Scott R4 ( 2008 ) or Specialized tarmac elite

pabloweaver

Hi folks ,

i have a " special " birthday looming and have decided to treat myself in the best ( or should i say most moral ) way possible and finally buy a carbon bike .

had a variety of bikes over the years to compare against ( pinarello , fondriest , specialized ) but im looking for some help as the review sites seem to be dominated by not very impartial manufactures comments .

I have about 1700 to spend and i have whittled it down to the R4 attack ( 2008 model with integrated seat post & full ultegra g-set ) and a Spec . tarmac elite /Roubaix comp ( both with 105 g-set ) . both with compact drives .

having had a specialized Allez elite which was a great ( still is ) bike and very responsive to ride ( my girlfriend wants to know whats wrong with the one i have and why dont i buy furniture with the money instead ................................ :roll: ...................) im very aware of the quality of their bikes . the Scott R4 looks ( and weighs in ) fantastic .


Scott has ultegra and Spec has 105 ..but to be honest 105 seems to have closed the gap on ultegra big time ......AND is still shiny silver !! ( small details ! )

any thoughts , recommendations , warnings , cheaper/better options welcomed !

thanks in advance

Paul

ride_whenever

Scott, mainly because I find the specialised bikes a bit bland. There's nothing wrong with them, but they're not for me.

Have you seen the planet-x £899 full carbon and DA? You could get a few tasty upgrades with the remaining £800.

arankapila

I would say the Scott. Before the Addict came out, it was their top level frameset. This has only been so for a couple of years, so it's still a very high quality frameset. Couple that with the fact it has the Ultegra groupset which is not only lighter, but more importantly more durable than 105 (because of more metal than plastic parts) and it's ano brainer!

That said, have you looked at the Trek bikes around that price point- similar, but there may be something that stands out to you.

Another option is to perhaps go down the route of one of the less known brands.

Focus... Boardman...Kiron...Pinnacle...

All awesome value for the price, alot more so than Scott, Specialized or Trek. Depends if you are after the absolute vaule for money, or you want a big name bike.

Hope that helps.

chriskempton

ride_whenever wrote:

Have you seen the planet-x £899 full carbon and DA? You could get a few tasty upgrades with the remaining £800.

Go the PX and treat yourself to some quality wheels with the change

pabloweaver

the planet x looks a fantastic buy !

currently waiting for e mail back re stock !

mcrdave

I'm in pretty much the same position.

I have an 05 Allez Comp (red/whiteblack), it was my first road bike and it has been fantastic, it won bike of the year in 05 and it feels responsive and light but I'm also hankering after something around the 15 - 16lb mark that will just give me the edge when I start racing next year.

I've been seriously looking at the Scott R4 08 with IMP seatpost but I really want campag or Sram but not found anything around that price range.

I've decided (I think) after lots of research to look at the pedal force zx3 or the Neo Exile, both carbon, nice and light, good reviews plus I can custom build it with campag or sram.
The neo, I can build with sram red for about 1400, I've decided to build without wheels then hope to pick up some nice light wheels off ebay (yeah right!) before the 09 season, as this is going to be my bext bike.

That's my plan anyway...

brownbosh

Scott hands down - fantastic frame and forks.

pabloweaver

ahhhh thing is i have now found the focus cayo 2008 for 899 quid !


any viewpoints ?

brownbosh

Mmmmmmmmmmm, how heavy are you?? Look at CR1 fram reviews then look at the focus. Plenty of literature. The Scott is very stiff and quite a sporty shape so maybe not a sportive machine but a better race bike. Personal choice i guess.

mcrdave

Hmmm, the Focus Cayo 08 won't be much lighter than your spesh allez, I think you'd have to go higher up the range to see the benefit, I'm looking at the cayo izalco extreme, but I don't know if I could live with a green bike!

chriskempton

brownbosh wrote:

Mmmmmmmmmmm, how heavy are you?? Look at CR1 fram reviews then look at the focus. Plenty of literature. The Scott is very stiff and quite a sporty shape so maybe not a sportive machine but a better race bike. Personal choice i guess.

CR1 has a surprisingly tall head tube at 150mm on a medium, so position wise I think it's fine as a sportive bike.

That said, mine's still in the loft waiting for spring, so I've not ridden the thing yet. :oops:

brownbosh

Sorry to clarify - i have one as a race bike and one geared for sportives - i ike its 'definate feel' other lighter riders have said to me that they find it harsh. Was just saying it MAY feel harsh depending on what state the one you are getting off is in. They are great bikes.

pabloweaver

im 11 and a bit stone , currenly riding as i say allez elite with no probs ( good ride in face ...just want shiny shiny ...)

im having difficulties comparing the weight of my spec to say ..the planet x , fair shout about the focus ( oddly cycling mag says its weight is near superbike status and i can assure you good as the allez elite is , its nowhere near superbike weight ! )

mcrdave

Yeah accurate weights are hard to by, how heavy do you think the allez is? I'm guessing around 18.5 - 19lbs? I reckon the focus is about 17lb ish and the planet X about 16lb ish, superbike status is about 13 - 14lb nowadays.

Although many people will say, it ain't the weight, it's all about the ride! But I'm with you on wanting a lighter bike, nowt wrong with that.

brownbosh

Its about 17.4lb for a bog standard CR1 pro, an addict R4 is 16.72.(without pedals and cages) That said my CR1 pro has evolved over the last 2 years and is now a tiny smidge over 15 lbs with pedals and cages. They are eminantly upgradeable and you would be hard pushed to out perform the frame physically. The same upgrades could be achieved with the addict of course then you would be in that 13-14lb superbike range.

mcrdave

A lot of mags seemed to prefer the ride of the CR1 too, saying that the Addict felt a bit 'dead' overall.

rjsmith

Really? I haven't seen a bad review of the Addict yet! Yes, it's a stiff beast but a real rocket ship.
You can soften up a CR1 loads by running a shimmed 27.2mm post in the 31.6mm seat tube.

mcrdave

Yeah, can't remember where it was now, I'll try and dig out the review before I start scaremongering.

pabloweaver

kerching !

bough the px in black . dura ace ,fsa set up and px model b wheels ( dont know how they compare to other wheels in a similar price range ..got aksiums on my spec. )

and.............money for Goa left in the bike ...im happy , girlfriends happy ( ISH ! ) ....only thing is im getting that " when is is xmas day " feeling ive not had since a kid.....normally i walk into shop and walk out again with purchase ........when's it coming when's it coming !

thanks for the advice and comments folks ...any more re wheels happily accepted .

pablo

pabloweaver

quick thanks for all the replies ,

went for the PX carbon ....black ...mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

delighted with it. and very happy with the way PX do business ( big thanks to Andy there )