Looking for a road bike but don't have a clue!

[Deanf]

Hi guys.
I'm looking for a road bike to go back and fore to work on, probably the occasional distance ride if its a nice day.
Maximum budget is around £1500. I'd prefer a carbon bike for no particular reason at all.
I'm about 5'9 on a generous day and weigh 11.5st.
I currently spend around £30 a week doing a 13.7 mile round trip to work everyday, so i'd like to cut down on that and would like to do less short journeys in my S4 (Hopefully upgrading to a V8 of some description at may).

Coming from a dh background i really wouldn't know where to start.

While i'm here..a few of my previous bikes!




Thanks in advance guys!

[shalmaneser]

Nice bikes.

I'd suggest a Cannondale as a good place to start, great value and fantastic frames. The Synapse for example is particularly beautiful, and ideal for someone new to road bikes. Should you not want a plastic bike, the CAAD10s are lovely too.

Someone else will probably recommend a Boardman.

[anonymous-user]

dont be trapped into thinking that a full on road bike cant be a commuter, crud race guards fit on any bike and a carbon frame/fork combo will take out most of the ting fro the road. hence my suggestions are more race orientated but riding fast is more fun.

cannondale still have a reputation as one of the best frame builders out there (even if production in the US has stopped) so the caad10 is well worth a look

http://www.rutlandcycling.com/19954/Moda-Stretto-C...
This. Ok, so you havent heard of the name, don't worry. they are made in the UK and part of the Moore Large distributor group. I promise you will be hard pushed to find a better deal this year.

I know its £1700 so a bit over budget but how about a Dolan Hercules with Mavic Askiums and sram rival? if the frames are good enough for Chris Hoy to train on then....
http://www.dolan-bikes.com/road-bikes/complete-bik...

http://www.boardmanbikes.com/road/road_team_carbon... Boardman team carbon for £1200, comes with full sram rival groupset and with the £300 left from the £1500 you can treat yourself to some RS30 wheels or equivilent as an immediate upgrade (I'm not a big fan of ritchey wheels personally)

also try googling some of the leftfield brands like Ridley, Merida or Orbea. At this time of year, everyone will default to Evans so it pays to keep an open mind and see what the rest of teh world are selling off....

[anonymous-user]

The Boardman Team Carbon is usually priced at £999, it was even £899 over Christmas in the Halfords 10% off sale.
Also PlanetX is worth a look, excellent carbon bike for £1199...

[croyde]

Specialized have a carbon frame road bike around your budget. I'm thinking about getting one myself as I have tried the Allez aluminium frame Comp and Elite and own a Langster thus like the brand.

It's the Tarmac Elite and Evans have one size 2010 bike left at only £1200 but it's a 61 cms frame.

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/ta...

[Roman]

pablo said:

http://www.rutlandcycling.com/19954/Moda-Stretto-C...
This. Ok, so you havent heard of the name, don't worry. they are made in the UK and part of the Moore Large distributor group. I promise you will be hard pushed to find a better deal this year.

That looks an excellent buy - much better wheels than most 'off the shelf' bikes at this price.

As you're in South Wales I'd recommend a trip to Epic Cycles in Shropshire, they have a great range available to try:

http://www.epic-cycles.co.uk/

[itsnotarace]

Draw up a shortlist of bikes in your price range and test ride them all. I would definitely look closely at a CAAD10 and a VN Mistral

http://www.fatbirds.co.uk/detail.asp/sku=VN-Mistra...

This looks like a tremendous deal - Ridley Orion with Ultegra 6700 for 1199

http://www.hargrovescycles.co.uk/products.asp?cate...

[croyde]

Roman said:

pablo said:

http://www.rutlandcycling.com/19954/Moda-Stretto-C...
This. Ok, so you havent heard of the name, don't worry. they are made in the UK and part of the Moore Large distributor group. I promise you will be hard pushed to find a better deal this year.

That looks an excellent buy - much better wheels than most 'off the shelf' bikes at this price.

As you're in South Wales I'd recommend a trip to Epic Cycles in Shropshire, they have a great range available to try:

http://www.epic-cycles.co.uk/

That Moda Stretto looks good but I know nothing about Sram. What is it equivalent to ie 105, Sora etc

[LRdriver II]

Hell yeah!

