Giant Defy 4 & Cyclescheme

malcolmhire

Hi

I'm new to the forum, been looking for reviews on the Defy 4 Triple 2011, found a few but nothing amazing. So what's this bike like to ride? as I've got mine ordered after seeing and sitting on it in the shop. I'm now waiting for my cyclescheme voucher to arrive.

How long does it take for the Cyclescheme voucher to arrive? on the website it says approx 4 week! How accurate is this time scale?

Thanks, Mal

jim453

This bike'll get you started. Welcome aboard. Voucher won't take long, 4 weeks sounds about right.

bilirubin

Welcome aboard Malc,

I ride a Giant Defy 2 and love it so you should be OK with your choice, also I administer our cycle to work scheme and our vouchers are turned around in under two weeks.

It will depend how quick your boss settles the invoice because as soon as your company pay the bill the voucher gets released so you can go and collect your bike.

Good luck

Mr Dog

Hi Malcolm. The Defy has great frame, as with all frames from Giant. Make sure that you get a size that is comfy. This site has lots of great advice and tips to keep you going.
Keep your Defy as clean as you can and take care of that drivetrain through the winter.
Hope you enjoy your bike and have many happy hours together. 8)

malcolmhire

Hi, Thanks for the replies.

I ride a Giant Defy 2 and love it so you should be OK with your choice, also I administer our cycle to work scheme and our vouchers are turned around in under two weeks.

It will depend how quick your boss settles the invoice because as soon as your company pay the bill the voucher gets released so you can go and collect your bike.

Great, well my boss says that he has paid the invoice but on the website I'm still stuck on 'Approved', it's been a week and a half now so it will hopefully go to 'Issued' very soon.

Hi Malcolm. The Defy has great frame, as with all frames from Giant. Make sure that you get a size that is comfy. This site has lots of great advice and tips to keep you going.
Keep your Defy as clean as you can and take care of that drivetrain through the winter.
Hope you enjoy your bike and have many happy hours together.

I've already picked the bike size, sized up with a Defy 3. Just got a phone call today saying that the bike has arrived and is ready to collect from the shop as soon as I've got my voucher.

So frustrating having to wait for this!! :x

Thanks, Mal[/quote]

malcolmhire

Scrap that, just checked again and it's been issued!! WHOOOOOO!!! :P

Hopefully have my Defy 4 tomorrow!!

benno68

I've had a Defy 2 now for 2 years and it has served me well and still is!

If you're like me, you'll soon find that the bike is just the start, clothing, shoes, lights etc etc will soon burn a hole in your pocket. It won't be long before you're lusting after another machine!

Good luck and enjoy!

malcolmhire

If you're like me, you'll soon find that the bike is just the start, clothing, shoes, lights etc etc will soon burn a hole in your pocket. It won't be long before you're lusting after another machine!

I can imagine I'll be buying some padded shorts and trousers, won't be purchasing a tight cycling top until I've getting rid of my man boobs .

I've always been into cycling but always with a MTB, so hopefully switching to a road bike will increase my performance massively. I currently average 4 minutes 50 seconds per mile accross a 30 mile route, hoping to get that down to 4 minutes per mile or as close as I can get with my new Giant!! :P

benno68

You will definitely find an improvement on the road bike, make sure you get used to the handling of the Giant and also the braking (especially in wet conditions) before you really give it the hammer.

Most of all - enjoy it.

ps. Talking about the weather, you may want to invest in a pair of Crud Roadracer's (mudguards) - oops, there's another £27 gone There are some Giant Defy specific mudguards available, I tried them and never got on with them and then went with the Cruds.

ohara227

I bought a defy 2 2010, not riden it yet due to back issue however I was looking on WheeliesDirect.com who have the specific mud guards for it - may be worth checking.

Wheelies are good, would reccomend.

Enjoy!!

malcolmhire

Just picked up the bike today and just had it out for a little spin (4 miles). What a massive difference in terms of performance :shock:

Took me just over 15 minutes to do 4 miles. Took a bit of getting used to it, braking and gears. Thought it was a little strange having the right upshift on the brake but the left upshift is on the trigger. Is this normal?

Going out tomorrow on usual route, so should be able to get a good indication of how much better it is, and I'll be able to give a decent analysis on the bike.

Cheers about the mud guard advise, probably just gonna do without at the minute, see how dirty I get.

Thanks, Mal

benno68

Well done Mal - regarding the mudguards, I hope you do your own washing, if not you'll soon be in the doghouse

Yes that's correct on the shifting.

The brake lever will pull the cable tighter - therefore the left lever moving to the larger chainring with the right lever moving to the larger sprocket at the rear. The thumb shift releases the cable one shift so moving to the smaller chainring and the right shift moving to the smaller sprocket at the rear.

Have a good weekend!

benno68

Well done Mal - regarding the mudguards, I hope you do your own washing, if not you'll soon be in the doghouse

Yes that's correct on the shifting.

The brake lever will pull the cable tighter - therefore the left lever moving to the larger chainring with the right lever moving to the larger sprocket at the rear. The thumb shift releases the cable one shift so moving to the smaller chainring and the right shift moving to the smaller sprocket at the rear.

Have a good weekend!

Mr Dog

YouTube has some good stuff on it.. there are some excerts from the DrivenandRidden series on set up and mainenance. 8)

bakerstreet

Hope you are still enjoying the defy. I have had my 2010 Defy 2 for about 6 week now. Really enjoying the commute to work.

Keep an eye on the wheel spokes. Mine has all ready had a few that have worked loose.

I bought mine from a Giant shop and I have dropped it off for its free 6 week service

The only things that I have added are a water botle cage and a compat pump. Ovbiously, I had to but lights and clothing too