What Road Bike/Bargain Hunt!
Discussion
The Boardman frame is superb. Light, stiff and excellent quality without needing a cosmetic wrap.
The Team Carbon is now the single most popular bike in my club, mostly because of people blagging a ride and being blown away by how good they are.
A grand buys you a great carbon bike, with very good wheels and an excellent Rival cog set. You shouldn't settle for an Ali frame with a high profit margin when you can have quality carbon from Ribble, Planet X and Boardman.
The Team Carbon is now the single most popular bike in my club, mostly because of people blagging a ride and being blown away by how good they are.
A grand buys you a great carbon bike, with very good wheels and an excellent Rival cog set. You shouldn't settle for an Ali frame with a high profit margin when you can have quality carbon from Ribble, Planet X and Boardman.
I am on an almost identical bike search to the OP, so very useful thread, thanks. One of the things I'm looking for is long distance comfort, and I've got the Verenti Millook and Rhigos 3 on the shortlist. As far as I can see these are identical spec and geometry, close to the same weight, but the Rhigos has a carbon frame and is c.£200 more. Both seem to get great reviews. Does anyone have any thoughts on whether the carbon frame is worth going for in this case?
Well here's tonights browsing experience, two entirely different bikes and approaches-
1. Evans Cycles- Go in, ask to have a sit on the BMC Streetfire SSX01 in M and L, as I think I am sized somewhere between the pair. They are very helpful in there, and one lad owns a slightly higher level BMC and gave a great description of it and comparison to other bikes, generally very positive. Offered a test ride for when it's daylight, and should I choose to buy, a session on a Turbo and some spent actually setting up the geometry on the bike. As for the bike, felt comfortable the minute I sat on the large, they seemed to think that was a good choice. Fit and finish seemed good and it felt very light. The helper/BMC owner did mention they are a pretty stiff bike, but I guess a carbon post could sort this. My choice from these guys would be the Streetracer 2011 at 1034, same frame with the 2011 105 gear as that seems popular.
2. Halfords- Typically I hate Halfords when it involves any sort of customer service requiring in depth knowledge. I was there for the £999 Boardman Team Carbon, and sure enough I got to sit on one in a large size. The bars were initially stretched out too far, but the helper set them back to factory and I got comfy straight away. Hugely impressed by the finish of the frame, it looks great and the kit used on the bike seems to be decent spec too. The guy admitted he wasn't a road rider, but rated Sram gear in terms of maintenance and said they had never had any problems with weak frames etc. Quite helpful to be fair, obviously no offers of geometry setup here though...Stock levels seem good and I don't think I will find a better bike for that spec in Carbon. But then I am a brand snob.
Oh and to further complicate things, I just got a 20% off list price voucher for Wiggle in the e-mail valid for a few days.....
1. Evans Cycles- Go in, ask to have a sit on the BMC Streetfire SSX01 in M and L, as I think I am sized somewhere between the pair. They are very helpful in there, and one lad owns a slightly higher level BMC and gave a great description of it and comparison to other bikes, generally very positive. Offered a test ride for when it's daylight, and should I choose to buy, a session on a Turbo and some spent actually setting up the geometry on the bike. As for the bike, felt comfortable the minute I sat on the large, they seemed to think that was a good choice. Fit and finish seemed good and it felt very light. The helper/BMC owner did mention they are a pretty stiff bike, but I guess a carbon post could sort this. My choice from these guys would be the Streetracer 2011 at 1034, same frame with the 2011 105 gear as that seems popular.
2. Halfords- Typically I hate Halfords when it involves any sort of customer service requiring in depth knowledge. I was there for the £999 Boardman Team Carbon, and sure enough I got to sit on one in a large size. The bars were initially stretched out too far, but the helper set them back to factory and I got comfy straight away. Hugely impressed by the finish of the frame, it looks great and the kit used on the bike seems to be decent spec too. The guy admitted he wasn't a road rider, but rated Sram gear in terms of maintenance and said they had never had any problems with weak frames etc. Quite helpful to be fair, obviously no offers of geometry setup here though...Stock levels seem good and I don't think I will find a better bike for that spec in Carbon. But then I am a brand snob.
Oh and to further complicate things, I just got a 20% off list price voucher for Wiggle in the e-mail valid for a few days.....
JayPee said:
But then I am a brand snob.
At a grand, there can be no snobbery. Plenty of big name companies make mediocre bikes for your £1000 but there are also some excellent bikes for that money. When I can buy a good Cervello for a grand, I will buy one.
Until then, I'll enjoy my Boardman TC and it's very easy to enjoy such a great bike.
Raven Flyer said:
JayPee said:
But then I am a brand snob.
At a grand, there can be no snobbery. Plenty of big name companies make mediocre bikes for your £1000 but there are also some excellent bikes for that money. When I can buy a good Cervello for a grand, I will buy one.
