Commuting, Audaxing and Touring under 1k

[le_al_khemista]

Hello Everyone!

I'm after some advice. I'm in the market for a new machine which will be my one and only bike - since ATM I don't have the room or the funding for more - and so it will need to be an all in one.

It will be 90% used for commuting (London) but I'd also like to enter some Audax/sportives events and possibly do some light touring as well. I think the only essentials are clearance for full mudguards and at least 25mm tyres. Option for rack/pannier would be nice but not essential as I can always go the saddle bag route. Anything carbon frame is pretty much out of the equation for obvious reasons but other than that I'm very open to suggestions. I'm also not keen on self building as I don't have the knowledge or time to go component hunting and so would be more interested in upgrading an of the peg as and when required/possible.

So far there are a few bikes that caught my eye, in no particular order:

Domane AL 4 - https://www.evanscycles.com/trek-domane-al-4-2019-road-bike-EV340571
Ribble Reynolds 525 - https://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/ribble-reynolds-525-steel/
Planet X Kaffenback - https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CBPXKAFFRIV/planet-x-kaffenback-sram-rival-22-road-bike
Triban 540 - https://www.decathlon.co.uk/triban-540-road-bike-grey-black-105-id_8377756.html

Please let me know what are your thoughts.

Thanks!

 

[si_c]

How about the new Trek 520?

 

[ianrauk]

What are the obvious reasons for no carbon?
The majority of bikes I see on my London commute are carbon.

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Leftfield, truly do-it-all:

https://www.alpkit.com/sonder/bikes/sonder-camino-al-sram-apex1-mechanical-V2

They will customise to your requirements.

 

[ianrauk]

That Triban looks exceptional value. And am liking the lifetime frame warranty. A daily commute takes a lot out of a bike. That warranty is great piece of mind.
However the PX has disc brakes (BB7) which would be my preferred for a commute. (My commuter/tourer is a PX disc brakes bike)
It would be out of those two bikes for me.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

What are the obvious reasons for no carbon?
The majority of bikes I see on my London commute are carbon.

Maybe ease of fitting accessories, combined with damage resistance? If you own a steel bike with round tubing, you can pretty much mount anything to it using standard brackets or even jubilee clips, if the manufacturer hasn't provided for them already. Most carbon frames are made from weird shapes, not round cross sections, plus they won't take kindly to having things fixed to them that impose localised compressive loads on the frame members. How many times have I read stuff about torque wrenches being essential when tightening bits on carbon bikes, in order to avoid damage? Us steel owners just laugh at such nonsense!
The majority of commuter bikes I see around are cheap hybrids, various types of low-end MTB's, and a few old drop bar or flat bar steel bikes that might have been nice machines 30 years ago, but have seen better days and been relegated to hack use. You won't find a single carbon bike left locked to any railings or cycle stands all day anywhere near me. Commuter bikes are strictly low-value hacks, and the majority of them are steel.

 

[Cycleops]

There are plenty of reasons to go with a Decathlon bike but I'd go for the disc braked one;
https://www.decathlon.co.uk/ultra-500-af-gf-road-bike-sora-disc-id_8393116.html

 

[iandg]

Just a smidgen above £1k

https://www.spacycles.co.uk/m1b0s21p3867/SPA-CYCLES-Aubisque-105-Triple

Rim brake tourer under a grand

https://www.spacycles.co.uk/m1b0s21p2983/SPA-CYCLES-Steel-Tourer

 

[le_al_khemista]

Thanks all!

How about the new Trek 520?

Aesthetically pleasing and probably a good option for my needs however looking at the spec I can't help thinking I wouldn't be getting much bike for the money. Specially when compared to some of my picks above. Also, not sure whether that was clear on the OP but I really don't want to go over the £1000 mark.

What are the obvious reasons for no carbon?
The majority of bikes I see on my London commute are carbon.

Pretty much what SkipdiverJohn said. I wouldn't want to ride a carbon frame year-round, day-in day-out on London roads and and amidst London's traffic. Wouldn't feel safe leaving it locked outside or taking it touring. Would be lovely having a carbon bike but as my only bike I don't think it's feasible.

Leftfield, truly do-it-all:
https://www.alpkit.com/sonder/bikes/sonder-camino-al-sram-apex1-mechanical-V2
They will customise to your requirements.

Wasn't aware of the Sonder Camino. It's a little over budget but sounds like a very good candidate, thanks!

 

[le_al_khemista]

There are plenty of reasons to go with a Decathlon bike but I'd go for the disc braked one;
https://www.decathlon.co.uk/ultra-500-af-gf-road-bike-sora-disc-id_8393116.html

People keep telling me to avoid mechanical disc though and either go hydraulic or rim...

 

[le_al_khemista]

Just a smidgen above £1k

https://www.spacycles.co.uk/m1b0s21p3867/SPA-CYCLES-Aubisque-105-Triple

Rim brake tourer under a grand

https://www.spacycles.co.uk/m1b0s21p2983/SPA-CYCLES-Steel-Tourer

Very good call. Do you have any experience with any of these? I'm just slightly concerned they'd be a bit on the heavy/slow side when compared to more modern designs.

What about their Audax bike, seems to be a good compromise? https://www.spacycles.co.uk/m1b0s21p3202/SPA-CYCLES-Steel-Audax-(Shimano-105-Double)

 

[si_c]

People keep telling me to avoid mechanical disc though and either go hydraulic or rim...

Absolutely nothing wrong with Mechanical Disc brakes in principle, if you understand what you are getting. Those brakes are a single pivot design, which is terrible, as it involves one side bending the rotor onto the other. Much better are dual pivot designs such as the TRP spyres, which are really easy to retrofit in place of single pivot disc brakes.

I'm using mechanical discs on my commuter and I'm not tempted even slightly to upgrade to hydraulics.

 

[John_S]

Hi le_al_khemista,

Following your question above about Spa Cycles bikes I'm sorry because I don't have one so can't speak personally and apologies if I shouldn't point you in the direction of another forum but on the subject of the Spa bikes you'll find a lot of information on them here:-

https://forum.cyclinguk.org/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=123787

Also with the description of what you want from a bike and with your budget you might find that one of the Genesis bikes could possibly fit the bill for you.

Good luck finding the right one for you and if it's at all possible try riding as many options as you can.

John

 

[Soltydog]

All the bikes you mentioned & that others have listed will be fine, but gearing could be important depending what 'light touring' you plan on. I have a Kinesis Racelight which I've used for commuting, winter & light touring over the last 2 years or more. The original gearing was okay for general use ie commuting & recreational riding, but on tour loaded with 2 panniers I found the 34/28 lowest gear tough on some climbs. I notice the Triban has a semi compact chainset, giving a lowest gear of 36/28, so you may find that needs addressing

 

[mustang1]

Not sure if a Genesis Equilibrium 10 for £1k might suit you?

I just had a look at their website and looks like 2019 year does not have an Equilibrium 10 listed so either it's currently unavailable or no longer sold (though I think/hope it's the former).