2nd hand Road Bikes

googlehead

Been thinking off buying a 2nd hand bike over the Winter(might be cheaper!)
I have a Giant scr4 I love this bike, but I am at a stage now where I am getting better on the bike, and as I am starting to get up with faster people in races etc. I think my bike might be holding me back a bit? Nothing really on ebay.ie, but a good choice on ebay.co.uk. I can get it delivered to a freind in the north and collect it from their? what do you think? I don't want to spend much more than 1200 euro, Ideally I would like to buy a 2nd hand in Ireland, but not sure where to look, not much on adverts.

blorg

The bike probably isn't holding you back, it rarely does...

If your budget stretches to €1,200 the obvious choice is the Planet X with full new 6700 Ultegra @£;999. Delivery to Ireland is £45.

You are unlikely to get anything better second hand in Ireland to be honest.

googlehead

blorg wrote: »

The bike probably isn't holding you back, it rarely does...

If your budget stretches to €1,200 the obvious choice is the Planet X with full new 6700 Ultegra @£;999. Delivery to Ireland is £45.

You are unlikely to get anything better second hand in Ireland to be honest.

How come? why do people spend money on expensive bikes then? would a lighter bike with smoother gears not help me when I am cycling up a hill?

macadam

PM sent

blorg

googlehead wrote: »

How come? why do people spend money on expensive bikes then? would a lighter bike with smoother gears not help me when I am cycling up a hill?

Mostly marketing I reckon, it is 99% the rider that makes the difference and better training etc. may be a better use of money.

Races in Ireland tend to be on the flat side so weight is not so important.

Having better gears might be worthwhile though- 2200 is quite low end and 105+ is often quoted as what you need for racing.

But a nice bike is certainly nice to have and nice to ride, my own ones certainly cost a lot and are far beyond what is necessary for my abilities but I like riding them.

For your budget I would no question go for the Planet X. Wiggle also have a few big discounts on racers at the moment including a nice looking carbon Raleigh with 105- apparently the frame is designed by Avanti who probably have a better reputation for high end race bikes than Raleigh do these days.

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Raleigh_Avanti_Carbon_Comp_2009/5360045523/

The Cayo 105 would probably be even better:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Focus_Cayo_105_2009/5360037591/

But I would go for the PX over this to be honest, it is the best bike at the moment for your budget I reckon.

DirkVoodoo

googlehead wrote: »

How come? why do people spend money on expensive bikes then? would a lighter bike with smoother gears not help me when I am cycling up a hill?

Because they can and they like to. I want to buy a Colnago, even though my current bike will never be used to it's limit by me...I just like the Colnago.

googlehead

I find it hard to believe that you won't have to put in more effort on a course with some hills, surely there will be more effort taking a heavier cheaper bike up a hill than a light weight carbon bike. I do believe that alot of it is to do with your own training etc. but I have also read alot of people say on cycling forums
that there is a huge difference in performance between a cheap bike and a bike say over 1500 euro

velo.2010

The huge performance differance as you put it has come from the training on the 'cheaper heavier bike' then switching to the lightweight bike. Yes you will notice a difference but it has mostly come from you! The same effort on the carbon bike translates into going faster. It should not be easier!

Regarding a new bike, I would go with the above recommendations of the PX. I got a S/H frame and built it with componants I had. Looking at the PX though I slightly question my purchase but im happy.

Good luck with what you buy.

Lumen

googlehead wrote: »

I have also read alot of people say on cycling forums that there is a huge difference in performance between a cheap bike and a bike say over 1500 euro

In terms of handling and power transfer, which is what matters performance-wise, the cheapest new bike now (well, excluding the real sh!te) is probably much better than the 1980s state of the art, and those differences are (objectively) the square root of feck all.

But then buying shiny stuff is all half the fun.

brayblue24

OP

I am contrmplating selling my Specialized Roubaix Elite 2008 if that type of bike suits you. It's a great bike but I fell like a n upgrade coming on. Haven't got round to advertising it yet but would probably look for about €1150 for it (€2k new last year). Here is the spec. PM me if you're interested:

http://www.specialized.com/gb/en/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?arc=2008&spid=33106&gold_ses=

Actually, I'd like to hear opinions of other boardsies regarding my pricing (ie. too high/low?).

Lumen

brayblue24 wrote: »

Actually, I'd like to hear opinions of other boardsies regarding my pricing (ie. too high/low?).

If you can find someone who wants a Roubaix, I'm sure they'd welcome saving €800ish if the condition is good. The only possible problem is that it's over a grand on a used bike, and one with 105, so doesn't feel like an absolute bargain.