW SS/FG enthusiasts have often inspired me to give it a try. Is 20lbs expected in this price range? When I pulled the Dispatch off the rack it seemed heavier than I expected. I always assumed a SS/FG would quite lighter than my regular road bike. Just curious.


----------



## Billy516 (Mar 4, 2008)

Yes, I think 20# is reasonable for an aluminum frame with a carbon fork. If I ditched the pedals, seatpost, wheels and handlebars for lighter replacements, I'm sure I could shave a few more pounds. If you look around though, most SS/FG frames are steel and probably weigh a fair bit more than 20#.


----------



## Brewtality (Jul 7, 2008)

If you want a little lighter, go for the Felt Curbside.
I just bought one a couple weeks ago. Very fun bike. Light weight at 18# (light to me anyways). It can also be easily trimmed with saddle, seatpost, stem alterations.
With an aluminum frame, carbon forks, decent wheels, for $600, it seemed like a better deal than other SS/FG bikes I had looked at.
The only two things I might complain about are the gearing is too low and the argyle saddle & pad. The argyle just has to go!! 

http://www.feltracing.com/08/product.asp?catid=1504,1525&pid=8717


----------



## yuphorix (Jul 24, 2008)

I bought a Felt Dispatch about 4 months ago. It's not a bad bike, but I definitely have complaints. The immediate one was that the front brakes that the LBS had on it was not "long-reaching", so even when the pads bottomed out on the calipers, it did not sit on the rim pad completely. As much as I could have gone back to the LBS and complained and had Felt send in new brakes, the store I bought it from was an hour away and I didn't want to deal with it, so I just bought some Tektro's from online for relatively cheap. Oddly, the rear brake calipers are long-reaching and have no issues.

The other issues I have are really just keeping a high standards on my bikes. Definitely install Koolstop brakepads, since the Tektro pads that come with will eat your rims. The 39t chainring is pretty low so you'll be spinning out pretty early on the flats. I've changed out the loose bearing headset to a Cane Creek IS-8. I've swapped out the weird 4-config stem with a 3T stem.

So far I've only got 400 miles on it, so I can't judge durability. I would argue that the components on a Langster are just slightly better than the Dispatch (okay... it's really just the crankset that is better). I'm curious as to how the Dispatch would perform as a Fixie. But, I won't be doing that swap until I get a bigger chainring and swapping out some other components.


----------



## blorg (Apr 11, 2008)

@Brewtality- The Curbside is _slightly_ heavier according to the Felt website:

Dispatch: 18.71 lbs. (56cm)
Curbside: 18.75 lbs. (56cm)

As far as I can tell frame and fork are identical so it is just down to the components.

Also the Curbside just looks wrong, sorry. Very wrong. The Dispatch is nice and subtle which would be part of the appeal. Personally I'd also want drops. I'm looking for a nice relatively subtle and light fixed gear- between the Dispatch and the Langster I reckon (the Langster is actually cheaper around here so might pip it.)

I'm not concerned about fashion here, just want something light with drops that fits me.


----------



## jrmgkia (May 20, 2007)

I purchased a Felt Dispatch in November 2008 for $630 and have since put about 2000 miles on the bike. Unfortunately this bike is poorly built, has very poor quality components, and even poorer warrantee support. 

Let me start by saying that I weigh about 150lbs. and I ride this bike about 15 miles a day commuting to work along smooth paved bike lanes.

Within two months of owning the bike the frame cracked where the top tube and down tube are welded together. The frame was replaced under warrantee but I had to pay for the parts to be swapped to the replacement frame ($80). Then over the next 4 months the spokes began to break one at at time ($30 per fix) until I had to have all the spokes replaced costing $120. As noted in other reviews the brakes are so poorly designed that the front brake pads don’t contact the full rim even when adjusted all the way down, it is this kind of poor engineering that runs throughout the bike.

I requested reimbursement for a portion of the numerous repair costs associated with this bike and I detailed all of the out of pocket expenses I incurred due to defective parts on my Felt Dispatch bike.

Felt has never acknowledged my warrantee request or contacted me regarding these issues. For this reason I will never buy another Felt bicycle.


----------



## Superdave3T (May 11, 2009)

asterisk said:


> Felt's mid-priced fixed line is fairly recent so not too many out there yet... previous to that they only had the TK1 race frame.


Felt introduced the Tk2 as their first entry into the fixed gear market in 2003. The Dispatch was introduced in 2007. Curbside in 2008. Tk1 in 2008 but only for US Olympians. 2009 the Brougham was the new model in the line up. 2010 added the Gridloc 3 speed fixed gear, and 2011...well, wait and see.


----------

