Which Bike for a beginner?

art_08

Evening All

I have recently decided to pack in the footy and take up cycling and would like some advice on decent entry level bikes for around £250-£300.

I have set myself the target of participating in next years Dragon Ride and would like a bike suitable for this type of event.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Cheers!

yackers1

Art 08 - Me and the other half set our budget for our first road bikes at the same level as yours - but could not find anything decent (new) for that money!

We ended up going for one 2007 spec Giant SCR 3 and one 2006 spec Trek 1200. The pair cost £750 from Pauls Cycles in Dereham (highly recommended by the way).

If you're not bothered about having a 2008 model then go for an older model which is a higher spec.

yackers1

Art 08 - Me and the other half set our budget for our first road bikes at the same level as yours - but could not find anything decent (new) for that money!

We ended up going for one 2007 spec Giant SCR 3 and one 2006 spec Trek 1200. The pair cost £750 from Pauls Cycles in Dereham (highly recommended by the way).

If you're not bothered about having a 2008 model then go for an older model which is a higher spec.

meanwhile

You have to go up to £350-£400 - or get very lucky in the sales - to scrape a new racing bike, afaik. Take a look at

http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/comms/s ... cardinal=3

- this collects three reviews of bikes in your price range.

Another option is obviously buying secondhand bike.

The good new is that a £400 racer will be 99% as fast as a £2000 one. It's not like buying a mountain bike where an advanced suspension can let a mediocre rider do things that would have killed him on a so-so bike.

art_08

I did wonder whether I was being a bit optimistic over the budget as from what I could see the internet the prices were a bit higher.

Do you know which type of frame I should be looking for e.g. aluminium?

There appears to be a lot of choices for a beginner to make and I dont want to make the wrong ones, i'm determined to do this!!!

CanterburyTailwind

Hi Art

Good luck with your challenge! Yes, for new bikes you're probably looking at £350 for something like a Giant SCR4 - which might suit you well, as the geometry is more 'relaxed' and less race-y than some others, so would be good for a day in the saddle. Also, with the SCR range they all have the same frame, so you can up grade the components to something better if and when you want.

When looking around at bikes here's a list of some things to consider. I've given this elsewhere on the forum, but I think it bears repeating: I wish I'd had a similar list when I was looking! Hopefully others will add other things to it. Good luck with it.

- Frame: quality (of material and paint job) and riding position: do you want to be more relaxed (upright) or more 'sporty' (nose to the handlebars). For the material, aluminium is probably the most common now: it's light and relatively robust. Carbon is lighter, but pricey. Some people still swear by steel, and say there's not much difference in weight with aluminium, but gives a more 'forgiving' ride.
- Quality of the components, esp groupsets (have a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groupset for a 'hierarchy of quality' for Shimano and Campag).
- Weight of the bike: easy to get hung up on, but worth bear it in mind.
- if commuting or winter training, does it have the braze ons (fittings) for mudguards and rack?

madturkey

A suggestion that might get shot to pieces but how about getting something from Halfords? But only if you have a decent bike shop nearby.

The logic is that you get the equipment cheap as chips then get someone who knows something about it to check it over / service / rebuild as required. Probably less risky than buying used off ebay.

art_08

Are the frames from Halfords any good?? I have read on these forums that Halfords dont offer a particular good service but I do have a good bike shop nearby that could give it a once over.

Also, what are Raleigh bikes like?

meanwhile

art_08 wrote:

I did wonder whether I was being a bit optimistic over the budget as from what I could see the internet the prices were a bit higher.

Do you know which type of frame I should be looking for e.g. aluminium?

Buying new in your price range, you probably don't have a choice. I noticed that the EBC bike had a carbon fork, which is pretty amazing at that price.

There appears to be a lot of choices for a beginner to make and I dont want to make the wrong ones, i'm determined to do this!!!

Worry for more about fit than the brand of bike. They probably all came from the same factory in Taiwan anyway, and a £400 bike that fits you well will be faster and more comfortable than a more expensive bike that is a so-so fit. Oh, and the bike shop does final assembly, so try to buy somewhere they have decent mechanics. Re fit, look at http://www.sheldonbrown.com/frame-sizing.html,. Get and read Zinn's Cycling Primer before you buy, if you really want to be careful - and you probably should.