Which first road bike?

[jtwaring]

Im looking at getting my first road bike soon. Will mainly be used for the commute to work and leisure on a weekend. Hoping to spend around the £300 mark.

Primarily im looking at the Claud Butler Criterium

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/claud-butler/c...

Another bike im looking at is the Carrera TDF

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...

However im open to suggestions.

What are these bikes like and should I look at buying secondhand?

Many thanks

James

[Swalsey]

Not sure how much they are now, but have a look at Edinburgh Bicycle - they do their own brand road bike called the Continental, its pretty good bang for buck!

[jtwaring]

Just haad quick look and they start about £429 which is a little out of my price range.

Thanks for the reply anyway. Much apreciated.

James

[anonymous-user]

for the money the carrera tdf is a good bike and you cant actually go that far wrong with one at that price. the frame will be good for years and you will only need to upgrade a few minor bits in the drivetrain to really improve pedalling efficiency. i have seen a few around at local races (albeit with a wheel upgrade) and on the commute to work.

halfords bulid quality is well discussed here. my advice would be to buy it online, get it sent to the store, take it home boxed and build it at home. the yonly build it for you if you ask them to and if you dont trust their mechanics, you should only need to fit the stem and bars, wheels and take a few minutes to get the gears and brakes aligned but remember that cables wil lstretch after a few miles so it will need constnat fettling. if you keep it well maintained it will be a good reliable bike.

secondhand means you may get lucky and find a good bargain and more bike for your money, but only if you are prepared to scour the classifieds and then pay for postage. at that price you may as well buy new. only groupset junkies will advise otherwise.

10.9 kg isnt that bad and with the £150 saving you could treat yourself to a pair of planet x model b wheels (£100) and be laughing...

[Roman]

I would recommend either looking for a little used secondhand bike or a sale bike with proper STI levers & carbon forks as every single component on a £500 bike tends to be appreciably better. This has carbon front & rear + Shimano Sora for £450! - well worth the extra if you can afford it:
http://www.decathlon.co.uk/EN/sport-2-51-63-695674...

A good sale bike, sightly over budget but worth the extra:
http://www.ashcycles.com/web/index.php?main_page=p...

Good, relatively recent & plentiful secondhand options for your budget would be: Specialized Allez, Giant Defy or SCR, Trek 1.1/1.2, 1000-1500 series. You may find something with Shimano Tiagra or 105 or a Campag groupset which all tend to be indicators of a decent quality bike.

[itsnotarace]

jtwaring said:

Primarily im looking at the Claud Butler Criterium
Another bike im looking at is the Carrera TDF

Out of the two, the Carrera TDF is better specc'd

You could also consider a Raleigh Airlite 100 which is better than both the above for £299 - bargaintastic

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/RALEIGH-100-ROAD-RACING-BIKE...

Edited by itsnotarace on Thursday 17th June 09:41

[Roman]

itsnotarace said:

jtwaring said:

Primarily im looking at the Claud Butler Criterium
Another bike im looking at is the Carrera TDF

Out of the two, the Carrera TDF is better specc'd

You could also consider a Raleigh Airlite 100 which is better than both the above for £299 - bargaintastic

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/RALEIGH-100-ROAD-RACING-BIKE...

Edited by itsnotarace on Thursday 17th June 09:41

Good one!

I suggested that bike too but you found it in budget - or for an extra £90 get the 200 from the same seller!

Edited by Roman on Thursday 17th June 09:51

[itsnotarace]

Yeah the difference is yours is fully built, and mine is boxed only

The fully built version on Rutland Cycling's website is £339 with free delivery

http://www.rutlandcycling.com/24614/Raleigh-Airlit...

[jtwaring]

Thanks guys, i think il focus my attention on the Raleigh. Il keep you updated as to what and when i buy one.

Thanks again.