New To Road Biking

BridlingtonBiker

Hi all I've had a cheap mountain bike for about 6 years or so and this year I've been doing more riding than ever before. It dawned on me in summer I do practically all my riding on the road and what little off road riding I do could be done on my mountain bike. I've therefore been looking at getting a road bike for the past couple of months.

I must admit after reading a few magazines and the internet the Boardman range get high praise (aside from their distributer). The questions are would this be a good starting point? Which model should I go for? How much should I spend? I'm not usually the type to impulse buy hence why I've been researching for a couple of months, so I would imagine I'd not want a £500 bike when a £800 bike could last me so much more use.

I've been into a few bike shops and I don't like the Sora shifting system. I'd therefore prefer something with Tiagra or 105 groupset. Should I consider other makes of groupset?

Cheers in advance

father_jack

I'd say £600-£800 bracket is a good first quality road bike area. Checkout Campagnolo and Sram groupsets too.

Or you could look into cyclocross, that way you have a roadie/off roader, not just a roadie. But since you have a mtb probably best to get a full roadie.

Boardmans have SRAM not Shmano.

dmch2

I like my tiagra trek 1.5 which i got as I didn't like sora either.

800 will be tight for a 2011 tiagra bike without getting a discount. I think the price for mine is almost 900 now so i was happy to get a discounted 2010 for 720.

Remember you'll need to buy at least some of the following too:
Bottle cages, padded shorts, pump for presta valves, computer, tyres (std ones are rubbish), brake pads (ditto), pedals. Assuming you've got lights, bottles, helmet, SPD shoes etc.

Mettan

BridlingtonBiker wrote:

The questions are would this be a good starting point? Which model should I go for?
Cheers in advance

Whatever you go for, consider getting a bike with a Compact chainset - often, new riders buy bikes with Double chainsets and then find them excessively hard work going up hill (with miles in the legs). Particularly pertinent if you're thinking of doing some Sportives next year.

dmch2

Or just get a triple and don't worry about it. Once you get to the stage of not needing the granny ring it's going to do any harm.

Also some compact users complain the shift between them isn't very good as the gap is too big.

daveydave43

800 will get you a very good 2010 bike.

two that ive looked at
http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/Bike+Shop ... LT-F75.htm

http://www.tredz.co.uk/.Cannondale-CAAD ... _28975.htm

both have compact chainsets.
the Cannondale gets rave reviews here, seen as one of the best aluminium frames available.
the Felt has an upgraded groupset (105), and carbon seatstays.

BridlingtonBiker

OK chaps this is the bike I'm looking at. One of the base range boardman bikes.

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... 65710#dtab

Seems to come with a mix of tiagra/105 groupset. Suppose I could upgrade the tiagra parts to 105 parts in the future. Best thing is 10% of till Monday making this £630. I'm not sure I'll beat this much by waiting tilll the 2011 boardmans come out. The weight of the bike at under 9kg seems really good for the money. I'm not too worried about it not having the triple. Think I can just grin and bear the extra effort required until my strength improves. What does everyone think?

I bought some 105 SPD-SLs and some DHB shoes earlier in the year so I've been practicing clipping in and out on my mountain bike. I've had one or two close calls lol. The right shoe is giving me some pain on the outer edge of my foot though after a relatively short rides (sub 10 miles)

I have other things such as lights helmet and I use my iphone as a bike computer.

skyd0g

I have the Boardman Comp you're looking at. I can't praise it enough (for the money).
...even better with the 10% off offer. Go buy it! 8)

unixnerd

Or just get a triple and don't worry about it. Once you get to the stage of not needing the granny ring it's going to do any harm.

+1

Also, look at used bikes. Many are almost unused.

bakerstreet

Have a look at the Giant Defy 2.

Had mine for about three weeks now and I'm really happy with it. I think it lists at around £725.

BridlingtonBiker

Well I've bitten the bullet. Went and picked up the boardman today. Half way through putting it together. Slightly wrong on the website. Shifters are tiagra not 105 Should the wheels aready be trued? Flick the spokes and they sound different. I've pumped the tyres to 100psi. The reflectors on the wheels don't half put them out of balance. Should I remove them? What angle should I put the handlebars at? What angle should I put the seat at?

