Second hand road bikes

Shanemad
Shanemad Posts: 3
edited July 2009 in Road beginners
Hi Guys, i recently did a 100km cycle for charity and now have taken a big interest in cycling. Im looking to buy a good racer/road bike in the price range of 250-380... Does anyone know where i should start in terms of websites and would i be better off buying second hand or new?

Comments

  • majormantra
    majormantra Posts: 2,094
    Shanemad wrote:
    Hi Guys, i recently did a 100km cycle for charity and now have taken a big interest in cycling. Im looking to buy a good racer/road bike in the price range of 250-380... Does anyone know where i should start in terms of websites and would i be better off buying second hand or new?

    In that price range I'd go used. A new road bike will have bottom-of-the-range components for that kind of money but used you should be able to find something from the last 3-10 years with quite decent kit on it.

    Try ebay, Gumtree, other local ads etc. and familiarise yourself with the names of the groupsets from Shimano and Campagnolo so you know what you're looking at.

    Matthew
  • I would buy second hand at that price range, anything you would get new would be pretty basic. For £380 you'll be able to get yourself a decent aluminium frame from ebay with at least Shimano 105 on it, you just need to make sure you find something that fits you - by all means go and look for new bikes, that would give you an idea of th sizing too. Hope this helps.

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  • chuckcork
    chuckcork Posts: 1,471
    Your price range would buy a bottom of the range road bike, so if you are after a "good" one you won't get it unless you are prepared to get something via Ebay, even then it will likely cost you more to adjust it to suit your own needs (saddle, pedals, stem length etc)

    Thats not to say a bike in that price range wouldn't do the distance, I've done I guesstimate around 10,000 miles on the Claude Butler Roubaix Triple 2007 I bought 2 years ago, last time I check it wasn't mucg more than £350, but the component quality won't be as high, and you'll likely wear the parts out faster and the weight and build quality will be lower.

    One of the many websites around: http://www.evanscycles.com/categories/c ... road-bikes which has bikes in your price range, if you are a CTC member or British Cycling you might be able to get a discount of up to 10% as well.
    'Twas Mulga Bill, from Eaglehawk, that caught the cycling craze....
  • topdude
    topdude Posts: 1,557
    Again second hand (pre-loved) is the way to go.
    Suggest you look at Giant OCR / SCR and Specialized Allez. There are loads around with various levels of components and you should find something that has been looked after in your price range :D
    He is not the messiah, he is a very naughty boy !!
  • Takis61
    Takis61 Posts: 239
    Guys, the Carrera range in Halfords (provided they can set it up) has got great reviews in the mags lately & comes in under £500 or even under £300 depending on model.
    My knees hurt !
  • Shanemad
    Shanemad Posts: 3
    Thanks everyone for their input so far.

    Shane
  • kingrollo
    kingrollo Posts: 3,198
    Decatlon do a road bike for £300 - brought one a couple of years - and use it daily to commutte to work without issues. It isn't the most exciting bike to ride - but will certainly get you going. A guy on our club run has one the latest decath bikes - and he doesn't have any issues.