Help me choose....

[boylucifer]

....Since I know how everyone loves to "spend" someone elses money, I'm looking for suggestions!!!!

I've signed up to the Cycle to work scheme and had my heart completely set on the Trek 7.5fx, so have signed up for £600.....

...I've now had my head swayed by the looks of some of the road bikes and reading about cyclocross style bikes being the "next big thing - perfect as a do everything bike" (blah, blah, etc, etc) and right now I am not sure what to go for.....

What I want to use it for will be 99% road/smooth cycle path (accept that if I go for a road bike I'll need to give up that other 1%), I want it to be (relatively) quick, and have no real pretensions of using it off road - I already have a Kona Hoss for when not on smooth stuff.

So the question is - and I'm completely open to suggestions - what's the best bike I can buy for £600 (can maybe add a few quid to this figure)??? would imagine that has to be it's RRP as I don't think i'll get many bargains from local bike shops on cyclescheme.

Fire away with your suggestions!!!!

 

[Rob3rt]

Wouldnt pay any attention to claims of "the next big thing". A bike isnt a fashion item, its not something you will discard and replace often to match the season and trend (well most people wont).

Ride a few bikes you like the look of and see how you feel, a lot of people like the Giant Defy's and Specialized bikes in that price range. There are some Trek road bikes in that price range too. Also I think Bianchi have a bike for about £600 in the c2c range.

Usually for the price range things will be muchly similar in spec (it will in most cases have sora or equivalent groupset, aluminium frame and possibly carbon forks) and it will come down to how you feel on the bike and/or how much the appearence of one appeals to you over others.

 

[Cubist]

http://boardmanbikes.com/road/road_comp.html

 

[Rob3rt]

I was like way too impressed by that Boardman, until I noticed you only get about 2/3rds of a tiagra groupset and only a 105 rear mech.

Some random brakes and BB and chainset. (Dont know if those brands are good or not?)

Its still great at that price, but my heart needent have stopped being that I paid like £1k for my bike which only has tiagra and this thing is only £650. Since its incomplete I can live another day, hehe.

 

[boylucifer]

Liked the Boardman bikes, but they're a bit of a no go since Cyclescheme can't be used in Halfords.

 

[boylucifer]

Just been digging round the interweb and have seen the Scott Speedster S50, looks like it will fit to the budget I'm looking at, but wondered if anyone more in the know about these things could tell me how it's specced compared to the Trek 7.5fx? Reason I ask is that the look of the Scott really works for me, and I'm not completely sold on the look of the Trek, but like the feel and fit of the Trek. Wouldn't want to opt for the Scott if it was going to be massively heavier/slower/poorer made, etc....

Thanks!!!

 

[youngoldbloke]

What I want to use it for will be 99% road/smooth cycle path (accept that if I go for a road bike I'll need to give up that other 1%), I want it to be (relatively) quick, and have no real pretensions of using it off road - I already have a Kona Hoss for when not on smooth stuff.

If you need to ride a canal path, unsurfaced cycle path - just try it! I come from a far distant time when MTBs hadn't been invented, and road bikes coped very well, thank you - just as they did/do in cyclo cross - clearances permitting of course. I have ridden cycle tracks on 19mm tyres, and across fields on tubs - it was fine when I didn't know you weren't supposed to do that sort of thing .......

 

[boylucifer]

If you need to ride a canal path, unsurfaced cycle path - just try it! I come from a far distant time when MTBs hadn't been invented, and road bikes coped very well, thank you - just as they did/do in cyclo cross - clearances permitting of course. I have ridden cycle tracks on 19mm tyres, and across fields on tubs - it was fine when I didn't know you weren't supposed to do that sort of thing .......

Now that's a proper "when I were a lad" statement, but it's oh so true. I remember when I was a kid that my 5 speed Raleigh Racer went everywhere, through the parks and nature trails, and up and down kerbs, and even the odd few stairs!!

Any takers on the Scott S50 FB and Trek 7.5fx comparison? As all the component names mean so little to me that I don't want to but a howler just cause I like the colours.....

cheers!

 

[Rob3rt]

Scott and Trek are both good brands of bike, and its quite unlikely that you will be getting duff componentry. Scott bikes look nice. They deffo have eye appeal. The 2 bikes you ask about are made for different things (to my eyes) so they will not perform the same despite componentry. The scott is racier, the Trek is a hybrid.



http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/allez-sport-double-2010-road-bike-ec019409

I'd be looking at something like that (if the curved top tube didnt make me heave), not neccessarily from evans though.

 

[boylucifer]

Bumping this thread cause I'm now looking for a bit more advice...

The Boss has decided that at the same time I am getting my new bike, she is gonna also get a bike and go cycling with me. I have been looking at all the options over the last month and still don't know which way to fall in terms of what bike to go for.

Unfortunately my favourite/most helpful of the LBSs stock Specialized and I just hate the look of their frames - getting to see the above bikes in the flesh prior to purchasing may be difficult.

Because the Boss is planning on joining me it seems that the most logical choice is going to be a road orientated Hybrid (after I had became heart set on a Bianchi Via Nirone) so my question now is does anyone have any direct experience of Trek 7.5fx, Giant Rapid 2/3 (depending on what sort of deal can be struck, and Scott SUB 30.

If I go for Trek 7.5fx she will most likely go for 7.3fx wsd, if I go for Giant then she will most likely go for Giant Dash 4, and if I go for Scott SUB 30 she will prob get SUB 30 as well. There honestly isn't much desire for matching bikes, just that it will be easiest to get them from the same shop. Her budget would be £400-£450, and mine would be £600-£700 - although I think if we went for Scott SUBs it'd be £550 each, so same(ish) total.

Any opinions/direct experience of the above bikes would be much appreciated.

 

[GazK]

and when she gets bored? you'll be kicking yourself. get the bike you want to ride, you won't regret it.

 

[GazK]

BTW, if by "the Boss" you mean "the Wife", please ignore my last post. Buy the bike *she* likes, it's just easier

 

[boylucifer]

BTW, if by "the Boss" you mean "the Wife", please ignore my last post. Buy the bike *she* likes, it's just easier

She doesn't have a real preference, just want's a nice bike that'll be easy for her to ride - I kind of aim to get what's going to suit the two of us just now, and then keep an eye open for a decent 2nd hand drop bar bike in a while.

 

[boylucifer]

No takers with personal experience of

Trek 7.5fx
Giant Rapid 2 or 3
Scott SUB30

?
Thanks...

 

[bauldbairn]

Looked at the Trek 7.5fx myself - it's a nice bike.