Bargain for around £500

JeSuisLuke
JeSuisLuke Posts: 14
edited September 2012 in Road buying advice
Would be extremely grateful to anyone who could aid me in my first road bike search, I have up to around £500 to spend, are there any bargains out there? I am 5'8 and would fit a medium sized bike.

thank you for any posts

Comments

  • team47b
    team47b Posts: 6,425
    What will you be doing with it, commuting/weekends/countryside ambles etc, are you new to cycling, new bike, second hand, bit more info...
    my isetta is a 300cc bike
  • will be looking to use it to do charitable long distances but more importantly to do local amateur races
  • Im in the same position but seem to have missed a lot of the 2012 deals with only the extremely small sizes left on a lot of the best looking deals.

    This at Leisure Wheels was one of the better deals I found on a 2012 Specialized Allez 16 and might be worth a look. Done a bit of diggind on here and they seem to be a legitimate company so no worries with ordering over the net.

    http://www.leisurewheels.co.uk/products ... 0b0s6p9600
  • gabriel959
    gabriel959 Posts: 4,227
    For that amount of money the Decathlon Triban is unbeatable.
    x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
    Commuting / Winter rides - Jamis Renegade Expert
    Pootling / Offroad - All-City Macho Man Disc
    Fast rides Cannondale SuperSix Ultegra
  • gabriel959 wrote:
    For that amount of money the Decathlon Triban is unbeatable.

    I've ridden monuntain bikes for years but find myself really enjoying the road a lot recently and wanted something to dip a toe in the water of the road world.

    I've seen a lot of good things said about the Tribans on these forums and the net in general. At the moment im torn between spending my budget on something like the Triban 3 and use the change to upgrade the wheels/tyres, clipless pedals and shoes and some more appropriate clothing than my MTB gear. Or do I spend the lot on something like Triban 5 or the entry level Trek, Specialized or Giant and just ride it as it comes in my old gear until I've a few more spare pennies to do the extras?

    Anyone care to make a decent case for either option? No matter what I do im really looking forward to having something more appropriate for road riding than my hefty Kona MTB
  • gabriel959
    gabriel959 Posts: 4,227
    I would get the Triban 3 and use the rest to buy bits like pedals, shoes and may be some bib shorts and a jersey. If you like it enough you will find out in no time that you would like to upgrade to something much better anyway.

    That specialized has got similar spec to the Triban 3 but is nearly £200 cheaper.
    x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
    Commuting / Winter rides - Jamis Renegade Expert
    Pootling / Offroad - All-City Macho Man Disc
    Fast rides Cannondale SuperSix Ultegra
  • DMcgr
    DMcgr Posts: 20
    neilhannam wrote:
    Im in the same position but seem to have missed a lot of the 2012 deals with only the extremely small sizes left on a lot of the best looking deals.

    This at Leisure Wheels was one of the better deals I found on a 2012 Specialized Allez 16 and might be worth a look. Done a bit of diggind on here and they seem to be a legitimate company so no worries with ordering over the net.

    http://www.leisurewheels.co.uk/products ... 0b0s6p9600

    I'm new to road biking myself and have also been looking for a good deal, this bike will put you ver budget but I think will be well worth it...http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=75534
  • gabriel959 wrote:
    I would get the Triban 3 and use the rest to buy bits like pedals, shoes and may be some bib shorts and a jersey. If you like it enough you will find out in no time that you would like to upgrade to something much better anyway.

    That specialized has got similar spec to the Triban 3 but is nearly £200 cheaper.

    Appreciate the advice and it was the way I was leaning too. Now just need to get down there and hope they have one in my size as i've seen a few people struggling with availability of the most common sizes.
  • DMcgr wrote:
    neilhannam wrote:
    Im in the same position but seem to have missed a lot of the 2012 deals with only the extremely small sizes left on a lot of the best looking deals.

    This at Leisure Wheels was one of the better deals I found on a 2012 Specialized Allez 16 and might be worth a look. Done a bit of diggind on here and they seem to be a legitimate company so no worries with ordering over the net.

    http://www.leisurewheels.co.uk/products ... 0b0s6p9600

    I'm new to road biking myself and have also been looking for a good deal, this bike will put you ver budget but I think will be well worth it...http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=75534

    Thanks for the help, little beyond my budget and would leave me on stock pedals, MTB shoes and clothes for a few months whilst I recovered from the initial spend. Think the Triban 3 is for me to start and we'll look at an upgrade it 12 months once im completely hooked.
  • gabriel959
    gabriel959 Posts: 4,227
    No worries. If you want to spend a bit more you can always get one of the Merlin own-brand ones...

    http://www.merlincycles.com/bike-shop/b ... oad-bikes/

    They have an extra 10% off (when you put them in your basket) on the quoted price plus you can also go through Quidco and get a bit extra off.
    x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
    Commuting / Winter rides - Jamis Renegade Expert
    Pootling / Offroad - All-City Macho Man Disc
    Fast rides Cannondale SuperSix Ultegra
  • gabriel959
    gabriel959 Posts: 4,227
    you can see one here...

    viewtopic.php?f=40044&t=12876213
    x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
    Commuting / Winter rides - Jamis Renegade Expert
    Pootling / Offroad - All-City Macho Man Disc
    Fast rides Cannondale SuperSix Ultegra
  • Just spoke to my local Decathlon in Nottingham, Triban 3's out of stock in every size except for junior sizes country wide until end of September or early October.

    Guy I spoke to blamed it on the recent magazine review
  • Thanks for the replies guys, very helpful. Would this be considered a good value for money bike? Would it be competitive enough to compete in amateur races? http://www.wiggle.co.uk/felt-z95-2012/