Is £500 for 2011 Spesh Allez Elite a decent price?

Blandiblub

Looking around for road bikes (it'll be my first - have a Sirrus at present) and was quite tempted by the Triban 5 from Decathlon (or possibly 7 if I feel flush!), but a guy at work is selling an Allez Elite 2011 model. He wants £500 - is this reasonable? Anything I should look out for?

Seems quite a lot of bike in comparison (full Tiagra) - although that said the Triban 7 is also full Tiagra and only £99 more brand new....

Have I just answered my own question?!!

Beatmaker

The Elite has the E5 frame doesn't it? It's a nice bit of kit and worth upgrading as and when the time comes. What condition is the Elite in? If its in very good condition, I'd be tempted to knock him down to £450 and buy that. either way you'll have a nice bike but I'd be erring towards the Spesh if the condition is right and the price can be negotiated down a little.

Blandiblub

Thanks for that. Yes, it's the E5 frame (I don't know much about these so that's good info, ta).

Only info I have on condition before contacting the seller is:

"It has had two new inner tubes recently, I have also had the gears indexed and the rear bearings and races replaced, and brakes adjusted."

Assuming there's a typo or something in there - 'races replaced'?? Also not sure what the rear bearings refer to (I'm a complete novice to home-servicing!).

Only worry is that this may indicate quite a lot of use.

charliesimpson

I had a 2009 Allez Elite and wist that I'd never sold it. That tells its own story.........

pkripper

from recollection, they came with basic shimano hubs and cxp-22 rims - not sure what races would need replacing (although probably wrong!) If the hubs have been required to be rebuilt, maintenance may not have been the best or it's had a lot of use. Check the tyres - if it's had 2 new tubes it may have sat with flat tyres for a while, so they may need attention too. The tiagra is likely to be 9spd though, so limited compatability going forward as it's 10spd now.

Good frame for the money though, as long as it fits you!

Blandiblub

Well by way of update, I bought this bike tonight and rode it home. A very very nice thing! Looking forward to having a fettle this weekend and get it all set up nicely for me.