Halfords+carrera, any good? Is it worth having 2 bikes?
Discussion
Recently bought myself a new, quite expensive, mountain bike - loving being out and slowly but surely can feel myself getting quicker and fitter.
However I am doing 2 distinct types of rides - all roads or all tracks. Now the Mountain bike is great for the tracks but since borrowing a friends road bike the mountain bike seems totally geared wrong for the raods!
Now it might just be in my head, So should I persevere with the mountain bike on the road or should I take advantage of the halfrauds sale - this seems like a good deal?;
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...
However I am doing 2 distinct types of rides - all roads or all tracks. Now the Mountain bike is great for the tracks but since borrowing a friends road bike the mountain bike seems totally geared wrong for the raods!
Now it might just be in my head, So should I persevere with the mountain bike on the road or should I take advantage of the halfrauds sale - this seems like a good deal?;
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...
I'm probably going to buy a Carrera mtb this week (had a look S/H but it barely seems worth it given the prices I've seen on ebay/gumtree).
From what I've read pretty much all bikes are made in the same factories in the far east so the Halfords Carreras are no better or worse than any other brand. However, order online and screw it together yourself because theres a good chance the ediots in-store will overtighten/cock up assembling it.
From what I've read pretty much all bikes are made in the same factories in the far east so the Halfords Carreras are no better or worse than any other brand. However, order online and screw it together yourself because theres a good chance the ediots in-store will overtighten/cock up assembling it.
I bought a Carrera MTB a couple years back.. to get fit.. can remember specific model now but was blue, front sus, full cable disc, 24 speed..
Was fine for the first few weeks then I started getting more adventurous and the components weren't really up to par.. went through about 3 inner tubes, blew fork seals, buckled rear wheel and bottom bracket wont stop clicking and slipping under steep inclines (makes me sound like a right fatty, but I'm about 5' 10", 12 stone) I'm a novice rider and these were only light, easy tracks with a few small rocky sections through some woodland.
Took back to shop, refused all warrenty claims as the bike had been used offroad.. despite being a mountain bike, and plus, it weighs a ton!!
Support your local bike shop and look/demo some of their range first in my opinion.
Was fine for the first few weeks then I started getting more adventurous and the components weren't really up to par.. went through about 3 inner tubes, blew fork seals, buckled rear wheel and bottom bracket wont stop clicking and slipping under steep inclines (makes me sound like a right fatty, but I'm about 5' 10", 12 stone) I'm a novice rider and these were only light, easy tracks with a few small rocky sections through some woodland.
Took back to shop, refused all warrenty claims as the bike had been used offroad.. despite being a mountain bike, and plus, it weighs a ton!!
Support your local bike shop and look/demo some of their range first in my opinion.
SuperHangOn said:
^^ Same with any cheaply specced bike though? I chucked a GT (my last bike) in the skip because it was falling apart.
Yonks back I had a USA built Gary Fisher- that was bloody indestructible but got nicked
I'd hoped it'd stand up to a little abuse for £450, I still have it but havent used it in a very long time!Yonks back I had a USA built Gary Fisher- that was bloody indestructible but got nicked
I wouldn't recommend them. Chainrings too big for a newbie, unless you live somewhere with no hills or are already fit. Also even compared to my Triban 3 (which was quite heavy) it felt like a hefty old lump.
When I needed to replace the Trbian, I bought a Boardman sport instead. £500, but at least you won't have to spend loads of cash replacing the saddle, tyres, chainset almost immediately.
At its £500 or £600 alleged RRP it would be very very poor compared to the competition.
When I needed to replace the Trbian, I bought a Boardman sport instead. £500, but at least you won't have to spend loads of cash replacing the saddle, tyres, chainset almost immediately.
At its £500 or £600 alleged RRP it would be very very poor compared to the competition.
Lee540 said:
I bought a Carrera MTB a couple years back.. to get fit.. can remember specific model now but was blue, front sus, full cable disc, 24 speed..
Was fine for the first few weeks then I started getting more adventurous and the components weren't really up to par.. went through about 3 inner tubes, blew fork seals, buckled rear wheel and bottom bracket wont stop clicking and slipping under steep inclines (makes me sound like a right fatty, but I'm about 5' 10", 12 stone) I'm a novice rider and these were only light, easy tracks with a few small rocky sections through some woodland.
