Boardman CX Owners Thread

markhewitt1978

Sorry to hijack the thread .

I've been thinking of getting a new bike to go alongside my Scott CR1 as it's not really a winter friendly bike. So I was thinking of a CX bike, both for the winter and so I can do railway paths etc in the summer, as well as possibly using it for commuting.

So I've been looking at the Boardman CX Comp as at £600 it's the one of the cheapest CX bikes around. I'm hoping that British Cycling membership will give the 10% off which should bring it down to £540.

What's the thoughts on the Comp? A decent enough bike? Obviously coming from full carbon it won't be as quick but then it's not supposed to be?

CXrider

Had my 2014 CX for a few days now, been out on it a few times, covered only about 50 miles in total.

I have to say, my first impressions are beyond fantastic.

Remember.. I have had no road bike, or any real bike experience, since a couple of decades ago, not including a mountain bike which is very different.

As I have nothing to compare it to, I think the brakes are fine, the seat is great, the response is awesome, and the gears are a dream. I LOVE those brakes on the top bar, what a great idea.

I can appreciate that if you come from another bike then all the things I mention will be alien and strange.
To me though, the bike has given me a new lease of life.

One thing I can't get around is how quiet the bike is.. no rattles, no clicks, no nothing...

markhewitt1978

Which one do you have? Comp or Team?

timothyw

From earlier in the thread, he has the Team.

I'm curious about the Comp too for similar reasons - I have a carbon road bike now, it's nice in the summer but I want something for the winter - bigger tyres and disc brakes seem like a good idea for my wet commutes.

For one thing it will mean I won't have to get used to sram brifters (I ride shimano on my current bike) which is definitely putting me off the team one.

9 speed gearing should also hold up against the commute a bit better with it's larger chain.

The quoted 11.5kg weight is obviously a little off putting, but then this isn't going to be my no.1 bike (and by saving money here I can more easily justify getting a new no.1!)

Has anyone actually had a look/test ride with the Comp?

markhewitt1978

Had a quick look at both of them in Halfords today. Of the two the Comp looks nicer, but hard to tell really in the shop and the bikes were different sizes. Not sure what the little brake levers on the tops are, or what purpose they serve.

apreading

The levers are often called 'suicide levers' or 'interruptor levers'. This type of thing was very common on bikes in the 80s and I remember my bike had them when I was a teenager. There is all sorts of discussion/opinion on them like http://www.bikeforums.net/archive/index ... 90336.html for example.

There seems to be some suggestion that braking in the drops is improved by removing them on the Boardmans - not sure why though or if this is fact or just supposition...

andyrr

These levers are also common on CX race bikes as they allow braking from additional positions over just the normal shifter brakes.

fret

I find them very handy for city riding and also on long off-road descents.

I had my first puncture of the year today :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: :evil: :evil:

The good news was that it wasn't on the CX, it was on the Ribble which does not have Gatorskins on it. The flint was a huge lump and I reckon would have punctured anything though.

salsa fargo

im glad for the guy posting a picture of the cracked frame on the boardman team cx, i dont feel bad now but i realy did like the boardman bike.ive found this it looks realy sweet all city macho man disc http://www.flickr.com/photos/73799833@N ... sQP-7xBhzd

newtonuk

salsa fargo wrote:

im glad for the guy posting a picture of the cracked frame on the boardman team cx, i dont feel bad now but i realy did like the boardman bike.ive found this it looks realy sweet all city macho man disc http://www.flickr.com/photos/73799833@N ... sQP-7xBhzd

Nice looking bike! I'm still holding out for my CX Team, I can't grumble with the deal Halfords have offered, so I'm hanging on.

phil_hg_uk

I am having trouble deciding what size CX Comp to get, I have had a look at the Medium (53) and while it fits it maybe a little big on the reach and there is certainly not as much seat post showing as there is on my Specialized.

I currently have a Specialized Secteur Elite it is a 54 I am 5 foot 7 with a 30 inside leg does anyone know how boardman are supposed to measure up compared with Specialized as I just get the niggling feeling it is to big and they didnt have a Small in to try for comparison.

fret

You don't need a lot of seatpost. The reach is more important. I have a short body and at 5ft 9ins I have had several 50-52cm bikes and felt fine, in fact one of them I did 260 miles in 3 days with no gripes.
They do say go one size smaller for CX bikes, so the small would be better.

phil_hg_uk

fret wrote:

You don't need a lot of seatpost. The reach is more important. I have a short body and at 5ft 9ins I have had several 50-52cm bikes and felt fine, in fact one of them I did 260 miles in 3 days with no gripes.
They do say go one size smaller for CX bikes, so the small would be better.

