Are Cheap Decathlon bikes any good?

[Priscilla Parsley]

Hello, I have recently posted about making the transition from Hybrid to Road bike, and decided to check out Decathlon today. there are a couple of cheap road bikes there for £159 and £299, are they decent bikes or is it a matter of you get what you pay for? I do use my bike for all my travel already and will definitley be taking to the roads for some decent journeys and hope to get good enough to join a club so I want the bike to be up to the job - will I notice much of a difference with this cheap bike? or is the real difference in performance down to your own fitness and ability? (i suspect)

I have had some good advice around buying my road bike already so this is just a query on these cheap Decathlon bikes

Thank you!

 

[4F]

or is it a matter of you get what you pay for?

Simple answer to this is yes

 

[wafflycat]

The answer pretty much is that if you get a *cheap* new bike, it's not likely to be good value, as cheap componentry will have to have been used, and often shoddy workmanship

See http://www.southcoastbikes.co.uk/Articles.asp?article=NO_BSO

Saying that, some entry level makes such as Decathlon & Edinburgh Bicycle Co-op have reasonable reputations. But you simply not going to get a *good* new bike for that price. You don't have to spend thousands, but if you go *cheap* then *cheap* is what you're likely to be getting.

Edit: example.... my favourite bike is my Bianchi San Remo. To buy equivalent new I'd be looking at spending over a grand. As it is, when I got it a few years ago, it cost £300. That bike will be with me forever. It fits, it's well-built (and well maintained by my personal bike mechanic) and has decent quality Campagnolo parts. I've cycled a few thousand miles on it. It's now at the stage where the paintwork is shabby simply due to use. Rather than get a new bike, the bike has been stripped down, the frame & forks sent off to Mercian for a refurbishment paint jobbie. It will be glorious when I get it back as Mercian do top notch paint jobbies. Then the bike will be built back up again. Simply put, that bike will outlast me because it is a good quality bike. When I got it, I couldn't afford the grand+ for the equivalent quality in a new bike, so I went secondhand. I'm glad I did rather than get a poorer quality bike but brand new.

 

[upandover]

I have the Decathlon flatbar roadbike, and aside from seeming really well made, I've had a number of people comment on what good value for money it is...

Cheers
Steve

 

[kyuss]

I know of a guy on another place that bought the Decathlon Sport 1 (£160) for commuting and liked it. As a beater bike he thought it was really good value.

You do say that you plan on doing decent milage and maybe getting into a club and for this I'm not sure the cheapest Decathlon Sport 1 will be up to the job. It will be heavy, the components will wear out pretty quick, especially once you start putting the miles on, and taking your hands off the bars to use the downtube shifters will be a total PITA, and possibly quite dangerous when riding in a group.

The Sport 2 doesn't look too bad though at £230, though I agree with Wafflycat in that you'd get a much better bike at this price if you went secondhand. The frame, forks and wheels are still very basic and heavy but at least it comes with proper Sora STI shifters and groupset which is at least fairly durable and easier to use than downtube shifters.

What is the very most you can possibly afford to spend on a bike? You mentioned the £299 Decathlon in you original post, is this really as much as you can manage, because adding even £50-£100 onto this budget will make a big difference and could save you money in the long run.

This time of year is the perfect time to be buying a new bike too as most manufacturers 2009 bikes are coming out and shops are selling off 2008 bikes with big discounts so maybe if we had an idea of your budget we could find some bargains for you. This for instance is a much much better bike than the £299 decathlon and only £75 more. There are plenty more bargains out there like this just now.

 

[Priscilla Parsley]

thanks for your input on this one, my original budget was about £550, but I couldnt beleive my eyes at the prices in Decathlon, I'm still weighing things up, bit worried about those funny gears on the Decathlon bike, I think i'll get seduced by a brand bike in a good LBS, for me good and interested staff are more likley to make me want to purchase from them, which obviously you don't get in Decathlon. not made up my mind yet though. I am right sick of my clumpy Claude Butler Classic now and itching for a road bike so much, however Mr Parsley has insisted that once I have my own road bike I have to learn how to fix my own punctures and maintain it properly, no more calling for taxi's and rusty chains, *sigh*. No I am ready!

 

[FBOAB]

I was also seduced by the flat bar racer from Decathlon. So far (well not that far yet) it seems to be pretty well made and value for money for someone looking to get back into cycling like me. I copes with the daily commute without a glitch. Ok when I get a little fitter and deeper into cycling; I'll be spending my 'ard erned like the rest...