What Road Bike. With Options

[Gropes]

Hi.

I have been commuting 20 hilly miles a day on my MTB which is hard work. So I have decided to get myself a road bike with a budget of £600 (set by the wife).

I am in terested in the bikes linked below and any advice as to which is the best bik would be much appriciated. I intend to try each of the bikes before buying.

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/cannondale/syn...

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/scott/speedste...

http://www.wheelbase.co.uk/product_9816.htm

http://www.wheelbase.co.uk/product_9818.htm

http://www.bikeandrun.co.uk/bikeshop/product_info....

Thanks.

[edward1]

Really depends how hilly your 20 miles are and your personal riding style. I ride a road bike with a 53/39 on the front with 10sp cassette on the rear (largest sprocket 26 I think) in the peak district and apart from the steepest climbs find the 39 tooth confortable. Having said that I came form riding an older bike where the small ring on the front was a 42 and the largest at the back a 21.

However if you are used to mtb gearing and keeping the cadence high on the climbs one of the bikes with a triple may suit you better. I personally would go for the Cannondale or the Bianchi. Whatever you buy you'll find faster out on the road than an mtb.

[mcgus]

having looked at a couple of these, a few thoughts.....

the trek 1.2 2009 looks great but has base Sora Shimano groupset. Which leads me to the Bianchi Via Nirone Xenon with Campag groupset.....I have this bike and still love it after three years. It's done me a load of miles and it is one of those bikes that you just enjoy looking at! All that said, you would be well advised to try a Campag against a Shimano on whatever bike to see which you prefer....

I'm very much an Italian fan and have just bought a Wilier Mortirolo Veloce (Campag) in all carbon to go with the Bianchi which I will now use more as a winter bike....

Try and see is the only real advice!

Oh, the Trek 1.2 is a triple whereas the 1.5 and the Bianchi is a double - credibility points to be won on the Bianchi

Edited by mcgus on Thursday 11th September 16:02

[londonbabe]

+1 for the Bianchi.
Italian > American even if they are all made in Taiwan really. Campag > Shimano.

but tell me, what is this 1.2, 1.5 double business?

[Nick_F]

Do you stay on the ig ring on your MTB for the whole ride? If so then a 52/39 or 53/39 road setup should be fine - you might look for or swap to a cassette with a 27-tooth bottom gear, though.

For your budget you should be looking for at least Shimano Tiagra (9spd) or possibly a mix of Tiagra and 105 (10spd) but steer clear of Sora as it only offers 8 speeds and the same rubbish thumb shifters as Campag...

[mcgus]

Nick_F said:

but steer clear of Sora as it only offers 8 speeds and the same rubbish thumb shifters as Campag...

as you can see - opinions vary wildly with people either in the Shim or Campag camps....

[Gropes]

Thanks for the replies.

I do spend most of the time riding on the big ring so I think I could get away with the double.

I have narrowed it down to the Treck 1.5 and the Bianchi.

The Treck has 9 speed sora shifters. Would the be that hard to change in the future

[Nick_F]

Upgrading them will be simple enough, but the shifters are the single most expensive component on the bike. I haven't looked at Sora kit for a while - now that it's 9 speed does it also use a 'proper' downshift lever instead of the thumb catch?

ETA no, still the thumb catch.

Edited by Nick_F on Friday 12th September 10:23

[Gropes]

Is the thumb shifter so bad?

[Nick_F]

Works fine, but it can be awkward to reach if you're riding with your hands down on the drops, compared to systems that use a second lever behind the brake.

Changing to Tiagra STIs - which use the two-lever arrangement - would cost you £80-odd if you decided that you really couldn't get on with the thumb jobbie.

Edited by Nick_F on Friday 12th September 12:49

[edward1]

Personally love the campag shifters, but then I have a quite agressive geometry and as a result very rarely spend much time on the drops. Changing the shifters as stated is an expensive business, try both and go with what you prefer.

[Carrot (Mapped)]

Kick the wife in the face and spend £700 on a Cube Peloton.

http://www.winstanleysbikes.co.uk/product/17191/Cu...

Full Shimano 105 kit, and looks the business. I am very happy with mine