I posted on this thread on Pistonheads (car forum with a bike section) where someone is after a good deal on a full suspension bike and it seeems that much to my surprise the Boardman FS Pro is actually the best bike in the world and the owners of said bike, know everything:

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f=174&t=978216&mid=187783&i=0&nmt=Best+Value+%28%25+reduction%29+XC+%2F+Trail+bike%2E%2E%2E%2E%2E&mid=187783

They’re very good VFM

what’s your point? 😕

They look like excellent VFM & well put together.

Why are they deluded? am I missing something? 😐

Boardman FS Pro is actually the best bike in the world

Show me a bike for £1100 that’s better?

Does it threaten you that Halfords sell bikes that are ok?

missfire. 🙂

You can buy a santa cruz superlight frame also made in taiwan for £100 less than the whole boardman fs bike. And that’s only if you get the less good shock on the sc, its £130 more for the rp23.

You can see where the corners are cut on boardmans (hubs, cockpit, that well-naff saddle, tyres, headset) but the welding/frame finish is as good as i have seen on specialized/giants for similar or 50% more money, and hey, they are almost good enough value to buy for the (rest of the) parts and ebay the frame. Ditto the new halfords voodoo range, the parts on them for the money is astonishing.

And i don’t even like halfords.

Met a bloke with one while out riding with Binners last weekend, I thought it looked like a really nice bike and he seemed very happy with it.

The only way that I’d say he was deluded was that he seemed to think my Zesty was a better bike just because it cost more.

Yep, I’d go with the Boardman owners on that thread too…

Nowt wrong with the 2010 range, and the 2011 range looks rather good too, although prices have gone up a little..

HAHA. You look silly now 🙂

Was in Halfords today picking up my new (Boardman) road bike.

The £1k FS was reduced to £800 – ridiculous VFM.

Almost as good as my £900 Team Carbon.

The big difference is that Boardman were working on very small margins to get the brand established. Because most LBS add 50% to what a bike costs them and the UK importer/distributor has a 30% add on, a bike costing £800 doubles to £1600 by the time it gets to a shop. By using Halfords distribution and by keeping sales high and margins low, a Boardman that cost £800 to make sells for £1200.

Do you honestly think this is true then?

I bet every bike shop in the country would love to find a brand that has a 50% margin.

Boardmans are pretty nice, certainly better value than almost any other full suss, at the price point the FS Pro is pretty damn good.

Err, yeah you put your money where your mouth is and buy a Boardman then. No ta.

Its not a badge-thing. There are many Giant and spesh full bikes out there that’ll out-perform any niche bike. The Boardman ‘wins’ on value and bang for your buck.

I almost bought one…but then I ended up buying something else.

Note sure what my point is but I think you’ll all agree, I’m right.

Err, yeah you put your money where your mouth is and buy a Boardman then. No ta.

I wouldn’t buy one as I am a badge snob, I’m more infulenced about what other people about me think more the most appropriate bike.

I would also never buy a Skoda as they make me look a bit pikey

It’s a well known fact if you ride a Boardman bike and drive a Skoda you will never ever ever get laid..

I’d buy one if I wasn’t such a snob.

Seems to me that the Boardman critics tried to trot out the same tired nonsense and got their heads handed to them. The geometry on the Boardman bikes is fine, 69/72 suits a 120mm bike perfectly, the criticism of the shock is frankly insane… The question was “Best value bike” and it’s superb value at RRP never mind £800.

Still I salute your attempt to run away from one shoeing straight into another 🙂

It’s not what you ride, it’s how much you enjoy the ride.

IWGMC

I have a Boardman Performance Hybrid (the flat barred road bike) and the welds are as good as any i’ve seen on bikes costing far in excess of the price of the Boardman.
Fantastic value for money, i’ve seen both the HT and the FS bikes out and about and they all look fine and more importantly their owners are very happy with them.

Brand snobs, doncha just laugh….

LBS will think your a cock.

LBS will think your a cock.

😆

Glad to see irony isn’t dead on STW!

What if Halfords is your LBS ?

Next you’ll all think a Toyota Corolla T sport is a sportscar

LBS will think your a cock.

My LBS haven’t sold any actual mountain bikes for a year or so now – its all fixiecore niche junk and shopper bikes, tragically Halfords is pretty much my LBS if I want anything for an offroader

At the end of the day a bike is just a collection of tubes and components. There’s only a few different computations of acceptable geometry so they’re bound to be ok?

We get quite a few Boardmans in for servicing. They all look pretty good, although I’m not convinced the 2011 models are as good value as previously. They don’t seem to have any issues over and above the other brands either. We do, however, see problems with the way they’ve been built/PDI’d, although that seems to depend on which Halfords branch they’ve been supplied through.

I liked mine:

Cheap pedals and bearings and no seat QR. Tyres good for going fast in straight lines in all weathers, bad for cornering and puncture resistance. Otherwise it rocked!

Cheap pedals and bearings and no seat QR

I spent £1100 on a Lynskey frame and didn’t get a seat QR.

Bought my HT Pro second hand for £450 from a CTWorker who didnt know what he had. Changed the saddle and tyres and have loved riding it for the last year. I now fancy trying something slightly different so will change Reba Race to 120mm and transfer 90% of components over to make a reasonably high spec piglet for a grand total around £750 – whats not to like?

here are many Giant and spesh full bikes out there that’ll out-perform any niche bike

no there aren’t: ellsworth, nicoli, sinister, maverick etc.. widdle all over them 😀

I recently got a Boardman FS through C2W, it is the best bike in the world as far as I’m concerned. I’ve transferred the bits that I particularly liked from previous bikes and stuck a couple of new bits on to get the build just right for me.

Why is it the best bike in the world? Because it’s in my garage and I can get out and ride it whenever I like and it makes me ride like the wind. At least that’s how it feels to me, therefore it’s the best.

Here it is, on one of our few recent sunny days

tbf i’d buy one. but i dont do xc. its a race bike….but i need more grip and more strength. wouldn’t trust myself on something lightweight! 🙂

They look pretty damned good vfm to me.

Ditto BigG. Also just got one and love it.
I’ve put on tubeless tyres, lock-on grips, real pedals and swapped the sadddle (all bits from STW).
It is now my best bike in the World.

The big difference is that Boardman were working on very small margins to get the brand established. Because most LBS add 50% to what a bike costs them and the UK importer/distributor has a 30% add on, a bike costing £800 doubles to £1600 by the time it gets to a shop. By using Halfords distribution and by keeping sales high and margins low, a Boardman that cost £800 to make sells for £1200.

Do you honestly think this is true then?

I bet every bike shop in the country would love to find a brand that has a 50% margin.

I do think it’s quite a good theory that Boardman are temporarily lowering their profit margins and undercutting rivals to establish the brand but yes, LBS margin on bikes is more like 30% (or less) I think.

what I find funny is that people say ‘yeah boardmans, they’re decent but needs better tyres, different saddle’ and they are the same ones who have tons of different tyres for their ragleyized and have a fresh charge spoon on the way from CRC

boardmans are decent bikes

If you can get that FS for £800 whats not to like? I would like to try one out, if it rides well then surly its a great deal.

All everyone keeps saying is decent bike, good value for money, but where’s the desirability? They’ve taken over from the Marin Mount Vision as the white goods of the bike industry. They get the job done but are outdated (the full sus frame looks like a rip off of an old Turner) and a bit boring.

I do think it’s quite a good theory that Boardman are temporarily lowering their profit margins and undercutting rivals to establish the brand

I think it could be a bit of spin from the Halfords marketing department TBH.