Took back to shop, refused all warrenty claims as the bike had been used offroad.. despite being a mountain bike, and plus, it weighs a ton!!
Support your local bike shop and look/demo some of their range first in my opinion.
I am surprised to hear you say that. I love mine and its about 5 years old. I use it quite a lot every year, in all weathers and the only failure was a gearchange mech on the handlebars. I recommend it all the time to people. That said there is a Boardman FS out there with my name on....;)Was fine for the first few weeks then I started getting more adventurous and the components weren't really up to par.. went through about 3 inner tubes, blew fork seals, buckled rear wheel and bottom bracket wont stop clicking and slipping under steep inclines (makes me sound like a right fatty, but I'm about 5' 10", 12 stone) I'm a novice rider and these were only light, easy tracks with a few small rocky sections through some woodland.
Took back to shop, refused all warrenty claims as the bike had been used offroad.. despite being a mountain bike, and plus, it weighs a ton!!
Support your local bike shop and look/demo some of their range first in my opinion.
Its good for price. But its a cheap price...
Gears will kill you on hills, don't get me wrong I have a 52/39 and live in a hilly area, but if you are a newbie and have hills it will bust your balls off!
Personally I'd spend 300-450, get a better bike secondhand (once the summer passes and all the fairweathers aren't competing with you) or buy a Allez/Boardman when the new models come out and they sell off the existing ones
Gears will kill you on hills, don't get me wrong I have a 52/39 and live in a hilly area, but if you are a newbie and have hills it will bust your balls off!
Personally I'd spend 300-450, get a better bike secondhand (once the summer passes and all the fairweathers aren't competing with you) or buy a Allez/Boardman when the new models come out and they sell off the existing ones
Gizmoish said:
SuperHangOn said:
From what I've read pretty much all bikes are made in the same factories in the far east
TrueSuperHangOn said:
so the Halfords Carreras are no better or worse than any other brand.
False.
The reviews seem to rate the MTB's I'm looking at.
SuperHangOn said:
Gizmoish said:
SuperHangOn said:
From what I've read pretty much all bikes are made in the same factories in the far east
TrueSuperHangOn said:
so the Halfords Carreras are no better or worse than any other brand.
False.The reviews seem to rate the MTB's I'm looking at.
What I mean is, just because a bike is made in the Far East does not imply a) that its rubbish or b) that it's equal to any other randomly chosen bike made there.
Unless it's a De Rosa, in which case etc.
Blakeatron said:
So should I persevere with the mountain bike on the road or should I take advantage of the halfrauds sale - this seems like a good deal?;
Take advantage. A mountain bike on the road will always be hard work* and you'll ruin the tyres quicker. I have a cheap road/commuting bike and in its own way its as fun as my All Mountain MTB. I used it to blast round the country lanes during the week to keep my fittness up for the trails at the weekend.- I once did the IOW round the Island Road Race on my old Orange Crush with some Dirt Jumping tyres on. Never again.
Gizmoish said:
False.
Don't believe everything you read.There are many factories in the Far East, I visited over 45 in my time as buyer for bikes at a national retailer that has a few own brands.
They vary massively in quality, capability and customer base.
It is a common misconception that they all come out of the same place
I'm in a very similar position to the op on this one, was thinking about grabbing one of these as a "trial" road bike to find out if I liked it.
After all deciding you really prefer pottering on your MTB after spending four figures on a carbon speed machine isn't really something I'd relish.
I've got a carrera Vulcan a few months old (love it BTW) and it replaced a horrific boat anchor of a bso. I started doing a couple of miles a day in April, I'm on 230 for the month as of today. On the Vulcan, mostly roads with semi slicks on.
I managed to snag a carrera tdf, ridden once, crashed once :-) for 140 from one of those random Facebook selling groups my gf is addicted to.
First thoughts, as a first cheap road bike, you can drop it, crash it and not worry about it. You can abuse it all winter long, and likely get most of the money back next year...
Only a few miles this evening after working out how the hell presta valves work.... But I found it featherlight, fast and smooth as hell and its definitely going to help push my fitness level further without the granny gear the vulcan provides for unfit former fat gits trying to scale hills....