Until then, I'll enjoy my Boardman TC and it's very easy to enjoy such a great bike.
pablo said:
buy cycling weekly and see what the shops are selling off, dont just search the web. try places like hargroves as well as the usual suspects too.
dont decide on a bike and set your heart on it, dont get hung up on a groupset, tiagra is more than capable of shifting gears and stopping you if its serviced every now and then. a good set of wheels is worth far more than an ultegra rear mech and a pair of shimano rs20s are around £150 so if you see a bargain at £800 go for it and upgrade the wheels.
look for the lesser known brands like merida, cube, focus and felt, dont just hunt for specialized and giant as they are the brands everyone knows and defaults too.
Whatever you go for, buy it where you try it. Don't take up your LBS's time and 'steal' their advise, then buy same bike cheaper off t'internet. Most LBS can do deals on clothing/accessories if you buy them with the bike.dont decide on a bike and set your heart on it, dont get hung up on a groupset, tiagra is more than capable of shifting gears and stopping you if its serviced every now and then. a good set of wheels is worth far more than an ultegra rear mech and a pair of shimano rs20s are around £150 so if you see a bargain at £800 go for it and upgrade the wheels.
look for the lesser known brands like merida, cube, focus and felt, dont just hunt for specialized and giant as they are the brands everyone knows and defaults too.
I too was heavily focused on bikes toward the bottom of the 'Big Brand' ranges, then I found Flitch Bikes in Great Dunmow, Essex, and bought a Merida 905 HFS-Com. Listed in Cycling Plus mag, and online with several larger stores/websites at £1560 +/- a few pence, I got it for £1160. Great looking bike, Ali frame/carbon forks with FULL Ultegra groupset/hubs, ordered to fit, and final tweak of fit carried out in the shop on turbo trainer, with a great deal on pedals/shoes/jacket etc. The deals are out there, especially on 'last years' bikes.
Only problem with new bike is that, after 5 weeks out with shoulder injury, and recent weather (from freezing fog to deep snow) in Essex, I have managed only 200 miles riding, and all of that in the dark. I can't wait for the return of the sunshine, and dry roads.
Well my search has been forging on in the hope of a bargain, though funding has been shifted to Automotive pursuits and Christmas which is why I have been hesitant. That along with the fact that I had missed the majority of tasty 2010 bikes by this point, leaving bikes that despite being reduced were still not really any better then the typical prices of a Boardman or Planet X Carbon Rival. I expect I shall hold off for a wee while now and pick one of either of these up with the hope that they will still be priced under a grand when I do!
JayPee said:
Well my search has been forging on in the hope of a bargain, though funding has been shifted to Automotive pursuits and Christmas which is why I have been hesitant. That along with the fact that I had missed the majority of tasty 2010 bikes by this point, leaving bikes that despite being reduced were still not really any better then the typical prices of a Boardman or Planet X Carbon Rival. I expect I shall hold off for a wee while now and pick one of either of these up with the hope that they will still be priced under a grand when I do!
bikes are only going to be going up in price in the foreseeable.if money is tight(ish) you would be bonkers to overlook these:
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/al...
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/al...
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/raleigh/airlit...
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/pinnacle/senti...
I could have justified it financially to spend a grand or so on a roady back in the summer (subject to the usual lies to the missus etc)- but I tried the allez triple and was very impressed indeed so went for that - and paid 450 for it. It's now 400. No biggie, but you are getting a cracking bike for not a lot of cash at this price point..
Edited by princeperch on Wednesday 29th December 21:32
Edited by princeperch on Wednesday 29th December 21:38
The way I saw it, with the VAT and impending squeeze on the exchange rate, bike prices will probably increase again next year, hence I plumped for the Boardman Road Comp to get me going. It was originally £699 but I got it for £594 which included some raceguards and a set of SPDs. Couple that with a 4% discount off Quidco for £570 and the bike works out to be about £530
Rob13 said:
The way I saw it, with the VAT and impending squeeze on the exchange rate, bike prices will probably increase again next year, hence I plumped for the Boardman Road Comp to get me going. It was originally £699 but I got it for £594 which included some raceguards and a set of SPDs. Couple that with a 4% discount off Quidco for £570 and the bike works out to be about £530
you cant go wrong at a price like that princeperch said:
Rob13 said:
The way I saw it, with the VAT and impending squeeze on the exchange rate, bike prices will probably increase again next year, hence I plumped for the Boardman Road Comp to get me going. It was originally £699 but I got it for £594 which included some raceguards and a set of SPDs. Couple that with a 4% discount off Quidco for £570 and the bike works out to be about £530
you cant go wrong at a price like that Gassing Station | Pedal Powered | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff