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Got £500-£1000 to spend on a new bike? Then read on....

MGMG Posts: 470
Hmmm, so basicly a top ten bikes a Bridgetown cycles, YAWN!!!!!!!

That was shoite!!!!

Comments

  • munstermunster Posts: 10
    whats with the negativity? I thought it was an interesting read - not that i am in the market for a new bike, and bridgetown is a little far from Geneva (however i do have a great bike shop just around the corner from me which has THE most saliva inducing bikes contained within www.bsbikes.com).

    So thanks for posting Conehead, hopefully some other readers will get some use out of it.
  • danny_sdanny_s Posts: 235
    I was looking to get my girlfriend a new bike in the Autumn, and this pretty much just reaffirmed that going for a Trek is a good idea. Makes me feel good about my new one as well if the much-highly-lauded Mike thinks the Madone geometry is good. I love it, but now am jealous because the new ones are all going to be custom builds!
  • Thanks Darren. Personally I think it makes sense to have this list compiled by someone who is a bike expert. I'm hoping to be able to nudge the hubby into this price range in the coming year so I really appreciate this, as I know nothing about bikes!
  • md6md6 Posts: 969
    That was a good read, although it has made me want a Ridley Dean even more than i already did...now if i can just find that £6,000 i left down the back of the sofa and i'm sorted
  • risris Posts: 1,002
    it's a very interesting read, but if the answer is 'if you don't want a leisure geometry then buy a trek/scott/orbea' then i think it's of limited use to me!

    personally, i want to know about all those other bikes that might not be leisure, or maybe are and we don't know it - cube, focus (maybe not in price range), boardman, kona, cannondale, planet x, bianchi.. etc...blah... wonk... i appreciate that this may be unrealistic or take several years to undertake!

    let's face it though, i now know that if i can work out the wedge for a new bike next spring then i'll be adding a very valuable trip to bridgtown to my own road tests, reading for reviews, looking at bike pr0n on the interweb, that sort of thing.

    i'm off to take md6's advice and see how close i can get to that ridley with the change from behind the sofa and under the fridge. under the driver's seat in my car is usually rewarding, too!
  • md6md6 Posts: 969
    Damn, back from the sofa and found a measley £3.21 and 0.04euro...do you think they'd take a kidney in part-ex?
  • shadowone1shadowone1 Posts: 1,408
    I'm really disappointed with MG here. I've been in contact with a few members who have all bought from Bridgetown and mentioned that the service was cracking and with no obligation to buy.

    MG, I really think you're missing the point here. The advice given from Mike is impartial and in no way suggest to buy from them. I thought the advice was pretty transparent and made sense to me. Your negative feedback (whilst it is your right to have that opinion) is really without foundation.

    Would you rather have had Conehead go to Evans where its all about the money? I'm sorry but I would rather have the advice from someone who cares about what you buy and get the most from that product. If I had known what I now know then I would've waited on buying a bike. I know for a fact the geometery is all wrong on my bike but did my LBS tell me that.... no.

    I would really likle MG to elaborate on the comments as I feel this needs a full debate amongst the forum.

    Conehead.... for the life of me I am struggling to log into the forum on BCTTT. I log in then when I get to the forum its telling me I need to log in.... arrrggghhh....
  • deeessdeeess Posts: 150
    Not the most constructive comments in the world from MG...a simple 'thanks' would probably have sufficed.

    Anyway - cheers Conehead - I found it enlightening
  • willtriwilltri Posts: 436
    MG wrote:
    Hmmm, so basicly a top ten bikes a Bridgetown cycles, YAWN!!!!!!!

    That was shoite!!!!
    hardl'y the hardest sell i've ever seen!!!!

    I'm more than happy - i've got the trek 1.5
  • FlavadaveFlavadave Posts: 749
    Nice one Conehead!

