I think I bought the wrong bike

Tom..

This is my first post ever…so bear with me.

A couple of months ago I bought a Dawes Discovery (first bike for 30 years), a typical hybrid – too heavy to ride really fast and not robust enough to ride off road.

Well, I’ve now got a taste for this biking lark, can ride comfortably at 17-17.5 mph and handle 55-60 miles without walking straight legged afterwards. Going forward I quite like the idea of TTing and duathlon (I had fairly good running fitness, but currently injured).

If I buy a road bike, am I going to go significantly faster .

I’ve got the typical entry level budget of £500-600, and have a reasonably good idea of what I can get for that. What I really want to know is what Shimano gear sets (is that the right terminology) I should be looking at, what type of wheels (the Giant SCR wheels don’t seem to be well regarded) would be appropriate and also what sort of tyres would be most appropriate.

I looked at the Giant SCR 2.0 at £525 (rrp) and the 4.0 at £375 (rrp), apart from carbon forks what else accounts for the price difference.

As you can see from the above, I’ve got a flavour for the tech stuff, but I really don’t understand it – this is the man who thought the Dawes was a great ride. So what is it that determines the speed and handling of the bike – weight, friction with the road, aerodynamics etc, and how is this determined by it’s various components.

Any advice would be gratefully received

Many thanks

Tom

redddraggon

Probably the groupset you'll be looking at on a bike in your budget is Tiagra. Wheels will be probably own brand wheels from the manufacturer of the bike.

Plenty of good bikes in your budget.

johnblade

Hi Buddy I just Picked up an SCR2.0 08 today of E-bay brand new in the box for £380 lovley looking bike and my first real road bike, I did see them at http://www.jejamescycles.co.uk/ for just over £400 The SCR 2.0 has a slightly higher spec groupset over the 4.0

emaichael

SCR2 is well worth getting,
ive had mine for 2 and a half months now. and ive clocked over 2000miles on it. nothing the slightest wrong about it. the wheels are fine on it. (nice looking to! )
gears change nicely
Very light bike, perfect for hill climbs. slightly better quality over all. worth the extra bob. has a very nice finish.
i haven't noticed any wear and tear in my scr 2. every thing's as good as new, apart from the scratches on the gear cover on the handle bar where ive fallen off a few times
I highly recommend it. well worth it for the money.

emaichael

perfect! well worth getting. this is the one i have.
http://www.cyclestore.co.uk/images%5Cpr ... C12117.jpg

thatlondon

There are many bikes for many different purposes, the Dawes is not a bad bike just not fit for your new needs.

A lightweight racing bike will be without doubt faster, by how much is difficult to say but i would guess by my own experience 2+ mph instant increase in speed. This is almost 10% which is a considerable gain. It's achieved by a more aerodynamic position and the lower weight which result in a lower effort to move forward.

I think you have a good budget for your bike and you should get a bargain this time of year as alot of shops will want rid of the 2007 bikes to make room for 2008 and its getting cold they will sell less bikes.

Personally wheels would be bottom of my list, these are the best upgrade for the money. Ride the winter with the stock wheels and save up to upgrade them in spring.

Also tyres are cheap at £25 quid a tyre for a michelin pro sport, don't worry about them if the ones the bike comes with are rubbish ride them for a bit and bin them. I still have the stock tyres on my bike (bontrager race light 23c), I will replace them soon when they wear out. The key is to keep them hard 110psi+, the most common cause for punctures is soft tyres.

Generally the more expensive the the groupset the lighter it is however Shimano Tiagra has 9 gears at the rear where as 105 and above has 10. I think for your money you should aim for 105. Here is a bike on wiggle http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ProductDetail.a ... ike%202007

The main thing that affects the speed of a bike is your legs. The second is the weight of the bike. An aerodynamic position of course helps but this will be simillar on most race bikes and can be adjusted to preference by changing the stem length and height. For your time trialing and duatholon you can get a set of clip on aero bars for about £50 these increase aerodynamics at the cost of more difficult handling.

Good luck with everything, once you buy your bike I recommend joining a road club you will get lots of free advice on club runs and lots of like minded people to ride with.

Nic

thatlondon

I forgot to say,

Remember you need to buy pedels and shoes so allow for this in your budget.

emaichael

thatlondon wrote:

I forgot to say,

Remember you need to buy pedels and shoes so allow for this in your budget.

