Full carbon road bike for 400 quid. What could go wrong?

[lukeyman]

Tallies with mine too. Forgot to take my lock key to work so it ended up in the warehouse. So while I had the opportunity I got a guy to find me his scales.

9.56kg with MTB SPDs, Charge Spoon, 90mm stem and a bottle cage.

The only reason I asked was because the Argos listing said 8.82 or something and the Liyang website 9.69.

[anonymous-user]

hornetrider said:

I emailed the guy on eBay above offering 425 for just the bike within a day of him listing it, but got a semi literate blunt response, suggesting he'd already received higher offers so thanks but no thanks. And I also noted no bids and a relist. Meh.

He'll have to sell it for 450 to break even (10% fees). Can't say I blame him TBH. I'm usually blunt or ignore silly offers for anything!!

[lukeyman]

Just in case anyone was thinking of getting some of those Clarks brake pads:

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/clarks-55mm-cal...

[Fugazi]

How free are the cables if the pads alone are just £6.99? http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/clarks-55mm-cal...
I bought these pads too when the Koolstop pads I ordered never turned up, whoever suggested them thanks!! Braking is now transformed, plus the spare pads have gone onto the Triban. For £14 that's two bikes sorted great value!

Edited by Fugazi on Saturday 13th September 00:20

[Risotto]

Fugazi said:

How free are the cables if the pads alone are just £6.99? http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/clarks-55mm-cal...

The £10.99 link is for two pairs plus free cables, I think your link is for a single pair of pads.

[Fugazi]

Ahh I see, was working late last night and my brain wasn't up to speed... (well that's my excuse anyway)

[hornetrider]

There's a few of these bikes on eBay now

[lukeyman]

Fugazi said:

Ahh I see, was working late last night and my brain wasn't up to speed... (well that's my excuse anyway)

You had me worried for a second!

[richardxjr]

Glad you're liking the Clarks pads, 50g a pair lighter too. Did a century on mine yesterday, 107miles to be exact, Sussex Weald and Romney Marsh, Dungeness, Sussex coast, faultless and v. Comfy (Fizik Aliante will have helped Here)

Edited by richardxjr on Sunday 14th September 12:06

[AWG]

SpunkyGlory said:

SpunkyGlory said:

Not that I would ever try and sell mine on here but for info I don't have space to store mine so will be having to get rid. It's never been ridden but doesn't come with the packaging as I built it up. Only want back the £400 I paid for it.

Any one interested before it goes on eBay?

SpunkyGlory

Did this go on Ebay in the end?

[yellowjack]

richardxjr said:

Glad you're liking the Clarks pads, 50g a pair lighter too. Did a century on mine yesterday, 107miles to be exact, Sussex Weald and Romney Marsh, Dungeness, Sussex coast, faultless and v. Comfy (Fizik Aliante will have helped Here)

Edited by richardxjr on Sunday 14th September 12:06

It certainly looks the part in that photo. It's not like a lot of the cheap Carrera and Viking stuff, that just looks, well, cheap.

I really did like the idea of getting one, but from various posts on here, it sounds like I wouldn't have been able to fit the bike comfortably to me anyway (5ft6in, 30in inside leg).

Nice to know there are bargains (genuine bargains) out there, too. Now all I have to do is sit and wait, to see if Argos (or anyone else) will import either of the two smaller sizes that the factory produces I reckon it'd make a lovely mule on which to sling the complete 6700 Ultegra group from my crashed bike.

[richardxjr]

Or buy another generic frameset from Ribble/PX/Alibaba and chuck your kit on that TBH I'd prefer bare carbon, but the paint & finish on this frame is very good. No worse than my mate's composite Defy lying down in that photo (and which has very very similar geo)

[anonymous-user]

yellowjack said:

It certainly looks the part in that photo. It's not like a lot of the cheap Carrera and Viking stuff, that just looks, well, cheap.

http://road.cc/content/review/52262-carrera-virago
Its strange that you say it looks the part & the Carrera stuff looks cheap. Its the same frame with different badges!

[richardxjr]

I think yellow meant other bikes around £400, obv not carbon. I personally don't disagree anyway, but it's not the same frameset. Seat stays, head tube, fork, BB for a start. Still trying to find who else is flogging the Ventura under a different name.