So far I'm impressed and I would have been at 250.. (bearing in kind my previous experience)
Moving from the bso to a Vulcan was a giant leap. Putting decent semi slicks was another, and the tdf is a third huge leap forwards in my eyes for road riding. God knows how damn good a proper roadie will be compared to this, still looking forwards to it next year :-)
Edited to add, the shifters are horrible, the bar tape is nasty as hell, but at least that last one is cheaply fixed.
After all deciding you really prefer pottering on your MTB after spending four figures on a carbon speed machine isn't really something I'd relish.
I've got a carrera Vulcan a few months old (love it BTW) and it replaced a horrific boat anchor of a bso. I started doing a couple of miles a day in April, I'm on 230 for the month as of today. On the Vulcan, mostly roads with semi slicks on.
I managed to snag a carrera tdf, ridden once, crashed once :-) for 140 from one of those random Facebook selling groups my gf is addicted to.
First thoughts, as a first cheap road bike, you can drop it, crash it and not worry about it. You can abuse it all winter long, and likely get most of the money back next year...
Only a few miles this evening after working out how the hell presta valves work.... But I found it featherlight, fast and smooth as hell and its definitely going to help push my fitness level further without the granny gear the vulcan provides for unfit former fat gits trying to scale hills....
So far I'm impressed and I would have been at 250.. (bearing in kind my previous experience)
Moving from the bso to a Vulcan was a giant leap. Putting decent semi slicks was another, and the tdf is a third huge leap forwards in my eyes for road riding. God knows how damn good a proper roadie will be compared to this, still looking forwards to it next year :-)
Edited to add, the shifters are horrible, the bar tape is nasty as hell, but at least that last one is cheaply fixed.
Edited by TheLemming on Tuesday 23 July 01:01
TAZ 215 said:
Don't believe everything you read.
There are many factories in the Far East, I visited over 45 in my time as buyer for bikes at a national retailer that has a few own brands.
They vary massively in quality, capability and customer base.
It is a common misconception that they all come out of the same place
That was exactly my point. There are many factories in the Far East, I visited over 45 in my time as buyer for bikes at a national retailer that has a few own brands.
They vary massively in quality, capability and customer base.
It is a common misconception that they all come out of the same place
I'm really intrigued by this discussion. I used to do Triathlons and had a Giant Cadex and a Cannondale R700 some 12 years ago (running legs been borked for some time) so now just pottle round on a Rockhopper.
I've been looking to get a road bike and the bike snob in me thinks a 2nd hand older model (Cannon etc) would make sense.
By looking at these - the reviews seem mixed and its interesting to compare a TDF with an Allez
So both have Tektro and 2300 (not great !)
TDF is 1.3kg heavier
Main complaint from BikeRadar etc is the wheels are heavy and the ratios aren't great, good point but a deal breaker?
So a TFD at 225 (again if you buy some Halfords Vouchers on www.halfordsbusinessservices.co.uk - google to find out how - you can get it for £200) vs £550 for Allez and what appears to be not much less on the bay (they do hold their price to be fair).
I would much prefer a better specced bike but the TDF looks a bargain and the Allez is not better spec'ed and it also only a double so upgrade path tricky (correct?)
I just wish it wasnt yellow!
Mike
PS will prob end up buying a 2nd hand cannon with 105 and spending a further £100 with a LBS to fix it - doh!
I've been looking to get a road bike and the bike snob in me thinks a 2nd hand older model (Cannon etc) would make sense.
By looking at these - the reviews seem mixed and its interesting to compare a TDF with an Allez
So both have Tektro and 2300 (not great !)
TDF is 1.3kg heavier
Main complaint from BikeRadar etc is the wheels are heavy and the ratios aren't great, good point but a deal breaker?
So a TFD at 225 (again if you buy some Halfords Vouchers on www.halfordsbusinessservices.co.uk - google to find out how - you can get it for £200) vs £550 for Allez and what appears to be not much less on the bay (they do hold their price to be fair).
I would much prefer a better specced bike but the TDF looks a bargain and the Allez is not better spec'ed and it also only a double so upgrade path tricky (correct?)
I just wish it wasnt yellow!
Mike
PS will prob end up buying a 2nd hand cannon with 105 and spending a further £100 with a LBS to fix it - doh!
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