Viking Torino...any good ?

mangizmo

Hi Folks, I am a keen cyclist of many years,, I have bought a couple of cheap VIKING branded bikes recently, and have been amazed at how good they are for the money....the one that really amazed me was the Viking Saratoga alloy tandem...under £300.00 and it has proved to be excellent, that really was a bargain, and has proved to be just as good as our previous TREK tandem
Anyway, I bought a Viking Ajaccio hybrid with carbon forks for £225, and that too is excellent, and is what I am using on fast club runs just now (just started with a club again), but its not quite right for the job...I want a road bike (my first ever)
I need a road bike to keep up really, and I noticed that Viking sell a very cheap road bike that looks reasonable....please have a look at this and give your opinion, I was lookng at a Giant Defy...but its £675.00....quite a difference !....do you guys think that this discount road bike is acceptable....the other Vikings I have bought have been good (is the Giant worth all that extra cah ?)

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Viking-Torino-56c ... 240%3A1318

Thanks in advance

pud77

the Torino weighs in at an impressive 11.9kgs

I've no experience of the Viking brand but that's a heavy road bike by anyones standards. What can be seen of the spec I notice a few Sora bits, probably worth the extra to go for Tiagra as minimum. Have you seen the 2008 Beone Storms from CRC or the 2008 Boardman Comp ? If available in your size, i'd say they'd be a better purchase for the extra £100 or so

Monty Dog

That Viking is about fit for a year or so of regular use, but many of the components are poor quality and you could spend what you save on new parts as they wear out. Savings have been made with things like steel forks - heavy and the truly awful Quando hubs - I imagine the wheels won't be too durable either and Kenda tyres have a reputation for being sketchy in the wet. If your budget is tight, buy secondhand - you'll get a far better bike.