New Bike (first Road Bike)

Max_Man

Hey, I know what your thinking, not another new road bike question but I'll carry on..

So I'm after my first new road bike, I've been to the local LBS's and have come up with two bike's that are in question. Both are on sale at the moment and getting great discount's.

1. Specialized Allez Sport / Triple - £599
2. Trek SL1200 / Triple - £520

Just asking general opinions really...like them both.....

Also got some great help today and got sized properly, been a few times and been told I need a size 54 but today after trying both 54 and 52 and getting some great advcice I'm now sure the 52 is for me.


Any comments really appreciated.... 8)

DustBowlRefugee

After spending the last couple of years using a mountain bike on the road (100-150 miles per week) I also decided to take the plunge and buy a road bike. I had a budget of around £1000 and looking on ebay I saw a few that I fancied (Colnago Dream Lux) or new I liked the Wilier Evasion Mirage. In the end I worked on a practical idea that I'd buy a bike with a reasonable resale value so today I bought a Specialized Allez triple. It's not too far from the MB gearing on the smallest chain ring so in the granny gear it means that you can sit down on any hill! And the 2004 - 2006 models are selling on ebay for £250 - £350. It cost me £479 from Evans and so far I think it's great, if I improve and/or get fed up with it in the next year I reckon it will only cost me £100 to get rid of it and trade up.

I like Specialized. Cheap enough but with a certain race pedegree. I wanted something that had decent components and some history without looking like "all the gear and no idea".

I tested the Allez Sport triple too but couldn't tell much difference on my 5 min test ride.

Hope this is of some help

Cheers
Mark

Hotblack Desiato

Max_Man wrote:

Hey, I know what your thinking, not another new road bike question but I'll carry on..

So I'm after my first new road bike, I've been to the local LBS's and have come up with two bike's that are in question. Both are on sale at the moment and getting great discount's.

1. Specialized Allez Sport / Triple - £599
2. Trek SL1200 / Triple - £520

Just asking general opinions really...like them both.....

Also got some great help today and got sized properly, been a few times and been told I need a size 54 but today after trying both 54 and 52 and getting some great advcice I'm now sure the 52 is for me.


Any comments really appreciated.... 8)

Test ride, test ride, test ride.

I too have just bought my first road bike (after 17 years of MTBs). Before I made a decision I test rode 6 different bikes for around 20 - 30 mins each. It's fine getting your size right, but until you ride the bikes on your shortlist, you won't be able to make an informed decision.

If your LBS won't let you have a decent test ride, walk away and go somewhere else that will.

Happy shopping.......

Max_Man

Thank's for responding, I've ridden them both and to be honest they feel pretty similar, it's my first road bike so maybe I can't tell the difference.

Any opinions on the bike's??

I guess what I'm trying to ask is given you were in my situation which one would you buy??

gkerr4

if you have ridden them both and they both fit - then go for the one you like the the look of most.

if it were me - I'd have the allez

the semi-compact frame geometry is a bit more modern than the trek. Trek haven't made a sloping top tube bike as a racer because their former top rider, Lance armstrong described sloping top tubes as "girls bikes" - now that he has gone, guess what - the range topping madone is now a 'compact' geometry. Wouldn't suprise me if the 1000 / 1200 / 1500 followed suit within a year or so as it is adventageous from a marketing point of view to have your bread and butter bikes looking the same as your top-end racers.

also - the allez frame is renowned for it's light weight and (IMO) is a better base from which you can upgrade components (which you WILL want to do by the way.. happens to us all)

Max_Man

gkerr4 wrote:

if you have ridden them both and they both fit - then go for the one you like the the look of most.

if it were me - I'd have the allez

the semi-compact frame geometry is a bit more modern than the trek. Trek haven't made a sloping top tube bike as a racer because their former top rider, Lance armstrong described sloping top tubes as "girls bikes" - now that he has gone, guess what - the range topping madone is now a 'compact' geometry. Wouldn't suprise me if the 1000 / 1200 / 1500 followed suit within a year or so as it is adventageous from a marketing point of view to have your bread and butter bikes looking the same as your top-end racers.

also - the allez frame is renowned for it's light weight and (IMO) is a better base from which you can upgrade components (which you WILL want to do by the way.. happens to us all)

Cheer's mate, exactly the kind of answer I was after.

russjm

Sorry to hijack your thread, but I'm in a simillar position, but with less cash to spend. Is a Claud Butler San Remo worth a go as a road trainer for a few months, or is it junk?

gkerr4

Max_Man wrote:

gkerr4 wrote:

if you have ridden them both and they both fit - then go for the one you like the the look of most.

if it were me - I'd have the allez

the semi-compact frame geometry is a bit more modern than the trek. Trek haven't made a sloping top tube bike as a racer because their former top rider, Lance armstrong described sloping top tubes as "girls bikes" - now that he has gone, guess what - the range topping madone is now a 'compact' geometry. Wouldn't suprise me if the 1000 / 1200 / 1500 followed suit within a year or so as it is adventageous from a marketing point of view to have your bread and butter bikes looking the same as your top-end racers.

also - the allez frame is renowned for it's light weight and (IMO) is a better base from which you can upgrade components (which you WILL want to do by the way.. happens to us all)

Cheer's mate, exactly the kind of answer I was after.

no probs..
Having said all that - some will say that the trek is the one to go for as it can take proper mudguards and has rackmounts etc etc etc - which is all true - but I'd still, personally, buy the allez..

Rich Hcp

russjm wrote:

Sorry to hijack your thread, but I'm in a simillar position, but with less cash to spend. Is a Claud Butler San Remo worth a go as a road trainer for a few months, or is it junk?

If it's only a few months, then wait for what you really want.

Rich Hcp

gkerr4 wrote:

if you have ridden them both and they both fit - then go for the one you like the the look of most.

if it were me - I'd have the allez

the semi-compact frame geometry is a bit more modern than the trek. Trek haven't made a sloping top tube bike as a racer because their former top rider, Lance armstrong described sloping top tubes as "girls bikes" - now that he has gone, guess what - the range topping madone is now a 'compact' geometry. Wouldn't suprise me if the 1000 / 1200 / 1500 followed suit within a year or so as it is adventageous from a marketing point of view to have your bread and butter bikes looking the same as your top-end racers.

also - the allez frame is renowned for it's light weight and (IMO) is a better base from which you can upgrade components (which you WILL want to do by the way.. happens to us all)

I went for an Allez Sport Triple (£599) 8) after years of MTBs I love it!

I've had comments about what a stunning bike it is.

Go for Shimano 105 pedals and it is a really cool looking bike.

Great to ride for hours.

I went off roading on the old MTB last weekend, felt like a tank!

I fully recomend the Allez Sport

daniel_b

My gf has an 06 Trek 1000, and it is a very very nice looking bike, a little too nice looking in my eyes

The Trek has a 105 rear derailleur, where as the Specialized is a Tiagra.

£80 would be enough to make me go for the bike I preferred the look of, but if it was only marginal, I would use the money saved to buy some shoes and pedals or the like.

Good luck anyway!

Dan

robklancs

I bought the specialized sport triple recently and i love it. The gears are good enough although not the greatest, it is light, accelerates quickly and looks good (silver). I have found that the reach is quite shorter than what i am used to but it still fits nicely and is comfortable over 50 miles or so.
cant comment on the trek, never tried it but in my opinion, the specialized is great. Maybe you would consider the specialized elite?an extra 100 quid with shimano 105 rather than tiagra, and it looks even better than the sport?
let us know which one you buy!