What sub 1k roadie

[R500POP]

Im looking for a sub 1k geared road bike to the collection as when im on 70mile plus rides the fixie isnt what one would call ideal.

I like the look of the Giant Defy 1, it has a decent level of kit on a good ally frame and somr great reviews.

Any other suggestions however are welcomed

[Comfortably Dumb]

I was looking at a Defy 2 ended up going for the equivalent level Merida as the spec was a little better and I prefered the dealer.

[SixtySpeedTwin]

Ive got a defy 2 and love it.
I bought it because its got a low crossbar for the frame size so i would recommend a ride to see if its a good fit for you.
Clive

[Gizmoish]

There are a million bikes available at that price point because of the cycle to work scheme.

I have a Cannondale CAAD8 which I love, the Defy 1 gets good reviews, many people like the Boardman range, there's a Carrera (Virtuoso iirc) which looks good, there are Treks, Specialized Allez, the Bianchi via Nirone / Impulso, ...

I personally think that aluminium with a carbon fork is a better approach at this price point than full carbon, Tiagra/105 gears are common.

Wait a month or two and you may start to see 2012 bikes being discounted as the 2013 ranges come in.

[nammynake]

In typical PH fashion I am going to suggest a slight budget increase of £200 and one of these:

http://www.canyon.com/_uk/roadbikes/bike.html?b=25...

Very light, excellent components and wheels, and very good frame reviews.

[anonymous-user]

depends if this is C2W or not really, if it is then the Boardman team is pretty hard to beat with the Aksium wheelset which is miles better than anything you will find on most other £1k bikes. Have a look at Jamis and Merida too who offer good value for money. the Raleigh Airlite range is under rated too.

If its your own money, Canyon are hard to beat, even the Alu roadlite at the bototm of the range gets rave reviews. Then there is always the ribble stealth or a Planet X, spec it with Sora and budget wheels and its a steal for the money, especially if you have an eye for the upgrades. better to start with the frame and then build around that...

spec wise, dont get obssessed with having tiagra over sora etc etc, normally it will be the rear mech and/or the shifters that are upgraded at the expense of everything else, the front mech will be sora or 230 and the wheels will be a set of own brand cheapies. "carbon forks" will not be full carbon at this price but carbon blades with an alu steerer and from experience these can vary from the good to the utterly shocking.

Edited by anonymous-user on Monday 30th July 14:47

[nammynake]

pablo said:

depends if this is C2W or not really, if it is then the Boardman team is pretty hard to beat with the Aksium wheelset which is miles better than anything you will find on most other £1k bikes. Have a look at Jamis and Merida too who offer good value for money. the Raleigh Airlite range is under rated too.

If its your own money, Canyon are hard to beat, even the Alu roadlite at the bototm of the range gets rave reviews. Then there is always the ribble stealth or a Planet X, spec it with Sora and budget wheels and its a steal for the money, especially if you have an eye for the upgrades. better to start with the frame and then build around that...

spec wise, dont get obssessed with having tiagra over sora etc etc, normally it will be the rear mech and/or the shifters that are upgraded at the expense of everything else, the front mech will be sora or 230 and the wheels will be a set of own brand cheapies. "carbon forks" will not be full carbon at this price but carbon blades with an alu steerer and from experience these can vary from the good to the utterly shocking.

Edited by pablo on Monday 30th July 14:47

I tend to agree with this, although I would personally avoid Sora shifters. Mechanically thy are fine, but the annoying thumb shifter for moving to smaller cogs is just horrible. You can not reach it from the drops, only the hoods.

[Comfortably Dumb]

pablo said:

spec wise, dont get obssessed with having tiagra over sora etc etc, normally it will be the rear mech and/or the shifters that are upgraded at the expense of everything else, the front mech will be sora or 230 and the wheels will be a set of own brand cheapies. "carbon forks" will not be full carbon at this price but carbon blades with an alu steerer and from experience these can vary from the good to the utterly shocking.

This is where the Merida won out over the giant when I was comparing the specs. The Giant had cheaper brakes and hubs, the Merida was Tiagra everything no corners cut.

[andySC]

Westbrook Cycles are doing Giant TCR's for £999. Carbon frame & 105 components with £300 off mrrp. I've dealt with Westbrook on several occasions & they're top lads....

[mcelliott]

http://www.dolan-bikes.com/road-bikes/Carbon/Shima...

This looks like pretty good value for money - I've heard many good reports about Dolan and may even treat myself to a winter hack from them.

[One8Two]

mcelliott said:

http://www.dolan-bikes.com/road-bikes/Carbon/Shima...

This looks like pretty good value for money - I've heard many good reports about Dolan and may even treat myself to a winter hack from them.

Can vouch for the Mythos. Bought one on C2W scheme last month with Sram Rival groupset. Have to say based on some early rides i'm very impressed! They did have the Mythos with Ultegra on offer for £1k, bargain!

Dan

[MadDad]

I would throw a Felt F75 into the mix, 105 groupset, BB30/FSA Gossamer cranks, the rest of the finishing kit is Felt branded but all works very well. You will want to dump the wheels in time as they are slightly heavy but it is a great bike, and the wheels don't detract from the ride enough to discount it from the running.

Retail is about £1,200 but Wiggle etc have them for sub £900 - quite a lot of bike for the money.

I ride a 2010 F75 and although the frame geo is quite aggressive, I find it a very comfy bike on both short fast spins, and long days in the saddle.

[Gizmoish]

Up to you, but if you're buying a secondhand bike you might as well buy a secondhand one.

[rhinochopig]

[ph]Given £1500 is nigh on a grand you might as well look at £2k bikes as £2k is nigh on £1500[/ph]

[GaryGlitter]

[redacted]

[TonyHetherington]

rhinochopig][ph said:

Given £1500 is nigh on a grand you might as well look at £2k bikes as £2k is nigh on £1500[/ph]

That's how I ended up from an £800 Tag Heuer to a £4k Omega

[Gizmoish]

[redacted]

[Steve vRS]

I bought a Defy 1 on the C2W scheme and have been very happy. 105 components and a good frame. Obviously I have done a few hundred miles on it and only a few miles on any other bike when I was test riding so it's hard to compare. However, it gets good write ups, fits me well and I enjoy it

Steve

[Tidybeard]

I went to Royles in Wilmslow earlier in the week with an eye on the Trek Madone 3.1 2012 which they had reduced from £1500 to £1080. I think they only had size 56 left but they fiendishly upsold me onto a 4.7 which I'm very happy with.

Anyway, the 3.1 is a lot of bike for £1080. Link here, I have no affiliation to them. You have to add the code from the front page (i think it is "sos10") to get the extra 20% off. http://www.royles.biz/product/8902/Trek_Madone_31_...

[Potatoes]

I recently bought a BMC SR01, with Tiagra chainset. It's a superb fit, I really struggled to find a fit and the BMC frame was ideal. Great bike, stiff and light making the miles and the hills an absoltute breeze compared to my Specialised Allez Elite (also sub £1K)