Expert Opinions on bike choice

listermint

Hi All,

Long time boards user first time cycling forum query. Having recently gotten back into cycling bug which ive had since i was a kid. My trek mtb is mind numbingly not where i want to be.

I primarily picked cycling back up to get my fitness levels back up having returned from poland the land of excess. But ive found that im enjoying it now as much as i did in my teens.

So im now looking into an relative immediate purchase of a road race bike. Obviously the bike to work scheme will be used as it suits me down to the ground, my car is primarily weekend use.

Here are the two ive been seriously considering but i dont know enough about the quality of the gear between the two. Individually the reviews have been fairly great but in terms of comparisons for a relatively decent starter bike what would you buy? Reasons...

FELT F75

http://eurocycles.com/ie/product/felt/f75-roadbike

Boardman Road Team Bike

http://www.halfords.ie/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_11101_catalogId_15551_productId_789209_langId_-1_categoryId_212536#tab2

Thank you for you opinions / advice

listermint

Any opinion will do

Hungrycol

Both get good reviews and the Boardman seems to have a good following.

Lumen

They both look fine.

Without having ridden either, I'd probably go for the one from Eurocycles as (a) I'd trust them more for servicing, and (b) the Felt brand has more cachet.

Bigus

The one thing you'll learn around here is go to a real bike shop for a fitting/sizing first before you buy anything, I'm suprised it hasn't been said already. Two people of the same height might need different frame size.

If you can stretch to a carbon frame do it now otherwise you'll be trading up soon or forever window shopping.

listermint

Bigus wrote: »

The one thing you'll learn around here is go to a real bike shop for a fitting/sizing first before you buy anything, I'm suprised it hasn't been said already. Two people of the same height might need different frame size.

If you can stretch to a carbon frame do it now otherwise you'll be trading up soon or forever window shopping.

Carbon is not a direction i want to go tbh. I just dont fancy the hastle of having a 2K bike being damaged unrepairable should anything happen to it.

Id like to stick with aluminium or ultra alloy as the give most of the benefits i feel for the moment.

Bigus

Most supplier's will do a half price frame in exchange if your carbon frame has been damaged as a goodwill gesture. Ie planet x new frame 799 or exchange damaged one 399 so I was told after I bought mine by athlone anyway.
Believe me when you get going you'll always hanker after carbon no matter what logic you convince yourself with, just look at done deal , "reason for sale trading up to carbon"

Take your time and do loads of research , where you located. .?

Lumen

Carbon isn't fragile and alu isn't easier or cheaper to repair than carbon.

A good frame is a good frame, regardless of material.

Lusk Doyle

Lumen wrote: »

Carbon isn't fragile and alu isn't easier or cheaper to repair than carbon.

A good frame is a good frame, regardless of material.

Amen brother!

Just get what you like and can afford. I've had the same alu frame for over four years. Yes, I want a carbon but the alu still works well enough for my needs which are training and club racing.

seamus

listermint wrote: »

Carbon is not a direction i want to go tbh. I just dont fancy the hastle of having a 2K bike being damaged unrepairable should anything happen to it.

A damaged aluminium frame is also a write-off, for all intents and purposes. A repair would involve cutting off the damaged sections and re-welding new ones in place before respraying the entire frame. It would almost definitely be cheaper to buy a new frame off the peg than do this.

I do understand the concern about minor incidents or even just rocks clattering off the frame and causing a crack, which might not happen with alu, but after a couple of crashes and plenty of rock strikes on my carbon forks, I'm confident that carbon isn't susceptible to this kind of damage any more than a steel frame.

route66

listermint wrote: »

Hi All,

Long time boards user first time cycling forum query. Having recently gotten back into cycling bug which ive had since i was a kid. My trek mtb is mind numbingly not where i want to be.

I primarily picked cycling back up to get my fitness levels back up having returned from poland the land of excess. But ive found that im enjoying it now as much as i did in my teens.

So im now looking into an relative immediate purchase of a road race bike. Obviously the bike to work scheme will be used as it suits me down to the ground, my car is primarily weekend use.

Here are the two ive been seriously considering but i dont know enough about the quality of the gear between the two. Individually the reviews have been fairly great but in terms of comparisons for a relatively decent starter bike what would you buy? Reasons...

FELT F75

http://eurocycles.com/ie/product/felt/f75-roadbike

Boardman Road Team Bike

http://www.halfords.ie/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_11101_catalogId_15551_productId_789209_langId_-1_categoryId_212536#tab2

Thank you for you opinions / advice

You just missed out on the Halfords deal on the Road Team bikes - a week or so ago, you could have got it for less than a grand In any case, if you know somebody who has AXA insurance, you can get a 15% discount in Halfords which would bring it down to about €1060.

Based on various reviews I've read, I'd put the Boardman marginally ahead but this is a subjective opinion. At their current advertised prices, the Felt probably inches ahead. However, as these are both available in Bricks & Mortar shops, you should go and see both before you make up your mind. I wouldn't necessarily write off Halfords because of their - often undeserved - reputation for servicing; how much better can Eurocycles - a pram reseller - be servicing bikes :eek:

But, if I was in the market myself, I would probably ignore both the bikes above and buy a carbon bike. The best value at the moment is Chainreactioncycles' Vitus Dark Plasma with 33% off, retailing at €1024.98. You'd drop a notch to Tiagra from 105, but this newer Tiagra is 10 speed, so this isn't a big deal. Have a look here: linky

listermint

route66 wrote: »

You just missed out on the Halfords deal on the Road Team bikes - a week or so ago, you could have got it for less than a grand In any case, if you know somebody who has AXA insurance, you can get a 15% discount in Halfords which would bring it down to about €1060.

Based on various reviews I've read, I'd put the Boardman marginally ahead but this is a subjective opinion. At their current advertised prices, the Felt probably inches ahead. However, as these are both available in Bricks & Mortar shops, you should go and see both before you make up your mind. I wouldn't necessarily write off Halfords because of their - often undeserved - reputation for servicing; how much better can Eurocycles - a pram reseller - be servicing bikes :eek:

But, if I was in the market myself, I would probably ignore both the bikes above and buy a carbon bike. The best value at the moment is Chainreactioncycles' Vitus Dark Plasma with 33% off, retailing at €1024.98. You'd drop a notch to Tiagra from 105, but this newer Tiagra is 10 speed, so this isn't a big deal. Have a look here: linky

Im just changed my insurance last week.... to you guessed it..... All fingers are pointing to boardman.

i thoroughly get what is being said in terms of carbon frame, but for my uses right now i cant justify laying on the extra money for the difference it will give me.

This has been very helpful lads

dermur

I have a 2008 Felt Z80 and still love riding it - subjective, I know, but I much prefer the lines of the Felt to the Boardman. The fork on the F75 looks very agressive too. Very nice.

If it were my choice it'd be the Felt. I don't think I'd be confident calling into Halfords with any problems...