Difference between Specialized Tricross and Tricross Sport

mutantllama

Budget between £600 and £1000

Firstly, I am looking for a comfortable, decent quality bike for:

1) Very occasional touring
2) Speedy commute to work (11 miles to work, 11 miles back)
3) Occasional off-road (canals around Birmingham, dirt path etc)

Came upon the Specialized Tricross 2011 at £749.99 and the Tricross Sport 2011 at £999.99, but is the difference in price justified? I have no idea when it comes to the difference in components, but I would be happier spending a little bit extra for reliability.

Tricross
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/spe ... y=tricross 2011

Tricross Sport
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/spe ... y=tricross sport 2011

Thanks!

Valy

The Sport has better components and you can shift gears in a different way to the Tricross.

Upgrading from 8 to 9 speeds will cost quite a bit as you will need to get a new cassette, chain and new shifters.

However, there is also the CAADX 5 - it has a very good groupset (10 speed vs 8 and 9) and has "BB30" which offers more stiffness while pedalling - ie more efficient.

There is also the CAADX 6. Same frame as the CAADX 5 but a more similar groupset to the TriCross Sport.

fastbatard

I have the Tricross Sport and as far as I can see the only real difference is the gears (2300 as opposed to Tiagra on the Sport). I prefer Tiagra and it is 'better' but I'm not sure it's £250 better. I was lucky in that my bike was an insurance replacement for a £1000 Allez and the insurance let me choose a different bike to the same value so I chose the Tricross sport. Not sure I would have chose it if I had to pay although it is a great bike.

As Valy said the CAADX 6 Tiagra looks better value at £900 and looks cool in matt black! The CAADX 5 looks amazing value at £1000 with 105, better still. I probably would have chose this myself but it wasn't in stock back in October when I got mine and I needed a bike asap.

Edinburgh Cycles had some good value CX bikes but they don't appear to have any at the moment, think they've sold all their 2010 models and are waiting on 2011 models but worth keeping an eye on or even phoning them for more info.

All in all though with what you say you need the bike for I don't think you can go wrong with any of these.

Vivica

I've got the 2007 Tricross Sport Tripple which i use for my daily 10 mile round trip commute.
I can really recommend it as a commuter bike if you're not too bothered about speed.

The only thing i would say about the Tricross Sport (and therefore the lesser models also), is that if you're looking for a fast commute you're probably better off going for the Allez.


Looking back on my purchase now, i'm very happy with how the bike has held up, in 3 years daily use it's done over 10,000 miles and all i've needed is new break pads, innertubes, and front sprockets.


What i would also say is that being the start of the year, shop around!! A lot of bike shops will still be stocking 2010 models and will be selling them off cheap.
I got my 2007 Tricross at the start of 2008 and got about £100 off it as it was last years model.

mutantllama

Thanks for the advice so far,

I don't mind spending the extra, the money has come from compensation (hit by a car whilst commuting to work on my 2008 Giant Rincon), thought I would treat myself with some of it! Also, I haven't got the room for two bikes so I need something that can adapt as needed, CX seems to fit the bill.

Looks like it is generally agreed that the Cannondale CAADX 5 is a step up from the Specialized Tricross Sport, for the same money! Will take a look at this

fastbatard

Just to throw another one in the mix this Kona Jake 2010 looks amazing value at £529 with Tiagra. http://www.jejamescycles.co.uk/kona-jak ... 56943.html

Pessable

I get very confused about groupsets. Is there a fixed pecking order listed somewhere?

mutantllama

Thanks for the update to the Kona Jake, will take a look when I get home tonight.

Have discussed the Tricross and CAADX 5 with a mate, who is well into his bikes, he reckons that they may not be that suitable, and to look at Cannondale Bad Boy instead, due to it being tougher and more versatile. Any thoughts on this?

Duffer65

When I was looking for a new bike late last year I had a look at the Bad Boy, and I must say it's a nice bike, although in the end I went with something else but similar to it. It is really a rigid framed mountain bike, so it does depend on what sort of riding you are going to do. It would be absolutely fine for what you've listed:

1) Very occasional touring
2) Speedy commute to work (11 miles to work, 11 miles back)
3) Occasional off-road (canals around Birmingham, dirt path etc)

The main thing is don't make a rash descision and don't be swayed by others too much get the bike YOU feel happy with.

Valy

Hmm... CX bikes are not exactly made out of candy floss either. They also have drops which can be useful in wind/descents and if you are really going fast etc as well as being able to fit 23mm tires if you want to ride on the road quite a bit and then go to much wider ones ~40mms which should be fine for many surfaces.

