Cooper Reims
marcruse
Posts: 64
I need some help here please. I'm seriously considering buying a Cooper Reims. http://www.cooperbikes.com/bikes/3/Reims
This will be my first move from a hybrid/commuter (Scott Sportster) to a road bike.
Reasons to buy a Reims? - fantastic style, what seems to be good value for money, Sturmey Archer gears - because I'm fed up with derailleurs, constant cleaning, adjusting etc, seems fairly light, so I should benefit from more speed / distance.
Reasons I'm hesitating? - it's a not insignificant sum (£800). Is it a good first road bike? Would I be better off buying a cheap and more affordable basic road bike, to make sure I'm comfortable with a road bike? It seems I have to buy from Evans (who I had vowed never to use again due to poor service in the past!).
Does anyone have experience of the Reims? Can anyone help me make a decision?!
This will be my first move from a hybrid/commuter (Scott Sportster) to a road bike.
Reasons to buy a Reims? - fantastic style, what seems to be good value for money, Sturmey Archer gears - because I'm fed up with derailleurs, constant cleaning, adjusting etc, seems fairly light, so I should benefit from more speed / distance.
Reasons I'm hesitating? - it's a not insignificant sum (£800). Is it a good first road bike? Would I be better off buying a cheap and more affordable basic road bike, to make sure I'm comfortable with a road bike? It seems I have to buy from Evans (who I had vowed never to use again due to poor service in the past!).
Does anyone have experience of the Reims? Can anyone help me make a decision?!
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Comments
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It's probably not good form to respond to your own post, but a year later, and after 329 views but no responses I thought I'd pass on some intelligence:
I plumped for an alternative road bike - don't laugh, it's a Raleigh, but I love it! So much so, that I couldn't face riding it through the winter and getting it grubby. Having ridden it all through last summer and proved to myself that a road bike was the way to go, I then decided to follow my heart and buy a Cooper Reims as a "winter bike". It looks great - a real classic, and it's served its purpose well - as a stand-in. My only complaints are a) that the SA gears are a real mission to set-up, and of course need re-setting-up every time the rear-wheel comes off, and b) actually the build quality ain't that good. It still looks cool (IMHO) from a distance, but actually the paint is generally chipping and wearing away.
I'm looking forward to giving it a complete clean and rebuild and putting it away for the summer (this weekend if the rain stops).0 -
Well thanks for taking the time to let us know how it went for you. A lot of my early years cycling were on Sturmey Archer 3 and 5 speed behemoths, so it was a bit of a nostalgia trip to recall the faff of removing the rear wheel.
Cool looking bike.0