    If I was in the market for a new bike, I'd definitely be making my way to Bridgtown. Sadly after this years spend the misses has imposed a 'bike-freeze' for some considerable time. I'm guessing about 2020, but she won't tell me.
  • JulesJules Posts: 987
    willtri wrote:

    I'm more than happy - i've got the trek 1.5
    Me too, happy days.

    Until I have the cash to buy a Carbon Beast to keep the Beast company, obviously. Then I'll be availing myself of Mike's assistance. Though he might be waiting a while and shouldn't plan his retirement on my custom
  • aoneill69aoneill69 Posts: 206
    ah now a dilemma...was planning on going to BT this weekend...been on my old MTB since starting and was planning on getting a new road bike so i could get some experience before my 2nd sprint in september....but waiting for the new models seems to be the recommendation...however 'only' planning on spending about £750.....
  • aoneill69aoneill69 Posts: 206
    should have also added, i had sort of convinced myself that a specialized bike was the way to go...as the frame seemed the best and if i need to spend more dollar next year then these would be the best frames to upgrade?.....no idea about upgrading Trek etc..?
  • BritspinBritspin Posts: 1,655
    Seems pretty impartial to me, added to the fact that Bridgetown know more about what they sell than what they don't so thats the best & most informed advice that can be given, however if you wish to apply that advice to other manufacturers then it can be done.
    The price point thing holds true across all manufacturers of a similar standard, they are after all in competition with each other for your dollar, the geometry thing will vary, but within parameters there will be a similarity. A more relaxed frame by company A for the leisure market, will not be hugely different at that price point from a leisure frame from company B. So armed with a reference point one can extrapolate. So thanks for putting it together, interesting & useful.
  • I was holding my breath while reading this info, as I only bought my bike 4 weeks ago. I had been interested in a Giant, but then chose a Trek 1.2 WSD - so I'm happy! I also got the shops last one in my size and they fitted it to me, replacing the stem with a (more expensive) longer one to suit my longer than average torso. They didn't even charge me for the bike fit (should have been £35) and I got 10% off anything else bought on the same day (I got bike shoes and pedals).

    I went to The Tri Centre in Edinburgh and the guys couldn't have been nicer or more helpful.

    I think the guys at Bridgetown do not expect us all to go to them - afterall, most people won't be close enough! So I say "thanks!" to Conehead and Bridgetown cycles.
  • MGMG Posts: 470
    Thought I'd get flamed for that :roll:

    Any hoo I stand by what I said (typed), CHs thread was supposed to be "the definative top ten" with CH suggesting he had got some of the blokes he trains together and got info on their bikes, well, where was that info.............???

    I think what most of us expected was a list of bikes that CH had some insider info on from ALL manufacturers and compared them to each other.

    So the "top ten bikes from 500-1000" IMO was shoite!! The info that Mike gave was valid well put together and worth reading, but THAT CANNOT be regarded as the definitive earth stopping guide to 500-1000 quid bikes that CH had billed it to be, can it???

    Trek bikes are very good but manufacturers like Planet X, Cube, Felt, Focus and even Decathlon make some awesome bikes that are great value and blow the likes of Trek out of the ball park, that was the kind of test/thread I (and a few others I would imagine) was expecting.

    So, the comment wasnt aimed at Mike, it was more aimed at CH for a cop-out thread........
  • jacjac Posts: 452
    I've got to agree with MG - I was expecting a top ten. What we go was that Trek bikes are great and a 6k Ridley is all yours if you can remortgage your house.
    I'm sure Treks are good bikes - infact I've just hold of a decent set of Bontrager wheels the Madone comes with and they're super fast.
    A bit more insight on the rest of the market would be good.
  • MintyMatMintyMat Posts: 98
    I found the geometry stuff really interesting, especially as I know I still need to tweak the setup on my Giant OCR3 (£200 s/h). If I still have the motivation I have now then next year I'm looking at spending £900ish on a new road bike with C2W.

