Planet X Bike

El Director

Guys, a mate of mine is thinking of buying the bike below and asked what I think about them. From what I know PX bikes are great value, good components and at an affordable price.

Can anyone add to this please??

http://planetxireland.com/products-page/sl-pro-carbon-bikes/planet-x-pro-carbon-shimano-ultegra-6800-road-bike-2/

dragratchet

you'll hear the usual amazing v crap debate on here re PX bikes. i can only add that when i was in the market for a new bike that i was warned off them by a few lbs's due to the apparant lower grade carbon used and as a heavier rider (88kgs) would see some flex in the frame. buddy of mine has one and rates it highly but then he's about 16kgs lighter.

Plastik

I've 26,000km on one of those frames and it's still trucking along nicely.

tunney

El Director wrote: »

Guys, a mate of mine is thinking of buying the bike below and asked what I think about them. From what I know PX bikes are great value, good components and at an affordable price.

Can anyone add to this please??

http://planetxireland.com/products-page/sl-pro-carbon-bikes/planet-x-pro-carbon-shimano-ultegra-6800-road-bike-2/

Worth talking to Tango about the one he had.

Mr Rubicon Conundrum

I'm interested in this too, I'm thinking of getting one of their carbon frames and building a bike, I'm also about 88kgs.

Stevieg2009

Sure for that kind of money you won't go far wrong really with them components I was thinking of buying same before Xmas but just didn't like the look of the bike really just bland IMO but beauty is in the eye of the beholder and all that

tunney

Stevieg2009 wrote: »

Sure for that kind of money you won't go far wrong really with them components I was thinking of buying same before Xmas but just didn't like the look of the bike really just bland IMO but beauty is in the eye of the beholder and all that

Wibbly wobbly wonder.

ILIKEFOOD

I found them personally to be a pain in the arse to deal with to such a degree that I bought elsewhere

T-Maxx

Great bike for the price.

Pathetic shop to deal with though and this is what made it a deal breaker for me. I tried and eventually just gave up on them.

irishrover99

ILIKEFOOD wrote: »

I found them personally to be a pain in the arse to deal with to such a degree that I bought elsewhere

In what way?
Surely you just select color and size and the rest is up to them. That's usually the system when i buy anything online.

Eamonnator

tunney wrote: »

Wibbly wobbly wonder.

Have you ridden one?

Tibulus

I was going to buy one last year until I visited the shop. There is more than one forum here that will detail various different experiences that people have had.

If you are not going through the cycle to work scheme then I would definitely buy from the UK store.

I know one guy in the club bought a bike (which overall he is more then happy with) but when a spoke popped he eventually ended up having to go to the UK store.

In the end I bought a Giant. Their 2015 range are good value and much in line with PlanetX prices.

ILIKEFOOD

irishrover99 wrote: »

In what way?
Surely you just select color and size and the rest is up to them. That's usually the system when i buy anything online.

my issues related to trying to organise buying via cycle to work scheme. numerous phone calls to them, promises of phone calls to be returned which never were..contradictory information...had to endure moaning about it not being worth their while to do C2W which, although they have my sympathy (scheme handlers taking a cut) it's not really on bitching to the customer about it...it just wasn't a good experience...didn't feel like they wanted to sell me a bike at all!

Carpenter

I bought 1 and had no problems what so ever and the bike would not look out of place in any A4 or A3 race .

coppinger

I've raced and trained on one for four years, no complaints, I dont push the power that flex in a frame matters. Would have got a giant, specialized etc if I had the cash at the time, the cheap price is the only advantage. I weigh 70kgs so I'd be wary of cheap carbon if your 85kgs.

El Director

Thanks to one and all. You can always rely on the cycling forum.

killalanerr

Its a +1 from me ,needed to replace my training bike recently and was pointed to a PX58 with SRAM Force by someone on here, i have been ridding it for a month now and love it, poor paint job but super value for what i paid no regrets

browsing

I'd say the poor carbon in planetx bikes is pure .bs. planetx prices are probably putting pressure on bike shops so they're trying to push the quality/premium product angle to make their money. I'd say it's all the same stuff as other big brands.

Plastik

Some of their bikes are low end carbon. Does that make it inherently bad, not in my opinion. A 1k carbon bike is not likely going to be the equal of a 2k frameset. Does the SL Pro flex? Yes it does but that won't take away from the enjoyment of the bike for the vast majority of people. I've done substantial mileage on one and while it doesn't hold a candle to my race bike in terms of handling or stiffness, I still do all my winter training, commuting, and club league bad weather racing on it. It's certainly not the fault of the bike if I don't get up in the results.

