Specialized Sirrus Elite or Trek 7.6 or Scott S30fb.........HELP

[stevepn]

Hi
HELP.
I'm trying to get fit etc , and looking to replace a Marin Hawk Hill (on slicks) with a new bike through our "Cycle to Work" scheme.
I will mainly cycle on road, pavements and through traffic, so i don't want a racing bike with drop handle bars.
I've narrowed my choice to the following:
Specialized Sirrus Elite.
Trek 7.6.
Scott S30 FB.
Any advice on the above would be most welcome .
Needs to be strong as I am just topping 17.5 st, and only 5'9".
I'm sure I will need a medium/17.5/54 frame as well. I would rather have it slightly smaller as I have had a hip replacement and can't fully swing my leg over.
Thanks
Steve

 

[The Jogger]

hi Steve and welcome , all good bikes, spesh is very popular here but the trek does have some cracking reviews.
I would advise trying the bikes out for size, (very important you do).
jogger

 

[stevepn]

Anyone have views on the Scott's?
Steve

 

[earth]

I had a test ride on a Scott S30 FB and I liked it. Nice geometry, nicely speced and thought out. Felt nice and fast.

I havn't tried the Trek.

But.... I do have a Specialized Sirrus Elite which I swapped for another bike with my window cleaner (who wanted a drop handle bar bike).

I don't rate the Specialized for a few reasons: The geometry does not suit me it's too upright and high up and I prefer a lower centre of gravity.

The components are tacky.

Alex rims are really heavy and bendy. They go out of true quickly but are difficult to true because the nipples are rounded off.
The seat post is a carbon wrap!
The cranks are rough looking with inboard bearings.
But the worst thing is they specified a tripple chainset with a 52 big ring, a long cage rear deraillure and the largest mountain bike cassette you could fit on. The problem is when the chain wears and needs replacing shop chains are not long enough. If you happen to select the big ring and the largest sprocket then your wheel is locked forward and reverse. Its a nightmare freeing the thing.

Have you considered one of the Marin ALP models? They may have gone downhill a bit recently but I think I would still get one over a Specialized.

 

[cannondale boy]

Best to ride the bikes before buying, then you will know what bike feels more comfortable for you. I have the specialized sirrus elite and i am happy with it. The upright position is good for looking out for traffic. The carbon fork and seatstays dampen out those knocks on the road...they do help a great deal compared to my cannondale bad boy.

The bike is more agile, feels more comfortable, and i would ride this bike for longer journeys than my cannondale. Of course you want to feel comfortable on the journey and after.

 

[HLaB]

I had a test ride on a Scott S30 FB and I liked it. Nice geometry, nicely speced and thought out. Felt nice and fast.

I havn't tried the Trek.

But.... I do have a Specialized Sirrus Elite which I swapped for another bike with my window cleaner (who wanted a drop handle bar bike).

I don't rate the Specialized for a few reasons: The geometry does not suit me it's too upright and high up and I prefer a lower centre of gravity.

The components are tacky.

Alex rims are really heavy and bendy. They go out of true quickly but are difficult to true because the nipples are rounded off.
The seat post is a carbon wrap!
The cranks are rough looking with inboard bearings.
But the worst thing is they specified a tripple chainset with a 52 big ring, a long cage rear deraillure and the largest mountain bike cassette you could fit on. The problem is when the chain wears and needs replacing shop chains are not long enough. If you happen to select the big ring and the largest sprocket then your wheel is locked forward and reverse. Its a nightmare freeing the thing.

Have you considered one of the Marin ALP models? They may have gone downhill a bit recently but I think I would still get one over a Specialized.

Sorry to hear a bout your experiences with the Sirrus. I like my '06 Sports mainly because it has a 52 t ring (the new ones I've looked at only have a 48), sounds like the size of your cassette has been messed up I've never had that locking up problem; I've always had a 12-26 cassette. What I did to get a lower down position may work for you; I rotated the stem. The components were good IME. (Ultimately though I coverted it to drop bar, put new wheels on (Askiums), replaced the suspension seat post with carbon and a narrower saddle).

 

[earth]

I was just speaking from my own experience and taste. If I feel critical about something then I'd rather be forward about it.

It could very well be that they have been pinched to meet a price point in recent years. As I said I used to like the Marin ALP series but this year they are making the frames from 60XX alloy instead of 7005 and the components look like they are geting cheaper as well.

It seems the examples you find in shops quite often differ slightly to the spec on a web site or brouchure.

I still rate the Scott though.