    I too was looking at a lot of debate about Trek, Boardman Carbon, Kiron Scandium, Focus and others that push the £1000. Perhaps we can combine Conehead's advice with our own experiences and start a Top Ten.
  • aoneill69aoneill69 Posts: 206
    Warning: newbie bike question please be gentle!
    so folks when do/did people notice the difference on the groupsets....i.e. Sora versus Tiagra etc, or the difference in hubs/tyres etc...
    from my view on many of these entry level bikes apart from choosing a specific frame lots of the other specs seem the same across the board?.....looking to be educated...
  • MGMG Posts: 470
    A very good question.......The main difference I found was shifting under load, ie. shifting when accelarating or going up a hill. On more expensive groupsets theres no chain slip, no hassle, you dont need to back off, just smooth faultless shifting.

    Have a gander at this thread theres some interesting points.........

    shimano-tiagra-105-ultegra-dura-ace-which-one-t46737.html
  • aoneill69aoneill69 Posts: 206
    cheers MG great thread....
  • Xyzee_ukXyzee_uk Posts: 100
    Good info (whether you agree or disagree). Thanks CH

    I have a small point to make, what is the "Beef" (as the kids say) with the boardman range? On plenty of other sites (including Cycle Radar who gave the team carbon 5 stars) these bikes are put forward as being a heck of a lot of bike for the money. The Carbon is £999 and so fits perfectly in the 500-1000 range but is always ignored by the Tri community. Is is because they come from Halfrauds?

    I am on the very brink of putting a backorder in for one (£1000 of C2W money burning a hole in my back pocket)

    Any thoughts? I am extremely interested!!!
  • MGMG Posts: 470
    No beef with Boardman bikes, Chris Boardman wouldnt put his name to a crap bike. The frames are highly regarded (have not ridden one myself) and the equipment the bikes are adorned with make them very good value. Halfords have got a reputation as a bit pants when it comes to bikes, the Carrera range wernt bad as a starter but they wernt ground breaking and were very basic.

    I would definately consider a boardman bike, the MTBs too look very good value. 99% of the reviews I've read on Boardman Road bikes have been positive. Ignore where they come from (Halfrauds) because they dont build or design the bikes and just look at the bike for what it is.
  • LexLex Posts: 65
    My first season in triathlon and went for the entry level Allez. Im not bike expert but so far its pretty damn good for the £530 spend. Put some aero bars on the front and sometimes I feel almost fast!!

    I am however gagging for a decent excuse to buy a TT bike!!
  • hamiltonhamilton Posts: 7
    Assuming you're at all interested in bikes, the likes of roadcyclinguk and bikeradar are full of 'top 10' lists, and often quite a lot of useful information on anything from geometry to cassette sizes...

    but to be honest, folks, who really cares what's in a 'top 10' list? It's only ever a point in time exercise, and rarely objective.
    it's not as if one bike is going to be good for all people.
    What _would_ be interesting to see would be the top 10 'things to consider when buying a bike'.... e.g. the relative importance of, say, geometry, groupset, weight, frame material..... _that_ at least, would be reasonably static, and of use to people who dont work in the industry.

    fwiw, I got a full carbon frame with ultegra groupset for my grand.... but I'm well aware that my aero position is going to have much more impact than the frame weight on a typical OD....

    good training to you all,
    h.
    (oh, and if you're around the Serpie Lido this weekend, say hi!)
  • gingertrigingertri Posts: 277
    Was a good thread, but a bit brief! i got a trek 1.2 (double chain set) and it was only £470 and is black not like the new white ones so maybe the £600 is for the triple! a very good bike, i just need to re-index my front derailleur (apologies if thats not the right term) as it rattles a fair bit on the large cog and the small rear cogs (my fault really!)
  • aoneill69aoneill69 Posts: 206
    ok more novice talk....double vs. triple vs. double compact?...BT guys reckon most of the 2010 bikes coming in with double compact and as a novice this makes a lot of sense to me...any storng feelings out there?
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