>£1000 for a comfy long distance bicycle shaped object

daniel_b

So I am kind of considering taking advantage of the cycle to work scheme next spring, and was wondering about getting a new bike to replace my Marin, or not replace maybe, but one for long distance rides, 120miles + at anytime of year, but probably more the summer months.

I have a 34" inseam, and a short torso, so a short top tube, and high headtube is key I do believe.

My usual frame size is a 54, with something like a 545mm top tube.

It would be nice to also have the option of slightly wider tyres, up to 28, and to be able to fit normal mudguards.

I'll also be looking to fit it with a top tube bag, probably 4 bottles (two off the seatpost/saddle rails) and maybe even a rear saddle bag or pannier type thing for taking provisions for a long ride.

I would also like to have disc brakes, although I appreciate they would need to be mechanical for under 1K, but then at least it would be a comparitively pain free process to replace with hydraulic 105 or Ultegra at a later date.

I'm assuming Alu frame and carbon forks makes the most sense?

Groupset wise, I would be hoping for 105 5800.

Any options spring to mind?

I haven't trawled at all, but just thought someone might have been looking for a similar steed at some point and have some suggestions from the off.

Thanks

grenw

Defy 1 Disc comes to mind - seems to fit your requirements. Weak point would be the brakes (and wheels as usual) as they are mechanicals but as you say, I can't imagine getting decent hydraulics for under a grand.

https://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-gb/bikes/model/defy.1.disc/24968/90516/

http://www.bikeradar.com/road/gear/category/bikes/road/product/review-giant-defy-1-disc-49567/

Got a Defy 0 under my company scheme earlier in the summer and it's a very comfortable bike for longer distances some over the century (miles). Upgraded brakes, tyres and saddle made mine the perfect ride for me.....upgrade-itis aside

ryanshattered

If you can live with SRAM rather than Shimano, then you can have a PX London Road with full Rival 22 and Hydraulic Discs for £999.99

http://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CBPXLDNRIVHRD/planet-x-london-road-sram-rival-22-hydraulic-disc-road-bike

Or the mech disc version is £799.99

Ticks all your boxes and I don't think you'll find anything that comes close for the money

trek_dan

FYI PX charge £100 'admin fee' for bikes bought with C2W vouchers.

navrig2

http://www.tredz.co.uk/.Cannondale-Synapse-105-5-Disc-2015-Road-Bike_73606.htm

Not sure about clearance for tyres and mudguards.

kingofthetailwind

http://www.wiggle.com/gt-grade-al-x-2015/

daniel_b

Thanks for those replies gents,

I have to be honest, I have always disregarded Giant, not sure why - but the review of that is glowing, in the main, and to my eye it's a very nice looking bike:



I do kind of like Planet X, but the only time I tried SRAM I didn't overly get on with it - plus all my tooling is for Shimano, or are they totally cross compatible - I know the cassettes accept the same splines.
Plus that extra £100 would add to the cost, as it won't be tax free.

The Cannondale is undoubtedly a good bike, but my goodness that paint job is bland isn't it, although I appreciate it will hide the dirt more.

My Scott is matte black (Not my colour of choice) and my Marin is a relatively uninspiring, but brighter than that, silver and carbon, but I would ideally like something brighter, and the Giant looks to tick all the boxes at the moment, so thankyou for that.
The fact it has disc wheels means a little way down the line I could buy a set of 105 or ultegra hydraulic stoppers and perform a straight swap out - or even do it straight away I guess and sell on the 105 shifters and stock brakes - I could probably get those on without my gf even noticing too!

I wonder when the 2017 model comes out, as I won't be able to sign up for the deal until May sadly.
Looking at the sizing charts, it appears I would need a 50.

This bit just caught my eye - any comment on it?

Going against the burgeoning trend for thru-axles on disc brake road bikes, both front and rear wheels attach via traditional quick release skewers. Giant has previously said it’ll keep with quick releases until a better market standard presents itself – stating that most thru-axles are overbuilt for road bikes, having been original designed for mountain biking.

While thru-axles would be nice, the use of quick releases opens up suitably priced hub choices and the system does work – allowing for the very slightest of flex.

Cheers

Dan

alan_sherman

Quick release makes easier to put on my roof rack. And my MTB (a spec rockhopper) has quick release too. For me a thru axle would be a slight negative regarding convenience. Functionally - go either way it doesn't really matter.

grenw

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19719485#p19719485]Daniel B[/url] wrote:

I wonder when the 2017 model comes out, as I won't be able to sign up for the deal until May sadly.

September-ish

daniel_b

Thankyou chaps.

The only thing I cannot see from the pics, is whether it has a hole in the front fork for fitting mudguards.