Thanks I have had a word and they are ordering in a size smaller so I can see if it is any better.

antsmithmk

Picked mine up today

antsmithmk

3% off via quidco, 10% off on halfords website, refund in store and then used bc membership to get another 10% off...

First shake down tonight... It's very comfy, very comfy indeed. Road bike is a 56cm, got the 55.5cm yet it feels 'big'... On the flat it shifts downhill it shifts, slightly sluggish on slopes as you would expect. On the flat it rolls so smoothly. The Sora is, well, Sora! Better than the clicking thumb version but still not as crisp as tiagra or 105. Cornering it feels so solid, you can lean it in and carry the speed and yet jump on the pedals and it scoots away. I'm going to enter a cross race on it!

Package

Anyone found a good paint touch up colour match for the pre 2014 model (grey paint), mines had a couple of scratches from being clumsy and on the car rack taking the old girl to abroad. Nowt major but good to keep on top of them.

Just to chuck my two penneth in on the tyre commentry, 25mm michy pro4 endurance for me, holding up canny with no, no i cant say it, you know what i mean, yet, over typicaly rough roads, thorns etc. come up as 27mm in reality, and way more comfy than the schwalbe things i had before, that were fag paper thin pretty quick, and were more like 23mm than 25mm. Not knocking Schwalbe's in general, as got some marathon extreme 35mm a couple of seasons ago, which i use on my other cross bike for offroading (but never used in 50min cross races) and they are superb. done 3 peaks twice no bother, wear really slowly and seem bomb proof. A good investment if you do lots of offroading on the CX (roll well on road too).

CXrider

I see the recall is now official for the Team CX.

I have noticed a small Y-shaped paint crack below the seat pillar on one side.
I can't see this being any issue at all and it doesn't bother me.. the bike will get scratches and marks through use.
To me this looks like such a minor thing, the recall will just be a hassle.

However, I guess the flipside is that it is actually indicative of a larger issue and that the frame itself might be compromised, so if they want the bikes back then we have to go along with it.

I am liking the bike so much I wouldn't have cared if it had scratches all over it really. To me, it's about how I feel ON the bike.

markhewitt1978

antsmithmk wrote:

3% off via quidco, 10% off on halfords website, refund in store and then used bc membership to get another 10% off...

So for £599 Comp how does that work,
3% = £18
10% = £59

So the discount would be 18+59+59 = £136 making the bike £463, is that right?

apreading

I get 4.5% for using a card that is registered with Quidco in a Halfords store.

If the bike is in stock at the store, reserve online with payment in store - 10% off.
A further 10% off at the till.
4.5% of the resulting bill as quidco (Halfords are slow to pay though).

So on £599 that would be reserved at £540, £54 off for British Cycling so £486 at the till with £21.87 quidco back. So effectively £464.13.

If they dont have them in stock at store and have to ship them though, you need to pay online and cant use the British Cycling discount and only get the 3% quidco. Stores may be willing to refund when you pick up and then re-sell it to you with both discounts but that would be at their discretion and many dont seem willing to do this.

fret

Now in full winter kit. 11kg as you see it minus the overtrousers.



CX frame, forks & handlebar stem
Bontrager XXX carbon seat post
Specialized Phenom saddle
PRO-PLT 42cm 'bars
SRAM Red shifters
SRAM Force front mech
SRAM Force Chainset
SRAM APEX rear Wi-Fli
OEM Chain
Avid BB5 brakes
Top levers
Kinesis Crosslight CX Disc wheels
Conti Gatorskin Hardshell 28mm tyres
SKS Chromoplastic P35 mudguards
Shimano M520 SPD's
Misc lights
25 year old Mount Zefal pump
Tools & 2 tubes in the seatpack
Waterproof trousers in the bottle cage. Upgrades still to follow when I can afford it.
Rear Force Wi-Fli
FSA handlebar stem
Carbon 'bars possibly.
BB7 brakes

Jamboness

Looks like you're all set Fret I'll defo need to get some of those SKS Chromoplastics. Went to work the other day and had a big line up my back by the time I got there :roll: Also loving your 28mm gators.

