Discussion
I've been looking at upgrading for a while now which has brought me through the usual £1,000 bikes on a cycle to work scheme through to some pieces at £2,500 which are frankly better than my ability right now. I'm settling in for something around the £1,500 mark.
I've narrowed it down to a couple of options and would like to hear some opinions. I'm currently leaning towards the Giant, but there's also a 105 version available for £300 less and I'm struggling to work out what is worth £300 extra on this model.
http://www.giant-docklands.co.uk/en-gb/bikes/model... -- aero design, carbon, ultegra
https://www.canyon.com/en-gb/road/ultimate/2016/ul... -- aluminium, ultegra, better wheelset (?)
https://www.canyon.com/en-gb/road/ultimate/2016/ul... -- carbon, 105
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/mekk-poggio-28-105-2016/ -- carbon, deeper dish wheelset, 105, but what is mekk's reputation like?
I've narrowed it down to a couple of options and would like to hear some opinions. I'm currently leaning towards the Giant, but there's also a 105 version available for £300 less and I'm struggling to work out what is worth £300 extra on this model.
http://www.giant-docklands.co.uk/en-gb/bikes/model... -- aero design, carbon, ultegra
https://www.canyon.com/en-gb/road/ultimate/2016/ul... -- aluminium, ultegra, better wheelset (?)
https://www.canyon.com/en-gb/road/ultimate/2016/ul... -- carbon, 105
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/mekk-poggio-28-105-2016/ -- carbon, deeper dish wheelset, 105, but what is mekk's reputation like?
A few years ago, I was in the same price range, and I had the choice of a pretty reasonable Alu frame or a Carbon frame near the bottom of the range.
These days, Carbon has become more affordable, but you still have a similar dilemma. My next bike will likely be Carbon framed, and from Canyon.
Although this:
http://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CBPXRT80DA/planet-x-r...
Often drops to £1,500 due to Planet X and their odd pricing. (You'd probably want better wheels fairly quickly though.)
These days, Carbon has become more affordable, but you still have a similar dilemma. My next bike will likely be Carbon framed, and from Canyon.
Although this:
http://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CBPXRT80DA/planet-x-r...
Often drops to £1,500 due to Planet X and their odd pricing. (You'd probably want better wheels fairly quickly though.)
Canyon a non-starter for me, I'm afraid. Not keen on mail-order as I like to see, touch, and ride a bike prior to buying it. Mekk? I don't have experience of, but aesthetically I find that bike quite 'challenging' (too many logos and not nearly colourful enough for me).
Out of those you've linked to, I'd go for the Giant in a heartbeat. It has a look of class about it, and an acquaintance of mine races one.
I'm biased because I own an SL 6, but Trek's Emonda SL 5 is available with 105 for £1800. The trouble is, on paper the Giant is so much better value for money so even though I love mine I'd struggle to recommend it because you'd pay more and get less than with the Giant.
Buying a new bike is tough. Before I had the funds in place I thought that I knew what I wanted. Then when I had the cash ready I started to second-guess myself, and cast my net wider. In the end my Emonda cut through the murk and sold itself on account of how well the test ride(s) went on it compared to other bikes I'd ridden and just not got on with. Good luck with the search, and let us know what you end up getting!
Out of those you've linked to, I'd go for the Giant in a heartbeat. It has a look of class about it, and an acquaintance of mine races one.
I'm biased because I own an SL 6, but Trek's Emonda SL 5 is available with 105 for £1800. The trouble is, on paper the Giant is so much better value for money so even though I love mine I'd struggle to recommend it because you'd pay more and get less than with the Giant.
Buying a new bike is tough. Before I had the funds in place I thought that I knew what I wanted. Then when I had the cash ready I started to second-guess myself, and cast my net wider. In the end my Emonda cut through the murk and sold itself on account of how well the test ride(s) went on it compared to other bikes I'd ridden and just not got on with. Good luck with the search, and let us know what you end up getting!
