What steel road bike?

tommywmb
tommywmb Posts: 148
edited October 2007 in Road beginners
I'm looking for a steel road bike, max budget £600.

Anyone got any ideas?

Comments

  • blackhands
    blackhands Posts: 950
    Try Bob Jacksons - although you might struggle at £600.

    http://www.bobjacksoncycles.co.uk/shop.php
  • alx400
    alx400 Posts: 13
    I'm currently on a similar mission but am struggling to keep the price that low. The best I can see is the planetx kaffenback from £700 - http://www.planet-x-bikes.com/road/index.php?module=pagemaster&PAGE_user_op=view_page&PAGE_id=221

    Can anyone suggest anything else?
  • acorn_user
    acorn_user Posts: 1,137
    Eek, not a lot of options in the UK. The Dawes Audax Sport is Reynolds 520. Fort do a frame for 200 pounds, but again, it's a road frame, rather than a racing frame. If you want a racing frame, you might try used. There are loads of nice, undercherished steel bikes pushed aside by weight fascists ;)
  • acorn_user
    acorn_user Posts: 1,137
    Link
    http://soniccycles.co.uk/shop/products2.php
  • McBain_v1
    McBain_v1 Posts: 5,237
    Get onto Brian Rourke's website and see what you can pick up. There are some utterly gorgeous Reynolds 853 and 953 frames there (if I had the cash I'd have both).
    What do I ride? Now that's an Enigma!
  • dannygcp
    dannygcp Posts: 151
    Spa Cycles www.spacycles.co.uk are selling 2006 Dawes Audax bikes for £595 - though only in smaller sizes.
  • alx400
    alx400 Posts: 13
    This does look a decent deal on paper - http://www.spacycles.co.uk/products.php?plid=m1b1s21p442

    Anyone ridden one? Anyone know if the clearances will do knobblies?

    Alas, I'm going through the Halfords scheme so probably can't rely on special offers.

    Cheers,
    Al
  • pneumatic
    pneumatic Posts: 1,989
    Buy second hand. At that price, you'll have the choice of Mercian, Bob Jackson, Orbit, Dawes Galaxy and many more. Anyone who bought them new would know what they were about and would also have looked after the steed in question. Check the small ads in the back of the CTC magazine.

    Fast and Bulbous
    Peregrinations
    Eddingtons: 80 (Metric); 60 (Imperial)
  • Robinlh
    Robinlh Posts: 1
    What about a SJSC audax III frame,for £300,on which you chuck whatever bits you have in stock or off something else until you can upgrade?
    robin
  • alfablue
    alfablue Posts: 8,497
    dannygcp wrote:
    Spa Cycles www.spacycles.co.uk are selling 2006 Dawes Audax bikes for £595 - though only in smaller sizes.
    I have a Dawes Audax - its an older model with Reynolds 531, but it is a lovely bike to ride, I would expect this to be good too.
  • alx400
    alx400 Posts: 13
    Thanks for the feedback guys. I fear I'm hijacking this thread tommywmb

    Second hand is value and I love plotting ebay purchases and building a bike is something I should get around to but I'm looking at the 600 or 1000 Halfords deal. That is, nothing in between allowed and it has to be new.

    I know if I spend more I get better stuff but will I even be able to tell my ultegra from my tiagra? Do better bits work better and longer or are they just lighter?

    I also have it in my head that steel is gives a much more comfortable ride on bumpy and cobbled roads. I had a decrepit steel roadie that I just loved riding but is there any real difference at the low end of the market?

    Al

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