Bike advice

[Parrulo]

can you guys give me some advice on decent cheap road bikes?

i am trying to convince some friends into changing to road bikes but i doubt they would be willing to go into insane prices to buy a bike for the usual saturday afternoon ride.

the ideal price frame would be around 500€ tops but one or 2 friends may be able to push it up to 700€.

can you guys give me some help here?

 

[Fatclimber]

chirp, chirp....

all I hear are crickets in here.

Your first sentence says bike and your third says frame, of course you know there's quite a difference there.

Most bike manufacturers offer an entry level aluminum frame equipped with low grade components. But I'm afraid even those are beyond your friends' price range. I think you'll have to look for a brand that you won't find in the pro peloton. Walmart!

 

[Parera]

Uses Caad9/10 on eBay. that price ceiling is crippling.

 

[Parrulo]

by price frame i meant the price range. . .

if it was so easy to find a bike for that price range i wouldn't be creating this thread

anyway its not like i can go around telling my friends to go buy 2k€ bike to go on a ride with me every other odd saturday. . . also thats why i am not being picky at all with the bike, anything half decent around that price would feel like a good advice i could give to my friends.

btw nice tip on the caad's parera

 

[ElChingon]

I would say used bikes from people who take care of them, you'll end up with a higher quality bike and most likely your friends will stick with it as well if they ride something that won't ride like a beach cruiser. Used actual road bike vs new low budget bike, the used road bike will be much better and even re-sellable. The new low budget bike will be a total loss.

 

[Parrulo]

i have searching around some portugueses site selling used stuff and i did find some nice deals indeed, thats probably the better option indeed

any tips on what would be a nice buy?

 

[rgmerk]

For that kind of money and if they insist on new, you're probably talking about something like this. Alloy frame, and a low-end groupset. But perfectly rideable.

Biggest extra cost not accounted for here is pedals and shoes - if your friends are at all serious clipless pedals are a must, even if they get an SPD pedal setup rather than road pedals.

This bike could also seriously benefit from replacing the tyres with (say) Continental Gatorskins (much, much, much more puncture-resistant). Another possible useful and cheap upgrade is Kool-Stop pads rather than stock.

 

[Parera]

by price frame i meant the price range. . .

if it was so easy to find a bike for that price range i wouldn't be creating this thread

anyway its not like i can go around telling my friends to go buy 2k€ bike to go on a ride with me every other odd saturday. . . also thats why i am not being picky at all with the bike, anything half decent around that price would feel like a good advice i could give to my friends.

btw nice tip on the caad's parera

http://www.cannondale.com/2012/bikes/road/elite-road/caad10/2012-caad10-5-105-20093

Ideally you would buy new; it's often TOO tempting to make decision on price/spec, rather than fit/dealer. It's about $2000 USD (total cost including shoes, bibs, jersey, etc) to get into the sport, and the only way to get around this eBay/interwebs. ESPECIALLY for new riders, fit can't be emphasized enough. So yeah, tell your friends that there really isn't a way around the high initial cost. However, once you're "in" the upkeep isn't absurd. It's certainly cheaper than fuhggin golf.

 

[Fatclimber]

by price frame i meant the price range. . .

if it was so easy to find a bike for that price range i wouldn't be creating this thread

anyway its not like i can go around telling my friends to go buy 2k€ bike to go on a ride with me every other odd saturday. . . also thats why i am not being picky at all with the bike, anything half decent around that price would feel like a good advice i could give to my friends.

btw nice tip on the caad's parera

ok, I agree with what ElChingon said, used is the way to go. Maybe put your own ad saying what you want and what your price frame is. There are plenty of people like me who have old bikes in the garage that we would be more than happy to unload at a discount price but just never get around to putting an ad up.

Maybe spread the word around the bike club.

 

[Maxiton]

I agree that used is the way to go. You can get a lot more bike for a lot less money. But it requires patience as the right thing might not pop up immediately, and you have to know what you're looking for. If your friends just want to ride occasionally/casually and they insist on buying immediately, or new, then I think any of the following would be fine and within their price range.

Also, you can get pretty good deals on bikes if you buy last year's model.

http://www.bianchiusa.com/archives/2011-bikes/gran-fondo/campione/

http://www.jamisbikes.com/usa/thebikes/road/ventura/12_venturasport_rd.html

http://www.jamisbikes.com/usa/thebikes/road/satellite/12_satellitesport_rd.html

 

[42x16ss]

As said earlier, try and find well cared for used bikes. Is anyone from your club/riding group looking to upgrade? I'm sure they would appreciate a propesctive buyer for their old bike.

Look around and you should be able to find a well cared for CAAD8/9, Specialized Allez, Merida Road Race, Giant TCR/OCR/Defy or similar entry level bike with Tiagra/105/Rival.

What kind of deals can you get for an entry level Orbea in Portugal? Also have a look at Wiggle and Chain Reaction Cycles.

 

[Maxiton]

Until now I wasn't even aware of the CAAD8, lol. That looks like a terrific bike and on ebay at least it's in the OP's price range.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=cannondale+caad+8

Radio Freddy at belgium knee warmers sings its praises:

http://www.belgiumkneewarmers.com/2007/12/cannondale-caad-8.html

 

[Parrulo]

ty guys i will most definitively look for used bikes, i have found some nice caad's and allez on portuguese site for used stuff(which would be nice because they wouldn't need to pay for a transportation fee)

i will also see how the obrea business is in spain, i have a friend with an account on the biggest forum in spain which also has a lot of stuff up to sell so i will ask him for some help.

i will also ask around on forum of my home town cycling group to see if any1 is looking to sell a road bike but it will be hard to find something as they mostly ride btt (which is why i hardly ever go on rides with them even tho i am a member)

 

[JayKosta]

For recreational riding, special shoes and cleats/clips are not needed.
Old style pedals with toe clips & straps are fine when a shoe with a firm sole is used.
That avoids the cost of bike shoes, etc.

An old road bike is a good start, even downtube shifting with 5 or 6 gear freewheel.

Bike shorts are not required, just make sure to avoid pants with a thick seam in the middle.

1) the seat has to be decent.
2) seat height & angle needs to be adjusted to the rider.
3) handle bar 'reach' needs to be comfortable.
4) hanlde bars need padding or wear gloves.
Everything else is 'legs'.

Jay Kosta
Endwell NY USA

 

[Gaear Grimsrud]

the ideal price frame would be around 500€ tops but one or 2 friends may be able to push it up to 700€.

Pedal Force ZX3: 525€