# Battle! Jamis Sonik vs. Felt TK2



## r_mutt (Aug 8, 2007)

these 2 are about the same price, and are essentially, their respective companies offering at a mid-priced track bike. 

for racing, which do you prefer? 

btw, the jamis sonik i am looking at is an 08 model, the 09 jumped up in price a few 100 quid...


jamis: http://www.jamisbikes.com/usa/archives/2008/08_sonik_archive.html

felt: http://www.feltracing.com/09-catalog/track/track-series/09-tk2.aspx


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## waldo425 (Sep 22, 2008)

Personally I would go with the Felt tk2. This is pretty much bassed off of the looks since it apears that the componentry is about the same on each bike.


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## The Green Hour (Jul 15, 2008)

FWIW....I have no ride experience on either, but eyed the Felt down pretty good in a LBS and it looks seriously stiff.

If this is for competition, it looks like it can stand up to some wattage. If you are using it for a road type fixed gear....you may want to test one out if possible.

Just a thought...... it is a nice looking bike and may be worth a the rough ride.


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## waldo425 (Sep 22, 2008)

Oh yeah, I haven't ridden either of these bikes. I'm pretty much just saying this from what I can tell of the sight. 

If your looking for a street bike then I would go with a different frame. The allumanum is going to be a bit of a rough ride even with the carbon fork.


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## r_mutt (Aug 8, 2007)

yes, it's strictly for racing and possibly a road ride every now and again. so stiffness if key- and ride quality isn't really a concern.


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## marc180 (Feb 2, 2006)

*tk2*

i have the tk2 and am very happy with it. never rode the jamis though. 

note, i have mavic ellipse wheels on it. i heard the stock felt wheels are crap.


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## GeoKrpan (Feb 3, 2008)

I've seen the Sonik and it is truly beautiful.
But, I'm not sure it would be a good road bike, too stiff, made for the velodrome.
Check out the Sputnik. It's steel, made for road riding, and half the price. It looks great too.


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## r_mutt (Aug 8, 2007)

i'm not interested in a road bike. i'm using this for racing on a velodrome, and maybe an occasional road ride. the sputnik is not in the same ballpark imho. that's made for the street. 

marc- any other opinions on your tk2?


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## marc180 (Feb 2, 2006)

i'm not sure what you want to know. it handled predictably, it was stiff, it was fast. i like how it rides on the velodrome more than my Soma Rush (feels faster, stiffer). 

i wouldn't want to do road rides on either the sonik or the tk2. 

get one that fits you better and if both fit equally well, then go for color.


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## waldo425 (Sep 22, 2008)

Looks like the only way that your going to be able to settle this is to go out for a test ride on both of them --- drat --- sounds like a horrible task. If the Vellodrome is close by you could always ride on over and see how they handle on it. I was testing out some track bikes a couple of weeks ago but it was raining so I couldn't go onto the velodrome (it was something like 1 mile away )


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## Tom_Slick (Apr 15, 2009)

At the risk of telling you cats something you already know, both of these bikes are designed for the velodrome. The TK2 has a drilled fork so you could take it on the road if you absolutely had too, but with a bike that stiff, you'll take the fillings out of your teeth. The Jamis doesn't even have that. It also has the shorter chainline (chainstay is 15cm shorter than the TK2) and is DESIGNED specifically for the track. 

Personally, I think it would be outright disrespect to turn either of these classy machines into a fixie and take them on the road, but you gotta make your own decisions. 

I am leaning toward the Sonik myself, but I am not a fan of the clincher 420s that it comes with. Yeah they're light, but I sewups perform so much better on the velodrome...

Go ride 'em. Both are very, very stiff and very light. By the way, the FSA components that the Sonik has are FAR superior to the componentry on the TK2... If it comes down to color of the bike, then perhaps you should look at some other options too.

Pedal fast,

Tom Slick.


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## waldo425 (Sep 22, 2008)

Tom_Slick said:


> At the risk of telling you cats something you already know, both of these bikes are designed for the velodrome. The TK2 has a drilled fork so you could take it on the road if you absolutely had too, but with a bike that stiff, you'll take the fillings out of your teeth. The Jamis doesn't even have that. It also has the shorter chainline (chainstay is 15cm shorter than the TK2) and is DESIGNED specifically for the track.
> 
> Personally, I think it would be outright disrespect to turn either of these classy machines into a fixie and take them on the road, but you gotta make your own decisions.
> 
> ...


As was stated before, this bike wont see much if any street use. So your safe . It's totally up to the person whose riding the bike and what they want to do. I could really care less about someones risers and how their alumanum frame is rattleing their balls/ uterus out. Not all people that ride a fixie (cute, lovey dovey name for a track bike that may or may not have a brake on it) want to race on the track or train hard for the road. They are fun. 

I wouldnt let FSA components be the decider of this one. FSA parts especially road cranks have a horrible name. Everyone I talk to says that everything but the specific track cranks of FSA sucks. The track cranks (Higher end ones) are supposed to be pretty good and I actually own a second hand Viggorelli crankset but the road cranks turn spongey and flex all over the place.


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## ozzimark (Jun 3, 2009)

Tom_Slick said:


> Personally, I think it would be outright disrespect to turn either of these classy machines into a fixie and take them on the road, but you gotta make your own decisions.


My LBS has a SS TK2 put together and on display


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