June 26, 2010
I’ve been riding my Schwinn S95.6 around Baltimore City for years now. I’m finally tired of riding a 26″ 16 year old mountain bike in the city. Three weeks ago I began searching for a proper city bike. I was looking for something I could easily lock up with one U-lock (ie – had to have bolted wheels and bolted seat post). It was also important to me that the bike I picked had character.
I needed to find a whip with flavor that was cost effective, on the shelf and ready to go.
I looked at buying a frame and custom building the bike. I considered the Surly Steamroller and Cross Check. I also considered going boutique via Independent Fabrications or Bishop Bikes. The only problem with these solutions was that each would require an abundant amount of time in picking out parts and “doing it right.” All for a bike that could one day get ripped off. Too much effort. I needed to find a whip with flavor that was cost effective, on the shelf and ready to go.
Plain and simple – this is one stunning bike build right off the factory line. While the components aren’t “high end,” the finish and the design detail on the bike certainly are. If you’re looking to cruise in style, Trek’s entire District urban bike series has you covered. Trek has clearly picked up on the trend of anodizing and bike bling that was established at Interbike 2009.
If you’re looking to cruise in style, Trek’s entire District urban bike series has you covered.
3rd DISTRICT DETAILS
FRAME
…..Color – Bright White
…..Material – Alpha Black Aluminum (hydroform)
…..Chain Gaurd – Dark Blue (not shown)
…..Sizes – 50, 54, 56 (reviewed), 58, 60cm
Fork
…..Material – Carbon, Bontrager Satellite Plus
Wheel Set
…..Hubs – Alloy sealed bearing track hub
…..Rims – Aero alloy color matched rims, Bronze
Drivetrain
…..Cranks – Bontrager Nebula SS 44T Chain Ring w/ Gaurd
…..Pedals – Tioga Platforms
…..Bottom Bracket – Square Taper
…..Cassette – Shimano 17T Freewheel
Brakes & Rubber
…..Calipers / Levers – Alloy Dual Pivot w/Tektro Road Levers
…..Tires – Bontrager Race, All Weather, 700x25c
Cockpit
…..Bars – Bontrager Urban
…..Stem – Alloy, 15 degree, Bronze
…..Post – Bontrager Satellite Nebula
…..Saddle – Bontrager Race (style only available on 3rd District)
…..Grips – Bontrager Leather Wrapped (white) Lock On
…..Headset – Cane Creek, Bronze
Price Point
…..Retail – $709.99
…..Price I Paid – $649.99
The 3rd District is a single speed. Geared well for city riding, this frame is also ready for use with a belt drive. The rear drops offer the “slit” to slide the belt through and the higher end District series frames actually come stock with a belt drive. To convert the 3rd District to belt drive wouldn’t take much, but why bother? It looks and works great as-is. I will say that the flexibility of being able to switch to belt drive was an attractive selling point for me. Having the flexibility of going with a belt drive is just another way to separate from the pack with something unique AND useful (no greasy pants on your commute to work and no need for a chain guard).
The rear drops offer the “slit” to slide the belt through and the higher end District series frames actually come stock with a belt drive. To convert the 3rd District to belt drive wouldn’t take much.
The "Slit" Allows A Belt To Slide On In
All of the District series bikes are made of aluminum (aside from the District Carbon). I chose aluminum specifically because almost all city riders I know prefer to ride steel. Why be like everyone else? So steel flexes more than aluminum. Who cares. This bike is pimp and I think it looks great with fatty tubes.
A carbon fork at a $650 price point for a complete build is a nice feature.
The fork is carbon and probably one the nicest features you get on this bike considering the price point. The bike is very light. I haven’t weighed it, but carrying it in and out of my city row home is really easy. The fork lends to that while also providing a really nice seamless look from head tube to fork transition.
Really comfortable. The positioning of your body is upright and relaxed, just as you’d expect from any good city bike. But the pedaling responsiveness on this whip is nothing short of smooth and immediate. When sitting and pedaling or standing and grinding, this bike has a solid feel from a build standpoint. Not a single creak. It’s construction ensures confidence. For me, I like this a lot. I do not like my bikes making any kind of noise.
When sitting and pedaling or standing and grinding, this bike has a solid feel from a build standpoint.
The brakes on this bike work extremely well considering the price point. The levers do require a firm “two finger” pull, but you get a tremendous amount of stopping power for that effort. Honestly, I was surprised two fingers were all you needed. The brake levers do feel and look a tad cheap at first glance. After knowing they work well, their simplicity in not pulling away attention from the bike’s clean lines is much appreciated.
The brake levers do feel a tad cheap and at first glance. They do not offer much braking confidence (from an appearance standpoint).
Amazing. The seat is very comfortable. I’m 6′ tall and 180 lbs. While the seat itself is small, it’s shape is well contoured for my frame and I find it quite comfortable. The leather wrapped lock-on grips are both plush and eye pleasing. They absorb sweat while remaining dry and come with really nice end caps bearing the Trek logo. A nice touch that makes this bike feel more custom than the price point typically allows.
