Newbie advice please...

OBs

Hello, my names Andy, and am based in Sheffield.

I have just joined up; so thought I'd say howdo...

I'm just after some advice mainly at the moment.

I want to buy a road bike, I wouldn't mind a retro ride but it would have to be a half decent one, I am totally clueless as to what I am wanting or looking for.

My budget is very low, and I could only probably stretch to about £130 :oops:
I refuse to pay ebay prices, and to be honest I really don't know what I am looking for...

I have picked up a few things, certain names / brands of components and preferably Reynolds tubing if the frame is steel. :?

I am about 5' 10'' so guess a frame around 21'' / 22" :oops: would be ideal?

I only really want to lose some weight / improve fitness at the moment, so don't need a all singing and dancing contraption
But.. The friend I am going to be riding with owns a lovely totally standard Olmo giro (in yellow, if that makes any difference)
So I am looking for a bike to match / beat his (or at least keep up) Ha. :twisted:

I would really appreciate any advice you guys could offer, even good shops that might stock second hand bikes or people who are selling? - I have browsed through the classifieds, but at the moment its all words that I don't understand or £400+

Many thanks
Andy

MAS4T0

For anything half decent, £130 just isn't enough.

Unfortunately, this isn't a cheap hobby, and while that does not mean that you have to spend £7k to get a bike you'll enjoy, there is definitely a minimum amount that you need to spend.

The problem with the price point that you're looking at is that if anyone had a half decent bike that they'd only get that amount for, they'd rather hold onto it than give it away.

As an example, I've got an old Raleigh in the garage which only gets used from time to time, it has a Reynolds steel frame, down tube shifters (6 speed), single pivot brakes and a traditional leather saddle. I'd get a few hundred quid for it at most, but would never part with it as it is irreplaceable, and the time/ money I've spend on parts and lubricants/ chemicals to keep it in pristine condition for all these years means that it is worth way more than that to me.

Most people would not give a bike away for much below eBay prices (maybe 15% less at most), and those who would sell it cheap are usually the people who are not all that into bikes and have not maintained it properly.

A shop will always be more expensive than eBay as they have to service the bike and ensure that it is in a safe/ road worthy condition prior to sale. They also have to offer some degree of after sales service.


I'm sorry if this sounds all negative, but you would be much better off to save up a while and get a half decent second hand bike for at least £400. You should also budget some money for shorts along with some lube and degreaser to ensure that you can at least keep the drivetrain in working order.

Do not buy a bike for £130, it will put you off cycling and you will have wasted your money. Look at it this way:
- a pair of cheap tyres and tubes - £40
- a cheap saddle - £20
- a cheap set of pedals - £25
- a cheap chain - £15

That's a hundred pounds right there, so even with a used one £130 does not go far.

On one final note, the last thing you want is to blow your budget on a bike in urgent need of replacement parts, as you will often (on a bike sold for that price) be throwing good money after bad.

matt5311

sorry to be of no help mate but for 130 you will only get a bicycle shaped object. a bike is made up of loads of parts that have to deal what you throw at them. so if you water down the budget you get cheaper parts that will wear out or brake faster. if there was such a thing as a mot for bikes. most of the bikes you get in argos/tesco/asda would fail it after 3 weeks of riding. also its a hell of a lot of fun riding a good bike so if you can up your budget to 250-300 you may get something fun/reliable

OBs

Thank you both for your informative replies.

I was banking on spending a bit of money on the 'budget bike' to be fair, but I'm guessing maybe upping my initial budget might be a better option then - At least it would be a good base to start from.

Have either of you got any recommendations for an ideal starter bike?

Retro or new?

My friend paid very little for his, I guess its one of those things that pop up every now and again.

Another reason I budgeted so low apart from being a student again after deciding to retrain, is the fear of leaving a half decent bike 'on its own' If riding to Uni.
But, reading between the lines, It is a hobby done properly or not done at all..

Again thank you for the honest replies.

Andy

nochekmate

Recommendation - Specialized Allez Elite 2008 model with carbon fork & rear stays and Tiagra groupset. A good solid entry-level bike

Can be bought for £300 if you get lucky - although you might have to find one on the Bay.

OBs

Thank you for the advice nochekmate.

The Spec Allez Elite '08 sounds a nice bike, and quite a popular entry level ride.

