Calling all Planet x owners.

papac

I am planning on buying a new bike in a few months.I was going to treat myself to a Cervelo but now I am toying with the idea of a Planet x pro carbon (and an mtb or/and some nice gear with the rest of the budget.)
There has been some negative comment here
http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/bikes/road/product/pro-dura-ace-09-35138
and in this months Cycling plus about high speed handling issues.
Any owners come across this problem.??

I reckon its not in Bikeradar/Cycling+ interest to praise the Planetx too much when they rely on advert revenue from the big makers.Opinions??.

TinyExplosions

papac wrote: »

I am planning on buying a new bike in a few months.I was going to treat myself to a Cervelo but now I am toying with the idea of a Planet x pro carbon (and an mtb or/and some nice gear with the rest of the budget.)
There has been some negative comment here
http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/bikes/road/product/pro-dura-ace-09-35138
and in this months Cycling plus about high speed handling issues.
Any owners come across this problem.??

I reckon its not in Bikeradar/Cycling+ interest to praise the Planetx too much when they rely on advert revenue from the big makers.Opinions??.

I have one, and haven't had any problems with it at all, even at fairly high speeds (70+ on a descent in the alps)

kenmc

Ditto. Love it.

Jawgap

there's 20% off them at the moment.....


.....I was playing with the site last night:)

lescol

Been riding my PX for a year with no issues. Descending has been great fun.

There’s noticeably more mush in the frame and wheels when you brace the bars against the tarmac and go for broke too. We wouldn’t go so far as to describe it as noodley but it’s deinitely a bike suited to a smooth spinner who values comfort rather than a stomper and sprinter for whom rigidity means results.

I don't follow "mush" and "noodley" mean nothing to me, but then I'm not an all out sprinter, however, there have been lots of race wins by PX riders. If you fancy a good read and lots of hilarity check out this thread:-http://www.tritalk.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?t=65032

I love my PX, but I haven't ridden a Cervelo, the only other top end bikes I've tried have felt a poorer bike than my PX.

niceonetom

I've never experienced any speed wobble on mine. It handles very nicely and predictably. It may not be as super stiff as some other carbon frames, but it makes up for it by being very comfortable and forgiving on Irish roads.

If I had, say, €2,000 to spend, I'd get the X with some blingtastic wheels and kit rather than a Cervélo with cheap trim. No question about it. It does rather depend on how highly you prioritize kerb appeal and aesthetics, where the X falls down badly.

There are dozens of P-X owners on this board at this stage and I have yet to hear a bad word about the performance of the bikes.

blorg

It's a great bike, rides as well as my summer one which was far more expensive. No high speed handling issues.

Ryaner

The Cervelos are much much prettier. I love the look of mine - haven't ridden it yet as it fully built yet. But as pointed out, you'd be made to buy a Cervelo frame and cheap gear, especially wheels.

kerryscoob

Planet x owners is there anything you would recommend changing on the current SL Pro Carbon Ultegra 6700 package.

Lumen

niceonetom wrote: »

If I had, say, €2,000 to spend, I'd get the X with some blingtastic wheels and kit rather than a Cervélo with cheap trim.

The cheapest built carbon Cervélo is about €4k. You'd be hard pressed to cobble one together for €2k, even using a steeply discounted 2008 frameset and cheapo wheels and finishing kit.

€4k bikes are bought by people who have €4k to spend. Performance per € doesn't really come into it.

DirkVoodoo

niceonetom wrote: »

It does rather depend on how highly you prioritize kerb appeal and aesthetics, where the X falls down badly.

You always say your bike doesn't look good, I think it looks pretty sharp the way it is setup: aggressive position, nice detailing with the white headset.

Bikeradar were saying it is not the stiffest frame out there, don't think this matters unless you are a very powerful rider squeezing every last bit of performance out of the frame.

I think the planet x looks very good when done up right, it's all about the details people!

Ryaner

Lumen wrote: »

The cheapest built carbon Cervélo is about €4k. You'd be hard pressed to cobble one together for €2k, even using a steeply discounted 2008 frameset and cheapo wheels and finishing kit.

€4k bikes are bought by people who have €4k to spend. Performance per € doesn't really come into it.

You can build one for less, probably just below 3k if you got some of the deals over xmas and that is with decent enough parts. S2 Frameset, Easton wheels and finishing kit, 105 gruppo.

Saying that, it really deserves better.

kerryscoob

Dirk
What can you recommend, just looking, all their wheels are out of stock unless you realy want to blow the budget.

Thanks in advance.

