[Bnystrom]

I have the same two bikes that Jeff reviewed, the Night Train and Fly Team Ti 29 XX (just a coincidence). Overall, I’m really happy with both of them. The Fly Ti has one annoying issue, the seat post slowly slips. When I contacted BD about this, they paid for a Surly Constrictor seat post clamp that they said would solve the issue. It did mostly, but I still get slight slippage (1-2mm/ride). The problem seems to be that the top of the seat tube is too close to the seat stay and top tube junctions, which prevent the seat tube from flexing enough to clamp it securely. If it was 2-3cm longer, there probably wouldn’t be an issue. Other than that, the bike has been great and the value is exceptional. For the price, you’re basically getting a good deal on a nice build kit, plus a free Ti frame. That’s the way I tend to view BD bikes; they’re basically a no-lose proposition, as in the worst case, you can swap the parts to a better frame.

I built up the Night Train from a frameset. It came with a Bluto, but I put one of their carbon forks on it and have used it for the past three seasons. I actually just sold the Bluto this week, still new in the box. I haven’t ridden many other fat bikes, but the NT seems to perform just fine and it has held up well.

I wouldn’t buy any of their really low-end bikes, but I wouldn’t buy any really low-end bike. I’d buy a good used bike instead for similar money. The crappy, generic parts on low-end bikes are not worth the hassle. If you spend a little more up front, you’ll spend a lot less on repairs and replacements. Once you spend enough to get away from the generic parts, BD bikes are exceptional values.

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