100 smackers at least

Zendog1

I guess you have gathered that they are called groupsets. The Simano range goes Sora (entry level not good for racing - cannot change on the drops), then Tiagra can change on drops. Above that is probably out of your budget range - the 105 (next up) bike in the above post is a tiny frame.

The SRC2 is a great bike but it is "relaxed" geometry (cruising not racing) - could try for a deal on an Allez sport (Tiagra) or probably better save up a bit more to get to 105.

Rich Hcp

Tom,

You might get a 2007 Specialized Allez Sport in budget, Evans have some for £499

I got mine from my LBS for a beter price! (Back in July)

Spec
Frame: Specialized A1 Premium Aluminium fully manipulated tubing compact road design frame with integrated headset and hourglass speedstays
Fork: Specialized carbon fork with carbon fibre legs and Aluminium steerer
Gears: Shimano Tiagra derailleurs
Shifters: Shimano Tiagra 9-speed STI flight deck compatible shifters
Chainset: Shimano Tiagra Hollowtech II 2-piece crankset
Brakes: Shimano Tiagra
Wheels: Jalco GX460 alloy triple wall rims with machined sidewalls and indicator grooves built on Specialized alloy hubs
Tyres: Specialized Mondo 700x23C wire bead tyres
Handlebars: Specialized Comp 6061 alloy short-reach drop bars
Stem: Specialized Sport 3D forged alloy stem
Saddle: Specialized Comp Road saddle
Seatpost: Specialized carbon fibre post
Pedals/Extras: Composite body alloy cage pedals with toe clips and straps

Change the pedals and you're away!

I've got one and love it!

Richie G

I'd certainly recommend a Specilized Allez. I picked mine up last December for £429 (2006 model with £100 off). Use it everyday to get to work, yet it's still sporty enough for TT's. I'm sure there should be some good deals at this time of year- if you can get a 2007 model with discount should leave you some spre cash to get pedals and shoes. Also, if your keen on TT's, i got some Profile Century ZB bars for £35. Good luck, Rich

Tom..

Thanks everyone for taking the time and trouble to reply. Some very good advice - hadn't thought about the shoes and pedals, also didn't realise that such good deals were to be had at this time of year.

My LBS has the SCR 2.0 - I think its more relaxed geometry may suit me as I'm getting on a bit, and runners are even less flexible than cyclists! On the other hand the Specialised Allez does sounds good, so I'll see if I can source one locally.

Again, thanks guys

Tom

mea00csf

I'd personally say if you haven't ridden a race bike before, (therefore don't know what a road/race bike position should feel like) go for a cheap bikefit, cost about £40.

http://www.bikefitting.com/English/Frame.aspx

They'll take all your relavant measurements then come out with frame geometries that will suit you and your style of riding. They'll then go through their bikes and find ones that fit you best and advise on sizes. You'll also get a printout of your ideal frame geometry to compare against makes they don't stock.

Should you end up buying from them they'll usually knock the money you spent on the bikefit off the bike, essentially making it free. Helps to narrow down your choices (for isntance, i'd never get a Trek bike to fit, the reach is far too long if i get a frame size at which i can pedal properly) and is far more important than whether you go for tiagra or 105 in my opinion. They'll usually swap stems etc for you to get your bike as close to ideal as poss.

I'm sure if i hadn't done the bikefit, that as a total road bike newbie i'd have bought a bike a size smaller than i have (my bike is very comfy)

il_principe

Where are you based? I have a 2006 Focus Variado Expert for sale. Bought July 06 for £800 and I'm selling for £400. The bike has Shimano Ultegra throughout except for the crankset which is FSA Gossamer Compact. The wheels are Shimano R550's and have hardly been used as I upgraded very soon after buying. I will have some pics ready by monday, but the bike is in great condition.

Frame size is 54 and I'm 177cm, fits me perfectly.

It's a fantastic bike and I have got a lot of pleasure out of it. I'm in London and you'd be welcome to view/test ride if you are interested. Ultegra is far far better than the Tiagra or Sora components you'll get on a new £500 bike, and I know that from experience having previously owned a Specialized Allez.

Please see here for some reviews.

http://www.roadcyclinguk.com/review/rev ... 1522551548

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ProductDetail.a ... &UberCat=0

Any questions PM me!

emaichael

Tom.. wrote:

Thanks everyone for taking the time and trouble to reply. Some very good advice - hadn't thought about the shoes and pedals, also didn't realise that such good deals were to be had at this time of year.

My LBS has the SCR 2.0 - I think its more relaxed geometry may suit me as I'm getting on a bit, and runners are even less flexible than cyclists! On the other hand the Specialised Allez does sounds good, so I'll see if I can source one locally.

