Is a claud butler worth it?

nbuuifx

I've been after a 2nd hand road bike (on a budget) - I ride quite a bit at the moment on a mountain bike (boardman comp on slicks) I'm wanting to see if a road bike is for me but would like to buy one good enough to last me a bit if I do enjoy it.

I was looking for something like a specialized allez or boardman road, but having mentioned it to a few friends someone has come back saying that someone they know is selling a road bike. It's a claud butler and I think it's a San Remo. They're asking £150 - is it worth it or would I be better waiting for something better to come along?

dav3e

If £150 is the sort of money you're looking to pay out, then i don't imagine you are going to get much choice. Having said that if the San Remo is in decent condition, it would be a reasonable buy that should last long enough for you to decide if road bikes are for you.

desweller

At that price point you'd be better off ensuring that you can spot signs of a hard life, e.g. dry or rumbly bearings, worn cassette and chainring teeth etc etc. The brand and model of bike will almost be incidental.

nbuuifx

I'm thinking an absolute max budget of £300 but that would have to be for something really good.

I'm fairly good with bearings etc, and have replaced the Bearings in my rear hub on the MTB along with the cassette, the chain and the bottom bracket a couple of times.

I just want to make sure it would be worth it, rather than just sticking with the MTB on slicks? I couldn't find a weight for the san remo but a review said it was on the heavy side - so not sure how much difference I would get between that and the boardman comp, obviously the geometry would be different but would it be enough? The review I read also said that the san remo had odd gearing.

desweller

A mate of mine has one, it is deffo on the porky side; enough that, when you pick it up, you mutter, 'Crikey!' under your breath.

The Boardman would be significantly lighter.

Remarkable

Ok..so I googled a little and found this:

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/cla ... 8#features

Is this the model or similar?
On the assumption that it is.......the first thing you should do before buying a road bike is make sure the frame is the right size for you. The best bike you can buy is the one that fits.

The gearing is shimano's entry level groupset which I use on my winter bike and it is perfectly useable and reliable although the cables may need slight adjustment from time to time in my experience..two minute job really. The "odd" gearing the review is referring to is the chainset. Usually a compact comes in the form of 34/50 but this bike comes with 39/50. Its no big deal, unless your planning on going up some pretty steep slopes. Compact chainsets can be found pretty easily secondhand etc if you feel you need easier gears. The rear cassette comes in the form of a 13/26 again its not an issue, it just means that you may lack that top gear for down hills in races/group rides etc. 8 speed cassettes aren't to costy to replace either. The wheelset is a solid 32 spoke wheel, probably where a good bit of the weight of the bike is but they look strong enough and are round (hopefully). The steel fork contributes to the overall weight as well but will be every bit as comfortable as carbon forks, if not better. The kenda tyres aren't great though..

Overall, 11.7 kg isn't really heavy when you consider its for a 59cm frame. Most £1000 bikes weigh in over 9 kg and when taking into account your overall mass, its not too important. Nearly all entry level bikes are the same anyway, its just with trek etc your paying for a brand name. If the bikes in good shape, then why not? Use the extra money for some cycling shoes, pedals, jerseys, pumps, spares etc.

I hope this helps a bit. :shock: Lets us know how you get on!

smidsy

In my experience of second hand you can get a fair bike for £300 if you know what you are looking at.

All the main brands (Trek, Giant , Cannondale, Specialized etc.) do a bike for under £1000 new, which after 5 or 6 years, gets to £300 or less depending on condition and the kit on them.

Best thing is to look at lots before parting with you're hard earned and take someone else with you to give a second opinion.

If the Claud is in nice condition and you are not sure if you are going to like road riding then it may well be Ok as it can hardly be worth much less when you come to sell on.