Which bike, two options...

Riggsy12

Hey need some advice on my first road bike...

Found a Carrera Valour £150 very good condition, heres what the add reads...

Aluminium frame, tektro brakes and shimano sora (brake lever) shifters and rear mech. Two chain rings on the front and eight speed cassette on the rear. Both wheels are running true. New front wheel. This is a light weight bike. A nice opportunity for someone who wants to start racing on the road at an affordable price. 21" ( medium size ) frame.



Or this which I'm leaning towards as its from a shop and may come with 6 months warrenty... Heres what ad reads...

Generic 21.5" road bike frame, carbon forks, good entry level bike, new parts include rear wheel, rear Sora mech, chain, brake calipers, bar tape, cables and bottom bracket. £170



Cheers in advance

markos1963

The shop one if it fits, the new parts would add up to nearly £170 on their own and you are more likely to have any come back if there is a problem.

robbo2011

The shop one looks to have quite tall gearing ie its a standard double with a small cassette (23 tooth largest cog?), so just be aware that if you live in a hilly area and are not a strong rider, you'll probably have to spend some more money to switch to lower gearing.

smidsy

Shop one has had recent work suggesting its been given the once over and necessary items repaired/replaced so if it fits I would go with that. Talk to the shop and they may even cange the cassette if you explain your concerns (if indeed you have them). A 12/27 cassette would be fine for most occaisions.

g00se

I'd go with the second one. I'm 99% sure the frame is an older style generic Ribble 7005 Audax winter frame - either unbranded or repainted - with carbon ITM forks. A basic frame but has a decent reputation. Apart from the rear mech, it's got an older campagnolo groupset (probably a basic Xenon or Mirage but could be higher) so I imagine either the shop or the previous owner replaced the rear wheel with a Shimano-compatible one, knowing 10 speed campag levers will work with an 8 speed Shimano mech (known as Shimergo). I would guess it's from the mid noughties.

The Carerra would have retailed around £300 - the Ribble, about £500+ new (depending on kit choices).

Riggsy12

Thanks everyone glad I asked on here.

I dont have many hills where I live... The only thing that bothered me about the second one was when I asked for bike weight he said he didnt have scales... "But its not heavy nor super light like carbon bikes" The Carrera weighs around 11kg, the second has carbon forks so I dout it will weight more, right?

Ps why do I see some bikes with the length of frame by the chain with a cover on it?

napoleond

The cover is so that if the chain 'drops' (can happen when shifting into the small ring at the front) or you're changing the rear wheel, the chain doesn't damage the frame/paintwork.

Riggsy12

NapoleonD wrote:

The cover is so that if the chain 'drops' (can happen when shifting into the small ring at the front) or you're changing the rear wheel, the chain doesn't damage the frame/paintwork.

Cheers thought as much, sorry for the noob Q :oops:

dynamicbrick

Apparently high gearing aside, the second one at £170 is a bargain for what it appears to be wearing.

If you don't like it, you'd get your money back by selling it in component form.

g00se

Riggsy12 wrote:

The Carrera weighs around 11kg, the second has carbon forks so I dout it will weight more, right?

11kg for a road bike is not light.

Just googled the Ribble and it seems to come in at about 10kg with basic (heavy) wheels.

Riggsy12

Picked up the second option this afternoon. Not sure on weight but its so light compared to my 14kg MTB

Took it for a ride in the rain, first time Ive been on a road bike so was taking it easy. Damn its light, steering VERY responsive. Even with the gearing it has it feels like Im absolutly flying up hills I will need a new pump as what I have only goes to 100psi

I love it! Very glad I made the switch. Thank you all for the advice!

One problem though, not sure what I have done but I cant seem to change gear. I'm new to these gears but I never managed to get the chain onto the largest cog at the front... Maybe it was the excitement of being on my first road bike. I can only change gear using whats on the left side of the handlebars??? Its now very hard to pull away...

lotus49

Riggsy12 wrote:

One problem though, not sure what I have done but I cant seem to change gear. I'm new to these gears but I never managed to get the chain onto the largest cog at the front... Maybe it was the excitement of being on my first road bike. I can only change gear using whats on the left side of the handlebars??? Its now very hard to pull away...

I'm slightly unsure about your description as the left lever changes the front cog and the right the rear. The principle is the same for both but you push them in opposite directions.

With Shimano Sora shifters there are two parts to the brake levers. You push the whole lever right to move onto the big cog and the small part at the back right to change back down to the small cog.

Re-reading your post I am more confused. If you are on the small cog at the front, it should be easier to pull away.

