Whyte cambridge

rich2408

Hi all,just joined forum so bear with my lack of knowledge.Im looking at buying a hybrid in the price range of £700 to £1000 ish.The thought of ,disc brakes,nice light frame and forks with nice looks has driven me towards the Whyte Cambridge .Could i have your thoughts on the Cambridge or on any other with similar spec or slightly better.
Thanks
Rich

sigma

Using a Whyte Portobello (£535, next model down?) for my commute at the moment, fairly happy with it thus far. Only real complaint is the rear geometry will sometimes catch my heel if my foot is angled (and the bike also won't sit on my bike stand easily). If you take it for a test ride it should be fairly easy to see what I mean.
In hindsight I would have been better to spend more on a tourer with dropped bars but that's more down to individual preference/usage, the bike itself is working absolutely fine.

rich2408

Thanks for the reply sigma,i have noticed the heel catching has been mentioned a couple of times now on different forum threads which is a concern.The other bike which was going to be worth a look was a Specialized Sirrus Comp Disc 2013 .This looks a similar spec and nice looks,any thoughts?

sigma

Sorry, I don't know enough about bikes to start comparing parts/components though if you've not found any major problems on the web I'd say it's just down to personal preference on the test-ride.

I would recommend trying to get a '12 bike whilst they're stocked and on sale though, the money you save can go towards equipment/clothing (which is also important) or your n+1 for which you'll have a much better idea of what you want/need

apreading

Totally different bikes. I test rode a Whyte portobello, sirrus comp and boardman team hybrid.

The Whye was really lively and exciting to ride but a bit harsh and not much clearance around the tyres to fit bigger ones. Really good spec components though.

Sirrus was the opposite - really comfy cruiser with a laid back feel and riding position but just no va-va-voom! Really poor spec of components on the Specialized though - shockingly poor for the money, in fact.

Boardman was the ideal mix of the two - all the excitement and great spec of the Whyte but slightly more comfy and with bags of room to fit bigger tyres (up to 35c) if you want (and room for mudguards too) - I was going to but after a year and 4000 miles havent got round to it. Much more racy than the Sirrus and better value.

You should get your nearest Evans to give you a test ride on the Spesh and Whyte - they will ship them in for you and should stock both brands. You really need to try them because they are COMPLETELY different animals and if you are pondering the two then you need to work out what type of bike you want before you go any further.

If you use clipless pedals then the heel catching shouldnt be an issue as the clips will keep your feet in line better and stop this happenning. If you dont use clipless then you should...!

rich2408

Thanks for your replys gents,a lot of food for thought.Not going to rush in and spend a lot till I'm sure of what I want and from what your saying a test ride is vital.
A friend has suggested a ride to planet x to take a look so that's another option thrown in the hat.
I'm trying to get a bike for a 10 mile ride to work and back ,but also something I can clock s few miles up at weekend if I get chance.decision,decision.

mountainlion

Just in case it's any use to you I bought a Whyte Cambridge 2012 which just arrived today for £675 at TriUk. I haven't taken it out yet as I don't want my first journey on it to be in pouring rain I can see that your heels could be knocked but otherwise it seems a nice looking light bike with a good spec.

rich2408

That's a cracking price for that bike ,will be very intrested to hear what you think after your first ride.Will have a look on net at prices but the best I came across was £720 from JE James.

Grabeef

I've recently bought the Stirling to use as a winter commuter. No problems with heels catching although I do use spd's. I did end up lowering / flipping the stem and swapping the riser bars for proper flat bars which to me has improved the riding position. In hindsight maybe I should have looked at the Ridgeback Flights but if you want road gearing, discs and flatbars then there doesn't seem to be much choice. Note that on the 2013 models the front gearing has changed from 50-34 to "urban" gearing of 48-32. Not much use over 10 miles. And unless you have some very severe climbs you will end up swapping the rear cassette.
The bike is reasonably light and will get up to a decent speed but read the description. Fast urban. On my road bike I am faster and can sprint quicker. If you are doing a 10 mile commute (each way I assume) you will be a lot more comfortable on a drop barred bike.

passout

Look at Genesis bikes at Real Cycles - they have some discounted cross bikes at the moment. On One have some urban bikes with alfine gears that are interesting. Boardmans look good too (as above).