n+1 for a significant birthday: advice please!

[rvw]

I've just celebrated a significant birthday and have decided that a new bike is the ideal present. I'm currently riding a bottom-of-the-range Specialized Dolce which - after a bit of faffing - is pretty comfortable.

I'm female, about 5'3", but long-legged and short in the body for my height: @srw and I ride a tandem and when we measured ourselves for the first one, our stand-over heights were only about an inch different. He's nearly 6 ft tall. Because of my shape, which is further from the typical male proportions than the majority of women, I'm only interested in stuff which is female-specific.

Currently, our local shop has one of these in stock, which is rather tempting. But what about a rack for carrying stuff? Do I go for carbon, titanium or steel? Does anyone have experience of one of these?

I'd be particularly keen to hear from @User13710 , @wanda2010 and @velovoice but also from anyone else who has experience of this.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Crackle]

Given your requirements, the price range you're looking at, I'd seriously think about a custom frame. I would favour ti for that. Something like a Burls titanium audax.

http://burls.co.uk/tiAudax.php

 

[AndyRM]

I can offer no practical advice but the Enigma is a thing of beauty, particularly when painted.

 

[snorri]

Significant birthday, really?
Sounds like we're talking electro-assist here.

 

[Kestevan]

Mrs Kes has a similar body shape to you, and recently tried both the Ruby and the Trek Silque.

The Silque won hands down and she subsequently announced she was never going to ride any other bike....

Worth every penny afaic.... :-)

 

[jefmcg]

The enigma is easy on the eyes.

Can't help with sizing, though I have the same inside leg as my 6" taller ex, I'm fine with an off-the-peg giant.

I'd think twice about buying a dream bike now that doesn't take disc brakes. It just seems the way of the future, and a bike without it might seem very out of date in a few years.

Oh, and depending how significant the birthday - electronic gears are apparently great if you have arthritic fingers.

 

[vickster]

Day trip to enigma in hailsham would seem to make sense

Or sigma have this for example http://www.sigmasport.co.uk/item/Trek/Silque-SLX-C-Womens-Road-Bike-2015/3HTH

 

[rvw]

@ianmac62 bought a custom Enigma I believe. Obviously any insight on fit would be non-transferable.

I'd still be interested to hear his thoughts - on the quality and how well it was actually fitted.

Oh, and depending how significant the birthday - electronic gears are apparently great if you have arthritic fingers.

Significant birthday, really?
Sounds like we're talking electro-assist here.

Cheeky! Not that significant, and no signs of arthritis yet!!

 

[srw]

Cheeky! Not that significant, and no signs of arthritis yet!!

But your mother suffers. That might be a sign of things to come. I shall be charitable and assume that @snorri was referring to electronic shifting - look up Di2.

As well as fit, the other part of the question is about getting adequate braking pressure with small hands. And it occurs to me that the Dolce might well be equipped with low-spec brakes.

 

[vickster]

Could upgrade the brakes or add cross levers. SRAM hoods work for me unlike shimano, the Enigma could offer that solution

 

[Venod]

Have you looked at the Giant Liv range, a girl in the club has one that she got custom painted think its a Envie, but they do a range of models

http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-gb/bikes/model/envie.advanced.pro.1/24971/90583/

http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-gb/bike-catalogue/liv/


Not sure how they fit with your dimensions though.

 

[srw]

Could upgrade the brakes or add cross levers. SRAM hoods work for me unlike shimano, the Enigma could offer that solution

The Dolce has cross levers. I am (gently) encouraging @rvw to think about making sure she's got a hood braking solution that works, rather than sticking to riding on the flats. When she might as well get a straight-barred bike!

 

[srw]

I've just celebrated a significant birthday and have decided that a new bike is the ideal present.

Oh, and I should point out that this a present is on top of the bottles of wine, port and Armagnac of appropriate age, and the specially commissioned icon.

Not that I think a new bike is not a good idea!

I'll shut up now, otherwise I'll get thumped when she gets home.

 

[velovoice]

@rvw Happy birthday! I wholly approve of your choice of item to treat yourself.

Before I clicked on either of the bikes in your post, the first two bikes that popped into my head were Specialized Ruby and Enigma Elle. So .

Fit of course is the crucial thing. My Enigma is the Etape (the touring model) so of course the Elle will be speedier, but I can 100% recommend Enigma's fitting process, personalised frame design and attention to detail, as well as the superb build quality and finish.

I am 5'4", short body, long legs (my inseam is exactly half my height). I have also ridden various models of Dolces and Rubys over the years and really liked them. Someone up thread mentioned his wife preferred the Trek Silque. I haven't tried the Silque but have test ridden the Domane and Madone - while the fit was fine (with a shorter stem fitted), the road feel was truly horrible - totally different from the feel of Specialized's carbon. (@ianrauk told me this conclusion is not uncommon!). After all the carbon riding and testing, though, I decided I really do prefer metal over plastic!

I really recommend going custom because you can ensure the fit is spot on first and foremost and then focus on the build details you want (i.e. comfortable, easy to use brake levers, gear range, luggage capacity etc). If you go with a stock bike, you may have options to swap out components, but chances are you will either find a bike that fits really well but won't take mudguards or won't take discs*, or you'll find a bike that has the components and versatility you want but not quite the right fit. If you're lucky, then (as with your Dolce), you can get the fit "good enough" but it may still take time, money and experimentation to get there, as the solution won't be exactly the same as what has worked with your Dolce. A custom frame on the other hand gives you the correct foundation to then build up with maximum versatility/choice of components.

If you're interested in Engima, do give them a call and book a visit. They'll make sure a suitable bike is available for you to take out for a good test ride. Drop a lot of names if you like -- they know a lot of us Fridays peeps! Myself, Michael A, Ross C, Ian who are all customers, as well as knowing quite a few through other connections. I recommend going to them direct, not through a bike shop unless you have an excellent relationship with your LBS and really trust them (and they're already established Enigma dealers).

* re disc brakes. @jefmcg makes a good point, although I wouldn't worry that rim brakes are going to disappear. I will say from experience that, fully loaded and facing a 20% descent, I would not want anything other than disc brakes! But for lightly loaded day rides, credit card touring and FNRttCs, I really think the Enigma Elle would suit you just fine.

Enjoy the shopping and Good Luck!

ETA: If you're looking for a bicycle with a "lifetime" frame, then scratch carbon off your list straightaway. Re steel versus ti, my conclusion is that fit trumps all. Other than that, it's down to budget and aesthetic preferences. If I were to get another custom frame, I'd go back to Enigma for a steel one. Not because I regret getting ti for one second but because my conclusion is that fit is more crucial to comfort than frame material and -- certainly if it fit me better -- my 1970s steel road bike would give my Enigma a good run for its money as my ride of choice most days.

 

[velovoice]

Given your requirements, the price range you're looking at, I'd seriously think about a custom frame. I would favour ti for that. Something like a Burls titanium audax.

http://burls.co.uk/tiAudax.php

@rvw, you may recall from the Fridays tours last year that Helen rides a custom painted Burls. Worth a look. They're built in Russia though, not the UK, if that means anything to you.