Focus Focus Cayo 105 Ltd Triple 2011 as a first road bike?

matt-h

Hi all,

I been commmuting to work (6 mile each way and very hilly) on my budget mtb and have decided to take the plunge and buy a road bike.
It would also be used for weekends, depending how 'into it' i get

I am going to take advantage of the Bike Scheme.

I have been looking at numerous bikes and the Focus Cayo 105 Ltd Triple 2011 http://www.wiggle.co.uk/focus-cayo-105-ltd-triple-2011/ has caught my eye.

Its at the top end of my buget but i love the look and spec (mmmm carbon ).

I have spoken to a friend who has the Cannondale caad 8 SORA - approx £600 - and he has said that it will be perfect for my needs.
Also the fact i can be fitted and buy it from a shop, the money saved could also be used to buy accessories such as clip-ins, lights etc.

I think that is sound advice, however the accessories could be purchased bit-by-bit as and when i need them???
My other concern with buying the Focus is i cannot be measured for it.

I just wanted to gain other peoples opinions

Matt

Wacky Racer

It's a tough choice and one only you can make really. The Cayo is a better spec than the CAAD 8 Sora, and it's a carbon frame, but it is going to be a couple of hundred quid more expensive and you can't try before you buy. You say you want it for a 6 mile commute, if so I'd agree that the CAAD 8 is suffice for your needs, it depends really on whether meeting your needs is enough?

If you are looking at the lower end of your budget to see how much into road riding you really get, what about the Battaglin Start at Wiggle? Fantastic spec for £599, and easily good enough for your commute and more, and would leave you with a bit left over for accessories/clothes/lid?

porker33

Why do you need a triple?..I would prefer a compact myself, if you need assistance from gearing to get up hills.

Wacky Racer

Why do you need a triple?..I would prefer a compact myself, if you need assistance from gearing to get up hills.

To be fair, the guy says his commute is very hilly. Obviously I don't know what "very hilly" means, but a triple should make difficult climbs easier. All I would add is that very hilly on a MTB may be a breeze on a proper road bike.

night_porter

If you are able to buy the Focus right now then you could get it for £920.

Just add it to your basket and add the discount code TOUR20 and the price will go down by £172.50. This discount is only available until July 31st to coincide with errr ummm the tour :roll:

£172.50 is more than enough to buy the accessories you will need.

You could save even more by buying the compact version for an incredible £880 by using the same code. I know you say your route is hilly but if you are currently riding it on a cheap mtb the compact Focus will be a piece of cake to ride because it is so much lighter. Plus it is only 6 miles!

Even if you are not able to take advantage of the tour discount they still are very good bikes and you won't be disappointed with them. If you buy the cheaper bike you will always hanker after the Focus and probably end up buying one in the future anyway.

As for sizing, there is a pretty good sizing guide on the product page and you still have to "tweak" bikes to fit perfectly so rough sizing is all any shop would do anyway. If it gets delivered and is so wrong it is unrideable just send it back for free and get a different size.

Don't ride it 1st though as their 30 day test ride only counts for bikes with less than 15% discount on them.

mowflow

Having spent the last year on a (free) bike that is slightly too big for me I cannot stress enough how important it is for a bike to be the right size for you.

I'd much rather have a lower spec'd aluminium bike with entry level components that is the correct size for me than a blingy carbon bike that's too big.

porker33

Wacky Racer wrote:

Why do you need a triple?..I would prefer a compact myself, if you need assistance from gearing to get up hills.

To be fair, the guy says his commute is very hilly. Obviously I don't know what "very hilly" means, but a triple should make difficult climbs easier. All I would add is that very hilly on a MTB may be a breeze on a proper road bike.

I wasn't being unreasonable, but a 34 & 28 on a compact will get you up the side of a house. The advantage of compact is only 2 rings and less to go wrong and out of adjustment.

I was thinking it may be more something he may not be aware of compared to MTB.