Being a complete novice, I’m guessing searching for / changing to a compact or triple chain set is a must, seeing as Sheffield is so hilly?

What other makes are a safe/sound buy?

Many thanks guy's..

nochekmate

Well given that the most popular brands are most likely to be seen being sold as secondhand, due to the volume of sales, other bikes to look for might be the following:

Trek 1.2 - can be got for £300 (1.5 may be out of budget)
Giant OCR series
Bianchi Via Nirone series (may need to be 3-4 years old to be in budget, although just bought one for my novice brother for £275 which is a good price. Nirones look good for the money)
Cannondale CAAD series (I've got a CAAD5 on eBay this week - although I have to say that I am hoping for a bit more than £300 for it - they are nice bikes IMO).

Good luck - take a look on the classifieds here and on eBay where there is greater volume (but where prices are higher). Look for a good Buy It Now option rather than getting involved in the bidding process (which I am hoping to benefit from)

OBs

nochekmate wrote:

Well given that the most popular brands are most likely to be seen being sold as secondhand, due to the volume of sales, other bikes to look for might be the following:

Trek 1.2 - can be got for £300 (1.5 may be out of budget)
Giant OCR series
Bianchi Via Nirone series (may need to be 3-4 years old to be in budget, although just bought one for my novice brother for £275 which is a good price. Nirones look good for the money)
Cannondale CAAD series (I've got a CAAD5 on eBay this week - although I have to say that I am hoping for a bit more than £300 for it - they are nice bikes IMO).

Good luck - take a look on the classifieds here and on eBay where there is greater volume (but where prices are higher). Look for a good Buy It Now option rather than getting involved in the bidding process (which I am hoping to benefit from)

I have browsed through the classifieds, the hunt is on

More of an owners preference then really, I want quite a subtle bike, and don't really like following the trend :?
eBay is a great selling tool, but when it comes to buying (bidding) then a frustrating affair!

Bloody hell, the Bianchi was a good find

I'll get researching and see what’s what, and try to use the 'search' feature on here, I'm sure I'm not the first to ask!

Thanks again for your help
Andy

nochekmate

OBs wrote:

Bloody hell, the Bianchi was a good find

Andy

Mate's rate at the club - I've helped him out a bit in the past!

And don't spend too much if it's going to be doing the commute to Uni and then left outside (too many fecking thieves out there with an attraction to shiny bikes)

OBs

nochekmate wrote:

And don't spend too much if it's going to be doing the commute to Uni and then left outside (too many fecking thieves out there with an attraction to shiny bikes)

:evil: That's my predicament..

Let the reading commence!
http://www.bikeradar.com/road/forum/viewtopic.php?t=12577960&start=0

The thing is I want one 'yesterday', I am going to a reputable bike shop tomorrow, hopefully they will be helpful enough and let me maybe sit on a few... Or not.

*Cough* If the CAAD happens to not find a loving home.. I'll happily smash open my piggy bank

wriggle

I'm also a newbie on a budget - I managed to pick up an unused CAAD4 for £200 just before Christmas, so the bargains are there if you can be patient and wait for one to come your way ...

... obv that £200 did not include a half-decent saddle, pedals, new chain, cables, and all the other consumables which had suffered from 7 years in uncareful storage ... (I got it from the police auctions, so this bike was in itself a cautionary, sad tale of the Stolen Shiny.)

It's not the easiest sport to get into on a tight budget, that's for sure. Good luck - hope you find what you're looking for.

ian_s

Well my current winter steed cost about £130 on ebay.

Its a thoroughly respectable 531 frame and forks, Openpro wheels, various campag drivetrain components. I have (only) changed tyres and a chain in about 3-4000km so far over the last two winters. It doesn't look any great shakes, but its certainly enough to get started.

so it is possible..

crazy88

The cheap bikes can be funny ones. I bought a Maruishi off a friend for £100 when I moved in order to start my commute. It was been ridden almost 5 days a week since last July, pretty much all weather and has only recently given up on me. So, 7 months riding for £100 wasn't too bad when you consider the bus is £50 a month. By the time i'd replaced all the components it would have been a full new bike, so I have opted to keep it in the loft for a rainy day.

I'm in the process of building up a new bike though, which has cost me far more than I dare tell my wife. It is most definitely an expensive hobby though, very much so. But, such a damn fun one!!!