Again, thanks guys

Tom

scr 2 is great. who sais you cant race on it if you want to? its fine for racing..there is a limit to how good a bicycle can be (aka everything is carbon fiber)
go for the scr2, and u wont be disappointed. (it even has a 3rd ring if you really need it) and a massive ring for grinding fast. quite often as you get older, your legs go slightly slower, and prefer being on a bi ring to zoom about.

Fab Foodie

The SCR and the Allez are both great bikes.
My own 2 penneth:

Gearing, decide whether a double or Triple will do the terrain you want, you should know what gearing you need based on your present bike.
Groupsets, go for Tiagra over Sora if you can get it on your bike of choice within your budget, the different shifters make changing on the drops much easier.
Fit: The Giant is slightly more relaxed and less "race" positioned than the Allez, so better for long distance comfort.
Think about all you need the bike to do; If mostly club-runs and TT's then the Allez is a peach, if longer rides, mudguards and rack might be required then the Giant fits the bill.

My mate has an SCR 2.0, it's a cracking ride when compared to my TCR (which a couple of years ago was over twice the price).

dazzawazza

Zendog1 wrote:

The Simano range goes Sora (entry level not good for racing - cannot change on the drops).

Rubbish! I have Sora on my Allez and can change on the drops easily and quickly. It's a technique you can develop with a small amount of practice.

mea00csf

dazzawazza wrote:

Zendog1 wrote:

The Simano range goes Sora (entry level not good for racing - cannot change on the drops).

Rubbish! I have Sora on my Allez and can change on the drops easily and quickly. It's a technique you can develop with a small amount of practice.

and long fingers, forget about i if you have small hands!

DavidTQ

I started off on a dawes discovery 201 earlier this year, decent enough bike for the money, but like the original poster I found quickly that I wanted to go faster etc.

I managed to find a Giant SCR1.0 for sale for £600 and its FAR better surprisingly not only on speed but comfort as well.

Great bike so far, only done about 1500 miles on it, but it really has made a big difference to the time my commute takes.

When I first started I was taking 55 minutes, thats now down to 25 minutes average for a 7 mile commute (Obviously not all of that difference is down to the bike, but I do remember being very surprised by the time saving on my first journey on the road bike. The difference really is amazing, the Dawes was a perfectly acceptable bike, it was reliable enough, and still looks brand new, but it simply wasnt able to hold its own against the Giant SCR. The Road bike seems so much smoother, and accelerates with far less resistance through the pedals, hills might slow me down but they no longer burn my legs like they did, somehow everything feels easier and smoother and the difference translates well to time taken.

dazzawazza

mea00csf wrote:

dazzawazza wrote:

Zendog1 wrote:

The Simano range goes Sora (entry level not good for racing - cannot change on the drops).

Rubbish! I have Sora on my Allez and can change on the drops easily and quickly. It's a technique you can develop with a small amount of practice.

and long fingers, forget about i if you have small hands!

I have small hands and it's not a problem. The technique involves swinging my elbow inward, and the changes are very swift.
Actually Sora is better if you have small hands as the reach can be adjusted.

I suspect most people stating that Sora gears cannot be changed on the drops using the thumb shifters have only ever tried at the bike shop. Or they're uncoordinated.

mea00csf

personally, i'd rather just use my fingers to change gears, wouldn't like to be swinging my whole arm around to change gears thankyou very much! Maybe it is do-able, but at speed, which is when i use the drops, i wouldn't feel comfortable with the method you describe!

If you can't change gears from the drops on a test ride, why would you buy the bike??

dazzawazza

mea00csf wrote:

If you can't change gears from the drops on a test ride, why would you buy the bike??

There are other factors to consider when buying a bike, especially when on a budget!

I'm not saying Sora is a good choice for racing, but it doesn't deserve the criticism.
It's perfectly acceptable for an entry level road bike. Especially if the bike is used for commuting as well, because the set-up has advantages riding on the hoods in traffic.
It also has a longer life-span than more expensive group sets.

gary_fisher3

The SCR has a relaxed riding position that will probably feel very similar to that of your hybrid; and very comfortable to ride. However, in a TT you don't want a nice relaxed riding position you want to be as aerodynamic as possible.

The SCR is a great bike; but IMO it's not the best to use for time trials.

peanut

Zendog1 wrote:

I Sora ( - cannot change on the drops),.

?not sure what you mean by this ? :?