DirkVoodoo

kerryscoob wrote: »

Dirk
What can you recommend, just looking, all their wheels are out of stock unless you realy want to blow the budget.

Thanks in advance.

I'm possibly the worst person to ask.

I do like the look of the Boardman's, I think it's just my curious fascination with SRAM.

Honestly, it is hard to find anything better than the planet x with 6700.

Buy a set of aksiums and then a set of deep section clinchers for racing (yes, I should have listened to Lumen).

I'm a big fan of contact point accessories: saddles, pedals and bars. Get a nice set of each of these (yellow contador keos, you know you want to!)

After that it's all about apparel, which I am happy to bring my own sense of euro chic. I break a lot of the rules, and cling zealously to others. I will be sporting full liquigas kit in the spring along with Captain Havoc, it's the new white.

Buy the Planet X.



Mmmm, tasty.

niceonetom

@Lumen - Right so, I'd buy a P-X, Zipps and an nice Alpine cycling trip instead of a Cervélo with cheap wheels then. If anything, my choice has become more fixed. I'm not really accounting for people for whom money is no object and performance/€ is irrelevant. How could I?

@kerryscoob - I don't like the P-X stem and alu seatpost. Just the looks really, I've never used either, I just bought the frame. I'd take the full 6700 with both hands. Wheels, well that's a whole thread unto itself. Have a look at AstraMonti's white Planet X in the images of beauty thread if you want to see a build done really well.

@Dirk. Thanks, I've tried to minimize the ugly. It's the decals that are bothering me. It has a clearcoat over really obvious cosmetic carbon fibre weave and they still think it's necessary to have SUPERLIGHT PRO CARBON written in big letters on the tt... and their web address on the seat stays... and then SUPERLIGHT PRO CARBON written again on the seat tube. That was naff in 2002, now it's just ridiculous. I hate carbon that has carbon written on it.

Lumen

niceonetom wrote: »

I'm not really accounting for people for whom money is no object and performance/€ is irrelevant. How could I?

I don't think that "value for money is critical" and "money is no object" remotely covers all the ground.

Many people drive a car that is more expensive (by thousands) than another functionally equivalent car. That doesn't mean that money is no object for them, it just means that they find value in things which they don't strictly need, or which have aesthetic value to them, or which make them feel good about themselves.

Most people put some sort of artistic works on the walls of their homes, or at least paint the walls. These things have no function.

A bike is a blend of the functional and the aesthetic. What price beauty?

mfdc

Jawgap wrote: »

there's 20% off them at the moment.....


.....I was playing with the site last night:)

Just want to point out that while correct, this doesn't tell the whole story. They do have 20% off everything over £600, but cooincidentally they've just raised all their prices too so the 20% makes a lot less difference to what the prices were, it's just a headline sticker to draw you in. The 6700 SL Pro Carbon was £999 until a couple of weeks ago, is now £1150 with 20% off making it £920. 6700 Pro Road Ti was £1650, is now £1800 w/ 20% off making it £1440.

Still a good set of deals, but the trickery is a bit annoying. When I saw the headline I had visions of a £640 Kaffenback commuter in my future

ROK ON

In economics its called Utility.
Simply it is the price of satisfaction.

blorg

mfdc wrote: »

Just want to point out that while correct, this doesn't tell the whole story. They do have 20% off everything over £600, but cooincidentally they've just raised all their prices too so the 20% makes a lot less difference to what the prices were, it's just a headline sticker to draw you in. The 6700 SL Pro Carbon was £999 until a couple of weeks ago, is now £1150 with 20% off making it £920. 6700 Pro Road Ti was £1650, is now £1800 w/ 20% off making it £1440.

Still a good set of deals, but the trickery is a bit annoying. When I saw the headline I had visions of a £640 Kaffenback commuter in my future

It is a bit tricky all right. I doubt the prices are coming back down when the "sale" is over though.

@Tom- the PX stem and seatpost are both very very light and very well finished, the seatpost is 250g and the stem I think 105g.

niceonetom

blorg wrote: »

@Tom- the PX stem and seatpost are both very very light and very well finished, the seatpost is 250g and the stem I think 105g.

My issue is entirely cosmetic as I said. The seatpost has a strange taper at the top, and the stem has an octagonal cross section that fights with the thoroughly circular tubes of the bike.

See, Lumen? I'm capable of irrational, aesthetically motivated choices too. I understand their existence. I just don't place them as highly in my hierarchy of purchasing pro and cons, or, to put it more like ROK_ON says, I don't derive as much satisfaction from non-functional concerns as I do from the feeling of have gotten good value in my own personal 'utility' sum.