F.Y.I. I got my "6 week free service" the other day at Halfords although I've had the bike for about 3months. Whilst people do generally say that the Halfords mechanics are brutal, my bike came back feeling tighter and more together. They also just popped on a handlebar plug for free without me asking so now I don't need to look on ebay. All in all, my service has been good there but I suspect the quality differs depending on which store and who you get to deal with.

fret

:oops:
I use the mudguards all year round, only taking them off in muddy off-road conditions. They just clear the OEM tyres. Perhaps I will buy wider ones next time.

Glad Halfords do some things right. I never bothered taking mine back in as it was too much hassle, especially as it gets used every day. Basically it gets cleaned once a month or more, chain lubed every week and cleaned and the brakes adjusted constantly. Full strip down and service every 6 months,due November but it can wait until I am off in December after the Wiggle Fallen Leaves event..

antsmithmk

apreading wrote:

I get 4.5% for using a card that is registered with Quidco in a Halfords store.

If the bike is in stock at the store, reserve online with payment in store - 10% off.
A further 10% off at the till.
4.5% of the resulting bill as quidco (Halfords are slow to pay though).

So on £599 that would be reserved at £540, £54 off for British Cycling so £486 at the till with £21.87 quidco back. So effectively £464.13.

If they dont have them in stock at store and have to ship them though, you need to pay online and cant use the British Cycling discount and only get the 3% quidco. Stores may be willing to refund when you pick up and then re-sell it to you with both discounts but that would be at their discretion and many dont seem willing to do this.

They can't refuse you the BC discount. It says clearly that it can be used with all other offers!

fret

They can refuse whatever they want. You only get the BC discount if you pay in store.

apreading

antsmithmk wrote:

apreading wrote:

I get 4.5% for using a card that is registered with Quidco in a Halfords store.

If the bike is in stock at the store, reserve online with payment in store - 10% off.
A further 10% off at the till.
4.5% of the resulting bill as quidco (Halfords are slow to pay though).

So on £599 that would be reserved at £540, £54 off for British Cycling so £486 at the till with £21.87 quidco back. So effectively £464.13.

If they dont have them in stock at store and have to ship them though, you need to pay online and cant use the British Cycling discount and only get the 3% quidco. Stores may be willing to refund when you pick up and then re-sell it to you with both discounts but that would be at their discretion and many dont seem willing to do this.

They can't refuse you the BC discount. It says clearly that it can be used with all other offers!

They can refuse to refund you for an order you paid for online, with an online discount and refuse to resell it back to you with the online discount applied. If the discount is in store as well as online then they are quite likely to but they still arent legally obliged to sell you the bike that you just got refunded for - they could insist on sending it back to head office. Many of the 10% offers are online only though - even though that still counts if you just reserve it online and pay in store.

antsmithmk

No point arguing over it. They will give you the extra 10% off in store with BC discount. Just smile sweetly and try to be pleasant.

markhewitt1978

It's nice to see the discount is a real one. Not like in the Wiggle shop for example where it only gives you 10% off RRP, when many items are already reduced by at least that anyway.

fret

I tried to get a 10% extra discount with a student card but they wouldn't compound them, bastids.

I was reading this morning about the Cannondale Super Hi Mod or whatever it is as it's no longer available apart from exisiting stock and wondered why the old CX9 was more "flighty" as I have often pointed out. The only thing I can assume is that the Cannondale had a 30mm shorter rear stay length and 10mm shorter top tube making the wheelbase 40mm shorter. Slightly taller head tube but the CX9 was a genuine race bike. Possibly this is the reason for me being ever so slightly disappointed with the bike.

robbate

WOW !!! After purchasing second hand ( pretty much new ) avid BB7 SL off here I put it into my LBS yesterday and got it back today ( also fitted the new lizard skins dsp bar tape which is brilliant !) and all I can say is the brakes are shocking !! They stop you in an instant and I'm no thin Jim , I'm 17 stone !! For those asking on the thread the bb5 are nothing similar to the bb7 , the bb7 are far far better !!

newtonuk

Yes! Halfords have agreed to let me take the CX Team that I bought and replace it with one that doesn't have a flawed frame when the new stock arrives in about 6 weeks time.

The management staff at the Wakefield store have been very helpful and if anyone is thinking of buying form Halfords in Wakefield, Craig, Andy and Connon (I think) were on the ball there.