Loads of questions thanks in advance

father_jack

remove the wheel reflectors :-/
as for handbars I found metal bit level, with the hoods angled up slightly. You will be able to tell if it's too high as it'll bite into the soft bit betwen thumb and index finger. Saddle should be flat, use a spirit level.

unixnerd

Shifters are tiagra not 105

So hopefully you paid a bit less?

Should the wheels aready be trued? Flick the spokes and they sound different.

Not good. They should all have equal tension.

Saddle should be flat,

Good place to start. But depending on the individual and the saddle type you might want to tip it slightly forwards if you get "numb nuts".

BridlingtonBiker

So seeing as I've never trued a wheel before where do I start. Just checked my tool kit and I don't have a spoke key. Guessing that's where I should start. Should I just tension the spokes that don't sound as high pitched? Should the tyre be removed first? If so I'm not too happy about that.

father_jack

since it's new it should be in ridable condition, take it back to halfords and let them do it.

bilirubin

bakerstreet wrote:

Have a look at the Giant Defy 2.

Had mine for about three weeks now and I'm really happy with it. I think it lists at around £725.

+1, had mine for three months and I am loving it.

BridlingtonBiker

So hopefully you paid a bit less?

Only found out since I got it out of the box. Speaking of which should I keep the box for any future reason?

daveydave43

you'll only need a box if you want to take the bike somewhere - get rid of it, if you do need a box in due course your lbs should have a spare one about somewhere.

speaking of which, take the untrue wheel to your bike shop; get them to sort it out. they'll have the proper wheel jig and you should be able to trust them much more than halfords. good time to get to know them aswell. a wheel true should cost about £10 -15? see if you can watch them do it.
the wheel reflectors can be removed with just a large flat bladed screwdriver.

the boardman you bought is supposed to be tiagra shifter specced - nothing untoward there, perhaps halfords got their information mixed up?
specs: http://www.boardmanbikes.com/road/road_comp.html

BridlingtonBiker

Going back to the shoe thing. Any ideas why I'm getting pain in the outer edge of my right foot? Also I have literally no proper cycle clothing. What would I need as a minimum to get me through the winter? I'll only be taking the bike out in the dry as I dont want it getting salted up so I don't think I'll need anything waterproof

ductions

BridlingtonBiker wrote:

Going back to the shoe thing. Any ideas why I'm getting pain in the outer edge of my right foot? Also I have literally no proper cycle clothing. What would I need as a minimum to get me through the winter? I'll only be taking the bike out in the dry as I dont want it getting salted up so I don't think I'll need anything waterproof

I'm in a similar position. I ordered a boardman comp last friday, hopefully it will arrive in the next couple of days. (btw does the bike come built when ordered online?)

I'm looking to get some cycle clothing to see me through the winter on the cheap (blew most of my student loan on the bike, and need to eat!). I have a pretty cool winter cycle jacket that I got from Aldi for about £15, and some winter gloves I got from wiggle, as well as a helly hansen base layer.

Could someone recommend some bottoms for autumn/winter, preferably padded? Or even a bib if you think its worth it?

CiB

BridlingtonBiker wrote:

Well I've bitten the bullet. Went and picked up the boardman today. Half way through putting it together. Slightly wrong on the website. Shifters are tiagra not 105 Should the wheels aready be trued? Flick the spokes and they sound different. I've pumped the tyres to 100psi. The reflectors on the wheels don't half put them out of balance. Should I remove them? What angle should I put the handlebars at? What angle should I put the seat at?

Loads of questions thanks in advance

Just spotted this. Tiagra is the 9 spd, the 105 is 10 spd and higher up the range so unless you're really not bothered I'd be on the phone asking why & what.

Don't worry about the spokes having a different ring. Unless there's a massooof difference AND the wheel is out of true, it won't matter. Ideally after a f ew weeks riding / a couple of hundred miles it'll be due a quick interim service where things are tightened up and readjusted after the inital beddiing in period, so you can get them checked then when it's worth it. 100 psi is a good pressure.

Take off reflectors, the bell etc - it's stuff that legally has to be on when a bike is sold but is completely irrelevant on a road bike. Throw them in the nearest bin.

