New Bike advise(bitwin ultra 700 af vs planet x vs rt 58 alloy tiagra)

[ruby123]

I am getting a road bike and it is between
planet x v2 rt 58 alloy tiagra and the
bitwin ultra 700 af which is £40 more. Which one would you advise? I know the Bitwin has a better groupset(Shimano 105) and the frame is similar but I'm unsure about the wheels.
Also if i get the btwin I have to wait 2 and half weeks as it is out of stock at the moment(and it is in the summer now so I have more time to ride)
What do you think i should go for?

 

[gaijintendo]

I am getting a road bike and it is between
planet x v2 rt 58 alloy tiagra and the
bitwin ultra 700 af which is £40 more. Which one would you advise? I know the Bitwin has a better groupset(Shimano 105) and the frame is similar but I'm unsure about the wheels.
Also if i get the btwin I have to wait 2 and half weeks as it is out of stock at the moment(and it is in the summer now so I have more time to ride)

You might have to wait a similar time for px to build and ship your frame, call ahead if you can't collect and that's a consideration.

I live my pc kaffenback, but I wish I had sat on one, and ridden around a store to be sure it was a good fit...

And Decathlon do servicing when you buy from them. Also, they are sufficiently common bikes that they are fairly anonymous, which is good and bad. Perhaps less attractive to a thief? Perhaps harder to locate if stolen?

If all my bikes exploded, I'd probably get the most basic Triban, just to opt out of the slippery slope of cool groupsets.

10 speed is also fine. I exclusively run 10 on my bikes, but, there isn't anywhere to upgrade to, if that appeals to you later.

 

[Joffey]

I've never owned a Planet X but I have owned a Ultra 700 and I was impressed with the bike. I did have a spoke snap on the Aero wheels but they replaced it FOC and I never had any problems after that. I still have the Aero wheels as my spare set. From what I can recall it was a lovely bike to ride and like you say, it's nearly full 105 so a bargain at that money.

I don't know your budget but I bought this:

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/triban-540-road-bike-105-red-blue-id_8364452.html

as my winter bike. It is slightly heavier (from memory) but solid and has all the holes for mud guards etc. You get Askiums on this so it might put your wheel fears at rest.

I have 3 B'Twin bikes and love them!

 

[S-Express]

New Tiagra is excellent, so shouldn't be a major consideration in comparison to 105. The only thing 105 offers in addition is an extra gear, which is not going to make any significant difference really. PX has external cabling, Btwin has internal if that matters.

 

[Lozz360]

I don't know anything about the Planet X but the BTwin in excellent value for money. I see the AF700 is now on offer at £599 - £51 less than the Triban 540 mentioned above). I believe the wheels are B'Twin's direct copy of the Mavic Aksiums so should be good. The only thing I would change is the tyres. From my experience (I had the 23mm versions on a Triban) they are prone to getting a allowing tiny holes in the inner tubes.

 

[Cycleops]

B'twin is pretty much unbeatable at the price.

 

[ruby123]

B'twin is pretty much unbeatable at the price.

And the Planet X?

 

[gaijintendo]

And the Planet X?

Is also an excellent proposition. They make fine bikes. Have a search for that model on this forum and see if there are any experiences shared.

 

[Cycleops]

Here's a review:
http://www.cyclingweekly.com/reviews/road-bikes/planet-x-rt-58-alloy
Another thing to consider is if you have any problems help is as near as your nearest branch of Decathlon for the B'twin, not quite the same for the Planet X.

 

[vickster]

Here's a review:
http://www.cyclingweekly.com/reviews/road-bikes/planet-x-rt-58-alloy
Another thing to consider is if you have any problems help is as near as your nearest branch of Decathlon for the B'twin, not quite the same for the Planet X.

That looks like the old frameset

 

[Cycleops]

Well, you're more of an expert than me but it will at least give an idea.

 

[ruby123]

So you think either is good?

 

[gaijintendo]

So you think either is good?

Neither is a bad choice.

Have you sat on the b'twin?

 

[ruby123]

Neither is a bad choice.

Have you sat on the b'twin?

no

 

[cyberknight]

I am for sitting on a bike before you choose if your unsure of feel or fit , i always rate decathlon stuff though .In fact if i can get mrs ck to agree i plan to go today to get some new shoes as some i bought off here second hand didnt fit ( which kinda proves my point ) .
My latest bike as 10 speed tiagra and i cant believe how smooth it feels, certainly does the job