AyBee said:
Don't know anybody who rides a Mekk so unable to comment on them, but out of your list, I'd probably pick the Canyon Ultimate CF with 105 
Yep, that's my thought. Seems to be relatively unknown and only seen them about on Wiggle? I was leaning towards the Canyon CF until I saw the AL with Ultegra. What (realistic!) differences will I be seeing between 105 and Ultegra? I'm assuming nicer shifting and lighter? I've no experience of either and coming from a Specialized Allez with Sora so all are a step up! yellowjack said:
Canyon a non-starter for me, I'm afraid. Not keen on mail-order as I like to see, touch, and ride a bike prior to buying it. Mekk? I don't have experience of, but aesthetically I find that bike quite 'challenging' (too many logos and not nearly colourful enough for me).
Out of those you've linked to, I'd go for the Giant in a heartbeat. It has a look of class about it, and an acquaintance of mine races one.
I'm biased because I own an SL 6, but Trek's Emonda SL 5 is available with 105 for £1800. The trouble is, on paper the Giant is so much better value for money so even though I love mine I'd struggle to recommend it because you'd pay more and get less than with the Giant.
Buying a new bike is tough. Before I had the funds in place I thought that I knew what I wanted. Then when I had the cash ready I started to second-guess myself, and cast my net wider. In the end my Emonda cut through the murk and sold itself on account of how well the test ride(s) went on it compared to other bikes I'd ridden and just not got on with. Good luck with the search, and let us know what you end up getting!
Hit the nail on the head there mate! I'm leaning towards the Giant as the store is around the corner and I'm hoping that I'll get some advice around the purchase. I was set on a Canyon, but mail order puts me off now I've had this Giant crop up. Out of those you've linked to, I'd go for the Giant in a heartbeat. It has a look of class about it, and an acquaintance of mine races one.
I'm biased because I own an SL 6, but Trek's Emonda SL 5 is available with 105 for £1800. The trouble is, on paper the Giant is so much better value for money so even though I love mine I'd struggle to recommend it because you'd pay more and get less than with the Giant.
Buying a new bike is tough. Before I had the funds in place I thought that I knew what I wanted. Then when I had the cash ready I started to second-guess myself, and cast my net wider. In the end my Emonda cut through the murk and sold itself on account of how well the test ride(s) went on it compared to other bikes I'd ridden and just not got on with. Good luck with the search, and let us know what you end up getting!
A colleague at work has a Propel, and he likes it. I think it looks quite "challenging", but these things are all personal choice. Spec looks good though.
Never underestimate the power of walking into a shop with a fistful of cash, things like bottle cages and pedals might be up for grabs...
Never underestimate the power of walking into a shop with a fistful of cash, things like bottle cages and pedals might be up for grabs...
adamwri said:
I've been looking at upgrading for a while now which has brought me through the usual £1,000 bikes on a cycle to work scheme through to some pieces at £2,500 which are frankly better than my ability right now. I'm settling in for something around the £1,500 mark.
your logic is flawed, dont buy a bike that matches your current ability, buy a bike that matches your ability aspirations Apologies if you've already considered all of this or if you consider it a diversion!
I would imagine the Canyon ultimates and the Propel are relatively aggressive, race type geometry. The Mekk says on the description that it's designed for comfort. I've not gone looking through the numbers.
If your allez has similar geometry to my old 2009 model, it too has a relatively relaxed riding position.
It can be very confusing looking at the all the angles and measurements in a chart to see what you're going to get and how it might feel so it might make sense to try and find stack & reach numbers for each frame. They translate into how stretched out you are vs how upright.
Check carefully because quite often different sizes in the same frame have different proportions (doesn't really make sense to me, but I guess mostly because the wheels are usually the same size).
Why is this important, you might ask?
If you get this wrong and your frame stretches you out too much you'll get terrible back ache. I'm the wrong side of 40, didn't cycle regularly all my life and as a consequence I've discovered, I am quite inflexible and need a more upright, less stretched out geometry.
I would suggest, either:
- getting some test rides in to judge a prospective new bike by feel
- get a bike fit done
- or use some of the online tools and measure yourself to get an idea for ideal stack and reach
I did a combination of 2 and 3 because I flukily got a free bike fit and wanted to buy a second hand bike or online bargain so didn't want to be tied to test rides.
If you've slammed the stem on your allez and spend all day in the drops you probably don't need to worry about it!
I would imagine the Canyon ultimates and the Propel are relatively aggressive, race type geometry. The Mekk says on the description that it's designed for comfort. I've not gone looking through the numbers.