On Trek’s web site, the stem is shown mounted the opposite way that I have it set up. Trek’s site also shows the 3rd District with the bars swept up instead of back. I prefer my set up as it keeps me more upright and comfortable as opposed to hunched in a race-like position. Flexibility in the bar / stem set up is a good thing, however.
The bars, when set up the way I show them, become what I would consider “half Mary” bars. They do not bend all the way back like a full set of Mary’s. However, they come back far enough to keep the bike’s lines extra clean and to provide the comfort found in Mary bars for city riding.
The stem is a Bontrager 120mm (15 degree rise) riding on a Cane Creek headset. Each are custom anodized to match the wheel set and decal set. They really set the bike off. The seat post is a Bontrager single bolt custom anodized bronze to match the kit.
Gold anodizing, white cable housings and a one-of-kind seat bring this bike home.
The seat itself is a Bontrager R1 custom design that, from what I am told, is available only on the 3rd District. The seat, along with the white brake cable housings work well together to help set the bike off. Good bling (but subtle) and put together with a fine eye for detail. Exactly my taste.
Really like the wheel set on this bike. I’m big on fancy wheel sets and was excited to see the matching rims on this bike. I’ve wheelie dropped this bike off curbs and so far so good. They don’t seem to flex under a load but what the hell do I know – it’s not like I have sensors built into my body that can feel wheel flex.
The crank set is a little weak from a look/feel standpoint but it is highly functional. Remember, this a true city bike. It’s built for commuting; even when wearing long pants. The guard on the cranks keeps your pant leg out of the front ring so I’ve decided that keeping it is the smartest move considering the way I am going to be using this bike (the crank guard is bolted on and removable). I did remove the chain guard and that helped make the bike look a bit more street smart.
The crank set is a little weak from a look/feel standpoint but it is highly functional.
The tires are all weather tires and seem to corner really well on the pavement (so far). I’m running them at 110 psi (highest recommended is 120 psi) and I’ve run into lips and curbs as well as stones and larger objects on the road without an issue. No rips or failures to date. Have yet to ride on wet / slick roads so no feedback to share there.
Bike looks great!!!!
Right on. Thanks Victor. Really happy with it so far….
Good timing! I’m in the market for a new city bike…and I love TREK. I’ll have to take this one for a spin
Glad this helps Nate. So far, it’s been a really solid bike and lots of people on the street have said “nice bike.”
I don’t own one but I am in the market. This has to be the one of the best looking bikes on the market. I was leaning towards a cruiser but this baby is very tempting.
It is a great looking bike. Quite a different bike compared to cruiser but this bike is comfortable and fast. Let me know what you decide to buy!
These are the best pics of this bike I’ve found on the net.
I own a 3rd myself, and it is highly addictive. I exchanged the rims against new white ones, which aren’t that heavy like the original ones. Makes the bike even look better. Also, I added a 16 teeth fixed gear on the other side of the flip-flop, makes the bike even faster and it’s easier to climb. Takes only bout 15$ and I really recommended it to you.
The 3rd is the best you can get for that few bucks, it’s a Trek Madone for poor people. 🙂
The bad side of the bike: If you adjust it right it’s so silent people that people run in front of you, and the glossy white needs extensive care… but it’s worth it.
Word. Thanks Eris. Really appreciate the tip on the 16 tooth gearing. I’m gonna take this thing belt drive I think. You know what I need to convert it over by any chance? Also – what brand white rims did you get? I’d love to see your build. The white on white sounds sick. Totally agree on the bang for the buck. When I considered building something vs. the price of the 3rd, there was no question what decision to make.
You can see some quick pics I took here, but compared to your pictures quality they stink off. 🙂
http://home.arcor.de/hasann/public/bike/
The Rims are “Rodi Vision” with a Quando Hub with black spokes.
My dealer had this bike in his showroom, and i wanted its optic, white rims and black spokes with a black flip-flop hub. The hub is by ‘quando’. All together I paid 200$ for the conversion including the fixed-gear buildup.
Chain vs. Belt is the holy grail, you’ll find controversial discussions about this. Trek uses the Gates Carbon Drive on the 2nd District, as far as I know. But i doubt you’ll be happy with a belt, even though it’s very stylish.
One german bike manufacturer with a high reputation (idworx) reported to not (and perhaps never will) put the belt drive on his production bikes for 2010 for several reasons well explained. Text is in german only, so here’s a google (poor) translation link, but I hope you can still get the meaning out of this translation:
Oh wow! Looks so much better with those white rims!! Thanks for posting these.
link got sucked:
http://translate.google.de/translate?js=n&prev=_t&hl=de&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&sl=de&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.idworx-bikes.de%2Fde%2Fvor-und-nachteile-riemenantrieb.php
Is anybody getting a clunking noise from the drivetrain? I just got my 3rd district and the drivetrain makes a clunking noise. I tried adjusting the chain tension and it is still there.