EDIT: Just found a youtube video, and it looks like there is no hole in the fork, so not sure how you would mount full mudguards - with a lot of difficulty I expect :?

That has put me off quite a bit - need full mudguards on my winter bike.

Shame, as the Kinesis Crosslight 6 is also lacking the hole in the fork for mudguard fitting.

keef66

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19719732#p19719732]Daniel B[/url] wrote:

Thankyou chaps.

The only thing I cannot see from the pics, is whether it has a hole in the front fork for fitting mudguards.

EDIT: Just found a youtube video, and it looks like there is no hole in the fork, so not sure how you would mount full mudguards - with a lot of difficulty I expect :?

That has put me off quite a bit - need full mudguards on my winter bike.

Shame, as the Kinesis Crosslight 6 is also lacking the hole in the fork for mudguard fitting.

Look at the bike radar review; one of the photos shows a hole in the back of the fork crown, so I think you're fine on the mudguard front for the front mudguard. So to speak.

daniel_b

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19719747#p19719747]keef66[/url] wrote:

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19719732#p19719732]Daniel B[/url] wrote:

Thankyou chaps.

The only thing I cannot see from the pics, is whether it has a hole in the front fork for fitting mudguards.

EDIT: Just found a youtube video, and it looks like there is no hole in the fork, so not sure how you would mount full mudguards - with a lot of difficulty I expect :?

That has put me off quite a bit - need full mudguards on my winter bike.

Shame, as the Kinesis Crosslight 6 is also lacking the hole in the fork for mudguard fitting.

Look at the bike radar review; one of the photos shows a hole in the back of the fork crown, so I think you're fine on the mudguard front for the front mudguard. So to speak.

Ah I see, so perhaps it has a threaded hole (There is no other way really is there!) in the rear of the fork, but it just does not make it all the way though - that would be very neat.


My lbs does not have stock yet, will have a look and a ride when they do.

Cheers for that.

keef66

What about the Kinesis 4S disc? Are they available yet / in budget?

http://road.cc/content/news/165900-kinesis-2016-racelight-gf-ti-disc-4s-disc-and-cx-race-launched-cycle-show

Pics show them with full guards and a hole in the fork crown.

Text also says the Crosslight takes them too, but no close up pics of the mountings; maybe ask Kinesis directly?

dj58

Re the Giant DD. tjm160 has one, scroll down to the bottom of page 19, I had a chat with him regarding mudguards, you need to check that the bike actually has clearances for full type mudguards. viewtopic.php?f=40044&t=12921011&start=360

letap73

Suprised nobody has mentioned the Croix de fer - mine is a 54 (I also have 34 inch inseam, short torso) it fits most of the bill above:
http://www.singletrackbikes.co.uk/m1b118s23p37707/Genesis_Croix_de_Fer_20_2015/RS_GB/92376?gclid=CNbfmvPxtcgCFckaGwodS5IJiw

luv2ride

Salsa Colossal 2. Steel, disc brakes, mudguard mounts, room for wider tyres.

Older version on sale if you think you can do without mudguards - new version has mounts and more clearance...
http://www.charliethebikemonger.com/salsa-2014-colossal-2-complete-road-bike-4151-p.asp

daniel_b

Doesn't seem like the 4S disc is out there yet.

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19719818#p19719818]DJ58[/url] wrote:

Re the Giant DD. tjm160 has one, scroll down to the bottom of page 19, I had a chat with him regarding mudguards, you need to check that the bike actually has clearances for full type mudguards. viewtopic.php?f=40044&t=12921011&start=360

Good spot, thankyou - that thread doesn't look too hopeful does it.

A google review says this:

I invest in the official guards for my Defy last winter. Found them a real pain to fit becasue of the ridiculously miniscule clearance on the Defy's and even whan I did get them on they never seemed to fit perfectly central without a bit of nudging.

Also found that the plastic used is actually clear and the colouring on it is just a paint of some sort which wore away very quickly as dirt or stones got pulled up between the guard and tyre and scraped it off so I soon had a completely transparent stripe down the middle.

That said they are pretty much the only fully fitted guards that will go on a Defy so I ended up going for a clip on seat post mounted one that I could easily put on when it was REALLY needed but most of the time I just go without and resign myself to looking like i've had a toilet accident on the back of my jersey!

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19719860#p19719860]letap73[/url] wrote:

Suprised nobody has mentioned the Croix de fer - mine is a 54 (I also have 34 inch inseam, short torso) it fits most of the bill above:
http://www.singletrackbikes.co.uk/m1b118s23p37707/Genesis_Croix_de_Fer_20_2015/RS_GB/92376?gclid=CNbfmvPxtcgCFckaGwodS5IJiw

I'll take a look at the CDF options - ta.

