Advice / Suggestions for Racer [Budget €500 - €650]

Garzard

Hi all, apologies for starters for yet another one of these threads, not to mention the length of the OP. By mid-2015 I'm going to be looking for a racer to replace my current hybrid [a Trek 3500] which nowadays is used mostly for college commuting, and while it’s served me well for the 3 years I’ve had it, by nature it’s too bulky & heavy for the distances I’m aiming for. Age is also beginning to catch up with it.

I'll be using the new purchase mainly for weekend spins [currently do an average of about 60km per cycle] but will be aiming to gradually push this towards 150km - 200km over the next 2 years. Also want it to be suitable for future sportives of the similar distances.

Since I want to put some of the budget [at least €100] towards a Garmin 500/800 series, clothing and other necessary gear for this sort of cycling later on, I'd prefer to keep the bike cost at or below €600 but I'd be willing to push it to €800 max if it’ll make a significant difference with regards to material quality, weight, comfort, reliability and durability of the bike. It depends really on my budget later on in the year though.

An initial few I thought might be worth looking at are linked below. Just looking for advice / reviews from any users of these bikes and open to any other suggestions within said budget. Thanks in advance.

Boardman CX http://www.halfords.ie/cycling/bikes/road-bikes/boardman-cx-comp-bike-2014
Claud Butler Torino http://www.evanscycles.com/products/claud-butler/torino-sr1-2014-road-bike-ec061585
Cannondale Synapse 8 http://www.evanscycles.com/products/cannondale/synapse-8-sora-triple-2014-road-bike-ec054418
Allez C2 http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/allez-c2-2014-road-bike-ec052336
Jupiter Spider http://www.hollingsworthcycles.ie/product-p/spider700c.htm

That allez is the prettiest.

Cee-Jay-Cee

With your budget definitely buy second hand. You'll get a €1000+ valued bike for €650 and in good condition...as for what bike, well that depends on what's for sale when your buying.

mhiggy09

Cee-Jay-Cee wrote: »

With your budget definitely buy second hand. You'll get a €1000+ valued bike for €650 and in good condition...as for what bike, well that depends on what's for sale when your buying.

Yes I would suggest buying second hand as you would get better bike for the money. I made the mistake during the summer and bought a new 600euro bike and the quality of components arnt up to scratch as well as the gearing.

Nekarsulm

I'm not a good enough cyclist to weigh up the pros and cons of all the bikes you listed, but I bought a 2011 Boardman Race with 105 and a carbon fork for just under 300 euro recently. Best bike I have ever had.
Best of all, it was only 15 miles away, so easy to pop over for a look.
Bargains out there, just keep watching and don't settle for something you're not 100% happy with.

Mehaffey1

At least remove the Claud Butler from the list. Poorly rounded bikes and not even great value anymore.

Mehaffey1

Nekarsulm wrote: »

I'm not a good enough cyclist to weigh up the pros and cons of all the bikes you listed, but I bought a 2011 Boardman Race with 105 and a carton fork for just under 300 euro recently. Best bike I have ever had

Winning lol

arybvtcw0eolkf

If you're getting the bike on the 'bike to work scheme then my preference would be the Halfords Boardman CX.. But after purchase I'd take it to a proper mechanic to have its assembly checked over!!.

Outside of a lack of confidence in their mechanics that Halfords CX is a nice buy for the money.

If you're not on the scheme and spending your own cash and want a road/race bike then like the others I'd suggest looking at second hand bikes.

fat bloke

Well if you have until mid 2015 to buy something, that's plenty of time to catch a used bargain. Know your size, keep an eye on the usual ad sites and be prepared to jump when the right bike pops up

Garzard

Thanks everyone for the replies. While I've always felt uneasy about purchasing 2nd hand, I'll definitely consider it more if that's what people recommend. Although I won't be looking to purchase immediately in the New Year [again, preferably mid-2015 at the earliest] I received an offer for a 2014 Giant Defy 3. Appears to be one of the popular bikes on here, and was one of the bikes I forgot to list in the OP.

From past and present owners of the Defy series, a vague question maybe, but are they decent bikes in the areas I listed?