Mine started doing this about 3 weeks into ownership. It’s very subtle, but I do hear a light clunking noise. I haven’t tried to adjust anything yet mainly because I plan on going belt drive. I can’t imagine the issue being chain tension related. It sounds like something more related to the freewheel and or hub. It has not affected any aspect of performance other than sound.
thx, other than that I love it. It’s a really cool bike. The only modification I did so far was white shimano clipless pedals. I’ll probably change the freewheel and see if that eliminates the noise. I work in a Trek shop and was told not to buy the belt drive by another employee who wasn’t happy with it. He is only about 160 lbs and said under pressure the belt would skip. after replacing it and trying repeatedly to adjust it he just sold it. I’m over 200 lbs so I decided not to risk it. I went with the chain drive.
Skip? Sounds like a tension issue for sure. I’ve ridden belt drives (on the dirt) and they have been extremely reliable.
I changed the freewheel to a shimano 16 tooth and the noise is gone. I like the ratio better too. I’ve still not found any positive feedback on the belt drive. I checked with another tech with tons of experience and he also says it’s a no go. He said it jumped gear if it was too loose and whined if you tightened it. I’m hoping to find someone besides trek who has something good to say about it, I priced it out and would like to try it if it would work ok. I like the bike a lot and would really like it if it was belt drive.
Interesting. Are you still running the original ring up front? Also, good to know that you looked into the belt drive issue more. You are talking me out of having any interest in it. The last thing I need is another bike upgrade. Would be great to hear from someone running one a District though. I might take a trip to the LBS where I know there is a District w/ belt I can test for myself.
Do you think it is still worth it to buy one of these bikes? since they are a year old?
absolutely. there is always something new. you just need to jump in. this is a great bike for the money.
Nabbed one of these in December ’10 for $400 precisely because it was “one year old”. Love it. I ride 4 miles to and from work almost every day and this bike is amazing. Had a Trek Soho in Matte Black and got lots of compliments on it, but not nearly as many as this one. Even my uber-hipster track bike snobs think this bike is sweet… unless they’re being ironic 😉 Added some white pedal cages and brown leather straps, and also attached a white head and tail light since I drive it at night a lot. Thought about going belt drive, but It seems a bit superfluous. All in all this bike is a no brainer for the money. And nowadays you can find them cheaper than ever!
Right on. That’s a great price. It’s really a good bike.
Just got my 3rd D about a month ago – just under 100 miles on it and LOVE IT! Trek had a sweet closeout on it and got the last in the Wisconsin warehouse 🙂
I’d like to go fixie later this summer but am unsure of how to do it. I’m not too savvy on bike mechanics but have gearhead friends who are eager to help (although I put my bike together and I’d like to do it myself). Recommendations/wisdom on how to get it done?
Eris – your 3D looks fresh dude with those white walls
Congrats on the new whip, Luke. Going fixie is only a matter of updating your rear cog / hub. Might be easier for you to grab a new wheel so that you can change back if you wanted to. In any case, riding fixed is an entirely different experience and not for the faint of heart. Your legs are your brakes and you can only go as fast as your legs can keep up, otherwise you get bucked off the bike. It’s a great way to ride, just takes some getting used to. Here is a link to the late, great Sheldon Brown’s HOW-TO on converting from single to fixed.
Another district 3rd owner here. I have also heard a clunking noise from the drivetrain, and took the bike back to the shop. They took it completely apart, cleaned it, and put it back together. But the noise was still there. Then they replaced the rear freewheel with a replacement part (they didn’t have the original one) and the noise was gone. They immediately ordered it and installed the original one when it arriveed. The funny thing was, with the original freewheel, the noise was back. So, I then asked them to install a 16 tooth replacement, and the bike is running great since, I would even say it’s better with the 16 tooth freewheel.
If you have the same problem, ask the shop to replace the freewheel, as you can see from the other comments here, it seems to be a common issue.
Right on. Thanks for the feedback!
Thank everyone for your info. I am torn between a ’11 Soho S and a ’10 3rd. District. They are both about $499. Which should I go with? Are the stock wheels and hubs that much better on the Soho since they are a sealed bearing?
TLGYjoe – Which bike do you like better since you have had both?
Depending which 3rd district you are looking at, you might get a carbon fork. The SOHO S has a CroMo fork……
any idea where I can get a new one? I couldn’t afford one and when I finally did have enough money they were out of stock! Still want one of these beauties have any idea where I can get a new one? or if at all possible.
Really not sure. Have you tried calling around to Trek dealers?
Hi,
Great review.
Do you know how this compares to the 2010 Trek District (grey/orange).
Also, living in London, there are more pot holes than smooth road / pavement, how does this bike fair on rough surfaces and off road? What would you say is it’s limit?
Thanks 🙂
Bike is great for the city. As for how it compares, I remember the orgage / grey was more expensive. It also came with a belt drive whereas the white version comes with a chain…..
Bike is great for the city. As for how it compares, I remember the orange / grey was more expensive. It also came with a belt drive whereas the white version comes with a chain…..
If only I could upload photos!
Bought this bike in March 2011 – AND TOTALLY LOVE IT.
even better :
(i) ditch the chain guard
(ii) swap the seat for a Charge Spoon saddle in brushed tan (to match the seat post etc)
(iii) swap the tyres for Schwalbe Durano IN GREEN
I smile every time I ride it……..
Right on…glad you like the bike. You can post a link to your photos! Would love to see it….