New or used?

Moominman2

Hello,

Is it worth buying a bike second hand?

Obviously you get more for your money...but if something goes wrong on a used bike, would you have to fork out more money for repair? As if you buy a bike new, you always have the safety of taking it back to where you got it for repair etc, possibly at a cheaper price or under warranty.

What do you do?

Thanks
Luke

rolf_f

Anything from a missing bolt to a broken frame. If you know what you are doing, second hand is great. If it turns out to be broken, any repairs you can't sort yourself could easily outweigh any savings you made on the initial purchase.

smidsy

I bought used and it has been fine. Of course it is like buying anything new or used - you can have problems. Personally the fact I could get something for a third of the cost was enough to make it worth the risk.

There are not many things that you can miss on a bike and most things are fairly easily fixable so it's a lot less fraught than a second hand car for example (which have lots of hidden parts) but you have to be confident enough to check them over.

Neale1978

If its carbon then buy new

Moominman2

Thanks for the replies. Looks like the best thing to do.

Why buy a bike new if it is carbon? I was looking at getting a carbon bike...

Thanks
Luke

rolf_f

Moominman2 wrote:

Thanks for the replies. Looks like the best thing to do.

Why buy a bike new if it is carbon? I was looking at getting a carbon bike...

Thanks
Luke

The argument would go that carbon can be damaged without it really showing visible damage. But then any bike made from any material that has been repainted could be the same. As long as you know what you are doing, there should be nothing wrong with buying a second hand carbon bike. Just be more careful about the overall condition, who is selling it and what their terms are. But you can get stuff from Ribble and Planet X so cheaply that there perhaps isn't much need to go second hand.

Moominman2

Ahh ok thank you!

Also coming back to Ribble...I saw my uncle bought one recently and because I'm getting back into cycling, have never heard of them! Checked them out, and look like a great contender for my next one.

What is your opinion on these?

Thanks
Luke

northpole

Ribble are great value.

Personally, I would always invest a bit of time and keep a look out for an outstanding previously owned bike. Depends how risk averse you are. Main thing to check very carefully is the frame - most other components are easily serviced/ repaired for comparatively small beer.

Peter

Moominman2

Lovely, cheers for the advice.

Luke