Bars - rotate them so that the top of the hood where your hands naturally fall is parallel to the floor, and ideally start with the seat parallel too. Put a book or a bit of wood bigger than the saddle on the saddle and then put a spirit level on that to get it level.

Rule of thumb for height is that your legs should be almost straight with the heel on the pedal at it's lowest point. That's a good start point, you can make minor adjustments once you get used to it and you've adapted to the new bike shape. Consider a proper bike fit if you always feel that it's just not quite there; it's the best £50 you can spend on a bike, and you only have to do it once as you know what to look for in future.

daveydave43

ductions wrote:

[quote="BridlingtonBiker"blew most of my student loan on the bike, and need to eat!

ahh, same

BridlingtonBiker

I'm confused now. It's an 18 speed and the shifters are definately tiagra but both derailleurs have 105 stickers on them. Seems like a strange combination but the shifting is sooo smooth. Very impressed. Brakes not so. It would seem after a little reading this can be cured with some koolstop or swissstop pads. Would these pads fit in the standard holders?

Overall I'm really happy with the bike. My usual 17 mile mountain bike ride takes 1 hour 20. First time on the boardman took 1 hour 6 mins most of it into a strong headwind. I think on a still day I could easily have this under the 1 hour mark

letap73

Have the same Tektro brakes and I have just replaced the front pads; it has made a difference for the better. I put on the Koolstop Shimano compatible salman/black combo pads they cost £8.00. They are easy to put in.

CiB

Shimano pads are perfectly fine - I've had them on a 105 g/set on Shimano's own rims, and on my current Fulcrums, and they stop superbly.

Keep the rims & pads clean - a good wash with warm soapy water is enough. Never have any bother stopping it in normal conditions, not so good in the wet but that's not an issue usually.

BridlingtonBiker

letap73 wrote:

Have the same Tektro brakes and I have just replaced the front pads; it has made a difference for the better. I put on the Koolstop Shimano compatible salman/black combo pads they cost £8.00. They are easy to put in.

Have you got a link to the ones you bought

letap73

Sadly I have no link for them - they were stocked in my LBS.

An alternative which should be definately better than the Tektro pads is:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Shima ... 360016353/

bakerstreet

ductions wrote:

I'm looking to get some cycle clothing to see me through the winter on the cheap (blew most of my student loan on the bike, and need to eat!). I have a pretty cool winter cycle jacket that I got from Aldi for about £15, and some winter gloves I got from wiggle, as well as a helly hansen base layer.

Have a look at the Altura Night Vision jacket? Think its about £70. Couple of good pockets and waterproof...so far.

If you are after cheap clothes, have a look at the karrimore stuff from sports direct. The padded tights are alright. Dont thin much of the tops.

I'm also found thermal underware quite useful today!!

gtitim

bakerstreet wrote:

ductions wrote:

I'm looking to get some cycle clothing to see me through the winter on the cheap (blew most of my student loan on the bike, and need to eat!). I have a pretty cool winter cycle jacket that I got from Aldi for about £15, and some winter gloves I got from wiggle, as well as a helly hansen base layer.

Have a look at the Altura Night Vision jacket? Think its about £70. Couple of good pockets and waterproof...so far.

If you are after cheap clothes, have a look at the karrimore stuff from sports direct. The padded tights are alright. Dont thin much of the tops.

I'm also found thermal underware quite useful today!!

+1 for the Altura night vision jacket.

ductions

bakerstreet wrote:

ductions wrote:

I'm looking to get some cycle clothing to see me through the winter on the cheap (blew most of my student loan on the bike, and need to eat!). I have a pretty cool winter cycle jacket that I got from Aldi for about £15, and some winter gloves I got from wiggle, as well as a helly hansen base layer.

Have a look at the Altura Night Vision jacket? Think its about £70. Couple of good pockets and waterproof...so far.

If you are after cheap clothes, have a look at the karrimore stuff from sports direct. The padded tights are alright. Dont thin much of the tops.

I'm also found thermal underware quite useful today!!

Thanks! I think my girlfriend is getting me a hi vis jacket for xmas. Until then I've got high vis arm bands strapped to me.

That stuff at sports direct is dirt cheap. I may buy a pair of tights and shorts.

BridlingtonBiker

Just been given some bike clothing including a high vis top. Only been worn once so in the washer and it'll do me for a while