Indeed though - you could look at the Badboy as as rigid MTB. As for being versatile - it depends really. I can not see where the Badboy would be much better than a CX bike. It may have the edge on being able to have wider tires fitted, but that seem to be about it. It's also gonna be heavier.

Has your friend said why he thinks a Badboy might be more suitable?

mutantllama

He really did not say, I think what he was getting at was that the MTB hybrid would be more robust, though I cannot image a CX suffering damage from road and light off-road useage, or being weighed down by loaded pannier racks for touring?

I currently have a Giant Rincon 2008, which I have now decided to keep for off-road specific riding. I am trying to move away from the MTB experience (current MTB is heavy and slow, feels more like a grind when riding to work) and really like the idea of a multi-purpose CX, looks like it could have an advantage over a MTB (my current MTB anyway)due to being light weight and having drops.

In regards to slimmer tyres, having gone from fairly large MTB tyres (26" 1.95 Schwalbe Landcruisers) am I going to feel less in control with a CX, like it is going to slip out from under me? Would it be an all-yearbike? (light frost, I don't usually ride in ice or snow).

Thanks again, being careful as I doubt I am ever going to have £1000.00 to put towards a bike anytime soon!

rplavery

I have a Tricross Sport (2010) and I think it is a great bike. I also have an Allez and a hybrid and I got the tricross on the cycle to work scheme. I didnt really know if it would bethat useful, but how wrong I was. If I had to have just one bike it would be the Tricross as it really does do a lot. Changing the tyres for a proper cross tyre ( I am using Vittoria 34mm tyres at present) gives a comfortable, stable bike which is fine on muddy cycle tracks and dirty roads. In the summer I use 28mm gatorskins which are obviously faster.
The only thing which isnt that great is the cantilever brakes which take a bit more oomph to bring it to a halt- and maybe better braking in traffic would be nicer. I would try to get a cross bike with maybe disc brakes.

Valy

The easiest way to think about a CX bike is that it's a tougher road bike with added versatility. Some road bikes even have rack mounts, so a CX bike should not struggle unless you load it with 100kgs and go offroading, big time.

As far as not feeling in control - I guess if the road is frosty, it won't matter much anyway. However, personally there is not much room for drifting on a road bike, and possibly similarly on a CX bike. On the road that is. If you are on the drops though, it could be easier to drift, but generally a MTB would be better for drifting across loose surfaces etc - but unless you want to go to trail centres with it, it should not be a problem.

As for the brakes - I once had a little test ride on a Tricross and I thought that the brakes were not adjusted properly - imagine getting a bit of WD40 onto your brakes... but the guy in the shop said they were fine. There is the option of mini-V brakes, but I don't know how that would be in the mud. Shame that the 2011 range does not have disk brakes as that would have been really awesome! There is one "Cross-like" bike that has mechanical disk brakes though - goes for about £1099. http://www.evanscycles.com/products/gen ... e-ec026194

edhornby

or.....

http://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/CBOOPOMPETV ... mine-versa

there is a flat bar version if you don't want drops - you may be worth picking up the phone and asking them about getting a rack on it if that's a must rather than a nice-to-have

mutantllama

After quite some consideration, decided to recondition my old HT for use off-road and possibly touring, and decided on a dedicated road bike (CAAD 8 105 2011) as 90% of my riding will be commuting on the roads:

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/can ... e-ec025287


£999.99 includes mudguards and a new Giant helmet, I don't think it's a bad deal all round!

Again, thanks for all the advice.

Avoneer

Hi,

Just got the 2010 Tricross COMP for £999 from Specialized Concept stores on offer.

It's the older frame with the carbon rear end and full zertz inserts.

Comfiest thing I have ever ridden and you get a free basic bike fit with it.

Shimano 105 as well which is awesome for the money.

Pat...

Avoneer

P.S. I use it for commuting all year round whatever the weather (100 miles a week). Spiked tyres for ice and 23mm slicks for the rest of the year.

No probs with the brakes either once set up properly and the additional lever on the tops is great in traffic.

Pat...

mutantllama

Went to the specialized store at the Fort in Birmingham, the guy said he had a 2010 Tricross COMP that was on special offer...after 5 minutes searching he said he could not find it and someone must have bought it. If it was there, I would have probably bitten his hand off at the time....guess I know who bought it now!!

Avoneer

Lol - mine was in Harrogate.

Surely they could order some more in.

There were a few left at Harrogate when I was in there just after xmas.

Pat...