Readers opinions
lobin
Posts: 6
Hello All, long time reader, first time poster...
Just really wanting to twig some ideas and pick some brains about potential bikes for my requirements. I have done a fair bit of researching and keep doing full circles with regards to potential bike buys for my first serious road/et al bike.
I live over in Thailand and information over here is somewhat... lacking, for want of a better word, can get by with the language, but when it comes to technical bits and bobs the language skills struggle a bit, or I end up talking to a certain "dealer" who is adamant that their brand is the most suitable etc etc anyway, tangent...
Granted that you can not really have a bike for all seasons and purposes, but I would like to try to get one as close as possible. To summarise I am limited to certain brands due to being over in Thailand and with horrendous import duties have to buy what I find to an extent. Brands I have been looking at, and would like to try limit the discussion and my options to one of these, due to availability are:
Trek
Cannondale
Specialised
The roads over here are bad, sometimes they are REALLY bad in parts and also there are parts where I am able to go single trail style and some jungle trails. I have a mountain bike, but am starting to get into the longer rides, 80-100 km as a starter looking to get to do century milers (bit of light touring) too so the mountain bike just really isnt comfortable or practical, so road bike of sorts it will be. I am also looking at putting mud guards on it at times, and also the possibility of racks to carry some lightweight luggage on occasion, no camping gear, purely overnight gear. I dont want anything ideally less than Shimano 105, as really dont like the Tiagra cable routing, want the front as clear as possible, less snag hazards when jungle tracking. I live up in the North of Thailand and we have mountains, lots of mountains, and lots of high steep grade ones at that, and will encountering these on a potentially daily basis, so good gearing as well is a must.
I initially looked at Cyclocross bikes, Trek Crossrip LTD (although appears more a commuter than CX, but still a good bike) good range of gearing, good brakes, ability to put on racks and mud guards, looking good so far... Albeit a bit sluggish and heavy.
With other more designated CX bikes, i.e. Cannondale CAADX dont really have the lower gearing that I would need for mountain climbing as most CX guys get out the saddle and run up when the hill to save on time. Although its a lovely looking bike, I could of course change out the crank set for a 50/34 from the 46/36.
Then I looked at the Specialised Tricross comp disc, again a good looking bike the good gearing that I need although its SRAM Apex and not keen on the double tap, I prefer the one lever for up and one for down shifters.
Then I started to talking to some guys over here and they said that the Endurance Road bikes might suit my needs, e.g. Trek Domane, Cannondale Synapse, Specialised Roubaix (SL4 sport for example)/Secteur.
Although I am not convinced, I am sure the ISOSPEED on the Domane makes a great ride, but still wont stop the inevitable punctures that the road conditions give, and have read reports that the no racks or mud guards really can actually fit on the Domane, despite Trek saying that they can. The Cannondale Synapse is a great looking bike the same, and with both of these I have the budget to be able to afford a carbon frame giving me yet possibilty, option and comfort. Reading about the Domane 4 series being more comfortable than the 2 due to carbon, and the 5 more so than the 4 due to the seat post. Also the endurance roads bikes offer faster speeds along with durability, but also less flexibility with regards to accessories and carrying capabilities.
I then thought about the option of using a CX bike of sorts, for example the Trek Crossrip LTD and then putting 25c tires on it when doing road riding and when doing longer touring and single trails can use the 32 or 35s for comfort and puncture resistance.
I really like the idea of disc brakes, so many bits of wild life over here 2 and 4 legged, (from street dogs, to suicidal chickens to the local populace as well) and need to be able to stop on a penny at a moments notice in dry to wet conditions on a regular basis, and my experience with rims brakes compared to disc, would prefer disc, although dont want to start a "which is better" thread of that!
Long story short, I ended going round and round in circles writing down potential scenarios and what bike would be best suited to mostly everything, and am getting nowhere fast.
I fully appreciate that there is no set bike that suits all needs, but if at all possible I would like to buy one that will suit best as it can.
Help!
Just really wanting to twig some ideas and pick some brains about potential bikes for my requirements. I have done a fair bit of researching and keep doing full circles with regards to potential bike buys for my first serious road/et al bike.