In_the_big_ring

I recently got the double version of this bike. Personally I don't think you need a triple as the gearing on the double is pretty generous - I'm even contemplating changing cassette as I don't really use all the gears. Review wise, its a great bike for the price, and if you can get that discount then do it. The saddle on the bike isn't great, I used it once and upgraded, and the wheels are a bit on the heavy side but that's about it for the negatives, but you could upgrade these two with that discount. As a word of advice, I wouldn't use the fitting guide on the actual bike description. I used that and ended up getting a bike that was too small. Rather use this one: http://www.wiggle.co.uk/h/option/bikesizeguide

But Wiggle's customer service is very good and when I found out I had the wrong size they arranged couriers to collect and return the correct size, all free of charge. I had the new bike within a week from messaging them to say the size was wrong.

double u tee

Hi,

I've got the higher speck Cayo but the frame is the same, I test rode others(top brands) but when I got the focus from wiggle on the 30day test ride I fell in love with it! I think if you can afford the cayo then get it on the test period(it doesn't cost you to send it back if you don't like it) see how you get on, you can also use it for other rides other than your commute.

matt-h

Thankyou all for the sound advice.

I went into the LBS today, but all i could think of was getting the Focus.

As for the triple not being needed - i havent the experience to know.

Is there any real drawback to having a triple, after all, with the scheme it works out just an extra £25 odd

matt

tenor

No drawbavk to a triple other than Brit 'Roadies' think they are a bit naff on a roadbike.
You will get plently of banter on this subject though, the favoutite one being the additional weight - all 100 grams of it!

night_porter

Personally I prefer doubles or compacts for one simple reason.

I have had several bikes with triples and I can honestly say that I never use the smaller chainring, this is not a macho thing I just never need to use it.

I find that if I do use it the pedals go around but the bike does not move forward enough so I change back to the middle ring straight away.

Also with double chainrings you don't get cross chaining problems so I feel my chains thank me for not doing it (I know I would do it inadvertently).

mowflow

Double or triple is a personal thing. I used to have the standard triple on my mountain bike but found I never used the big chain ring so I removed it where as on my road bike I don't have a granny ring and I don't miss it at all. I live in a particularly hilly and windy part of the country but it's just not a problem.

I'm looking for a new bike at the moment and have been put off a few by the fact that they were only available (in a particular shop) with a triple. I don't there is any shame or anything wrong with having a granny wheel though. Spinning up a hill is less humiliating than pushing.

matt-h

Again, thanks very much for taking the time to post on this thread.

I think i will go for the double (Transmission: front: 50/34, rear: 12-27)

Going to order today - ooh its going to be a painful wait

Matt

night_porter

Very good choice, well done!

Wiggle are pretty good are far as speed is concerned but once it arrives you will forget the "pain" of waiting and have a silly grin on your face for months probably.

Don't forget to post some pics when you have it setup.

Chris James

night_porter wrote:

Also with double chainrings you don't get cross chaining problems so I feel my chains thank me for not doing it (I know I would do it inadvertently).

As stated above, there are pros and cons of compatcs and triples. the gearing range is much the same.

However, doubles have MORE cross chaining as standard than a triple, so are harder on chains.

matt-h

Can anyone also confirm the size i would need?

Inside leg - 75.5cm - 29 and 3qtr inches
Arm Span 182cm - 70 inches
Height 177cm - 5 foot 10 inches

i have worked it out to be 54 Medium using the wiggle calculator.
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/h/option/bikesizeguide



Does this seem right?

Matt

night_porter

Yep that looks right according to their charts.

I am about the same size as you and would also probably be fine on the 54cm or the 56cm and seeing as your arm span is the same as your height go with the 54cm.

In_the_big_ring

matt-h wrote:

Can anyone also confirm the size i would need?

Inside leg - 75.5cm - 29 and 3qtr inches
Arm Span 182cm - 70 inches
Height 177cm - 5 foot 10 inches

i have worked it out to be 54 Medium using the wiggle calculator.
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/h/option/bikesizeguide



Does this seem right?

Matt

I'd maybe consider going for the 56cm. The Focus bikes have a fairly aggressive setup and as your ape index is greater than your height I'd be tempted to go for a larger frame. I'm went according to inside leg measurement when I got mine and due to the aggressive styling found the frame too small and consequently was putting a lot of strain on my shoulders and arms. My previous frame was a 58cm that's why I also went for the smaller frame. I sent the bike back though and upsized to a 60cm (recommended frame according to my height) and that was a perfect fit. With the smaller frame you're going to have to raise the saddle relatively high to get correct saddle height and therefore the handlebars and going to be lower with respect to your saddle height. You may find your shoulders are going to be more over the handlebars so you'll be putting greater strain on your shoulders and arms.

