Talk to me about road bikes

[langy]

I’ve ridden mountain bikes for years and seem to have a bit of an urge to get a road bike. Don’t quite know why, just one of those things and another ‘toy’. I would look at using it to improve my fitness for mtb-ing and rowing (It’s pretty flat where I live, so not much opportunity to trudge up hill on the mtb) or even get a turbo trainer for the winter

The last racing bike i had was 20-25 years ago, so I assume things have changed a bit. Budget would be about £7-800, so no Bianchi’s.

Any advice appreciated

[louiebaby]

Try quite a few for fit, and buy the one that suits your frame.

Try to buy from your local specialist, otherwise you won't have one.

For that money, you're looking at Tiagra components if it's Shimano equipped, on an Aluminium frame.

Budget another couple of hundred for helmet, bottle cages, shoes and pedals.

Enjoy the summer, you'll be surprised how different it feels when you first stand up on the pedals.

[anonymous-user]

there are hundreds around at that price, you will find some bianchis but they will be much of a muchness and you will be hard pushed to tell if you are riding a bianchi, trek, specialized, giant, boardman etc etc.... at that price they should have an alu frame, carbon forks and shimano sora/tiagra groupset. dont worry about groupset specs though, its all perfectly functional and relaible. the trick is to keep it in tune and maintain it. if you get sucked into buying one bike over anohter simply because the rear mech is 105 and the other bikes are fitted with tiagra, ask yourself where else on the bike the saving has been made and is it worth it? crappy wheels are not worth a 105 rear mech...

you should be able to work out your most suitable frame size fairly easily, then its just down to top tube length, this is the one thing that you can not adjust so its worth taking a 5mm allen key with you to adjust the seat, up, down, forwards, backwards to get a good fit. at that price, there will be little difference between the geometry however as all bikes are really designed for the same market.

use internet specilists like wiggle for accessories, you can get a good helmet, clipless shoes, pedals and some comfy clothing all for under £250. you will need padded shorts as road saddles are pretty punishing.

places like pedalon (cant remember the url) do free accessories, most high street shops will too but the deals are not as good. have alook in cycling weekly for some good deals, its a good magazine and worth buying whilst you are still searching.

as for actual manufacturers, they will will all be made in the far east (not thats its a bad thing) but brands like Jamis, Orbea and Merida offer a little more for your money compared to the big names. I have also been qquite impressed with the likes of Raleigh recently, their airlite range looks the part and has had a few good reviews in triathlon magazines as a starter bike. Finally, do go to halfords and have a look at the Boardman range.....

[madbadger]

No need to budget anything like £200 - 250 for accessories.

You presumably already have stuff to mountain bike in?

I bought some road style SPDs (for my Bianchi ) for about £40. They work fine with my MTB spd shoes. Helmet and everything else are fine.

The only other thing I needed was a better mini pump. My MTB one couldn't hit more than ~60psi so when I got a puncture I didn't pressurise the tyre enough and got another one. After going through this about 4 times I realised the problem. Once I had sorted out keeping the tyres at ~120 I haven't had a puncture since. Good job too as I almost gave up on road bikes as I couldn't go for a ride without getting a puncture.

The road bike is great. Ideal companion to mountain bikes.

[langy]

Thanks for the advice, lots to think about and consider. Need to get myself to a local shop and try a few.

I do have a pair of hard spd shoes that i use for mtb-ing, helmet etc, so it's just the bike.
Any comments on the Trek 1.1 £550 so well within budget.

[porka944s]

Not that bike specifically but i just bought its opposite number a giant defy 3 and was very happy coming from mtbs, infact its opened a whole new world of riding for me!

[langy]

Well after much deliberation, I've decided on an Orbea Aqua T105. Blew my budget fairly spectaularly, but heh ho.........