First Road Bike -£1500 to spend - advice?

[oldfatfool]

Take a look at the Canyon and Rose offerings.

 

[JoeyB]

I thought the same last year ,looked in August the only discount genesis in the area was a day one Alfine 8 in my size,and then had to wait till mid oct for the 2014 for my croix,

Yup, the current launch date for new models is November so it will be a while before they get the discounts rolling I would imagine. I don't know if I want a CDF or an Equilibrium now since they have released a load more disc equipped models!

 

[annirak]

I have been putting hundreds of miles onto a Felt bike with mostly Shimano Sora equipment that cost me just under £450 recently, and don't feel I'm being hobbled by it.

FWIW, 2 months ago, I started with a budget of £1000 for a first road bike and ended up spending £375 on a Vitus Razor, which has the Shimano Claris drivetrain. I also do not feel hobbled by it.

I chose to spend much less than my budget because, being my first road bike, I'm really not sure what will be important to me in the long term. I'd rather get used to road biking first, for a low investment, then when I know what the pitfalls are, for me at least, buy a more expensive one. I tried hard but failed to justify spending an extra £75 to get one more gear (Shimano Sora). I'm still very happy with the bike.

Bear in mind that you'll probably need lots of ancilliary equipment and clothing, and it's often not cheap (a good pair of shorts can easily be over £50).

As an initial list of equipment, here's what I would buy:

• Cycle shorts: £50
• Jersey: £30-£50
• Frame pump: £35 (Try to get one with a hose; the ones without hoses break stems)
• Track pump: £25 (You don't want to use a frame pump at home.)
• Spare tubes: £10
• Bottle cages & bottles: £20
• Portable tool kit: £35 (Some people think these don't belong on road bikes. At the very least, you need tyre levers)
• Pedals: £20-£50
• Shoes: £50-£100
• Helmet: £30-£100
• Glasses: £15-£150 (depending on taste, fit, etc.)

My one complaint with my bike was the durability of the stock tyres. I seemed to get a lot of punctures. I replaced those for another £40.

 

[slowwww]

I bought a Boardman Team Carbon for £999 via a Ride to Work scheme that only permitted a maximum spend of £1k and then only bikes via Halfords. I've since bought a Fulcrum Racing 1 wheelset and a few other upgrades along the way and am delighted with how lively and responsive it is, whether it's a quick sprint around the local area or long hilly rides.

They always rate well in reviews, and it's a helluva lot of bike for the money. Frankly, it's not as credible as a number of the other makes, but pound for pound I've seen nothing else that compares.

Indeed, a year ago I was considering n+1 and test rode many bikes, but came to the conclusion that I'd have to spend nearly twice as much as the cost of my bike + upgrades to get a noticeable improvement in performance, and so I didn't bother!

 

[Doyleyburger]

brand new CAAD10 105 for £999

http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/m7b0s6p5230/CANNONDALE-CAAD10-105-2013

The crazy thing is that last year that model was sold out both in the UK and Europe...you couldnt get it for love or money (I tried)

Snap it up

 

[JoeyB]

Planet X are doing a limited run of their Carbon bike with Ultegra 6700 for £1000, not sure if that still represents good value....it sounds good though.

 

[SteCenturion]

Try out or at least go & sit on lots & lots of bikes you like the look of, then buy the one that makes your heart go bumpety bump, not the best, or most technical advice but it worked for me.

Good luck.

 

[bpsmith]

For those using Halfords for C2W, they can order in almost any bike for you via their telephone number on their website. I got my Defy 1 that way last year. You don't have to stick with what the store offer, a although the Boardman's are well worth consideration without question.

 

[2pies]

Some good advice here already. I would agree with the statement that you either spend your full budget on the best bike you can get, or buy a used bike for a fraction of it.

Initially, I had planned to spend about £1,500 on a road bike, having ridden a hybrid bike for a couple of years. However, at the last minute I changed my mind and went for something cheaper, £900, as I wasn't sure how much I'd ride at the weekends, which was what I bought it for. I now somewhat regret it, as the bike is not particularly comfortable. However, I can't justify replacing it at this time. That said, I've upgraded the wheels and saddles, which has helped a little.

At least if you spend less than £500, you can probably justify upgrading to something significantly better a year later, once you know you happy with that style of bike.

 

[TomSH27]

I'm holding out for Genesis discounts

I just bought a 2014 Equilibrium 00 for under £500, it arrived today and I'm ecstatic!