Advice on Road bike please

[Vron]

Hi Guys
I currently have a mountain bike but am looking for a road bike too. I am planning on buying a second hand bike to see how I get on. Being female and 5'2" this is proving a challenge. I have seen a few bikes on ebay

Ribble
Saracen
Giant
Specialized

I would like a specialized womens specific but they go for only about £150 less than new on ebay and I only wanted to spend about £250 max incase I don't get on with road cycling.

Any opinions on the Giant and Saracen as a budget brand??

Thanks

[Parsnip]

I would try to borrow a bike (not always possible, i know) to see if you get on with road biking - I used to be a dyed in the wool downhiller until i borrowed a roadie - have since sold both my mountain bikes and have 2 road bikes taking their place - some people will love it, others wont see the point of it and hate it.

At that price point there are a few deals to be had second hand - but be ready to compromise on something and be spending a lot of hours on ebay/gumtree etc - i got my scott s50 which i use for commuting for about £250 - granted, it doesn't fit me quite right, but it is absolutley bombproof, which was my major concern - and was a steal at that price.

If you have a good local bike shop, its worth going in and having a chat with a few of the staff about what they recommend - i have no idea on womens bikes, but i know plenty who ride them and plenty who ride mens/unisex bikes.

With that budget you aren't going to get anything too special, but the things you are after are a decent groupset - at that price range you are probably limited to shimano sora, its sturdy enough, if a little heavy. A decent set of wheels - shamano r500s are heavy, but do the job. If you currently have SPDs on your MTB, i would just stick with the same pedals for now, they are 90% as good as equivalent road pedals and you wont need new shoes/cleats.

Edited to add: I wouldn't be too bothered about who makes the frame etc. - as long as it fits you. At that price, they will all be fairly similar - heavy and not too stiff - the componentry that is attached that matters. If it comes down to an aluminium giant with a steel fork and a no-name import with tiagra and a carbon fork, i know which one i would be going for.

Edited by Parsnip on Friday 15th May 12:03

[b2hbm]

^^^ Good advice above.

I thought the only thing about a women's specific frame was a shorter top tube ? To be honest I think you'll struggle to get one s/h unless it's one of those "right place/right time" coincidences. So you'll probably end up with a "small" compact frame; personally I'd just check out the geometry on their websites and see how the top tube lengths compare with your MTB.

At that price bracket I'd say the name is irrelevant, the frame will most likely come out of the same Asian factory, it'll just have different stickers on. For example Ribble are currently selling a CF frame which looks identical in geometry & weight to my US-sourced Pedalforce frame which came out of an Asian factory last year. No prizes for guessing where they're getting theirs from then....

So don't get hung up on brands, any of those you've quoted will be fine for starters. I bought a Ribble frame when I started - cheap, rode well and got me hooked on road bikes, so no complaints at all.

edit - as a second thought, are you eligible to buy under the cycle to work scheme ? It might stretch your budget but you'd be able to get a new bike (which should be trouble-free) at a good discount ?

Edited by b2hbm on Sunday 17th May 06:53