Road bike basics...
Discussion
Evening all,
Due to all the road miles I am doing I'm looking to get a road bike. I currently use a Cube Ltd Race mtb - which I will be keeping.
I have no knowledge about road bike specs/manufacturers outside of Cannondale/Cube/Kona - the standard mtb makers really.
I'm looking to buy second hand and would prefer to spend ~£300.
Can anyone make any recommendations?
Cheers!
Due to all the road miles I am doing I'm looking to get a road bike. I currently use a Cube Ltd Race mtb - which I will be keeping.
I have no knowledge about road bike specs/manufacturers outside of Cannondale/Cube/Kona - the standard mtb makers really.
I'm looking to buy second hand and would prefer to spend ~£300.
Can anyone make any recommendations?
Cheers!
For Shimano components:
Sora < Tiagra < 105 < Ultegra < Dura Ace
A bit like when buying a cheapish car, condition and fit are more important than brand.
If you go to a bike shop to try some new bikes for fit, and then go looking for a second hand one on ebay, remember who helped you, and reward them with a sale in the future. This is the only way shops with good service continue to stay open.
Sora < Tiagra < 105 < Ultegra < Dura Ace
A bit like when buying a cheapish car, condition and fit are more important than brand.
If you go to a bike shop to try some new bikes for fit, and then go looking for a second hand one on ebay, remember who helped you, and reward them with a sale in the future. This is the only way shops with good service continue to stay open.
Right,
I got sized up, 58cm - big apparently. I'm hopefully picking up a roadie tomorrow.
I'm also looking to sort some spds out - I have no idea about them.
I'm not after strict roadie shoes & pedals as I may end up putting them on my mountain bike at some point.
Can anyone guide me? Float? pedal/shoe compatibility?
Cheap & forgiving would be good!
Cheers
I got sized up, 58cm - big apparently. I'm hopefully picking up a roadie tomorrow.
I'm also looking to sort some spds out - I have no idea about them.
I'm not after strict roadie shoes & pedals as I may end up putting them on my mountain bike at some point.
Can anyone guide me? Float? pedal/shoe compatibility?
Cheap & forgiving would be good!
Cheers
Night Runner said:
Right,
I got sized up, 58cm - big apparently. I'm hopefully picking up a roadie tomorrow.
I'm also looking to sort some spds out - I have no idea about them.
I'm not after strict roadie shoes & pedals as I may end up putting them on my mountain bike at some point.
Can anyone guide me? Float? pedal/shoe compatibility?
Cheap & forgiving would be good!
Cheers
Get some M520s and whatever shoe fits best at about £50.I got sized up, 58cm - big apparently. I'm hopefully picking up a roadie tomorrow.
I'm also looking to sort some spds out - I have no idea about them.
I'm not after strict roadie shoes & pedals as I may end up putting them on my mountain bike at some point.
Can anyone guide me? Float? pedal/shoe compatibility?
Cheap & forgiving would be good!
Cheers
RRS_Staffs said:
Pedals and cleats are tied
When you buy pedals they (usually) come with cleats
Shoes are flexible - you should be able to use any, although Im not sure about Shimano shoes, with the caution that road and MTB stuff is not compatable
Cheers,When you buy pedals they (usually) come with cleats
Shoes are flexible - you should be able to use any, although Im not sure about Shimano shoes, with the caution that road and MTB stuff is not compatable
I'm planning on getting mtb shoes & pedals (which may make some roadie purists furious).
So as long as the cleats (assuming they come with the pedals) fit the shoes I should be fine?
Night Runner said:
Cheers,
I'm planning on getting mtb shoes & pedals (which may make some roadie purists furious).
So as long as the cleats (assuming they come with the pedals) fit the shoes I should be fine?
yup.I'm planning on getting mtb shoes & pedals (which may make some roadie purists furious).
So as long as the cleats (assuming they come with the pedals) fit the shoes I should be fine?
Basically, to avoid confusion MTB shoes go with MTB pedals, whereas road shoes go with road pedals.
shalmaneser said:
You also can't really walk in road SPDs. MTB SPDs are much more versatile.
I'm not a serious biker by any means but I will cover 25 miles on my caad9 every other day. And I would like to be able to nip into a corner shop without skating all over the place, would mtb pedals and shoes be the best choice here?And anything to look for when buying, which will most probably be online as the nearest shop is 45 miles away
shalmaneser said:
You also can't really walk in road SPDs. MTB SPDs are much more versatile.
I'm not a serious biker by any means but I will cover 25 miles on my caad9 every other day. And I would like to be able to nip into a corner shop without skating all over the place, would mtb pedals and shoes be the best choice here?And anything to look for when buying, which will most probably be online as the nearest shop is 45 miles away
shalmaneser said:
You also can't really walk in road SPDs. MTB SPDs are much more versatile.
I'm not a serious biker by any means but I will cover 25 miles on my caad9 every other day. And I would like to be able to nip into a corner shop without skating all over the place, would mtb pedals and shoes be the best choice here?And anything to look for when buying, which will most probably be online as the nearest shop is 45 miles away
so you're serious about not being serious?
SPD's will be fine on a road bike. it's what i'll have on my next road bike, but purely because i already have SPD shoes which i use on my mountain bike. i haven't used road cleats for a good 3-4 years but can remember they're awkward to walk in, whereas SPD's are fine. have used SPD's for quite a while now and in a few different countries and i'm never changing back
to be honest, if you're a casual rider then i doubt you'll notice much difference between the 2 pedal set ups to be honest. if you've never used clip in shoes before, SPDs are probably a little easier. you can start with them really loose so they're easy to clip in and out of (same goes for the roadie pedals too though).
nout wrong with SPD's in my opinion.
edit - these are the pedals i use, and they're fine, have used them on 5+ hour rides on the mountain bike and don't get any aches and pains (other than the usual )
http://www.hargrovescycles.co.uk/products.asp?cate...
SPD's will be fine on a road bike. it's what i'll have on my next road bike, but purely because i already have SPD shoes which i use on my mountain bike. i haven't used road cleats for a good 3-4 years but can remember they're awkward to walk in, whereas SPD's are fine. have used SPD's for quite a while now and in a few different countries and i'm never changing back
to be honest, if you're a casual rider then i doubt you'll notice much difference between the 2 pedal set ups to be honest. if you've never used clip in shoes before, SPDs are probably a little easier. you can start with them really loose so they're easy to clip in and out of (same goes for the roadie pedals too though).
nout wrong with SPD's in my opinion.
edit - these are the pedals i use, and they're fine, have used them on 5+ hour rides on the mountain bike and don't get any aches and pains (other than the usual )
http://www.hargrovescycles.co.uk/products.asp?cate...
Edited by E21_Ross on Sunday 1st May 13:35
Markp13 said:
I'm not a serious biker by any means but I will cover 25 miles on my caad9 every other day. And I would like to be able to nip into a corner shop without skating all over the place, would mtb pedals and shoes be the best choice here?
And anything to look for when buying, which will most probably be online as the nearest shop is 45 miles away
You can walk in SPD-Rs (ie road SPDs), but not far and they are genuinely treacherous if it's wet outside and you're on tiled flooring.And anything to look for when buying, which will most probably be online as the nearest shop is 45 miles away
I use SPDs (ie MTB SPDs) because they are that much more versatile and are 95% as good as SPD-Rs.
The M540s above are excellent, although I use M520s on two of my bikes and they're brilliant too, just a bit heavier but a lot cheaper.
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