Maybe the best thing is to get in touch with their customer service. They have an instant chat facility and are very helpful and knowledgeable and can make sure you get the correct fit (it may be that the best for you is the 54cm with a longer stem).

keef66

I know it's probably too late for the OP, but I went for a 50/39/30 triple with a 12-25 cassette because I wanted close ratio gears with no big gaps. My knees are knackered, and I hate spinning too fast or grinding too slowly.

My lowest gear is probably only a fraction lower than on a compact double with a 27t sprocket. It's not the spread of gears, it's how close together they are.

I'm happy to lug around that extra chainring and risk the ridicule of other riders cos I can ride up or down anything at my preferred cadence.

In_the_big_ring

Can you double check your inner leg (really try get the ruler up there - its normally easier to get someone to help you as when you bend over to get the spot you lose a bit of height); your measurement seems quite small compared with your height (75.5 x 0.66 = 50cm frame which is an XS in the Focus range).

matt-h

In_the_big_ring wrote:

Can you double check your inner leg (really try get the ruler up there - its normally easier to get someone to help you as when you bend over to get the spot you lose a bit of height); your measurement seems quite small compared with your height (75.5 x 0.66 = 50cm frame which is an XS in the Focus range).

i thought this may come up

i have short legs and a long body, the measurement was taken twice by my wife.

also, someone posted on this thread that the Focus size guide is a little out.

matt

arlowood

matt-h wrote:

Can anyone also confirm the size i would need?

Inside leg - 75.5cm - 29 and 3qtr inches
Arm Span 182cm - 70 inches
Height 177cm - 5 foot 10 inches

i have worked it out to be 54 Medium using the wiggle calculator.
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/h/option/bikesizeguide



Does this seem right?

Matt

Think you may have made a slight error on your conversions. 182cm is 71.5 inches near as dammit so in effect your arm span is greater than your height. As in_the_big_ring states, Wiggle advise going for the larger of two frames if you are between sizes and have a positive APE index as you do.

matt-h

Ok,
the Focus has arrived.

A bit disapointed in the paint finish though.

There is a cloudy'ish line that runs across the legnth of the tubes.
Is this normal?
Has anyone else managed to get rid of it?

Surely they would have noticed it when they built it?

Any advice?

Matt

night_porter

Matt,

Obviously, I haven't seen your bike (you could post a piccy) but if you are disapointed now then you need to do something about it straight away, I would call their customer service line and tell them you are unhappy and you want to return it for a replacement.

Before you call you should do a couple of things:

Do not ride it outside of your house! You can sit on it on a carpetted or tiled floor but do not mess up the tyres or you will not be able to return it.

Sit on it and make sure that it feels like the right size for you. By all means carefully adjust the saddle so that you can be sure it will be the right size if you get a replacement. What size did you order? If it feels wrong then make sure that any replacement is the other size you were considering or bigger/smaller as appropriate.

As for their builder being quality control, this will not happen. You are your quality control inspector and it is your acceptance or refusal which is critical right now after all it is your money.

Keep us updated.

Dave

night_porter

Duplicate post

matt-h

ok, heres some pictures

[img][/img]
















Thoughts?

night_porter

I would not be happy accepting that either, it looks like the laquer has been applied badly and it is quite simply not good enough.

Do what I said in my previous post or you will never be as happy with the bike as you should be.

How is it for size?

matt-h

they have pointed me to this picture.

I dont suppose there is much i can do about it

http://s.wiggle.co.uk/images/cayo-supp-image.JPG

Matt

keef66

In spite of the picture they say this: "We’re so confident that you’ll love our extensive range of bikes, that we’ll let you ride one as your own for a full 30 days and if you don’t like it, simply e-mail us at bikes@wiggle.co.uk and we’ll pick it up from you free of charge for a full refund! Just make sure you keep the box so it can be re-used to send it back.

The 30 day test ride is available on all bikes available at Wiggle so long as the price when purchased had a discount no greater than 15%. 30 day test rides commence from the date of delivery. Intention to return the bike within the parameters of the scheme must be notified by email within 30 calendar days of delivery. This offer applies to all bikes purchased from 20th November 2010."

Send it back if you're not happy with a bike that looks like it was painted by David Blunkett's dog

matt-h

They say its not paint and that that is the effect that raw carbon gives.

Tbh, i still really like the bike, the spec is as i wanted and the reviews/peoples opinions seem really good.

Also, the camera does really magnify the problem and from 2 foot away, you cant see it.

Once i've fallen off, had stone chips i doubt i'll give a sh*t anyway.

Matt