Budget £9k, choose me a bike.

Guernsey Donkey

Redundancy looms at work but I am luckily walking straight into another job so I have a significant budget for a new bike.

I currently have a Genesis Croix de Fer as my winter bike and a Bianchi Infinito cv for the summer so I am looking for something to complement these rather than replace them.

As per the title, the budget is £9k. I don't want anything too racey, my back wouldn't cope well with a Canyon Aeroad for example so think of something with a Stack to reach ratio higher than 1.4. Closer to 1.5 would be better. I'm not into racing or club runs but I do ride a couple of times a week, normally for 50 -100km. I also do a few sportives each year and have started to get into audax for which I use the Croix de Fer.

What would you choose and why?

fenix

Nine thousand pounds ? Seriously ?

A colnago would be very pretty but there's no need to spend 9k on it. Unless you need diamond encrusted top tubes.

bendertherobot

TOMMASINI X-FIRE:
FRAMESET - STAINLESS STEEL FRAME IN COLUMBUS XCR, FULL CARBON FORK
GROUPSET - CAMPAGNOLO CHORUS
FINISHING KIT - DEDA
WHEELS - MICHE SUPERTYPE
PRICE - £5,500

(tinker with groupset accordingly)

Guernsey Donkey

Fenix, 9k is the max. If it's less then that's fine. The deal with swmbo is that the diamond must cost the same as the bike so less is good!

The Tommasini looks interesting but the tubes look a little too big for steel. Steel should look really slender in my book. I have Campag' on the Infinito so Chorus is fine.

marcusjb

You've gotta give us some steer - what have you always dreamed of?

Leftfield - does SWMBO ride? Ever fancied touring together? £9K is a good budget for a nice tandem that'll fly to far off places.

Or, no new bike and spunk the £18K on 6 months out and seeing the world for the two of you?

Guernsey Donkey

marcusjb wrote:

You've gotta give us some steer - what have you always dreamed of?

Meg Ryan but she would cost more than 9k! (as would the divorce).

Swmbo has a bike but does not ride so the Tandem is out and since I work in the travel industry, 6 months travelling the world sounds like hell. My idea of a dream holiday is the area that made you a tv celeb!

fenix

It's very much marginal gains once you get above a few grand. A 0k bike doesn't ride 3x better than a 3k one.

If you to ask strangers then you've not dreamt of your own bike and you don't really need one.

Spend the money on an adventure or holiday of a lifetime. It'll be better than a bike that's marginally better than your other bike.

Even a trip to the Alps in summer would be a fraction of your budget and give you loads of memories.

bendertherobot

This. My suggestion was only semi serious. Decide what you want. Steel, Ti, Carbon. Then do the rest. If someone gave me 9k to spend on bikes tomorrow and only bikes my only question would be how many I could buy. If I had to spend it on one I'd struggle, really struggle.

marcusjb

Guernsey Donkey wrote:

marcusjb wrote:

You've gotta give us some steer - what have you always dreamed of?

Meg Ryan but she would cost more than 9k! (as would the divorce).

Swmbo has a bike but does not ride so the Tandem is out and since I work in the travel industry, 6 months travelling the world sounds like hell. My idea of a dream holiday is the area that made you a tv celeb!

I hear you. Well, now we're talking about my kind of riding; what's in my dream list?

Parlee Chebacco
Calfee Dragonfly Adventure

Hmm - let me think.

Something Ti from Independent Fabrications?

Gosh - I don't know!

Fat-Boy-Roubaix

4k on a bike, 3k on trip with the new bike, the rest on drugs and booze.

Parlee or one of the big brands top of the range "sportive" bike like everyone else I would struggle with anything over 4k only because it seems pointless past that point for my, erm limited cycling ability.

DeVlaeminck

I don't think I'd spend more than 3kish even if I had the money. Any half decent carbon race bike with Campag Chorus - the boutique stuff is nice in theory but when you have to start worrying about the value of it.

Maybe I could be persuaded to buy a Colnago C60 frameset and stick my chorus groupset on it just so I could see what all the fuss is about but to be honest I can't think it's going to be any nicer to ride than the Neil Pryde I've got now.

