Opinions on this bike please

2011

Hi,

A friend wants to buy a racer, he has a budget of €1,500.
He is looking for a lightweight (for that budget) bike with a reasonable group set.
This must have good brakes and gears that work reliably.
He would like to use the bike for keeping fit, 100km (eventually) Sunday spins, a few evening spins etc..

As he is taking advantage of the bike to work scheme I assume the bike must be new?

So far this is the best deal we can find (€1,467):

http://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=54980

Are there better deals out there?
Is this a good choice?
Any advice / thoughts / comments?

Thanks in advance, 2011

hueylewis

That planet x carbon ultegra bike linked on the forums here seems a far better deal (€1399). That Lapierre would probably be a fine bike, but for the money you're getting a lower-end groupset.

2011

hueylewis wrote: »

That planet x carbon ultegra bike linked on the forums here seems a far better deal (€1399). That Lapierre would probably be a fine bike, but for the money you're getting a lower-end groupset.

Thanks, where is the link??

Highway_To_Hell

here

2011

Thanks, that looks like a great bike.
Just the sort of advice I was hoping for.
Any other recommendations ?

He is 5'8" and has a 31" leg.
To me a 52cm frame seems small.
Any thoughts??

Brian?

2011 wrote: »

Thanks, that looks like a great bike.
Just the sort of advice I was hoping for.
Any other recommendations ?

He is 5'8" and has a 31" leg.
To me a 52cm frame seems small.
Any thoughts??

Use the metric system man, it's the 21st century!

5'8 = 172cm
31"= 79cm

That means a 54 would be about right. But take everything for a test drive before buying.

coastwatch

I think that bike is ok for an entry level / starter bike, but over priced IMHO.
I think you could do a lot better (better components and a bit lighter) if you visit a few shops. I expect there a plenty of end of season deals to be had at this time of year and plenty of other shops besides Cycle Superstore. Wheelworx just had a 20% sale so you might still get something there on a deal.
For €1500, I expect you could get a discounted entry level carbon frame bike, with shimano 105 components (level above Tiagra), and a compact crankset, instead of the triple on the lapierre.

2011

Thanks for all of the advice.
It would seem to me that the planet x carbon ultegra bike is the best deal.

I will recommend it to him.