ROK ON

Buying a bike purely on looks is a fools game. The bike must work for you first and also be nice ro look at.
I don't like the ubiquity of PXs, yet Astras white one was one of the best looking bikes that I cycled with last year.

Home:Ballyhoura

niceonetom wrote: »

Have a look at AstraMonti's white Planet X in the images of beauty thread if you want to see a build done really well.

ROK ON wrote: »

Astras white one was one of the best looking bikes that I cycled with last year.

For anyone looking for which page it was on in the "Post images of beauty" thread to have another look at it (just like I was for the past few minutes), it's on page 65, post 963 just to save you a little time and effort! What size is that one again mate? Medium is it? Cheers (What height are you?)

papac

Thanks for replies guys.Been going through all the utility/aesthetics arguments in my own head.
I have a budget of about 3.5k. I am pretty utility driven most of the time-I drive a 97 car and hope to get another few years out of it- bling ain't my ting usually. I want a nice bike though.
Howeever I also want to get serious about training now that I finally have time/few quid. Thats what led me to the Planet x way of thinking.I could have a power meter and a half decent mtb and a few bits and pieces all in budget and be a bit more scientific about things.
I think the white X looks cool -apart from the detailling-which I could live with.
I never thought it would be hard to spend three and a half grand.Not a bad complaint though I suppose.:D

kerryscoob

They have no white in stock in medium or large in the SL pro.:mad:

ROK ON

3.5k to spend.
1k on bike.
0,7k wheels.
1.8k to give you maybe 2 good cycling trips abroad in a warm country.

Lumen

If you really want power, you could spend your "about €3.5k" thusly:

Boardman Road Bike Pro: €2k
Garmin 500 HR Cadence: €250
SRAM S975 Quarq Saturn: €1750
----
£4k

Sell Force crankset for €200. Leaves you only €300 over budget, and with complete freedom of wheel choices.

Or spend €2.5k on a bike and keep €1k aside until this appears.

Quigs Snr

Among others, I have 2 Cervelo's and 1 Planet X (albeit the Steath TT), but I have ridden the SL pro as well. At your budget I would go for the Planet X. I bought the Cervelo's quite frankly because I fancied them and could afford them at the time, I don't think I would be any slower on the Planet X (although right now I wouldn't be any slower on BMX I reckon).

papac

3.5k to spend.

On bike related hardware-

cos I've worked hard and I deserve it.:)

I

f you really want power, you could spend your "about €3.5k" thusly:

Boardman Road Bike Pro: €2k
Garmin 500 HR Cadence: €250
SRAM S975 Quarq Saturn: €1750
----
£4k

Sell Force crankset for €200. Leaves you only €300 over budget, and with complete freedom of wheel choices.

Or spend €2.5k on a bike and keep €1k aside until this appears

Don't fancy sram on Boardman-I might get used to it but didn't like when I tried it
Garmin 500 is a given methinks.
At the moment I am swayed towards Powertap.Leaves money for a half decent mtb (and a mid range wheelset maybe) in the kitty.I just don't fancy crank power meter for some reason and I think I would leave those pedals until they are proven a bit-They would be great if they worked well though.

Anybody else want to spend my 3.5k for me??

Ryaner

papac wrote: »

At the moment I am swayed towards Powertap.Leaves money for a half decent mtb (and a mid range wheelset maybe) in the kitty.I just don't fancy crank power meter for some reason and I think I would leave those pedals until they are proven a bit-They would be great if they worked well though.

Anybody else want to spend my 3.5k for me??

For the powertap, how about Cosmic Carbons. Very pretty wheels.

If you are just going for the hub, Elite Fitness were the cheapest back a month ago when I got mine. Prices have gone up since though.

mfdc

papac wrote: »

Anybody else want to spend my 3.5k for me??

If someone dropped a cheque for 3500 quid in my lap and said it had to be spent on bike stuff, and I hadn't just bought a planet x titanium bike, I would get....

* a slightly better planet x titanium bike for 1915
* these wheels (again ) for 670
* and a holiday either here or here for the remaining 900 + whatever else I could scrounge

papac

For the powertap, how about Cosmic Carbons. Very pretty wheels.

Nice wheels alright. I would be more inclined to lace the powertap into a 32 hole 3x trad wheel as it would be mostly used for training on the dirt tracks that pass for roads around my area.
I would like a set of aero wheels as well though.