Riggsy12

lotus49 wrote:

Riggsy12 wrote:

One problem though, not sure what I have done but I cant seem to change gear. I'm new to these gears but I never managed to get the chain onto the largest cog at the front... Maybe it was the excitement of being on my first road bike. I can only change gear using whats on the left side of the handlebars??? Its now very hard to pull away...

I'm slightly unsure about your description as the left lever changes the front cog and the right the rear. The principle is the same for both but you push them in opposite directions.

With Shimano Sora shifters there are two parts to the brake levers. You push the whole lever right to move onto the big cog and the small part at the back right to change back down to the small cog.

Re-reading your post I am more confused. If you are on the small cog at the front, it should be easier to pull away.

Hold up, do you mean there are two parts to the actual brake lever? Or are you refering to the little adjuster just behind the lever?

Ps The chain at the moment is on small cog rear and front.

ForumNewbie

Riggsy12 wrote:

One problem though, not sure what I have done but I cant seem to change gear. I'm new to these gears but I never managed to get the chain onto the largest cog at the front... Maybe it was the excitement of being on my first road bike. I can only change gear using whats on the left side of the handlebars??? Its now very hard to pull away...

The brake lever on the left side of the handlebars when moved inwards should move the chain up on to the big ring at the front. Still on the left side, if you move the smaller gear lever (it's under the brake lever) inwards, then that should move the chain back down to the small ring at the front. The levers at the right hand side of the handlebars control the gears on the sprocket on the back wheel.

lotus49

Riggsy12 wrote:

Hold up, do you mean there are two parts to the actual brake lever? Or are you refering to the little adjuster just behind the lever?

Ps The chain at the moment is on small cog rear and front.

Yes I do but no I'm not referring to the adjuster. Look carefully at the lever and you will see that there is a sort of flange at the back. Just push that on its own without pushing the whole lever and you will be able to change in the other direction on both cogs.

I'll dig out a picture to show you what I mean.

lotus49

Once you work the gears out you'll find you can really fly in the big cog at the front and the small cog at the back. Unless you are a lot fitter than me, that will be reserved for downhill or the flat but it's a great feeling when you really get going.

Gizmodo

That's a really good picture of the 2012 Sora lever, but I suspect the OP's are a little older.

This might give you an idea of how shifting works on an older Sora http://youtu.be/0kxxoJp3aXs

lotus49

Gizmodo wrote:

That's a really good picture of the 2012 Sora lever, but I suspect the OP's are a little older.

This might give you an idea of how shifting works on an older Sora http://youtu.be/0kxxoJp3aXs

That would be a very fair point were it not for the fact that you can see from the picture of the bike that it's one of the more modern sort. If you look carefully at the right shifter just above the black line on the background, you can see the little flange (or whatever it is called).

g00se

Guys, guys - the levers are pre 2009 Campag levers by the look of it.

Right, the first thing to ascertain is are they ergoshift levers or the more basic Escape levers. I suspect they're escape.

On a bike with escape levers, the left thumb button will drop the chain onto the smaller chainring. The paddle lever behind the main brake lever will change it to the big ring. It will need a few clicks to do this - either a few repeated small pushes or more usually, a big sweep of the lever. the multiple clicks are to allow for trimming the front mech.

For the rear, the thumb button on the right will drop the chain onto the next smaller sprocket. The paddle lever behind the brake lever will push the chain up onto the next larger sprocket - one click per sprocket (so you can jump one or multiple sprockets depending on how far you push the lever).



Now, if they're ergoshift levers, the thumb buttons are actually levers too that can go right down under the body of the lever and do multiple shifts. So the rear will left you drop up to 5 sprockets in one go. And the left lever thumb button can be used from trimming too - not just the paddle lever.


escape lever:



ergoshift lever (note the longer slot for the thumb lever):

Riggsy12

Looking at your photos I have the Escape setup. I have managed to get the chain onto the front big cog now, I wasn't pressing the lever on the left side hard enough to the right...

But now the right side doesn't do anything? The chain is sitting on the smallest cog at the rear.

g00se

The lever tucked behind the right hand brake lever should shift it back down to the bigger sprockets.

Riggsy12

Sorted, I'm not pushing the right hand lever hard enough to the left. Should you have to push them hard?

g00se

Is the bike stationary? That may make them feel stiff. Campag levers are a lot more 'positive' feeling than Shimano.

napoleond

If the shop is near to you, get yourself down there with the bike and get them to go over the gearing with you, and show you how to adjust it as the cables stretch.