Btwin triban; too cheap and too good to be true.....??

wittetulp

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/triban-3-id_8167038.html

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/triban-5-id_8167039.html

As a experienced mountainbiker wanting to have a go at a bit of roadbiking I was all set to try out and choose between raleigh 100/200, or giant defy 5/4 /3/2/1....

Then i started to look around

and then these models kept popping up in various reviews

Does "you get what you pay for" apply here, or are these just well-specced absolute bargains and opportunities not to be missed and at least to be tried out.....?

gingermagician

Sit tight for another couple of weeks and wait for the sales of 2012 bikes to really get going. You'll get a lot more bike from a more reputable, 'safer' brand for around £500-600 in my opinion.

I bought a (now-departed) Specialized Allez Sport triple for about £550 (iirc) this time last year, which quickly awoke my long-dormant inner roadie - hence the fact it got quickly replaced . Nothing wrong with it, just knew the road was my thing and wanted to upgrade. Which, given the timescale involved (about two months), tells you a lot about how you might end up feeling about either of those Tribans. A Spesh would also be a hell of a lot easier to move on.

lostboysaint

Complete censored . They are massive in Europe where the Decathlon stores are so much more prevalant. They make excellent products that offer great value for money but some people can't see beyond a badge.

gingermagician

Fair enough - maybe reputable was a poor choice of words.

Stand by what I said re: one of the more known brands being a safer choice though - if you decide the road isn't for you, it'll be much easier to shift.

bockers

£300 for an alluminium road frame with Carbon forks and Shimano components. It is a steal, and recent reviews seem to hold with this.

Just bought one for my wife as she wants to get back into road biking again, but on a budget. At this price even if it is a short lived return we will still get back £200 on resale.

As a first bike or an experimental return bike it is hard to beat IMHO.

matt@theforce

I have the Forme5 (flatbar version on the Triban5). I love it and glad I choose it over the more expensive Specialized

one_bad_mofo

About 18 months ago I bought a Sport 5, the precusor to the Triban 5. It gets used for a long road run every weekend and twice during the week on the turbo trainer in the evenings and I've never had an issue. So far maintainence has been a bit of air in the tyres. There's been no need to get a spoke key out or adjust the gear indexing.
If I had the spare cash floating about I would be down to my local Dectahlon to pick up a Facet 5 - http://www.decathlon.co.uk/btwin-facet- ... 27609.html

noisemonkey

I had a b'twin sport 3. Great bike and cheap to. aluminium with carbon forks and seat stays. Second hand for £250. Ran well until bike2work made me upgrade.

Mark Elvin

noisemonkey wrote:

I had a b'twin sport 3. Great bike and cheap to. aluminium with carbon forks and seat stays. Second hand for £250. Ran well until bike2work made me upgrade.

I like your style

bails87

GingerMagician wrote:

Fair enough - maybe reputable was a poor choice of words.

Stand by what I said re: one of the more known brands being a safer choice though - if you decide the road isn't for you, it'll be much easier to shift.

Yes, but you'll have spent double the £ in the first place.

snowjho

For a beginner bike it will not be beaten for value. Given you're an MTB rider first, like myself then its a no brainer. Why pay twice the price for a bike that's for having a go. It will be more bike then you need for a good while even if you "think" you should upgrade.
People have won the TDF on less sophisticated gear.

Don't be a brand snob! Btwin & Decathlon are huge in France and I've always been impressed by their service and quality of goods. I've also got one of their loyalty cards and they keep sending me gift vouchers. Had £30 worth of free stuff so far!