Buying advice for a newbie :)

myideal

Hi,

I have been cycling for years on a very old roadbike, however decided that now is the time to upgrade and look for something new. I would ideally like some advice from all of you experts on cycling tech as to what is the best entry bike, offering value for money and practicality.

My cycling tends to be around 50 miles, some steep climbs however mostly flat, so clearly looking for something that can cope with all that.

The bikes that I have seen so far are;

Carrera Vanquish

B'TWIN TRIBAN 500 SE

Forme Longcliffe 4.0

What I would like to know is which of these two bikes is the best? Also are their any obvious weaknesses that I should consider of these? Finally can anyone suggest anything better?

I know a friend has told me about having 11 gears ideally, however suspect these are expensive and not found on most entry level bikes?

I should also add that I have a thrid option of buying a used bike. I have been offered the chance to buy a Carrera Karkinos. It appears to have had changes made to it as its got; 32-11t shimano rear cassette. 50-34t fsa front. Shimano Sora shifters. Campagnolo khamsin asymmetric wheel set. Columbus Tusk carbon forks.

Is this any good? How much should I be paying for a 2nd hand bike like this?

All help is really welcome.

meesterbond

The Triban always gets good feedback here. I've never ridden one so don't take my word for it, but a search here and in the Newbies section should give you a lot of reading material. It's a pretty well trodden path.

As for the valuation on the Carrera, assuming it's in perfect condition I'd say about £50-60. I wouldn't make many adjustments for the upgrades as you've no idea when they were done or the competence of the person fitting them. I'm also assuming that it is the right size - whatever you pay, if it doesn't fit it's not a bargain.

I'd stump up the cash and go for the Triban.

diamonddog

^^^This

myideal

Thanks for that, really good information there and I think that is my fear with buying a used bike as such as I don't know how well the equiptment has been fitted.

Out of interest the general feeling I am getting is people are not fans of the Carerra Vanquish. Why is this bike judged like this compared to the Triban 500? The reason I was considering them was because I thought they were similar, however get the feeling im missing something obvious here. :roll:

daniel_b

myideal wrote:

Thanks for that, really good information there and I think that is my fear with buying a used bike as such as I don't know how well the equiptment has been fitted.

Out of interest the general feeling I am getting is people are not fans of the Carerra Vanquish. Why is this bike judged like this compared to the Triban 500? The reason I was considering them was because I thought they were similar, however get the feeling im missing something obvious here. :roll:

The 500SE is the slightly better specced one if you can find the extra cash:
http://www.decathlon.co.uk/triban-500-se-road-bike-id_8306187.html

The frame also has a lifetime warranty, and I suspect, although happy to be proved wrong, that it will be a fair bit lighter than the Vanquish - I did notice that both have carbon forks.

keef66

The Carrera suffers in the popularity stakes only because it's Halfords' own brand. B'Twin is the same but for Decathlon.

They, and the Forme Longcliffe you mention, appear similarly specced. Buy the one you like the look of most.

(I'd probably prefer Shimano shifters over Microshift, but that's just me being conservative with a small c)

myideal

Probably a newbie silly question but whats the difference between Microshift and Shimarno shifters?

Also are there ratios on those gears good enough for some flat and hill work (basically mixed bag)?

Really appreciate all your help as you all have way more knowledge than me.

keef66

Shimano are a Japanese global corporation, been producing gear for bikes since 1921. Their stuff is generally pretty reliable, if unexciting. It's all I've ever used.

Microshift are a relative newcomer from Taiwan, founded apparently 17 years ago. Never seen or used any of their kit, so I can't really comment.

Other groupset manufacturers:

Campagnolo - Italian, lovely, ergonomic, upshifts via a thumb lever on the inside of the hood.
SRAM - relative newcomer from USA, light, functional, double tap shifting (Google if you need explanation)


The Triban has a triple chainset, while the other 2 have compact doubles. They all offer a suitable range of gears for a beginner, just expect to be standing on the pedals when climbing to get up those first hills...

daniel_b

And here is another bike shaped spanner:

http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/ribble-prime/

Downside is that you are unlikely to be able to try one out for real, unless you live near their store of course.

myideal

Oooh that looks good as well.

Assuming that 11-32 is perfect for flat and hills?

Are they a good brand? Never heard of them before.

myideal

Of course you lot are so good at educating and helping you have got me thinking.

Now I'm wondering should I really spend a bit more and get something more longer term, given like I say I've cycled a fair bit on my very old 1970s Peugeot road bike. Just that has reached the point where repairing it are becoming too common. Lol

For example is the Bwin 540 looks a good bike. It's £650 bit is that a better long term investment?

Or course then, for £700 you can get a Boardman carbon bike. Again is it worth this sort of investment?

I started off thinking that expensive bikes were just paying for the the name etc , however the more I learn, the more I am starting to think maybe paying a bit more could be a better idea in the longer term?

meesterbond

In my opinion, the heart of any bike is the frame and that's where you should invest the most money. It's all well and good saying bike X has better wheels and gears but if the frame is too heavy or a bit floppy then frankly it doesn't matter about all the shiny things hanging off it.

It sounds like you ride a lot anyway so I'm not sure the usual newbie advice of 'wait and see if you enjoy it, then upgrade' really holds true so I'd suggest that the extra spent on the Boardman would really make a difference. You're still at that level of bike where the diminishing returns haven't really kicked in yet so the extra cash will get you something noticeably better. I wouldn't discount a good alloy bike at £700 though either...

Unfortunately by extending your budget you're really made the decision-making process even tougher!!

daniel_b

myideal wrote:

Of course you lot are so good at educating and helping you have got me thinking.