I live over in Thailand and information over here is somewhat... lacking, for want of a better word, can get by with the language, but when it comes to technical bits and bobs the language skills struggle a bit, or I end up talking to a certain "dealer" who is adamant that their brand is the most suitable etc etc anyway, tangent...
Granted that you can not really have a bike for all seasons and purposes, but I would like to try to get one as close as possible. To summarise I am limited to certain brands due to being over in Thailand and with horrendous import duties have to buy what I find to an extent. Brands I have been looking at, and would like to try limit the discussion and my options to one of these, due to availability are:
Trek
Cannondale
Specialised
The roads over here are bad, sometimes they are REALLY bad in parts and also there are parts where I am able to go single trail style and some jungle trails. I have a mountain bike, but am starting to get into the longer rides, 80-100 km as a starter looking to get to do century milers (bit of light touring) too so the mountain bike just really isnt comfortable or practical, so road bike of sorts it will be. I am also looking at putting mud guards on it at times, and also the possibility of racks to carry some lightweight luggage on occasion, no camping gear, purely overnight gear. I dont want anything ideally less than Shimano 105, as really dont like the Tiagra cable routing, want the front as clear as possible, less snag hazards when jungle tracking. I live up in the North of Thailand and we have mountains, lots of mountains, and lots of high steep grade ones at that, and will encountering these on a potentially daily basis, so good gearing as well is a must.
I initially looked at Cyclocross bikes, Trek Crossrip LTD (although appears more a commuter than CX, but still a good bike) good range of gearing, good brakes, ability to put on racks and mud guards, looking good so far... Albeit a bit sluggish and heavy.
With other more designated CX bikes, i.e. Cannondale CAADX dont really have the lower gearing that I would need for mountain climbing as most CX guys get out the saddle and run up when the hill to save on time. Although its a lovely looking bike, I could of course change out the crank set for a 50/34 from the 46/36.
Then I looked at the Specialised Tricross comp disc, again a good looking bike the good gearing that I need although its SRAM Apex and not keen on the double tap, I prefer the one lever for up and one for down shifters.
Then I started to talking to some guys over here and they said that the Endurance Road bikes might suit my needs, e.g. Trek Domane, Cannondale Synapse, Specialised Roubaix (SL4 sport for example)/Secteur.
Although I am not convinced, I am sure the ISOSPEED on the Domane makes a great ride, but still wont stop the inevitable punctures that the road conditions give, and have read reports that the no racks or mud guards really can actually fit on the Domane, despite Trek saying that they can. The Cannondale Synapse is a great looking bike the same, and with both of these I have the budget to be able to afford a carbon frame giving me yet possibilty, option and comfort. Reading about the Domane 4 series being more comfortable than the 2 due to carbon, and the 5 more so than the 4 due to the seat post. Also the endurance roads bikes offer faster speeds along with durability, but also less flexibility with regards to accessories and carrying capabilities.
I then thought about the option of using a CX bike of sorts, for example the Trek Crossrip LTD and then putting 25c tires on it when doing road riding and when doing longer touring and single trails can use the 32 or 35s for comfort and puncture resistance.
I really like the idea of disc brakes, so many bits of wild life over here 2 and 4 legged, (from street dogs, to suicidal chickens to the local populace as well) and need to be able to stop on a penny at a moments notice in dry to wet conditions on a regular basis, and my experience with rims brakes compared to disc, would prefer disc, although dont want to start a "which is better" thread of that!
Long story short, I ended going round and round in circles writing down potential scenarios and what bike would be best suited to mostly everything, and am getting nowhere fast.
I fully appreciate that there is no set bike that suits all needs, but if at all possible I would like to buy one that will suit best as it can.
Help!