That is a good price on the hub alright.

and a holiday either here or here for the remaining 900 + whatever else I could scrounge

No Holidays.Bike hardware only.;)
I would love a ti bike but if its only one bike I think I am going carbon for now.
I liked the look of those mon chasseral wheels a while back but I turned up some problems online with rear hub durability.Maybe they sorted it out.I would shortlist them if they had.(I am a bit of a cup n cone hub fan though)

mfdc

papac wrote: »

I liked the look of those mon chasseral wheels a while back but I turned up some problems online with rear hub durability.Maybe they sorted it out.I would shortlist them if they had.(I am a bit of a cup n cone hub fan though)

From what I read before getting them, the issue people had with the hub was that it's alloy and so gets chewed up by the individual cogs in a shimano cassette. It's not specific to these wheels, any wheelset with an alloy freehub has this problem. Planning on getting around it myself by using an sram cassette, which isn't all individual cogs.

Hope that's the issue you're talking about anyway, as I just got a pair of these wheels last month and I'd hate for the hubs to fly apart

papac

the issue people had with the hub was that it's alloy and so gets chewed up by the individual cogs in a shimano cassette

That was it. Hadn't looked that closely at it-just had something in the back of my mind about it-didn't mean to freak you out.:oI like the look of them but at the moment I am kinda set on aero wheels for sunday best.

@mfdc I might give you a poke when it gets near spending time to see how you are getting on with them if thats ok.

Lumen

Canyon do some nice stuff.

blorg

papac wrote: »

I would love a ti bike but if its only one bike I think I am going carbon for now.
I liked the look of those mon chasseral wheels a while back but I turned up some problems online with rear hub durability.Maybe they sorted it out.I would shortlist them if they had.(I am a bit of a cup n cone hub fan though)

Carbon is generally lighter, cheaper and stiffer so makes a lot of sense.

I have the RR1450 wheels in the non-chasseral version. Only difference is the spokes and that the rear rim on mine has double rather than single eyelets. Had to rebuild the wheel after a crash and could only get a single eyelet rim so I effectively now have the same as the Mon Chasseral just with aero spokes. Must say they are great wheels. There was a bearing problem with the front hub which DT replaced under warranty no hassle (the entire wheel.) I don't think this affects new wheels, I got mine around 18 months ago. The hubs are 240S which are a very common and highly regarded high-end hub, you often see them built into other rims.

The rear DOES have a problem with an un-spidered cassette eating into the freehub body but this is very common, basically any freehub body made of aluminium (for weight savings) that is 9 speed compatible has this problem. I know Easton certainly do, my recent Easton wheels came with a warning basically not to use Shimano cassettes... which is ridiculous but there you go. Countless other wheels have the same issue, it is not specific to DT.

eggie

I'd buy this in white, accessorise as you please, wheels obv quite important, decent saddle, pedals, etc.

oh and a garmin 705

Raam

One of these http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Colnago_Extreme_C_Road_Bike_Frame_2008/5360040773/

papac

Carbon is generally lighter, cheaper and stiffer so makes a lot of sense

Agreed-I kinda meant I'd like a titanium bike as well-with a bit of clearance and rack mounts for light touring-I am just being greedy now.

RR1450 wheels in the non-chasseral version

.
Its a bit mad not being able to use shimano cassettes on shimano wheels but there you go, It was the traditional rebuildable nature of those DT wheels that appealed to me and I think they are high on my list now.

Thanks for all the input lads.Great fun this shopping business.:)

DirkVoodoo

I'm getting ready to hit order on a medium planet x frame. just over 400 euro delivered, madness!

The best canyon can do is an aluminium frame for 500 euro without shipping.

Very tempting!

Home:Ballyhoura

DirkVoodoo wrote: »

I'm getting ready to hit order on a medium planet x frame.

Go on!!! Do it, that is too cheap to leave. You know you want to!

Anyway, on a more serious note. Do you already have the bits to put onto it (ie a frame upgrade) or are you thinking of building up a new bike from scratch? Very good price whatever you decide to do with it. Let us know what you decide to do, cheers!

DirkVoodoo

Home:Ballyhoura wrote: »

Go on!!! Do it, that is too cheap to leave. You know you want to!

Anyway, on a more serious note. Do you already have the bits to put onto it (ie a frame upgrade) or are you thinking of building up a new bike from scratch? Very good price whatever you decide to do with it. Let us know what you decide to do, cheers!

Was just going to strip everything off the Ridley for now and use it as a spring bike. It would have been fugly, I wanted the blue frame and all my finishing kit is red/black to match the Ridley paint scheme. I really just wanted a budget aluminium frame and carbon fork, why oh why can't planet x do the frame and fork combo for their aluminium model?

My credit card is unfortunately maxed out right now, probably a good thing