If your allez has similar geometry to my old 2009 model, it too has a relatively relaxed riding position.
It can be very confusing looking at the all the angles and measurements in a chart to see what you're going to get and how it might feel so it might make sense to try and find stack & reach numbers for each frame. They translate into how stretched out you are vs how upright.
Check carefully because quite often different sizes in the same frame have different proportions (doesn't really make sense to me, but I guess mostly because the wheels are usually the same size).
Why is this important, you might ask?
If you get this wrong and your frame stretches you out too much you'll get terrible back ache. I'm the wrong side of 40, didn't cycle regularly all my life and as a consequence I've discovered, I am quite inflexible and need a more upright, less stretched out geometry.
I would suggest, either:
- getting some test rides in to judge a prospective new bike by feel
- get a bike fit done
- or use some of the online tools and measure yourself to get an idea for ideal stack and reach
I did a combination of 2 and 3 because I flukily got a free bike fit and wanted to buy a second hand bike or online bargain so didn't want to be tied to test rides.
If you've slammed the stem on your allez and spend all day in the drops you probably don't need to worry about it!
I have last year's version of the Propel, I think the colours were better
I love it, have done nearly 5000 miles on it now, including a 27 hour Everesting and the Fred Whitton. When I bought it, I could have lived with 105 instead of Ultegra, but it helped clinch the deal. I don't think any of the potential rivals I was looking at had the full Ultegra groupset.
I'm not so sure about the comfort/racy geometry stuff, I think a lot of it is marketing b
ks. If you can, have a ride on one to see how it deals with rougher surfaces. I also test rode a Fuji Transonic at the time, which looked a little more tech/aero, but seemed harsher to me.
I love it, have done nearly 5000 miles on it now, including a 27 hour Everesting and the Fred Whitton. When I bought it, I could have lived with 105 instead of Ultegra, but it helped clinch the deal. I don't think any of the potential rivals I was looking at had the full Ultegra groupset.
I'm not so sure about the comfort/racy geometry stuff, I think a lot of it is marketing b
ks. If you can, have a ride on one to see how it deals with rougher surfaces. I also test rode a Fuji Transonic at the time, which looked a little more tech/aero, but seemed harsher to me.If it were my money, I'd buy this:
https://www.evanscycles.com/cannondale-caad12-ulte...
Granted it's not Carbon and you may lose Café Kudos among the Freds, but that frame is fantastic.
https://www.evanscycles.com/cannondale-caad12-ulte...
Granted it's not Carbon and you may lose Café Kudos among the Freds, but that frame is fantastic.
Thought I'd update with the planned purchase. Budget crept up, once more, but pretty pleased assuming everything turns up in a sensible time frame and is good quality.
https://www.evanscycles.com/cannondale-supersix-ev...
https://www.evanscycles.com/cannondale-supersix-ev...
adamwri said:
Thought I'd update with the planned purchase. Budget crept up, once more, but pretty pleased assuming everything turns up in a sensible time frame and is good quality.
https://www.evanscycles.com/cannondale-supersix-ev...
Nice work, that's a decent spec for that money!https://www.evanscycles.com/cannondale-supersix-ev...
Thanks AyBee. Got it a touch cheaper from Paul's Cycles. Thought I was squeezing up not far off the price range so justified, somehow, the leap to get onto that instead of what I was looking at. Touch nervous about the SRAM gear system as I'm used to Shimano so will take a bit of getting used too I think
Nice bike that OP.
Good job I read the whole thread for once - I was about to type a 105 v's ultegra note (ultegra shifts way nicer, but doesn't make me faster).
I'd be interested to see what you think of scram v's shimano. I started on 10sp ultegra then got a nicer bike on 105. I tried campaign and hated it completely, tried a very short ride on seam and found it confusing. I bet you get used to it quick tho
Good job I read the whole thread for once - I was about to type a 105 v's ultegra note (ultegra shifts way nicer, but doesn't make me faster).
I'd be interested to see what you think of scram v's shimano. I started on 10sp ultegra then got a nicer bike on 105. I tried campaign and hated it completely, tried a very short ride on seam and found it confusing. I bet you get used to it quick tho
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