My entry level roadie, Claud butler milano

DaveHudson

Not a popular brand on here by all accounts, Working for a small store than stocks them helps to sway the decision when purchasing the first road bike I have owned.

The nice people at Claud butler sorted me out with some nice discount so the price I paid made it a better purchase than similar models elsewhere. Bought it late last year but only really started using it this spring.

Changed a few bits to make it mine, wheels swapped for mavic aksiums and conti gp4000 tyres, A few little carbon bits (much faster now ) and the seat for something that didn't make me cry within half an hour!

Certainly feel like the poor relative in this section of the forum but it's my little toy none the less.











Really wish I had bought a road bike years ago now, So nice to ride.

emx

looks good - nice to see something different. I think you're being a bit hard on yourself though, Claud Butler may not have the same 'snob appeal' as Colnago, for instance, but they are just as fast (if not faster) with the right rider on..

MarcBC

emx wrote:

looks good - nice to see something different. I think you're being a bit hard on yourself though, Claud Butler may not have the same 'snob appeal' as Colnago, for instance, but they are just as fast (if not faster) with the right rider on..

+1

ascurrell

That's a nice looking bike, pretty good for a first road bike.
Were the aksiums standard ?

flipp

i have a Claud Butler Levante 2010 although not quite the same I love it,and at the end of the day it's my bike ,my choice. ps looks really nice

invincible

i like it (looks similar to my allez)

great entry level, upgrades & for a good price,

have fun, hope you enjoy it

Berk Bonebonce

Nice bike. Not sure what is meant by the term 'entry level' though. Usually, this is a stupid and meaningless term used by people who put cycling magazines together.

ALaPlage

Never found the term "entry level" offensive but each to their own. Seems a catch all label to describe a start point in cost terms for anything you care to apply it to and a term that I imagine most people understand.

I work in food retail and have even had suppliers use the term to describe the start point in pricing to ranges.

Anyway - a great looking bike and if it gives you pleasure and motivates you to ride then that what counts. I got back into road riding after a long gap with an entry level Boardman. Two years on I have lost 3 stone and feel fitter and healthier than ever. I did succumb to something lighter last year and treated myself to a Trek Madone but I suppose thats what happens to most people within any hobby/pastime!

emx

entry level - mid range - high end - not sure what's so confusing about that....?

Berk Bonebonce

Budget - mid-range - high end. The term 'entry level' implies the existence of some type of competition and some type of competitiveness when it comes to buying a bike, when in fact you should spend your money and be happy with what you have got. But if some people want to think that buying a bike is a bit like a competition to see who can get the best one, that is their perogative. 'Entry level' is a stupid and meaningless consumerist term.

emx

Berk Bonebonce wrote:

Budget - mid-range - high end. The term 'entry level' implies the existence of some type of competition and some type of competitiveness when it comes to buying a bike, when in fact you should spend your money and be happy with what you have got. But if some people want to think that buying a bike is a bit like a competition to see who can get the best one, that is their perogative. 'Entry level' is a stupid and meaningless consumerist term.

do you have a PhD in semantics, or are you just a pompous arrse...???

DaveHudson

Cheers for the comments, I really like the bike and it rides so well on the Mavics. Weighs 21.5lb without the saddle bag.

I used the term "entry level" to suggest that it's a good bike but certainly not "high end". There are basic spec bikes that are on the market for half the price of this one that have many unbranded components and are pretty heavy. This has all the parts that I deemed adequate for an entry level rider, ie one that is competent on a bike but not racing or doing club runs.

I think the "entry level" phrase is a perfectly acceptable description. Some seem to be a little upset by it. I'm describing my own bike so can say it's a steaming pile of poop should I wish!


(When I bought my 1988 BMW I kept getting told I was a snob for referring to it as "the BMW", it is always known as "the turd" now. It's far from a turd but it's my car :P )

Sun Dodger

Better an "Entry-Level" bike that gets lots of use, than a pro-level superbike that sits in the garage all year

Nice bike - enjoy it!

HiMoz

Im riding a Claud Butler Roubaix I picked up of ebay for my first bike. Its nice but I've convinced myself the frames a little too big and have gotten the bug and now have something Italian in the post :oops:

It looks like a really nice bike (much nicer than my roubaix!) I'd be very pleased.

Anonymous

Nice bike mate, the Sora groupset looks good, looks like 105 from a coulpe of yeas ago, good stuff.

DaveHudson

Thanks Gents, I really do like it.

Only slight snag it I have run out of bits to buy without replacing things that a perfectly working. I think the law of N+1 may have to come into play and buy another bike