last post on this went a bit silly so i will try again.

lingwoodmick

Anyone got any thoughts on the similarities or differences between the specialised tarmac elite, planet x pro sl carbon, or ribble sportive frames?
Is the Specialised better quality?
I have seen a specialised for £1100ish, while I will pay around the same for the other 2.
Lat time I posted this members had to apologise for the death of someones father!
Thanks

sturmey

The Tarmac elite uses an inferior grade of carbon to the Tarmac Expert. Whether it's better than the other carbon frames you mention is a matter for debate. The Planet X and the Specialized both have relatively short headtubes whereas the Ribble bike is a bit taller at the front. Depends what you are looking to use the bike for.

skinson

The reason it went silly last time was because there are certain people on here who, because of their inability to look past the end of their stuck up noses, can't grasp the simple fact that there is nothing special about specialized bikes :roll:
Dave

skinson

Right now that's out of the way.
I ride a ribble sportive with an ultegra gruppo. After using a good friends spesh for a week or so, I could find no good reason to spend another £500 on what to me felt like the same ride.
The ribble is very stiff, handles beautifully on fast down hills, and will fair fly up the other side. Although I have yet to do more than 50-60 miles it is very comfortable up to that distance. That said, I'm not saying it is the "be all and end all" of carbon bikes, just that for £1100 it must rank in the top 3 bikes available at the price.
Dave

joshposh

Yep of course theres nothing special about specialized! They only happen to have produced the world champion winning frame!

skinson

Yep of course theres nothing special about specialized! They only happen to have produced the world champion winning frame!

Is it not time for school yet?
Dave

Pokerface

joshposh wrote:

Yep of course theres nothing special about specialized! They only happen to have produced the world champion winning frame!

So, by that logic.... Buy a Speicialized and become a World Champion? :roll:


Many of the big modern bike manufacturers have produced World Champion winning frames. Current champ rides a Willier. But you could put those guys on any modern bike and they would still win. As Lance would say.... "It's not about the bike"


(And I OWN a Specialized. And a Trek. Guess I'll be winning the Tour, the Vuelta, the Giro AND the WOrld Championships next year!)

joshposh

It seems your putting words into my mouth! The top sprinters would surely be able to flex the cheaper carbon frames and would therefore probably not win the world champs on them! Im not quite sure what to make of your comment about when school starts. To be honest i see it as all the more immaturity on your part.

Homer J

just buy one already :roll:

skinson

I'll spell it out for you then! You sound like a 13 year old kid who won't listen to anything anyone else has to say regarding carbon frames. You haven't bought the best frame on the market, you don't have the best bike, and you will never have the last word on it whilst | draw breath. Is that easy enough for you to understand?
Dave

Ash_

joshposh wrote:

They only happen to have produced the world champion winning frame!

Not really relevant though, as it's not the bike the OP's interested in buying...

Pokerface

joshposh wrote:

It seems your putting words into my mouth! The top sprinters would surely be able to flex the cheaper carbon frames and would therefore probably not win the world champs on them!

I don't recall Paulo Bettini being one of the world's top sprinters! Nor Ballan.

Anonymous

looks like it may have gone silly again. Just an observation.

LardLover

+1 dmclite :roll:

58585

As an attempt at giving you a useful answer:
If you rode all the frames blind, with the same finishing kit and wheels, you would be hard pressed to tell one from the other.
If you did notice any difference it would probably be due to the different geometries.
Your performance on all the frames would be almost identical as long as you got a decent fit on each one, accounting for the different geometries.
The 2 major differences you definitely will notice between frames is price and appearance/desirability. There may be differences in how long a frame lasts and how you will be treated if you need to get in touch with the manufacturer too.

As you are finding out it's difficult to cut through the enormous amount of bull when it comes to buying a bike, so unless you get enjoyment in wading through it all don't worry too much about which mass produced, carbon framed, bike you spend your cash on since the tangible differences will be small.

Monty Dog

In terms of the original question - the vast majority of carbon frames come out of a handful of big sheds in Taiwan, including the Specialized. One spends a heap on marketing and sponsorship - the other others don't - but this has got absolutely nothing to do with the quality of the product but does have a bearing on price. I know plenty of folks on Specialized - I can get them at discount because of a club deal, but having tried a few, they don't float my boat - the original Tarmac fork was way to flexy - the front didn't feel connected to the back. Warranty support for Specialized in the UK is extremely good - eveyone laughs about the 'frame for life' concept, because when they break - which isn't uncommon - a replacement soon appears. I know others who have Ribbles and Planet-Xs - they're competent, good value bikes and certainly a good deal for a tight budget.

skinson

Wow!! Someone who understands frames and isn't afraid to go against the flow.
Hat's off to you Monty... 8)
Dave

Speed_King

OKright i had last years tarmac Comp and the planet X full carbon with dura ace both well priced for the spec £1700 and £1350 respectivly i had good deals at the time which helped, I have since sold one and got the other wrapped in an accident beyond repair.
This year i brought the tarmac Elite 2010 and it is superb!! Rides well handles nicely and is as light as F**K, lol pardon the colourful language.

Going back to OP This year Specialized have sorted out the lack of connection to the rear end, Planet X have a good rep and it is growing quick, and as for Ribble if you can get what you ar eafter in the time it states wihtout and cockups and crap management, you will always have a bargain they simply are great on price!
OH and a final point if you want a Ribble spend the extra and buy a Nero RC tons better!!

