hive mind advice please

Sharkyssurfers

well i am a bit confused.com at the moment looking for a new winter bike, to preserve the scotts components till next spirng, i was toying with the idea of getting a cyclocross bike for the winter commute, thinking that disc brakes and bigger wheels will be safer options in the coming months, so have narrowed it down to two options on them the whyte saxon cross 2013 and the felt 65x which i know kb has just brought and waiting for a review. But just went for a browse in cyclesurgery in victoria and another bike has thrown a spanner in the works, the new specialized sectuar sport with disc brakes at £1,000 with bigger wheels, it doesnt class itself as a cyclocross bike, but looks like one to me. So after this long and painful reading what would you guys advise be the best option. :?

BelgianBeerGeek

As it's for a winter commute, will mudguards be added? If the spesh doesn't have the fittings, that might go against it. But on the whole, for a road commute it will probably be smoother with road tyres etc rather than 'cross knobblies.

bails87

BelgianBeerGeek wrote:

As it's for a winter commute, will mudguards be added? If the spesh doesn't have the fittings, that might go against it. But on the whole, for a road commute it will probably be smoother with road tyres etc rather than 'cross knobblies.

True, but changing to slicks isn't a big issue.

THe spesh looks good tbh. But you'll probably want mudguard fixing points as said already. And what is the tyre clearance like? Do you want to be able to run 35mm Winter Marathons on it?

Sharkyssurfers

yeah i did have a good look at that and there are lugs for the mudguards, which is what got me thinking shall i go for that now, plus i think it looks good, regardless of what people think about specialized, i think i have maybe sold myself on it, but in the dizziness of decisions!!!

Sharkyssurfers

bails it looks like it has enough clearance

heres a linky poos for you guys to have a butchers.

http://www.cyclesurgery.com/specialized-secteur-sport-disc-2013/road-bikes/bikes-components-bikewear/fcp-product/45947

kelsen

Unless you end up doing cyclocross, I don't think there's a real justification for getting a cross bike. Having previously used a Tricross for my commute, there's no real benefit compared to the C'dale Synapse I now use, and if anything, it was heavier and the cantilever brakes weren't as good as calipers. It did allow clearance for bigger wheels and mudguards, but a lot of sportive bikes, which I think the secteur is, allow for that also.

bails87

The reason I chose a CX rather than road bike was for tyre/mudguard clearance and disc brakes.

If there's a road bike that has those then I'd pick that rather than a CX bike, unless you're planning on doing CX.

London_Falcon

Sharky - tragically I am now on first name terms with the manager of the Cycle Surgery in Moorgate. We've been discussing what I need to replace my current commuter (Spesh Sirrus) and he was very keen to show me the disc braked Secteur. Must say I'm very tempted.

DrLex

Sharkyssurfers wrote:

[...]
heres a linky poos for you guys to have a butchers.

Looks very smart, but then as a Roubaix owner, I'm biased!
Aesthetic niggle might be the straight cables under the curved top tube.

rubertoe

Be interested to know what the new Sora 3500 STI are like.

Anonymous

Given you also now get the paddle downshifters with Sora, seems a great buy.

Sharkyssurfers

yeah i think is the disc brakes that are doing it for me as they are better at stopping in the wet than my current brakes, and the bonus that i can swap the tyres to semi or full knobblies if it snows!!

London_Falcon

In case it makes a difference I seem to recall my chap in Cycle Surgery telling me that they are not hydraulic disks (I may have this wrong, worth checking)

stuj15

Sharkyssurfers wrote:

yeah i think is the disc brakes that are doing it for me as they are better at stopping in the wet than my current brakes

Slow down then, bloody youngsters....

rhext

I've already got a cyclo-cross bike which I use for commuting. I also have a (different) bike with cable disk brakes. I don't think the cable disk brakes are good enough to be unique selling point TBH - they're not in the same league as hydraulics in my opinion, and I actually find the rim brakes are better for road use.

The one which has caught my eye is the Ribble Audax/Winter bike. It comes complete with mudguards and it's difficult to find anything else with similar spec for the price.

Sharkyssurfers

stuj15 wrote:

Sharkyssurfers wrote:

yeah i think is the disc brakes that are doing it for me as they are better at stopping in the wet than my current brakes

Slow down then, bloody youngsters....

i cant im a speed machine* need more input input input jonny 5 is alive !!!!




*compared to a snail

bails87

I really, really like my BB5s. I know Meanredspider loves having disc brakes too. They're not quite as good as hydros on my MTB, but they don't need to be. And they're a damn sight better than the 105 calipers when it's wet, comparable when it's dry though.

If I could avoid it, I'd never buy a road bike with rim brakes. Luckily lots of manufacturers seem to be starting to think about disc equipped road bikes.

veronese68

You can't get sensibly priced hydraulic discs for frop bars. As it's a bad weather commuter I'd go for the Spesh. I thought the Sora at first glance but it looks like it has the larger downshifter behind the brake lever now so not bad.
That Felt KB got does look nice though.

BelgianBeerGeek

Yep, that's one nice looking bike. Avid cable discs are fine for what you need, and Sora is good, dependable kit. It looks as though it would be good on a nice, long day ride with that sensible gearing as well. I'd go for it.
My point about the knobblies before: yes, tyre changes are easy enough, but if you've just bought a grand's worth of bike, shelling out more for slick tyres is a nuisance. You could just wear the knobblies out though...

Kieran_Burns

Looks bloody lovely in the flesh as well. A REALLY nice looking bike.

Pity Wiggle didn't set the bloody brakes up properly (we'll not mention the loose spokes and poorly adjusted front mech though)

As to guards - the Felt has mounts for rear guards and oddly the top mount (crown of the fork) for a front one, but nothing on the forks themselves.

It's just a shame I'm having a 'mare with the BB5s at the moment.

Sharkyssurfers

Cheers chaps for the info so far, it looks like it might be the spech then, going to pop back to cs tomorrow and try the 54 out, not sure if a 54 or 56 would be better, current got a 54 in the scott.

stuj15

Sharkyssurfers wrote:

current got a 54 in the scott.

My god, really!? I thought you were about the same height as me? 183cm (6ft dead in old money)

bails87

stuj15 wrote:

Sharkyssurfers wrote:

current got a 54 in the scott.

My god, really!? I thought you were about the same height as me? 183cm (6ft dead in old money)

I'm 6 foot and my Boardman is a 53cm frame....

Sharkyssurfers

stuj15 wrote:

Sharkyssurfers wrote:

current got a 54 in the scott.

My god, really!? I thought you were about the same height as me? 183cm (6ft dead in old money)

i think im 5ft 11 close to 6ft, probably am now 6ft now ive lost some weight

stuj15

Blimey, I know sizes are different per person/bike but I didn't think you'd be able to squeeze 6ft on 54cm frame or less. Must be my short legs and long reach.

bails87

stuj15: To be fair, the Boardmans are very long for a given height, and the TT length is what really matters. So the TT on my 53cm CX is the same as on my (now departed) 55cm Ribble

DrLex

Sharkyssurfers wrote:

stuj15 wrote:

Sharkyssurfers wrote:

current got a 54 in the scott.

My god, really!? I thought you were about the same height as me? 183cm (6ft dead in old money)

i think im 5ft 11 close to 6ft, probably am now 6ft now ive lost some weight

In which case, don't discount the 58 until you've tried it.