Nekarsulm

Gazard, something like this? if the size was right?

http://www.donedeal.ie/bicycles-for-sale/racing-bike-swap/7904681

Nekarsulm

Nekarsulm wrote: »

Gazard, something like this? if the size was right?

http://www.donedeal.ie/bicycles-for-sale/racing-bike-swap/7904681

The ad says carbon, but only the fork is carbon on the 1.2

Still a decent bike.

Nekarsulm

ronoc wrote: »

The ad says carbon, but only the fork is carbon on the 1.2

Still a decent bike.

The photo of the sticker which says aluminium contradicts his own description

eeeee

Go second hand. You'll get a much nicer bike for your money second hand.

christy02

Op if you don't want to buy second hand have a look on wiggle. Good discounts on 2014 models.
Recently bought a felt f85 with tiagra components and carbon fork for around your budget. Very happy with it.

Garzard

Nekarsulm wrote: »

Gazard, something like this? if the size was right?

http://www.donedeal.ie/bicycles-for-sale/racing-bike-swap/7904681

Yes, I'd especially be looking for something Trek-made. I've only ever owned around 2 or 3 bikes but it's a brand I've good faith in. Though I'd probably go second-hand with a Trek next time due to their high prices in most retailers.

smacl

Of the bikes listed, the boardman CX is more cross bike than road bike. Good fun if you're planning on a bit of light off road, but a bit heavier and slower on paved roads than a typical road bike. The cannondale is a nice bike for the money, though has a triple crankset that not everyone likes.

Bought my own road bike second hand in the adds section here and have been very pleased with it. Its certainly the way to go if you're also into learning a bit about bike maintenance, though you may find you need to spend extra on it much sooner than on a new bike. (i.e. tyres, chain, cassette, brake pads, cables etc... may not have much life in them)

Garzard

Point to note, it'd want to be something of entry-level, but still durable enough to last through regular cycling for at least the next two or three years. As I said, I want to be able to considerably increase my distances and start becoming involved in sportives - which isn't really possible with my hybrid. I'd still keep my current bike for commuting and short local runs, although a few parts need replacing.

rtmie

As previously pointed out by someone,if you want to 'new' you can get a felt f85 (tiagra) for €643 (incl delivery) on wiggle.co.uk. Also planetx have Tiagra rt58 at £stg499 which translates to approx €640 , postage may be extra.
Not recommending against other advise re secondhand, but with sales you can get something new at the top end of your budget.
Can also be worth taking out the golden pages and ringing around the bike shops who may have some 2014 stock they want to shift at a discount, don't just limit yourself to Dublin ones, there may be bargains further afield.

Garzard

Ignoring the second-hand option for a minute, these two look like good starters:

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/ie/en/cube-peloton-triple-road-bike-2014/rp-prod126274

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/ie/en/cube-peloton-pro-triple-road-bike-2015/rp-prod127977

Just on the weight aspects though, are 9.1kg - 9.45kg decent weights for a road bike?

rtmie

Both linked bikes are triples. I'd look at the compact equivalents instead, but Cube would be well regarded.

smacl

rtmie wrote: »

Both linked bikes are triples. I'd look at the compact equivalents instead, but Cube would be well regarded.

+1 on this, even though I ride a triple myself. The Peleton compact comes in at €679, and is a 10 speed compact rather than 9 speed triple. If and when you upgrade in the future, this will have better resale value. The cassette is 11-30 so you still have a very low bottom gear of 34/30 and same weight of 9.1kg.

Nothing wrong with triples outside of that, other than adjusting the front mech can be more finicky, and they're less fashionable.

ford2600

smacl wrote: »

Nothing wrong with triples outside of that, other than adjusting the front mech can be more finicky, and they're less fashionable.

Always had a dislike of triples, but during summer on audax event met two really strong English riders using them.

They almost exclusively used the middle ring, except for really steep stuff or downhill sections.

More than one way of doing things I guess

smacl

ford2600 wrote: »

Always had a dislike of triples, but during summer on audax event met two really strong English riders using them.

They almost exclusively used the middle ring, except for really steep stuff or downhill sections.

More than one way of doing things I guess

I'm a relatively weak cyclist but do cover a fair bit of distance. I find on undulating ground I'd also spend a lot of the time in the middle ring, which gives me a range of 42/13 - 42/28, with the chain-line centred over the middle ring. Granny ring is great for climbing, and the 53 is nice descending or with a tail wind, so it suits me well enough.