Now I'm wondering should I really spend a bit more and get something more longer term, given like I say I've cycled a fair bit on my very old 1970s Peugeot road bike. Just that has reached the point where repairing it are becoming too common. Lol

For example is the Bwin 540 looks a good bike. It's £650 bit is that a better long term investment?

Or course then, for £700 you can get a Boardman carbon bike. Again is it worth this sort of investment?

I started off thinking that expensive bikes were just paying for the the name etc , however the more I learn, the more I am starting to think maybe paying a bit more could be a better idea in the longer term?

It's a tricky thinig to balance, but yes you are right the 540 is a cracking bike for the money.

Another thing that seems to make a lot of sense, is to spend a decent amount of money on a first bike, and then if they love it, that bike becomes their winter bike (Desirable to have mounting points for mudguards), and you buy a new lighter, better specced bike and away you go.
You can run this even further if you want, in that you buy a new bike, and then buiy a new lighter set of wheels, and give the new bikes wheels to your winter bike to also improve that.
You then have the extra option, if everythig is compatible, of having now a spare wheel set, and if you wanted to get a turbo trainer, you have a wheel ready to go!

Do you have the option of buying on cycle to work?

myideal

Hum that's me all over making things difficult.

Is carbon better than aluminium? Ie: the Triban 540 I notice is an alloy frame, whereas the Boardman is a Carbon frame. Then I notice the Triban 540 is a little cheaper and has the 11 gear set on it, however the Boardman has the 10 set. Of course I also realise looking in this range, you can all probably suggest alternative bikes to look at.

What's the life span in years of a carbon frame? Should it last as long as an alloy?

Sadly I can't use CTW as my employer won't sign up to it. Gutted on that one as see you can get some good deals from it.

meesterbond

Whether Carbon is better than Aluminium is a huge can of worms. I think the answer is 'sometimes'... a good alloy frame will out perform a poor carbon one, but there is a reason that all pro-level bikes are carbon. It's difficult to make generalisations and the problem with buying off the web is that you end up judging a bike based on what you can compare spec-wise i.e. the groupset and wheels which leaves the most important bit out of the equation.

In terms of longevity, I shouldn't worry too much - a decently built carbon frame will last a long time.

type:epyt

Another option for an extra £50:

http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/m7b65s6p52 ... -2300-2013

It's rrp is 2x the price of the other bikes you were looking at and the value is all in the frame, but at that price it has to be a consideration ... It'll also have some resale value if you decide road cycling ain't for you or if you do get tne bug and want a shinier bike ...

mrb123

Merlin worth a look too. Have heard some good things about their own brand bikes...
https://www.merlincycles.com/road-bikes-75267/

DeVlaeminck

I wouldn't worry about carbon vs alumium - a decent set of wheels (not just light but something reasonably robust) and a reasonable groupset are more important imo.

keef66

Nearly 10 years ago I decided to take up road cycling again at the age of 50. I spent ages drawing up a shortlist of bikes and comparing specs.

I decided I wanted carbon and 105, which at the time meant parting with about a grand.

However, I visited a decent bike shop (Epic Cycles) and chatted about the kind of cycling I wanted to do. Because I said I'd be riding it year round and in all weathers, we agreed I needed a frame with clearance / fittings for 25mm tyres and full mudguards. These days that would still leave me with a massive choice, back then it was pretty retricted. So after a couple of test rides I ended up with a Kinesis Racelight Tk which at the time was sold as a winter trainer. = pretty light, road bike geometry / handling but mudguard friendly.

So an alu framed bike built up with 105. Turned out to be a great recommendation; I still have it and in wetter years ride it a lot more than my N+1 carbon bike. It's a brilliant ride.

So I'd say don't get hung up on needing / wanting a carbon frame; a decent alloy frame / carbon fork can give you just as good a ride. Tyre size and pressure are more important in determining comfort.

Buy a bike you like the look of
Buy a bike that fits you
Buy a bike that is suited to the kind of riding you'll do

All of these are more easily achieved by dealing with a proper bike shop, but I appreciate this isn't convenient for everyone, and the best bargains are often to be had online.

I got the best of both worlds; first bike / advice / fitting from Epic, then once I knew what suited me, a bargain carbon frameset off the internet.

lakesluddite

MrB123 wrote:

Merlin worth a look too. Have heard some good things about their own brand bikes...
https://www.merlincycles.com/road-bikes-75267/

This one looks a cracking bargain - Carbon frame and 105 for £800 (a bit over budget though), plus Mavic Aksium wheels?!

My first carbon bike was pretty much the same spec, but cost £1200 (down from £1900!)

https://www.merlincycles.com/merlin-fus ... 84195.html

myideal

Are Merlin bikes seen as good then?

Also can you buy a bike online based on your height. Speaking to my LBS today and they were saying well " you could be 54 or 56, depends on the frame and make of bike". Just worried this makes getting the right size difficult online.

Was looking at some Cannondale today. They have a range in the local shop and have to admit they do look smart. Don't know too much about them as a make though?

mrb123

Cannondale are quality bikes, arguably the best of the more mainstream brands (although in truth most of the bigger brands all make decent bikes).

The best thing you can do for sizing help is to get out and sit on or ride some different bikes. Find out what feels comfortable to you. Look at geometry information for the brands you try. Compare the key measurements - stack, reach, top tube length etc. You'll soon start getting a feel for the sort of measurements you need.

keef66

The bike shop is correct. As a beginner the best way is to sit on a few bikes and see what feels comfortable. Once you know what size you need, try to get a test ride or two. I initially test rode a 54 but felt that I was having to reach too far, so they ordered in the 52 which felt much better and which I subsequently bought. Still happy with it 9 years on.

If I'd been buying on the internet and based on sizing charts I'd have chosen a bike a bit too big...

Cannondale make some of the best frames out there.