With regard to some of the frames being the same stuff as other big brands, it's possible. I read an article on Rouleur the other day that said their Stealth TT frame is the exact same frame that Cadel Evans used in the 2007 for his TT's, where it was wearing Ridley livery.

I'd also share the sentiments expressed by everyone else towards the Irish Planet X distributors. If you can avoid having to use them at all you have a much better buying experience.

not sane

Have the old Planet X Nanolight and its still going strong and is about to start its 5th season racing, I buy from the UK store and have nothing but praise for there service. I've seen a lot of top amateurs riding and winning on the SL Pro, in fact I've seen Martin Irvine win a race on a bright pink SL Pro. I know one club rider rides one and can't fault it. All this flex thing is a load of BS as far as I'm concerned maybe if you are Cav it might be.

Stevieg2009

Planet X Ireland seem to be a lot more active on facebook and email promotions then before maybe there getting there act together???

superlav

I raced an SL Pro for years and now an N2A, am 80-85kg depending on the time of year. The flex issue mentioned in some posts is a load of crap.

The P-X N2A Ryan Mullen was riding before he joined An Post certainly didn't slow him down. Martyn Irvine can put out more power that most and I saw him dominate on that god awful pink one he rode for a short time a few years ago.

Bang for buck, they are hard to beat.

Most of the issues I hear about the Irish store seem to relate to the fact that the charge €100 admin fee to process bike 2 work scheme orders.

ILIKEFOOD

superlav wrote: »

Most of the issues I hear about the Irish store seem to relate to the fact that the charge €100 admin fee to process bike 2 work scheme orders.

Wasn't going to mention this myself as I thought it best not to put that info out. The buyer would eventually come to it. It is against the rules of C2W that the shop would pass on the scheme handler fee to the customer. I hope they have ceased this practice for their own sake really...they've a good product and they're not doing it justice with this carry on. I sympathise that the margin is probably slim given the way Planet X operates - selling directly, thus keeping the price down.

Harrybelafonte

Jesus Christ, is 85kg concerned a heavy rider now? Every time I lose weight the bar seems to move.

Eamonnator

Harrybelafonte wrote: »

Jesus Christ, is 85kg concerned a heavy rider now? Every time I lose weight the bar seems to move.

And always downward.

browsing

ILIKEFOOD wrote: »

Wasn't going to mention this myself as I thought it best not to put that info out. The buyer would eventually come to it. It is against the rules of C2W that the shop would pass on the scheme handler fee to the customer. I hope they have ceased this practice for their own sake really...they've a good product and they're not doing it justice with this carry on. I sympathise that the margin is probably slim given the way Planet X operates - selling directly, thus keeping the price down.

To be honest I don't really have much of a problem with that. They are loosing 10% of the value because some middle man wants to turn a payment into a voucher and get 10% for pretty much nothing. It would certainly annoy me if that happens to me when I go for btw but I don't see why the shop should loose. That could account for all their profit or most of it! otherwise to still make a profit, prices in generalwI'll have to increase.

Hani Kosti

Collected this bike with my friend yesterday.
Her first full carbon, happy hippo.
Great service, guys as always helpful, bike properly set up.
I have Planet X myself (SRAM), the best thing after sliced bread as all Shimano shifters are to bulky for my small hands
I will defo come back to them, only positive feedback from my side.

El Director wrote: »

Guys, a mate of mine is thinking of buying the bike below and asked what I think about them. From what I know PX bikes are great value, good components and at an affordable price.

Can anyone add to this please??

http://planetxireland.com/products-page/sl-pro-carbon-bikes/planet-x-pro-carbon-shimano-ultegra-6800-road-bike-2/

Eamonnator

Well done, fantastic value.

Redjeep!

I bought a bike through PX.

Love the bike, but they were a PITA to deal with.

alexanderomahon

Have had mine over 3 years now. Love it but have had a few speed wobbles going down hill with a cross wind. I am around 87 - 95 kg (depending on .....) Is this caused by the frame and my weight? Maybe.

OldBean

Have any of you guys had any experience with their Kaffenback model?

lukegjpotter

Tibulus wrote: »

In the end I bought a Giant. Their 2015 range are good value and much in line with PlanetX prices.

A few hundred more, to Giant, and you're guaranteed to get something good.
The PX N2A is €2.5k, and the Giant Propel Advanced 0, with Di2, is €2.6k.

Tibulus

lukegjpotter wrote: »

A few hundred more, to Giant, and you're guaranteed to get something good.
The PX N2A is €2.5k, and the Giant Propel Advanced 0, with Di2, is €2.6k.