SO to conclud ribble =cheapest, planet X= great spec and price, and specialized= great bikes but some would say you can buy cheaper it would depend on what you trust??

Speed_King

OH and sturmey this year(2010) both the comp and Elite use the same grade FACT 10 Carbon as told to me via the team at specialized
And for FYI i loved all three of my bikes and if i had to choose one i couldnt all were good to me and all rode very nicely indeed personal choice springs to mind and i think the OP needs to make his, we could be making points for this arguement all day but it would only get him more confused

lingwoodmick

Thanks for all you replies, partic speed king, 58585 and monty.
I see that joshposh raves about his specialized frame. I am curious to know why he has it listed on the classifieds as a potential sale? Interesting!
Keep the thoughts on the frames coming. Tried a specialised (not tarmac though) today and really liked it which is a shame in some ways as I don't want to be a sheep! I am not a good risk taker and I think the planet x / ribble options are just that as they are online purchases i.e. no trial! Have seen the tarmac 2009 for £1100 ish. A local-ish dealer emailed me back and is prepared to knock the 2010 down by about £150 before they are even in!

Anonymous

This may sound daft but would be a consideration for me...

Round where I work (Manchester) Specialized are the most stolen brand of bike, it's the one brand the thieving sh1ts know the best...

joshposh

Oh reason for sale is to upgrade to an specialized sl3 maybe!

prawny

lingwoodmick wrote:

Thanks for all you replies, partic speed king, 58585 and monty.
I see that joshposh raves about his specialized frame. I am curious to know why he has it listed on the classifieds as a potential sale? Interesting!
Keep the thoughts on the frames coming. Tried a specialised (not tarmac though) today and really liked it which is a shame in some ways as I don't want to be a sheep! I am not a good risk taker and I think the planet x / ribble options are just that as they are online purchases i.e. no trial! Have seen the tarmac 2009 for £1100 ish. A local-ish dealer emailed me back and is prepared to knock the 2010 down by about £150 before they are even in!

If you can be arsed you can make an appointment to visit planet x for fit and testing.

lfcquin

lingwoodmick wrote:

Thanks for all you replies, partic speed king, 58585 and monty.
I see that joshposh raves about his specialized frame. I am curious to know why he has it listed on the classifieds as a potential sale? Interesting!
Keep the thoughts on the frames coming. Tried a specialised (not tarmac though) today and really liked it which is a shame in some ways as I don't want to be a sheep! I am not a good risk taker and I think the planet x / ribble options are just that as they are online purchases i.e. no trial! Have seen the tarmac 2009 for £1100 ish. A local-ish dealer emailed me back and is prepared to knock the 2010 down by about £150 before they are even in!

I am not sure on your location, but Macclesfield Cycles sell Planet X bikes, so if you want a test ride and are close, it might be worth a call. I guess they are not the only stockist either, so it might be worth digging a little deeper. In terms of Ribble they have a shop in Preston, but I don't know if they do trial rides, again might be worth a call.

skinson

Yeah! don't make an effort to go to ribble either? It's 1 min from junct 29 M6.
Dave

a_n_t

ribble closed the shop a few months ago.

skyd0g

As you may have gathered, all of the bikes you mention on your shortlist have their ardent supporters - to say the least! They are all very well rated bikes, and none would disappoint you.

IMHO, I'd go for the Planet X or Ribble options, as they are a little cheaper and the extra "spare cash" I'd put towards all of the necessary extras that you will find you'll need. Helmet, bib shorts, shoes, pedals, etc. etc. or getting a higher spec groupset. 8)

The Ribble Warehouse is still open btw.

BMX Bear

My view would be that whichever one you buy you'll like that one the most because it's yours.

As a few have already said, actually riding the bikes will feel different but not because of the quality of the carbon in the frame but because of the geometry and the parts used to complete the build.

You might want to weigh up which bike gives you the better components, wheels, shifters mech's etc. Good wheels make a huge difference, shifters and mech are easily upgradeable...you'll probably change the saddle, maybe the bars, so I discount the quality of those.

Whichever you choose, they're all decent bikes.

danielh

The world champ comment doesn't compute - last years British Road Race Champ Rob Hayles rode a aluminium Boardman from Halfords all year...Nuff said.

term1te

I wonder if any psychological effect comes in to play at all here? Apparently, people prefer the taste of more expensive foods or drinks when given a choice (and told the price) even if they are given two identical options. Likewise people receiving a drug for a particular ailment have reduced symptoms if they are told how expensive and cutting edge it is, compared to those who receive the same drug, but are told nothing about it. Would my performance increase if I paid twice as much for a bike and was told a whole load of guff about polar aligned non-oxygenated nano-scale carbon meta- fibre, compared to the the same bike with a less desirable brand name on it, and was told that it was basically made from coal and glue?

I'd bet there would be an increase in performance. It would be interesting to try and quantify the increase and compare it to something more tangible, say the weight of the frame, and how much people would be prepared to pay for such an increase. Again I guess it would be a similar amount to the price differencial.

Maybe the marketing spend of a manufacturer is positively correlated to the performance of the owners of their bikes. Although I suspect the effect would ware off once next years bike with actual kryptonite loaded carbon nano-spheres arrived on the shelves.

So maybe you will find your cycling improves more by owning the Specialized compared to the Ribble, even if they happened to be identical bikes?