Fat-Boy-Roubaix

Only didn't suggest this as it is a race bike, but this is what I would get. http://www.focus-bikes.com/gb/en/bikes/ ... c-red.html

0ced0

with that kind of budget one HAS to go bespoke and get something really nice and special from the likes of Firefly, Baum, Eriksen, Cyfac, Pegoretti, Crumpton... depending on what you're after.

eric_draven

bendertherobot wrote:

This. My suggestion was only semi serious. Decide what you want. Steel, Ti, Carbon. Then do the rest. If someone gave me 9k to spend on bikes tomorrow and only bikes my only question would be how many I could buy. If I had to spend it on one I'd struggle, really struggle.

^^^^^^This and travelling,defo need an engine in it for me at 9k on one bike
as for Meg Ryan when she is first in the film The Doors as Pam,ooohhhh yes,but after seeing her on Micheal Parkinson show erm No Thanks

Garry H

A triban and a campervan

kleinstroker

Just get three bikes, you will like one of them better than the others

mrb123

3 grand on a carbon aero bike for when the sun is shining and you fancy a fast, exciting blast.

3 grand for a custom steel or ti bike with hydro discs for the rest of the time.

Trouser the remainder for future hollybobs.

pblakeney

A red one. Red bikes are faster.

PTestTeam

£9k? Got to go custom bespoke. Get a bike that fits you like a glove, rides how YOU want and with your own custom paint finish, to end up with a bike like no one else's. And you can get that for a lot less than £9k

fenix

I did the custom build and the best group set for my fourth bike it was. Lovely thing but at the end of the day - it's just a bike.

It's not the bike itself - it's what you do with it that counts.

bendertherobot

Just get the tommassini.

And a Cannondale slate

852Kompol

If I have the same amount to spend on one bike...
It would be some fancy Carbon custom frame from AX lightness and possibly having those sub 900g wheels...and Disc brake too(Carbon disc as well, just for the sake of it).

Keep the rest just in case I wreck the bike though

gaffer_slow

frame that fits
etap with quarq
enve 2.2 set and 4.5 set both on dt240 w/cx ray
super high end finishing kit.

ugo.santalucia

852Kompol wrote:

If I have the same amount to spend on one bike...
It would be some fancy Carbon custom frame from AX lightness and possibly having those sub 900g wheels...and Disc brake too(Carbon disc as well, just for the sake of it).

Keep the rest just in case I wreck the bike though

If "guernsey" stands for he lives on the island, I suspect it's pointless to get some 900 grams wheels, there's nowhere to go really...
Probably best to get something that pleases the eye

noodleman

Choose it yourself mate . If you're spending that sort of money and you don't know what you want, don't spend it :shock:

PTestTeam

bendertherobot wrote:

Just get the tommassini.

And a Cannondale slate

Which is a custom, made-to-measure frame. Nice choice Sir

JesseD

Id say custom as well, maybe Legend/Sarto etc if you want carbon, if not then maybe Repete in Prague (and you get a weekend away!)

Top end groupo of your flavour (Campag/Sram/Shimano), Lightweight wheels maybe, top end finishing kit and you will still have change to buy some new cycling kit (shoes/helmet/togs etc).

Half the fun of spending this much is the research (I would imagine as I am at the exact opposite end of the spectrum).

http://www.sartoantonio.com/en/bicycles ... d-bicycles
http://www.legend-bikes.com/Products.aspx
http://www.repetecycles.com/EN/reborn

Anonymous

Passoni, without a doubt. Top Force for me, but something more relaxed for you.

bendertherobot

(AND a Cannondale Slate)

gsk82

a frame (possible a supersix evo hi mod), some finishing kit, Sram Red Wifli and some Lightweight wheels with white spokes.

bendertherobot

gsk82 wrote:

a frame (possible a supersix evo hi mod), some finishing kit, Sram Red Wifli and some Lightweight wheels with white spokes.

I reckon there's enough left there for even an Ultegra Cannondale Slate.