Boardman - Giant or Specialized

Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.

bkulacs0410

Active Member
Hi there, I am in between a decision to buy either: "2021 Specialized Sirrus X 3.0 Hybrid Bike In Silver (£849) 8kg" or Boardman HYB 8.8 Mens Hybrid Bike 2021 (£800) 10.4kg" but I am not sure which one to choose. I am also aware of the "Giant" bicycles out there, but have not looked into them so much yet. How important is it to have a lighter bike over a heavier and how good is it to have only 1 cog in the middle? These are some factors I was looking into. Also- I am 183cm with 34" inside leg. I had a Boardman MTX 8.6 Mens Hybrid Bike 2021 in Large before and I found it way too Large for me even though the size chart recommended to have it in this size. I never had a Specialized so I am not sure if I would get a Medium it would be small as they are different in sizing


Thank you

Regards
Balint
572309


572310
 

vickster

Legendary Member
I’m very very surprised the Specilaized is only 8kg with alu frame, fat tyres and disc brakes. They never used to publish weights.

I had a Sirrus, large at 1m77, 34” inside keg. A medium would be small for you surely?

What sort of cycling will you be doing, what terrain?
Go try the bikes out.
 
Last edited:
OP
OP
B

bkulacs0410

Active Member
Ahhhh you know what, as I’m looking more into it and checking the videos. I need to revise my post as I did a mistake there. I think it is 0.8kg lighter then the previous X 2.0 version. Sorry for the misleading information.
And thanks for your quick reply. What’s your opinion though?
 

Kajjal

Guru
Location
Wheely World
The main thing is the bike fits you, has the gearing you need and this may sound odd but having a bike you like the look of makes you want to ride it more. 2x gearing normally gives a better range of gears that are closer together for climbing / riding on trails as well as on road where you can go faster. Also for disc brakes decent hydraulic ones work better than cable ones.
 

SkipdiverJohn

Deplorable Brexiteer
Location
London
On a hybrid or a MTB, I want a triple crankset up front and I don't want a cassette the size of a dinner plate or a low hanging, easy to damage and expensive to replace derailleur mech at the back. In my book 1 x transmissions are strictly limited range gears for relatively flat terrain, short urban journeys. In other words a bike to pop down the shops or go to the pub on, and nothing more than that.
 

gzoom

Über Member
On a hybrid or a MTB, I want a triple crankset up front and I don't want a cassette the size of a dinner plate or a low hanging, easy to damage and expensive to replace derailleur mech at the back. In my book 1 x transmissions are strictly limited range gears for relatively flat terrain, short urban journeys. In other words a bike to pop down the shops or go to the pub on, and nothing more than that.

Not in my experience.

The x1 drivetrain on my Boardman gives enough range to go up 14% hills and cruise at 20mph on the flat, all without the faff of a front derailleur.

I'm actually thinking about the possibility of changing my road bike to x1, and I would be amazed if new road bikes in future don't go down the x1 route.
 

shnjmsn

Über Member
Location
Somerset Levels
Not in my experience.

The x1 drivetrain on my Boardman gives enough range to go up 14% hills and cruise at 20mph on the flat, all without the faff of a front derailleur.

I'm actually thinking about the possibility of changing my road bike to x1, and I would be amazed if new road bikes in future don't go down the x1 route.

I just got a new Planet X Space Chicken gravel bike delivered this week with a 1x. Only 3 rides in but so far very impressed ! It's SRAM which is a first for me but I'm quite liking it. Agree with you on this GZ, I've done some decent hills on it and it's fine on the Somerset flats at 20mph. Looking forward to testing it on some gravel roads and fire tracks in the Spring ^_^ All in all, it seems easy, clean and the range of gearing is good.......and to be honest I've noticed no difference in gaps between cogs as I thought I might.......... So far so good...............
 

vickster

Legendary Member
Not in my experience.

The x1 drivetrain on my Boardman gives enough range to go up 14% hills and cruise at 20mph on the flat, all without the faff of a front derailleur.

I'm actually thinking about the possibility of changing my road bike to x1, and I would be amazed if new road bikes in future don't go down the x1 route.
Isn't it electric though? Unless you have two Boardmans (men?)

@bkulacs0410 you haven’t said where you are based or what sort of terrain you are riding
The Whyte R7 range would be on my list for a flat bar and Specialized off it, mainly for lack of value for money reasons.
The Trek FX range is good too (but again on the more costly side for spec)
 

DRM

Guru
Location
West Yorks
On a hybrid or a MTB, I want a triple crankset up front and I don't want a cassette the size of a dinner plate or a low hanging, easy to damage and expensive to replace derailleur mech at the back. In my book 1 x transmissions are strictly limited range gears for relatively flat terrain, short urban journeys. In other words a bike to pop down the shops or go to the pub on, and nothing more than that.
No they're not, they're for seriously steep off road terrain and are so far removed from a limited range of gears as can be, for MTB's & Gravel bikes they're perfect, giving a good spread of gears, & no front derailleur means the ability to fit a wider tyre in the rear, and on a gravel bike the redundant shifter can be used to control a dropper post, triples are perfect for touring bikes to give a wide spread of gears with smaller gaps.
 
OP
OP
B

bkulacs0410

Active Member
The main thing is the bike fits you, has the gearing you need and this may sound odd but having a bike you like the look of makes you want to ride it more. 2x gearing normally gives a better range of gears that are closer together for climbing / riding on trails as well as on road where you can go faster. Also for disc brakes decent hydraulic ones work better than cable ones.
That is good, I think I am going to go with the Boardman then. Thanks for your reply
 
Top Bottom