Alternatives to the Giant Defy 1

tvducks

I have just returned from 3 years touring and I'm looking for change, and a new bike.

I want a bike that i can use for fun at the weekend, a bike that will allow me to go for long rides but also get into competitive road riding. I have £1000 to spend and I'm lost in options. The one that seems to stand out in online reviews and bike shops is the Giant Defy 1. It looks great but I'm trying to find alternatives so i can make an educated choice.

anyone have any ideas what i can take a look at.

lc1981

How about a Cannondale CAAD? They always get good reviews, the frame is a Grand Tour winner and the CAAD8 would be within your budget.

Vinnyc19

The defy is good spec for money

You could also try a Specialized Roubaix or Scott cr1

elderone

You could try Ribble and build a bike to spec.The defy 1 does seem to be a popular choice at the £1k mark.

macleod113

Trek 2.1? i've had 2 and never had a problem?

alihisgreat

Vinnyc19 wrote:

The defy is good spec for money

You could also try a Specialized Roubaix or Scott cr1

Very helpful.. lets recommend bikes outside the OP's price range!


Under £1k I'd be looking at:

Giant Defy 1
Trek Domane
Cannodale Caad8
Boardman Road Team
Canyon Roadlite
Scott Speedster 20

I probably wouldn't bother with carbon.

I think the current issue of Cycling+ has the annual £1k sportive bike reviews in.. could be worth picking it up? (a few of them are already online though - eg. http://www.bikeradar.com/road/gear/category/bikes/road/product/review-trek-domane-20-13-46914)

rolf_f

I'd be looking at PX and Ribble assuming I was confident of getting a good fit from mail order (or if I lived near Preston or Rotherham!).

For a grand you can get a very nice carbon framed bike and be safe in the knowledge that you won't in six months be thinking 'why didn't I get a carbon bike'?!! More than just the frame, a nice aspect of these suppliers is that you can spec everything just as you do on top end bikes. What you end up with will probably be unique - even if only in a small way!

fsman

+1 for Ribble. Give them a call and they will help you with the measurements.

the_fuggler

Certainly worth giving the CAAD 8 a go and the Spesh Domane, which has had some great reviews. Think a Trek 2.1 was mentioned too? I quite liked that when I tested it.

If you fancied trying something different, you could look at a Genesis Equilibrium. I think the 10 might be slightly above your budget, but you could always haggle. Should be able to get 10% discount in many bike shops which would get it very close to 1k.

I'm a big fan of Giants though, so a Defy would do it for me.

How about a Cinelli Experience? Certainly a bit different. Look lovely in the flesh.

tvducks

Cheers for the response everyone. That really gives me a lot to think about! Ribble seems to have come up a lot so I will have to give them a call!

"ALIHISGREAT" I have never heard of the Canyon Roadlite and the spec looks fantastic. I even like the paint. I’m sure there must be a catch!

Thanks "The Fuggler" I did look at genesis but wanted to go aluminium so looked at the Volant 20 but despite a loving the retro look you just don’t seem to get the same level of kit the competition! It would match my new Brooks saddle though!

"Rolf F" as for the carbon option, my understanding was that if I’m spending a grand then I either get a top end aluminium frame or a low end carbon meaning the advantages of carbon are outweighed by better alu frame quality. Is that a fair appraisal or is there another argument?

I’ll let you know how I get on

tvducks

Anyone got any opinions on this Bianchi, i know nothing about Campagnolo gears. At the risk of sounding a little shallow... it certainly looks cool!

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/bia ... e-ec045189

♠ChumBucket♠

Have you looked at the Sensa range?

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

They get good press.

lc1981

tvducks wrote:

"Rolf F" as for the carbon option, my understanding was that if I’m spending a grand then I either get a top end aluminium frame or a low end carbon meaning the advantages of carbon are outweighed by better alu frame quality. Is that a fair appraisal or is there another argument?

Some people will disagree and tell you to go for carbon over aluminium, but this is why I recommended the CAAD8.

rolf_f

tvducks wrote:

"Rolf F" as for the carbon option, my understanding was that if I’m spending a grand then I either get a top end aluminium frame or a low end carbon meaning the advantages of carbon are outweighed by better alu frame quality. Is that a fair appraisal or is there another argument?

It's what a few people say but it's never backed up with any evidence. There is a presumption that cheap carbon frames are poor but you can buy bikes that cost twice the price of the equivalent Ribble and have exactly the same frames. The reviews (if you believe anything in any of the reviews!) don't seem to agree that cheap carbon frames are poor and the fact is that carbon frames are cheap to make so the relationship between quality and cost is hardly clear.

