which road bike for £550

[richwill72]

Hi guys, im new to road riding but have got the urge to get out and do a bit of excersise this year. ive decided to get a road bike asap although im not going to go too mad with the funds at this stage i want to spend a max of £550. im toying with either a specialized allez 16 (£499) or a giant defy 3.5 (£525ish). Does anyone here have any views on these 2 or would you have alternative recommendations ?? any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Parrot of Doom]

Do you have any cycling clothes, or other tools? Because you'll be spending more than your budget if you don't.

[anonymous-user]

how about an Orbea? itts a 2009 model but there seems to be stock. for the money this is a really good bike. carbon forks and tiagra bits, own brand finishing kit for £599?

http://www.freemanscycles.co.uk/product2.asp?produ...


the raleigh airlite range is pretty good for those on a budget. the 200 is £599 but you get £50 worth of accessories free if you buy it from a cyclelife dealer. the others you mention are very popular and all good, solid bikes. as i always say, have a look at the lesser known brands as you tend to get more for your money though at that price the bikes will all be sora/tiagra based with own brand stuff like stem, bars and seatpost.

wheels will be heavy so it makes sense to make that the priority rather than gears/shifters/etc

[junglie]

I bought a Giant Defy 2.5 with Shimano pedals, shimano shoes and cleats, a helemt, pump, seat bag, gloves and a pump last year to do the John O'Groats to Lands End trip and it was brilliant.

Cost was £625 all in.

[richwill72]

thanks for the replies everyone. Been to the LBS today and have come home with a 2010 specialized secteur sport which cost me £552 which i think, seems to be pretty good deal. I know i will have to spend a few quid on clothing etc but did budget for that anyway. What are your thoughts, have i made the right move ???

[Parrot of Doom]

Did you test-ride it, before buying?

[richwill72]

yes i did, not much of a test ride i must admit, it was peeing down ! it felt ok and was quite comfortable for the limited time i was on it.

[Parrot of Doom]

You should be fine then, any issues with comfortability can usually be solved easily enough.

I'd recommend spending as much as you can afford on clothing - it really does make a huge difference to the whole experience.

[BliarOut]

SealSkinz Warm fingers even in the ice

[Rolls]

Parrot of Doom said:

You should be fine then, any issues with comfortability can usually be solved easily enough.

I'd recommend spending as much as you can afford on clothing - it really does make a huge difference to the whole experience.

Agree - decent windstopper is so much more important on the roads than mountainbike IMO!