Dont be fooled into thinking that plastic bikes are the be-all end-all of frames these days.. its all marketing HYPE. Seriously look at high end Aluminium frames (Cannondales CAAD frames, Principia frames on Chain reaction s website etc..)

Also Titanium is a very good option for an awesome road bike which can do commuter dutys too. They are bump and impact resistant (unlike a plastic frame) they dont rust and look low-key to the casual observer/pikey in that non-bling titanium grey.
I have a Ti colnago.. rides awesome and smooth. But titanium is a bit flexy if you enjoy mashing them big gears. Also dont see a flexy frame as being bad, a couple of TdF have been won on noodle Vitus frames back then, and in the same way car manufactures promote how AWESOME their cars drive around the Ring, they are not ideal for UK roads.

Titanium.. for us in the know!

[LRdriver II]

Sram Rival is akin to 105
Sram Force is akin to Ultegra
Sram Red is akin to Dura Ace

INstead of two levers on each brake lever like Shimano, SRAM use one and it depends how far you move it. try move and see what you prefer. Campag use a small thumb activated lever to down shift which is a bit naff if have big hands

Intersteingly the Moda has a lesser rear derailleur than the usual PR stunt by putting a flashy rear one on to sell bikes.

[Deanf]

Thank you for your input guys.
I'll put together a short list later.

Any opinion on Cube? I was looking at the Agree gtc pro.

[croyde]

LRdriver II said:

Sram Rival is akin to 105
Sram Force is akin to Ultegra
Sram Red is akin to Dura Ace

INstead of two levers on each brake lever like Shimano, SRAM use one and it depends how far you move it. try move and see what you prefer. Campag use a small thumb activated lever to down shift which is a bit naff if have big hands

Intersteingly the Moda has a lesser rear derailleur than the usual PR stunt by putting a flashy rear one on to sell bikes.

Ta

[Raven Flyer]

Carbon frames have got so good in the last few years, they have left metal frames struggling. Stiffness, lightness and the lack of road buzz (this tires rider muscles and should be eliminated where possible) make carbon the perfect material for bike frames.

They also look the tits.

[anonymous-user]

i have a friend with a Cube Agree and its pretty bloody fast as a result of some very aggressive geometry. its nicely finished and doesnt flex though he is a whippet and cant put much power through the rear in th first place! well worth a look as is anything in the price range from Corratec.

[Roman]

Re. the Cube - very nice

Re. Sram, although Rival is a similar price level to Shimano 105 it is significantly lighter (similar to Ultegra) and I'd prefer it personally. Slightly cheaper Sram Apex isn't much heavier than Rival either.

[Gnarlybluesurf]

Raven Flyer said:

Carbon frames have got so good in the last few years, they have left metal frames struggling. Stiffness, lightness and the lack of road buzz (this tires rider muscles and should be eliminated where possible) make carbon the perfect material for bike frames.

They also look the tits.

You will go quicker on your commute if you buy carbon as proven below:

http://www.bmj.com/content/341/bmj.c6801.full

[Superhoop]

Have a look at Wilier too. They've got a couple of bikes around your price bracket, and there are deals to be done

I got my Izoard XP R5 for £1500 against retail of £1799

[Fatman2]

Deanf said:

Thank you for your input guys.
I'll put together a short list later.

Any opinion on Cube? I was looking at the Agree gtc pro.

Cube are very good IMHO and are gaining reputation in the UK.

If you're going down the German bike route then check out what Focus are offering nowadays too. They were offering some superb road bikes in 2009/10 when I bought my Bianchi but have not kept my finger on the pulse so am not sure what they're up to at the moment.

Naturally as a Bianchi fan I'd advise to check them out although as with all major manufacturers you don't get a great deal for your money.

[Obiwonkeyblokey]

I bought a focus cayo last year with ultegra and full carbon.

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/focus/road-time-trial-bike...

Edited by Obiwonkeyblokey on Wednesday 19th January 09:25

[Deanf]

Thank you for all your input.

The bikes I'm interested in are:
The moda stretto.
Cube gtc pro compact.
Specialized tarmac.

The cube is priced at £1350 at the local (tredz).

What bike is the best in terms of value and componentry?
Thank you.