The only aluminium frame that is ever given as an example of a frame superior to a cheap carbon one is the Caad - and that is a very racy geometry frame that won't suit everyone.

Personally, if I wanted a good racy frame for 1k I'd give the Caad a close look but otherwise, IMO £1k is too much now to spend on an alloy framed bike.

There seems to be little negative to say about Canyons as long as you don't have a problem with it - then things can get a bit tricky it would seem.

alihisgreat

Rolf F wrote:

tvducks wrote:

"Rolf F" as for the carbon option, my understanding was that if I’m spending a grand then I either get a top end aluminium frame or a low end carbon meaning the advantages of carbon are outweighed by better alu frame quality. Is that a fair appraisal or is there another argument?

It's what a few people say but it's never backed up with any evidence. There is a presumption that cheap carbon frames are poor but you can buy bikes that cost twice the price of the equivalent Ribble and have exactly the same frames. The reviews (if you believe anything in any of the reviews!) don't seem to agree that cheap carbon frames are poor and the fact is that carbon frames are cheap to make so the relationship between quality and cost is hardly clear.

The only aluminium frame that is ever given as an example of a frame superior to a cheap carbon one is the Caad - and that is a very racy geometry frame that won't suit everyone.

Personally, if I wanted a good racy frame for 1k I'd give the Caad a close look but otherwise, IMO £1k is too much now to spend on an alloy framed bike.

There seems to be little negative to say about Canyons as long as you don't have a problem with it - then things can get a bit tricky it would seem.

Nice section at the bottom of this review on cheap carbon vs aluminium -> http://roadcyclinguk.com/news/gear-news/cube-agree-gtc-review-7721.html#slide-1

I think he's spot on and I don't get the obsession with cheap carbon frames...

riggsy81

Cinelli Experience with Campagnolo Veloce - not that I'm biased honest

rolf_f

ALIHISGREAT wrote:

Nice section at the bottom of this review on cheap carbon vs aluminium -> http://roadcyclinguk.com/news/gear-news/cube-agree-gtc-review-7721.html#slide-1

I think he's spot on and I don't get the obsession with cheap carbon frames...

Have you ridden cheap carbon frames and compared them with expensive ones? I own both. Both are good. That's just my opinion but that review is just the other blokes opinion. You place great store in the positive reviews of the Defy on BR but the same people are giving equally positive reviews of bikes like the Ribble Sportive and GF. You can't have it both ways

I'm open minded to both - I know the Defy is good (and I know you love them!) and I'd have one at £800 but at £1000 I see no advantage and a few disadvantages to the Defy over the carbon alternatives.

tvducks

Thanks for all your help ewveryone. In the end i decided to go with the Canyon Roadlite 6.0 SL in White. It arrives tomorrow. I cant wait!

TheDizzle

tvducks wrote:

Thanks for all your help ewveryone. In the end i decided to go with the Canyon Roadlite 6.0 SL in White. It arrives tomorrow. I cant wait!

I have the same dilemma of which bike to choose and have been looking at the Canyon. Can you post your thoughts on it once you've been for a spin?

Cheers.

mlefa30

let us know how it rides. I'm seriously torn between the canyon & a sensa bike, so feedback is always good !!!

tvducks

Ok well the bike arrived and despite only riding 18 miles on it I think I’m in love!

I can’t give a great review of the bike because I come from a touring background and this is my first genuine road bike. However I can say that I think the SRAM double tap shifters make perfect sense and work a charm, the wheels seem to cope well with the rough Scottish roads without any uncomfortable vibration and I hardly noticed the hills I was going over thanks to the minimal weight (8.5-9kg but my last bike weighed up to 80kg when I cycled the Sahara so it’s hard to be objective.. I will be changing the handlebar tape as I never like white tape but its comfortable fast and the white frame compliments my titanium brooks saddle perfectly. Exactly as described on the website.

What I can tell you about is the Canyon Service. I have read many things about the service being both good and bad, however I found it spot on. I had the bike just 10 days after clicking the go button on the order and the size selector on the website gave me the perfect size of bike, (I had confirmed the selection by testing out some bike sizes in a bike shop). Some of the emails seemed a little like they had been written in German and translated to English but they were never rude or intentionally vague. Every email I sent was answered within 24 hours and every question was answered in more than enough detail to give me confidence in the team.

As for the bike, it arrived on time, clean, the tires pre-inflated and despite needing a little adjustment the gear indexing was basically spot on. I’m a little James May about my engineering so it took me while to fit all the speedo, Crud roadracer mudguards etc. If I was in a hurry I think I could have ridden the bike within 5-10 min of opening the box.

I would certainly recommend Canyon, the bike looks great and is put together well.

alihisgreat

Looks nice, a good choice in the end.