Picking a new road bike

basiletech

Hey so im fairly new to road cycling and I want to get a fairly good condition second hand bike just cant decide between these two I found on craigslist.

https://atlanta.craigslist.org/atl/bik/ ... 60923.html

https://atlanta.craigslist.org/nat/bik/ ... 19736.html

JeremyIFisher

I would go with the first one.

The first one is higher specced, by a lot. Its a full carbon frame, v.s. aluminium with carbon forks on the fuji, which is a fairly significant plus for the Scattante. Its groupset, 105, is a step up from tiagra on the fuji. The 105 is also 11 speed groupset, v.s. 10 speed on the Tiagra, which gives you a lot more options to upgrade individual parts without having to replace the whole groupset: parts do get worn down after a few thousand miles and the more you get into cycling the more you want to get better quality parts. I can tell you that the inability to upgrade individual parts without replacing EVERYTHING does get annoying.

Overall, it looks like it has been looked after quite well. The cranks are a bit worn, but still looks like it has a fair bit of life left in them and not at all bad for a pre-owned bike. The rest of the groupset looks in good condition and very clean / well cared for.

I would also have a look it the bike before you buy and make sure there isn't any damage on the frame. It looks like its in fairly good condition from the pictures but buying with something like Craigslist you have no buyer protection to fall back on if something is not as described.

With the second one, the seller has chosen angles where you can't really tell what condition the groupset is in. Which seems a bit suspicious. Also it is much lower spec'd compared to the other one and isn't by any means good value for money.

Whichever ones you go for, I would recommend replacing the wheels at some point. Despite the fact that they are one of the most important parts, manufacturer love using lower end wheels for their bikes as they don't look as sexy as the frame, groupset or finishing kit on the specs list. Also the gatorskins are great winter tyres, and are basically bulletproof, but are also quite heavy and not what you want on once summer comes around (especially with a carbon frame).

basiletech

JeremyIFisher wrote:

I would go with the first one.

The first one is higher specced, by a lot. Its a full carbon frame, v.s. aluminium with carbon forks on the fuji, which is a fairly significant plus for the Scattante. Its groupset, 105, is a step up from tiagra on the fuji. The 105 is also 11 speed groupset, v.s. 10 speed on the Tiagra, which gives you a lot more options to upgrade individual parts without having to replace the whole groupset: parts do get worn down after a few thousand miles and the more you get into cycling the more you want to get better quality parts. I can tell you that the inability to upgrade individual parts without replacing EVERYTHING does get annoying.

Overall, it looks like it has been looked after quite well. The cranks are a bit worn, but still looks like it has a fair bit of life left in them and not at all bad for a pre-owned bike. The rest of the groupset looks in good condition and very clean / well cared for.

I would also have a look it the bike before you buy and make sure there isn't any damage on the frame. It looks like its in fairly good condition from the pictures but buying with something like Craigslist you have no buyer protection to fall back on if something is not as described.

With the second one, the seller has chosen angles where you can't really tell what condition the groupset is in. Which seems a bit suspicious. Also it is much lower spec'd compared to the other one and isn't by any means good value for money.

Whichever ones you go for, I would recommend replacing the wheels at some point. Despite the fact that they are one of the most important parts, manufacturer love using lower end wheels for their bikes as they don't look as sexy as the frame, groupset or finishing kit on the specs list. Also the gatorskins are great winter tyres, and are basically bulletproof, but are also quite heavy and not what you want on once summer comes around (especially with a carbon frame).

Thanks so much ill go for the Scattante and maybe get new tires and a new crank

darkhairedlord

Don't buy the stolen one.

basiletech

darkhairedlord wrote:

Don't buy the stolen one.

WHat do you mean?