0
Comments
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From your description of what you want it to do I think you should definitely get a cross bike with disc brakes. Make sure it has mountings for mudguards and a rack. (Some CX bikes are minimalist racers and have neither. Some even lack bottle cage mounts)0
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Hello, thanks for the input, it is what I have been kind of leaning towards, I just like the looks of the Domane and the Isospeed decoupler etc, but then I went from looking at the 2 series to the 4, with a small step up of the carbon frame, then from that a step to the 5 with the different seat mast increasing comfort, then from there to the 6 series with the electronic shifting, and before you know it the purchase price has gone like a skyscraper!!
http://www.cannondale.com/caadx-disc-ul ... kset-27866
or
http://www.cannondale.com/catalog/produ ... egory/916/
I do like the overall look of the cannnondale if I look at it overall, albeit i would either have to change the crankset to a 50/34 or the rear cassette to something like an 11-36 to match the Trek Crossrip for range of gears. I can live with that though. although the cannondales are a bit more expensive than the treks over here, the treks actually work out cheaper than the UK. originally where I called home.
end of the day, I guess I am not looking for all out and out speed, and from what I understand it, I can change the 32c/35c on the cannondales above to 23c/25c tires on the same rims? but can not change the tires on an endurance road bike to bigger tires due to lack of clearance and also difficulty with fenders and mudguards... so actually these bikes have the most versatility over all...0 -
I'd take either of those Cannondales. Note that with the 105 or Ultegra rear mech I think the biggest cassette you can use is 30t, so I'd stick with the 11-28t cassette supplied. I'd also stick with the smaller cyclocross chainrings for the kind of mixed riding you described.0
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Keefer, many thanks for the reply.
I have done some looking at the gearing of, 1 what I ride now, - MTB grannied up to the hilt and 2 what the TREK crossrip LTD/Domane various series , Cannondale CAADX/Synapase, Speciliased various models offer using the Legendary Sheldon Browns calculator, awesome by the way...
http://sheldonbrown.com/gears/
and have compared the gear ratios, and basically the Trek gives the widest range or gears and closest to the bike I Have now, lowest gear on the trek compares to about gear 3-4 on my current MTB and have been trying to tackle hills in that gear to simulate the experience. but the Cannondale with the narrower gear selection (not as high and not a low) would be a bit more of a struggle, as I did the same simulation with my current MTB and equates to about gear 5-6, which at the moment, is pushing it, especially with the gradients I am looking at tackling and duration of these gradients.
for example...
http://veloroutes.org/bikemaps/?route=106069#
Forgot to add as well, I appreciate that the best way to find out the best bike for your fit and actually TRY it. unfortunately in thailand they have a backwards way of thinking and the only way of trying the bike is straddling it in the bike shop, you would be lucky to get the shop "assistant" to help you balance and back pedal!! quite how you can test ride a bike without actually riding the bike is beyond me... and obviously beyond the local staff as well!0 -
taking a quick look at this, using the 5700 105 as purely an example
http://www.shimano.com.au/publish/conte ... 5700.html#
this states that the maximum of all models as 28T, yet TREK claim to use a 32T on the rear cassette on the specs of this model, so that to me, appears out of spec usage? or have i missed something?
http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/ro ... ip_limited0 -
Trek may be fitting a long reach derailleur.
I have a specialized crux disc cyclocross bike and if I had to pick a bike to ride round the world on that would be it.0 -
It is a long cage rear mech on the Trek, but Shimano still say max sprocket of 28t. You can generally add at least 2 teeth to Shimano's spec; lots of people using new Tiagra 12-30 cassettes with 5700 drivetrain. Strictly speaking Trek are using it outside of it's spec, but they must be confident it works.
If those are the gears you need, buy the Trek.0 -
Hi thanks for the input guys, appreciated. Like I mentioned above, my main problem is getting to try the bikes and get a feel for the gears, as over here they do not let you test ride bikes, and most of the bikes need to be ordered unless you want to take what is in stock, which is not a great deal.
I am basing my gear choices that I believe I will need using that gear calculator and seeing where certain bikes fall in relation to my MTB, and try out certain hills in that relative gear, I know not the best but about the best I can do. The CX bikes looks the best for my purposes I believe but other than the Trek Crossrip, which has the widest range, the others dont seem to go low enough for a hill climb that I would have to do, and also are not as high as I would like for I am on the flat road. That gear calculator seem quite complete and have calculated the ratios with wheel size as well so can see the gear ratios and potential effort for each gear to be accurate as much as possible0
