Please help me decide which bike to buy

Kems

Hi - I'm Mark and I live in Torbay in Devon. I've been riding a MTB for a few years but my rides are now predominantly road based. So I've decided to get a road bike. My budget is circa £600.

I have waited until now so that I can try and pick up a 2013 model in the sale. I've narrowed it down to Specialized Allez, Giant Defy 3 or Giant Defy 2. Pedal On have the Giants at a great price at the moment. The Defy 2 is £599 and the 3 is £20.00 less.

Basically, I want a quick bike that has good gearing for the climbs (you have to climb around here otherwise you don't go anywhere!)

The Defy 2 has the best spec - although the paint job is not the best. I wanted Black, but I can't get one so that's that.

I'm 6ft 4in and the wrong side of 17 stone, which obviously means I need the bigger frame sizes; which aren't too plentiful in 2013 models now. So I need to make a decision fairly quickly.

Any help/advice/guidance would be appreciated.

KonkyWonky

Evans are doing the Cannondale CAAD 8 Sora for £595 and they still have all the large sizes. Use code ECWEL5F for an extra £5 off.

Not rode one myself but the frame gets great reviews and is not overly aggressive.

hipshot

Probably not much help this.

I can vouch for the Allez, but all of those bikes will be very capable and will have very little between them in terms of performance. I would make the decision based on groupsets first then cosmetics, then price.

Kems

Thanks for the replies.

I'm going up to a bike shop in Exeter today. They've got an Allez in my size. So I'll se if I can take it for a ride. They have the Giants but not in my size. But at least I can have a look at the difference in Groupsets and shifters.

They also do Cannondale, so I'll have a look at those as well.

I'm going to have a chat and hope that by talking to someone who knows what they're talking about will help me make a decision.

Kems

Had a good chat with one of the guys in the bike shop today. I'm going back there on Monday to try a Allez 2013 & 2014. He then chucked me a curve ball and suggested a Specialized Secteur Triple. So I'm going to try that one as well.

I hadn't even thought of a triple until today. Now I don't know if I'll find a compact hard. I rarely use the granny ring on my MTB, so maybe I'll be ok with a compact. I guess I'll find out on Monday.

kajjal

I recently bought a road bike after 20 years of mountain biking. I got a good deal on a 2013 1.5 Trek in the sales. It is a compact but has a 12 - 30 rear cassette which helps out on the steeper hills. If it is really hilly and steep where you plan to ride you may need a triple to make things easier for you depending on how fit you are. The Trek 1.5 is 10 speed Tiagra which makes it easier to find the right gear. Also it has mud guard mounts on it if needed.

I am just over 6ft6, 15 1\2 stone and bought the 62cm frame. Going by the height sizing chart my bike would be too small for me but it fits fine after a few setup adjustments. Any of the bikes you mention would be fine so give a few a test ride to see which you like the look and feel of. I was looking at a specialized Allex or Cannondale CAAD8 but in the end prefered the bike I bought after a test ride.

Good luck