Hybrid Boardman Pro or Giant Defy 1

sss

Hi everyone,

I've decided to sign up to the cycle to work scheme through work. i have a £1000 to play with and I was wondering which bike to buy??

I will be travelling 4 miles to work and 4 miles back on roads. So no rough terrain, no mud, grass, gravel etc. I dont have any plans on going on any long distance rides just yet.

So I've seen the Boardman Pro Hybrid at my local Halfords, and I've also seen the Giant Defy 1 online with the drop bar. Never used a bike with a drop bar so im not sure how comfortable it will be. I know these are two very different bikes and that is why I am not sure which will be better for me.

Any opinions, advice, suggestions for what i should go for???

Thanks

FJJ

I'm in a similar position at the moment and decided on the Boardman CX Team, it's a cyclocross bike so more suitable for towpaths and cycle paths etc. than a road bike but still has drop bars and is faster than a hybrid. It will also take a pannier rack and mudguards and is £100 less than the hybrid pro.

sss

Thanks for the reply. just read up on a few reviews for the Boardman CX Team. Do you use it mainly for commuting? Is it comfortable on a long ride???

FJJ

I've just ordered it, planning to pick it up next month when my LOC arrives.

I'm using a Carrera Subway Hybrid at the moment and gone for the CX to improve comfort on longer rides - better riding position more hand options with the drop bars etc.

My commute is mainly cycle paths and towpaths so the CX seemed ideal. I sometimes commute from home and sometimes from a park and ride so my daily mileage varies from 35 to 14 miles depending which option I choose on a given day!

signs

hi, i commuted 20 miles a day on road on a 20 year old mtd bike with road tires for a few years
then dicided to take the plung and bought a boardman pro hybrid put on some clippless pedals
and some good quality specialised bar ends for climbing, and hav'nt looked back great bike and kit for the money, hope this helps

cookdn

FJJ wrote:

I'm in a similar position at the moment and decided on the Boardman CX Team, it's a cyclocross bike so more suitable for towpaths and cycle paths etc. than a road bike but still has drop bars and is faster than a hybrid. It will also take a pannier rack and mudguards and is £100 less than the hybrid pro.

+1. Bought a Boardman CX Team last September as my first road bike. I was looking for something that had the flexibility to accommodate proper mud guards and a pannier rack for commuting. The Giant Defy 1 is a nice spec, but I can't see any mounting lugs on the frame.



A quick Google search reveals that Giant do some Defy specific mudguards but unless you are using 23mm tyres then they probably won't fit due to the tight clearance between the tyre and the brakes.

Giant Mudguards

Giant Mudguards - Fitting Discussion - cyclechat.net

In contrast the CX Team is relatively accommodating. I swapped out the 35mm Ritchey Excavader knobblies for 28mm Continental Gatorskins. Not sure how narrow you could go on the Ritchey Pro Disc rims, meanredspider could probably tell you.

essex-commuter has posted decent pics of both guards and a rack fitted.

Best regards
David

sss

Well I'll definitely need mud guards for the winter so the boardman is sounding like the appropriate choice. If anyone has any other suggestions please let me know.

theslowone

Hi
I have a 2010 Giant Defy 2 with Defy mudguards and 25mm tyres. No problems with the fit or clearance under the calipers as the Defy mudgaurds have a small cut out section in this area. That said I am not happy with the quality of the mudguards I have broken 2 rear ones on a year (approx 120m per week) they seem to suffer metal fatigue at the centre mounting lug. I am however well chuffed with the bike in general, I moved to this from a Scott Hybrid (other option at the time was a Spec Tricross)

signs

hi, i have race blade mudguards on my boardman pro, they attach to the forks only with rubber tires
so you don't need the bolt lugs on the frame

sss

Well at the moment I am leaning towards the Hybrid or the CX due to mudguards issues on the Defy.

I will also be hoping to use the bike at the local park when riding with the family. No extreme conditions. Just on sunny days, on dry grass and small hills. Would you say a Hybrid or CX??

apreading

sss wrote:

Well at the moment I am leaning towards the Hybrid or the CX due to mudguards issues on the Defy.

I will also be hoping to use the bike at the local park when riding with the family. No extreme conditions. Just on sunny days, on dry grass and small hills. Would you say a Hybrid or CX??

I think either would be fine and not alot of difference. The only question is whether you think you would use the drops or ride on the tops. If you are not going to use the drops then I say (although others would argue with me!) that you should get the flat bars so that your brakes/gear levers are in a place you can use them sensibly.

The boardman Hybrid/CX have a very similar (possibly identical) frame and both will take wider tyres and mudguards. For anything remotely off road, you will want a minimum of the 28mm tyres that come on the boardman hybrid but possibly 32 or 35s as I didnt find canal towpaths that comfortable on 28s. The CX comes with wider tyres fitted as standard, but that shouldnt be a reason to go for that bike as tyres are easily changed - converting from flats to drops or vice versa is much more difficult and not really viable.

The Hybrid uses hydraulic discs as opposed to the mechanicals on the CX bike, so the hybrid ones are better, but either will be fine and alot better than rim brakes on a road bike.

So its just a judgement call on whether or not you want the drops...

JamesB5446

apreading wrote:

If you are not going to use the drops then I say (although others would argue with me!) that you should get the flat bars so that your brakes/gear levers are in a place you can use them sensibly.

I'll argue with you on this one.
I'm on the drops maybe 10% of the time, but the brake levers and shifters are always in a sensible place.
On the hoods they're within perfect reach. If I'm not riding in traffic I'll go on the tops or shoulders of the bars.
There are loads more options to a drop bar, they're much more comfy than flats, imo. Some people seem to think that any bike with drops will be 'racy' and uncomfortable (mine is, but that's because it's Italian, not cos it has drop bars).

On a related topic, do the Boardman CX and hybrids have the same gearing or is the CX a bit lower?
Oh, and does the CX have extra brake levers on the tops of the bars?

apreading

JamesB5446 wrote:

apreading wrote:

If you are not going to use the drops then I say (although others would argue with me!) that you should get the flat bars so that your brakes/gear levers are in a place you can use them sensibly.

I'll argue with you on this one.
I'm on the drops maybe 10% of the time, but the brake levers and shifters are always in a sensible place.
On the hoods they're within perfect reach. If I'm not riding in traffic I'll go on the tops or shoulders of the bars.
There are loads more options to a drop bar, they're much more comfy than flats, imo. Some people seem to think that any bike with drops will be 'racy' and uncomfortable (mine is, but that's because it's Italian, not cos it has drop bars).

On a related topic, do the Boardman CX and hybrids have the same gearing or is the CX a bit lower?
Oh, and does the CX have extra brake levers on the tops of the bars?

Not saying you are wrong, but flats are more comfy for me. Drop bars are generally too narrow and using the brakes and gears from the hoods feels far more awkward than those I have on flat bar bikes. People that like drops insist that flat bars are bad but they do work better for quite a few people. 3500 miles on my flat bar boardman and I dont regret it one bit and dont feel uncomfortable at all.

Having said that, you are right - I had forgotten that the boardman CX has brake levers on the flat part too, but gears can still only be changed on the hoods/drops.

And yes, I had also forgotten that the CX is geared slightly lower but the range is close enough and wide enough on both that for the OP I dont think it will make much difference.

JamesB5446

I guess the bars thing just comes down to personal taste or what you're used to.
My daily ride is a Dutch town bike with swept back bars.