OBs

Wriggle - Thanks, I'm not that patient though, that's the problem! - £200, sounds a steal.
I sat in all day today, it was an absolute cracking day, I would of rode a kids tri-cycle just to get out on the road...
I walked instead, It wasn't that fun.
I have sent a few messages to people selling, so it's just a waiting game now.

Ian_s - :P
I've looked at so many, my mates Olmo is really nice, dripping in Campagnola goodies and is in brilliant condition - All for £100.

Crazy88 - Haha, what she dosn't know...

I’ve decided to fork out a bit more, and convinced myself that the money I spend on bus fares / or could be spending on petrol will balance thing's out, I'm even going to start smoking; just so I can give up that and the money I save can also go towards my new hobby :?

Thanks for the wise words guys..

cougie

Ask around at your college - where did those bikes come from ? There may be a bike shop doing second hand stuff.

I'd not spend a massive amount if its a commuting bike - anything flasht will get nicked.

And 26" frame is massive. You'd be more like a 22" frame.

Kaise

get yourself downn to places like cash generators and local bike shops, they usually will help you find something, i got a raleigh record for £20 and it last 2 years with parts or anything else being needed and that was two years ago.

if i still had it you could have it for nothing, but sadly so arse decided he didnt want it but he didnt want me to have it either so destroyed it when i left it parked up, bent wheels, cut cables the lot, and then bent the forks!

i was gutted, it was my pub bike as well!

kevinharley

Hi there,

As most people have said, £130 is probably not enough to get you anything reasonable. However, extend your budget by a little bit more (between £200 and £300), and you're in the market for some road bikes, maybe 2-3 years old, that would have cost £600+ new, and therefore represent good value now.

I'm selling this:

http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtop ... 1#16787571

Its just over two years old, cost £650 new, and is a well-specced and well-sorted road bike, ideal for someone new to road biking (as I was then!) not wanting to spend the earth. Although I'm advertising it on ebay, an offer in the ball-park of £200-£250 would be what I'd be prepared to let it go for.

Whatever you decide, good luck in getting yourself a road bike that's right for you ...

peejay78

i have a 531 raleigh i got from fleabay for around £150. i love it, but it's much heavier than a newer 'equivalent' bike.

peehee

OBs wrote:

Hello, my names Andy, and am based in Sheffield.


Many thanks
Andy

hi,

i assume you work?

does your employment do cycle to work scheme?? you could get a bike through the scheme.
http://www.cyclescheme.co.uk/

stvn758

You get a lot for your money from Claud Butler, My first road bike was the Levante, around £300.

OBs

Cougie - God knows why I wrote 26"!
I added on 4 or 5" somehow :? - Think the front half is in inches, and the rear in CM's.. :roll:

Thanks for the advice, I will not use the bike everyday to commute, just every now and then..

I walked around the campus today, there is a couple of racks that have cameras right above.
I might be able to store in inside, as I am mainly in a workshop, but with saying that; if everyone done this...

Kaiser83 - Pub bike! My mate got done for being in charge of a bike whilst under the spell.. Thanks for the kind offer, I've raised my budget now, and put a wanted ad up on here too.
Ah, your from Brizle, I'm from down that way, further on down the M5 though (Torquay) which is a sh!t hole.

Kevinharley - Thanks, I will bare you in mind - Looks a lovely bike.

Peahee - No I don't work now, I am a student bum :oops:

Thanks a lot guys...

Link to my WTD ad: http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtop ... t=12762191

Chris87

Hey if you can get to nottingham go and visit leisure lakes, then you can get a decent bike on credit ( i just picked up a trek 1.1, its costing me £75 a month over 6 months)

if your riding round sheffield you'll want the best you can afford, the hills arent very forgiving......

Mr Will

One last idea the might be worth a shot: When I was at Uni the security department used to remove abandoned bike from the uni bike racks regularly and then auction them off if the remained unclaimed.

Might be worth seeing if your uni does the same, as you could strike lucky with a bargain.

OBs

Cheers for the suggestions guys, probably won't be able to get credit.. Not really a fan.

But thanks again

Majority of the staff in my department are bike crazy, anything half decent will be skimmed off the surface :roll:

Great idea though, I just want the piece of mind its had a good start to life.

Cheers
OBs