The TCR is the equivalent of the PX RT58 for similar list price. There will be a discount with Giant too, I found PX to to rigid on their prices.

http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-ie/bikes/model/tcr.advanced.1/20119/79353/#specifications VS http://planetxireland.com/products-page/rt57/rt58-ultegra-build/

With Giant too you will most likely be able to buy from your local bike shop who will provide quality after sales. I cannot emphasise the value of this enough.

I went for the Propel. See below.
http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-ie/bikes/model/propel.advanced.1/20126/79346/

Understand that Giant is not the absolute best brand out there but they are quality and are very good value for money.

harringtonp

Got a Planet X SL Pro from the UK in 2009 with a mixture of Ultegra/Durace for the sterling equivalent of 1800 EUR including postage and build.

Its now a winter bike but a great quality one at that, very light and frame or anything else wise no complaints.

Got a Planet X TT bike from Athlone a few years later which I've since moved on but no problems with it (the bike) either.

If buying from Athlone my advice would be not to put yourself in their pocket. As they are a distributor you should be able to go up on spec, look and try a bike and if happy with everything pay in full and walk out with what you tried out. I know that is probably not the case but is what I would be looking for if buying there again.

StevieGriff

General consensus on Planet X Wheelsets? Have been looking at their CT45 Tubular set. Reviews on their own website look promising.

harringtonp

StevieGriff wrote: »

General consensus on Planet X Wheelsets? Have been looking at their CT45 Tubular set. Reviews on their own website look promising.

Bought their 60mm clinchers a few years ago and they're a fine wheel.

Subsequently got Mavic Cosmic Carbones with a new bike and moved them (i.e. the carbones) on as could use the cash and didn't need 2 sets of deep section. Carbones were always going to fetch more but as far as I was concerned there was little difference between the sets.

Perception out there seems to be that though that while the likes of Carbones are fine for racing, planet x wheels won't come out of a crash or heavy potholes well. Personally I feel that is more perception than reality.

fran oconnor

Just going to give this a bump, I'm thinking of getting one of these on the bike to work, after reading back over this thread I'm a little bit sceptical about buying from them now though. Has anyone had any decent experience's lately. And if this isn't the route to go bike wise is there anything on the market around the same speck in LBS?.

Hmmzis

Got a Nanolight with Rival 22 before Christmas from the UK site and so far I'm very happy with the bike and their service. It's my first carbon so I don't have much to compare it to but it's certainly a lot stiffer than anything else I've ridden (haven't been able to notice any lateral flex whatsoever).

fran oconnor

I think I'll find out in work tomorrow for definite and then give them a call, I can't order from the UK either as I'm doing bike to work, another question on the sizing, I'm 5.7 so I take it that maybe a medium.

Hmmzis

I'm 5' 10" and went for a size small with a 120 mm stem and it feels very comfortable. I'd say a medium might be a bit on the big side if you're 5' 7". I'd recommend checking their sizing charts for the frames and see how the dimensions compare to what you're riding currently and if you would like to go smaller, bigger or stay as is.

fran oconnor

I have signed up with the BTW and rang Planet X to order one of the pro carbons with 105, I logged on to the planet x site last night to price peddles and noticed that the pro carbon went up to 1,119 from 1,039. I a little bit pee'd off with this as I don't think I will get it at the price that I was quoted when I first rang. I'm basically wondering now can I use Planet X in the UK to still get the BTW or is it not allowed while buying from there.. I'm rightly annoyed over this as i was really excited about getting it. I know its not a large amount, but Planet X Ireland are selling these bikes at a higher rate anyway.

T-Maxx

I'd like to LOL and say "typical Planet X bolloxology" but then I'd only be repeating myself.

PX do not honour quotes, not even if you have a VAT invoice. The price is the price they charge you just before taking physical possession of the bike.

You can buy from PX UK provided your employer is agreeable to it. Remember to factor shipping, the currency conversion cost and any other admin charge your employer might levy into the total cost though.

If you haven't researched PX customer service before, I strongly recommend you do so now.

fran oconnor

Ok, I had a call back today from one of the fellas that works there and everything is sorted. Just a matter of my job sorting out their end now and hopefully everything else goes smooth, hope to have more updates with pics to follow.

Carpenter

I find the lads down there great not a bit of hassle .

funnyclub

Hmmzis wrote: »

Got a Nanolight with Rival 22 before Christmas from the UK site and so far I'm very happy with the bike and their service. It's my first carbon so I don't have much to compare it to but it's certainly a lot stiffer than anything else I've ridden (haven't been able to notice any lateral flex whatsoever).

Any pics?

Hmmzis

funnyclub wrote: »

Any pics?

Here you go