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19719890#p19719890]Luv2ride[/url] wrote:

Salsa Colossal 2. Steel, disc brakes, mudguard mounts, room for wider tyres.

Older version on sale if you think you can do without mudguards - new version has mounts and more clearance...
http://www.charliethebikemonger.com/salsa-2014-colossal-2-complete-road-bike-4151-p.asp

That does look nice and well equipped, but seems to be 2K?

daniel_b

With the lack of clearance on the Giant I am wondering if a CX bike might be worth considering, although i gather from another thread on gravel bikes, that the geometry might make them not so good at long distance.
I would of course put something like 25mm road tyres on.

I'm spoiled with my Marin, in that I can easily fit SKS or PDW mudguards, and there is plenty of clearance.
I kind of need the same thing for my winter bike, I won't be happy with something that rattles like a b@stard.

The guards on my bike do occasionally rattle, but that is only if one of the bolts comes loose, or if they crack, as they are prone to do.

Like the look of this for £1100, but it's SRAM.

tangerineowl

Norco Valence Alu, or Norco Search Alu or steel (S1)

skooter

Just got a Defy myself and its a great bike?

daniel_b

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19721206#p19721206]skooter[/url] wrote:

Just got a Defy myself and its a great bike?

That's good to hear, but the mudguards remain a concern for me, not a problem in Malaga though I expect!

My current thinking is either this Cannondale:
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/cannondale/synapse-alloy-105-5-disc-2016-road-bike-ec120349
And then buy the Shimano Hydraulic discs and levers from bike-discount, and swap them over from the off, and flog the other ones.
I think I can get the bike for circa £870 + £290 for the brakes = £1160, and then hopefully £140ish from selling the stock levers and brakes would bring it down to £1020.
I already have a couple of sets of mudguards at home that I think will fit.

Or the adventure version, that simply seems to be a different colour and has mudguards, oh and SRAM with hydraulic brakes.
This I can land for around £1050 - so very little in it, but of course then I am stuck with SRAM.

The circa 15% discount I can get from Evans is swaying me towards them at the mo.

I do want a bike however that I like the look of, and a lot of the dark coloures frames (The synapse dark green excluded) really do not move me at all, and when I am spending 1K, I do want it to be a bike I like the look of and WANT to ride.

My best roadbike is matte black, but I built it and have brightened it up with a fizik saddle and seatpost collar, bartape, cable donuts, and jagwire cable outers, and a few other bits, so I love the look of it, but for a winter bike I want darker items such as handlebar tape, so ideally I want a brighter frame - just because I do really.

Both the Giant and the two Dales put a tick in the box as an attractive bike for me.

ryanshattered

Any particular reason you're against having SRAM on it?

daniel_b

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19721342#p19721342]ryanshattered[/url] wrote:

Any particular reason you're against having SRAM on it?

I guess just because my bike range, aside from the SS, is Shimano throughout, apart from the odd fsa chainset here and there - so I know how it all works, and fits together, and if I want to move shifters or brakes from one bike to another, it's a comparative walk in the park

I suppose chains, cassettes, and wheels will still be interchangable - I also read on someone's post that in their opinion SRAM shifters were very expensive (in case of failure/accident) - I have not actually investigated whether that was, or still is true however.

I rode a SRAM double tap system once (4 years or ago or so), and didn't at that time know how it worked, so struggled with it a lot, IIRC, managing to shift down the block into smaller and smaller cogs, as I tried to negotiate a hill!

The other fear is if I LOVE the shape of the SRAM hood, I can't justify changing my best bike's Ultegra 6800 groupset!

Th downsides I am seeing with both the Giant and the Cannondale is that they use a propietary, or rare seatpost size, which makes tinkering with your ride somewhat difficult.

daniel_b

I have found an even cheaper stockist of the Adventure 2015 model.

http://www.thebikeshop.de

I have not run through the whole process, but it suggests you can get a 54 or a 56 for 1308 Euros if you pay up front.
Which is a pretty impressive £975.

skooter

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19721309#p19721309]Daniel B[/url] wrote:

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19721206#p19721206]skooter[/url] wrote:

Just got a Defy myself and its a great bike?

That's good to hear, but the mudguards remain a concern for me, not a problem in Malaga though I expect!

My current thinking is either this Cannondale:
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/cannondale/synapse-alloy-105-5-disc-2016-road-bike-ec120349
And then buy the Shimano Hydraulic discs and levers from bike-discount, and swap them over from the off, and flog the other ones.
I think I can get the bike for circa £870 + £290 for the brakes = £1160, and then hopefully £140ish from selling the stock levers and brakes would bring it down to £1020.
I already have a couple of sets of mudguards at home that I think will fit.