[anonymous-user]

To the layman the Ventura frame looks the same as the Carrera. The implication was that the Carrera and Viking equivalent (carbon) look cheap . That isn't true as to the layman the Ventura and Carrera look the same...

[SHutchinson]

Jimboka said:

yellowjack said:

It certainly looks the part in that photo. It's not like a lot of the cheap Carrera and Viking stuff, that just looks, well, cheap.

http://road.cc/content/review/52262-carrera-virago
Its strange that you say it looks the part & the Carrera stuff looks cheap. Its the same frame with different badges!

They are painted the same colours but that isn't the same frame. The curve behind the head stem is different.

I like to think the Ventura is superior to Carrera, mainly because I also own a Carrera Zelos and am trying to justify buying a second road bike. But, carbon.

[lukeyman]

SHutchinson said:

I like to think the Ventura is superior to Carrera, mainly because I also own a Carrera Zelos and am trying to justify buying a second road bike. But, carbon.

I did both of those!

Well worth the move.

[yellowjack]

richardxjr said:

I think yellow meant other bikes around £400, obv not carbon. I personally don't disagree anyway, but it's not the same frameset. Seat stays, head tube, fork, BB for a start. Still trying to find who else is flogging the Ventura under a different name.

That's exactly what I meant, Richard. Apologies to the remainder for my lack of clarity. I actually had stuff like the terrible Carrera TDF in mind, but that's cheaper still (and for good reason) at £250. There's the Zelos/Virtuoso/Vanquish/Karkinos progression too, £300/£380/£430/£660 all with alloy frames and 7 or 8 speed rear gears, mostly around Claris level. When you compare the Ventura to that little lot, it begins to look like very much more of a bargain than it did at first.

ETA:

richardxjr said:

Or buy another generic frameset from Ribble/PX/Alibaba and chuck your kit on that

Current priority is to recommission a '90s steel commuter that is languishing at the back of the garage. New headset bearings on that, and then see how it's Exage 300 group is holding up. I'll see what happens regarding the salvage of the crashed bike, and if I get to keep it, I'll explore the logistics of fitting the external BB from the Merida in place of the square taper from the steel frame, then switch the Ultegra onto that and create a 'Frankenstein' bike erring toward winter bike/hybrid/CX territory, as it has clearance for >30mm tyres and mudguards, from looking at it. That'll get me back on a road bike again, and I'll probably go for a decent lightweight new road bike at some later stage, budget to be informed by any compensation payment I receive.

Edited by yellowjack on Wednesday 17th September 10:02

[yellowjack]

Jimboka said:

http://road.cc/content/review/52262-carrera-virago
Its strange that you say it looks the part & the Carrera stuff looks cheap. Its the same frame with different badges!

That, though, is a 2012 review, and the Halfords website shows only 6 Carrera road bikes available at the moment, none of them carbon fibre, and no Virago amongst them...

http://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/road-bikes?b...

[Barchettaman]

yellowjack said:

Current priority is to recommission a '90s steel commuter that is languishing at the back of the garage. New headset bearings on that, and then see how it's Exage 300 group is holding up. I'll see what happens regarding the salvage of the crashed bike, and if I get to keep it, I'll explore the logistics of fitting the external BB from the Merida in place of the square taper from the steel frame, then switch the Ultegra onto that and create a 'Frankenstein' bike erring toward winter bike/hybrid/CX territory, as it has clearance for >30mm tyres and mudguards, from looking at it. That'll get me back on a road bike again, and I'll probably go for a decent lightweight new road bike at some later stage, budget to be informed by any compensation payment I receive.

Edited by yellowjack on Wednesday 17th September 10:02

That's definitely the way to go, if you've got a useable frame sitting around not doing much.
Assuming the Exage groupset isn't completely rusted up it should be usable.
Frankenstein bikes with decent tyre clearance and mudguards are definitely a good thing in my book!

I personally would keep a square taper crankset for anything doing winter/rain/CX duties, although the Exage is probaly 52/42 or something daft like that and might need swapping out for a compact.