Some help with a bike please

EthanCook

Hi,

I've only ridden MTB's before and I thought that a CX bike would be a good stepping stone from that to a road bike.
I have no idea what's good and what's bad so what is a good quality bike for a beginner that I can buy for under £600? I don't mind going a little over that but below would be nice.

Thanks

ugo.santalucia

If you can push the budget a bit, this is an excellent crosser

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CBPXXLS10 ... cross-bike

EthanCook

hmmm... maybe if I stop buying food for a while... Is setting a budget of £600 a bit optimistic for cyclocross bikes?

ugo.santalucia

Depends what you want... I suppose you can get an aluminium frame

If 56 is your size

http://www.winstanleysbikes.co.uk/produ ... wwod6zAA_w

EthanCook

I'm probably more around a 52-54. I'm only a teenager though so it's a possibility that I'll grow. That's why I'm not looking for something too expensive.

ugo.santalucia

For cyclocross you are better off with a smaller frame than a bigger one

jamieayres

This might be frowned upon, if so then mods feel free to nuke from orbit, but this may be of interest?

viewtopic.php?f=40090&t=12965883

Can move on the price a bit. Message me if interested.

EthanCook

Not looking to buy one just yet, just doing some research on the best bike to get for what I want. It is a nice bike for a good price though and if you still have it when I'm ready to buy I will definitely message you. Just out of interest what year's model is it?

ugo.santalucia

it must be the 2014 range, so late 2013 probably... the model is relatively new

jamieayres

Ugo is correct. It is the 2014 model. Released around September 2013 time if I recall correctly.

http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-gb/bik ... 989/66573/

ugo.santalucia

I have seen it, it's a great looking bike, with one small glitch... the cable routing on the front fork. But I assume that can be easily sorted with a nylon cable

EthanCook

So why are you selling it?

jamieayres

Long version:

I already have a Genesis Croix De Fer, but always wondered whether I would prefer something a bit lighter. Only bike that took my fancy was the TCX SLR. I really wanted the SLR 1, but was out of my budget. Also, both models were out of stock for the rest of the year, apparently. So when I saw a mint SLR 2 up for sale, I figured I would buy it, ride it for a bit just to see if I liked it/fit ok, then either keep it and sell the Croix De Fer, or sell it and pre-order a SLR 1 when the new models come at the end of the year.

I have decided to do the latter, and ride the Croix De Fer in the meantime. This also gives me a bit of time to save up the extra cash I need for the new bike.


Short version:

I'm only selling to get the next model up

EthanCook

Oh, okay. I wish I could get it but just don't have the money yet... It sounds pretty much the right size for me and everything. Really love the colour scheme. Also, on the subject of pedals, I don't have clip shoes and, until I'm sure that I've stopped growing, I don't intend to get them so would it be worth getting toe clips?

jamieayres

Personally, I wouldn't bother with toeclips. I have been riding the TCX with flats, as my clipless pedals are on my CDF and I couldn't be bothered to swap them, and they have been fine.

Oh, okay. I wish I could get it but just don't have the money yet

No worries. If you get sorted, before someone else buys it, you can have it for £700.

EthanCook

jamieayres wrote:

No worries. If you get sorted, before someone else buys it, you can have it for £700.

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind
What sought of riding do you do on it. Is it for commuting or is it for some fun on weekends

jamieayres

EthanCook wrote:

jamieayres wrote:

No worries. If you get sorted, before someone else buys it, you can have it for £700.

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind
What sought of riding do you do on it. Is it for commuting or is it for some fun on weekends

The latter.

The thing is just so bloody versatile, so a route can start off on the road, then dive down a bridleway, cut through the woods, pootle along a gravel path, across some farm tracks, then if you're in a rush then hammer it back on the roads....if not, then just take the scenic route along a river path.

Round my way, Cambs/Lincs/Rutland, it's the ideal do everything bike. Which is handy, as that is what my CX bikes usually are to me. One swiss army bike

EthanCook

I live near the South Downs and I often ride my MTB up the hill nearest to me. There's no large boulder rocks or anything but there's a lot of loose rocks and some of them are quite big. Could I take a CX up there?
Also, I'm assuming that they're not too much slower than a road bike on roads, especially if you change the tyres to slicks.

ugo.santalucia

Ethan, with my cross bike, fitted with Vittoria XN (a gravel tyre) I lap Richmond Park in 20 minutes, which is the same time I do on a road bike fitted with race tubulars... these things are bloody fast!
If you fit knobbly and big enough tyres at low enough pressure, your gears are the only limitations when it comes to terrain. You can't go up a 1 in 3 gravel slope, but you can do most of the things you would do with a MTB

jamieayres

Ethan, sometimes you have to pick your lines a bit more carefully, but other than that you should be ok.

Maybe this will help:

http://vimeo.com/89689947

EthanCook

Thank you. You've answered a lot of my questions about CX bikes that I wasn't sure about. Just one more... does the fact that it has curved bars and no suspension make it overly uncomfortable on similar terrain to what I described above?

Cheers, again.

jamieayres

I find drop bars just as comfortable as regular ones. There will be a period of adjustment if you have never ridden drops before, but you have several positions to select while you do so. As you can ride with the hands on the hoods, tops or drops. The drops will be where you want to be when things get interesting, as this will allow you to cover the brakes better.

As for no suspension. A CX bike is essentially a road bike with slightly wider tyres being ridden off road, so it will always be a bit harsher, depending on surface, than a mountain bike with fat 2.4 tyres, and/or suspension. However, carbon forks, seat posts, a lighter weight and running a lower pressure in the tyres all help.

monkeysm8

As another Tcx owner (I'm not getting rid of mine) they are ace!! I've chinned off my Giant Defy for it. Okay it's not as fast as my.Carbon road bike but it's more fun.

EthanCook

Okay, thanks again all, jamieayres I may pm you at some point later this year to see if you still have it.

Monty Dog

EthanCook wrote:

I live near the South Downs and I often ride my MTB up the hill nearest to me. There's no large boulder rocks or anything but there's a lot of loose rocks and some of them are quite big. Could I take a CX up there?
Also, I'm assuming that they're not too much slower than a road bike on roads, especially if you change the tyres to slicks.

Traversed the Southdowns Way numerous times on a CX bike - sometimes the fist-sized flints bouncing off your downtube on the descent into Cocking at over 50kph can be worrying ;-) Tyre choice is important - you don't want lightweight, skinny race tyres but more like a Trekking tyre with tough sidewalls like a 40mm Smart Sam to protect against sidewall damage.