Or the adventure version, that simply seems to be a different colour and has mudguards, oh and SRAM with hydraulic brakes.
This I can land for around £1050 - so very little in it, but of course then I am stuck with SRAM.

The circa 15% discount I can get from Evans is swaying me towards them at the mo.

I do want a bike however that I like the look of, and a lot of the dark coloures frames (The synapse dark green excluded) really do not move me at all, and when I am spending 1K, I do want it to be a bike I like the look of and WANT to ride.

My best roadbike is matte black, but I built it and have brightened it up with a fizik saddle and seatpost collar, bartape, cable donuts, and jagwire cable outers, and a few other bits, so I love the look of it, but for a winter bike I want darker items such as handlebar tape, so ideally I want a brighter frame - just because I do really.

Both the Giant and the two Dales put a tick in the box as an attractive bike for me.

I have to say we don't get a lot of rain so mudguards for me is not an issue

Just a thought for you.. I have just bought a Specialized Diverge (claris) and just upgraded the groupset to 105 10speed and that was just on a grand, great bike now.

Cheers Paul

daniel_b

[quote="skooter

I have to say we don't get a lot of rain so mudguards for me is not an issue

Just a thought for you.. I have just bought a Specialized Diverge (claris) and just upgraded the groupset to 105 10speed and that was just on a grand, great bike now.

Cheers Paul[/quote]

Thanks Paul - so you have both a Defy 1 AND a Diverge?

Diverge looks nice, except for the fact it seems to be in a lovely bright black colour.
This seems to be akin to the obsession with cars being silver.
All I ask is they offer one other colour option!

HumphUK

I find myself in the boat

Synapse 105 disc 2016 or Defy 1 disc 2016?

- both blue, both 105 + discs, both look good (to my eyes), both under £1k, both available on C2W....

I am looking for a winter bike, must have fixed mudguards and not be too much of a penalty on the wednesday night 40 mile club thrash - and a pleasing experience for the weekend 60 mile coffee and cake run

I really struggle to differentiate between these two bikes - anyone help to tip the balance?

daniel_b

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19743101#p19743101]HumphUK[/url] wrote:

I find myself in the boat

Synapse 105 disc 2016 or Defy 1 disc 2016?

- both blue, both 105 + discs, both look good (to my eyes), both under £1k, both available on C2W....

I am looking for a winter bike, must have fixed mudguards and not be too much of a penalty on the wednesday night 40 mile club thrash - and a pleasing experience for the weekend 60 mile coffee and cake run

I really struggle to differentiate between these two bikes - anyone help to tip the balance?

Hi Humph,

what tipped me over the edge, is that I also needed full guards, and initially the Defy disc REALLY appealed, both in terms of spec and looks, however the reviews I read on the trouble with fitting mudguards really put me off.
So it was the synapse for me - especially the adventure model that comes with it's own metal fixed guards.

wakey1977

I've just picked up the Defy 1 disc on Saturday, and I had my lbs to fit some mudguards while I waited, think they must have had a bit of a chew on as I waited a canny while. They got them fitted in the end and as far as I can see they look pretty decent, don't think there's much clearance for larger tyre's.

If you want I could take a picture of the front fork's so you can see the clearances with the mudguards on?

daniel_b

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19743661#p19743661]wakey1977[/url] wrote:

I've just picked up the Defy 1 disc on Saturday, and I had my lbs to fit some mudguards while I waited, think they must have had a bit of a chew on as I waited a canny while. They got them fitted in the end and as far as I can see they look pretty decent, don't think there's much clearance for larger tyre's.

If you want I could take a picture of the front fork's so you can see the clearances with the mudguards on?

Nice - pics would be useful I am sure.

This was the thread that someone else linked to, that just made it seem a bit to close for comfort for me.
http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=40044&t=12921011&start=360

The Synapse has ample room, I know it looks neater to be as close as a close thing to the tyre, but in reality that will end up with the slightest knock, or piece of debris causing issues, rubs, squeaks etc etc

Delighted mine are metal guards, had just started to lose the plot a bit with SKS guards, as they always crack in the same place on the rear - had already bodged a repair, and will effect yet another repair shortly, going to bolt a new piece on, and shorten the overall length a lot, hoping that will solve the issue - and as the Marin is going off to warmer (but potentially equally wet) climbs, but will not be covering more than a few hundred miles a year, should do the trick.

wakey1977

Sorry to taken a while to reply Daniel, finally managed to get a picture of the front fork with mudguard, as you can see there isn't a great deal of clearance between the fork/tyre/mudguard.



I've not had much experience with mudguards but I like the fit of them and have had no problem with them so far.