I’ve been looking for a new bike (c£3 grand full suss trail) but have run into a lack of stock wall. You’d have thought that the biking world would be falling over themselves to flog me a scoot but I’ve basically been told that almost everything in my size (I’m 6 3, so XL/21″ or similar) is out of stock with no deliveries on the horizon and as for getting a demo ride . . .. I’m not just talking niche suppliers either, got the same reply from one of the big two manufacturers as well. I am lucky enough to live within 30 minutes of a dozen good bike shops covering pretty much every bike brand from the mainstream to the esoteric and the story sems the same everywhere. Fundamentally it’s making it impossuble to make any sort of sensible imformed choice about what to buy. Anyone else experiencing similar? Is it just cus I’m too lanky?

I feel your pain (6’4″)

Selling my old trance frame, if it’s of interest? Maybe a lot cheaper than you’re looking at mind, you might want something posher 😉

Here you go
http://www.bikescene.co.uk/Specialized-Pitch-Pro-Frame-4467-92-0.html

spend the other £2.6K on the bits

From talking to my friend who owns a shop this is likely to happen across the model range. Trade appears to be on the up and the suppliers just haven’t ordered the stock to handle it!

Had exactly the same problem. 6ft5″ here. Could and would have saved myself over a grand if that pitch offer had been around 4 months ago.

My personal view on bikes and “not getting on with them”, is that as humans, we are pretty adaptable.

You’ll get to like/get on with whatever you end up with. Just because it doesn’t “feel right” the first time, or even tenth time you ride it, you will adapt to make the most of it. Your style will adapt, and then when you try something else that once felt great, but now doesn’t, that would be why.

Just my thought anyway. Might be pure ignorance based on the fact that i’ve only ever ridden two full suss bikes.

Every year there seem to be stock shortages of a lot of bikes, especially in niche sizes – I guess the bike industry is overly cautious when estimating demand as they don’t want to get left with stock.

If you want to spend a bit more these are a bargain

http://www.bikescene.co.uk/Specialized-SWorks-Enduro-FSR-Carbon-2195-97-0.html

To be fair the bike shops have all been as helpful as they can, it does seem to be overcaution by the manufacturers. But to not have bike supply available at this time of year seems to indicate a bit of poor strategic thinking up the line somewhere.

This isn’t bad either

http://www.bikescene.co.uk/Specialized-Stumpjumper-FSR-Expert-EVO-2156-30-0.html

I think they’ve recently tended towards the philosophy of making too few and selling all of them is better than making too many, selling them off cheap at the year end and diluting next years sales.

Even so, there must be some more bikes out there from last year in an XL, that the shop will bite your hand off to get rid of..

I am finding something similar (looking at frames mainly) – Trek and others seem to have limited stock of 2012 kit, already! Also plenty of online retailers are advertising the wrong prices (too low) and some are advertising kit as “in stock” when it is not.

It’s a few years since I bought a new bike or frame and the experience was a lot better then.

Thanks all, looks like quick drive up the A19 to check out some 2011 spesh is in order.

My LBS has a XL Giant Anthem X in their sale. PM me if you want to know more.

Grim

I think they’ve recently tended towards the philosophy of making too few and selling all of them is better than making too many, selling them off cheap at the year end and diluting next years sales.

This, I rememebr years ago (when I couldnt aford a new bike) you could read a review of a bike, then go and buy last years identical model at 60% off from Pauls. These days I still can’t afford justify new bikes, but it’s because they don’t appear in the same offers anymore.

Perhapse it’s because the £ is weaker than it was, it was Ok to sell Giants at 60% off as they still made money compared to diverting the same stock elswhere, whereas now the margins tighter so there’s less overstocking. That and cycling being more popular means more bikes sold in total thus less left at the end of the year.

Was up there yesterday, they had to order mine from Specialized. Treated myself to one.

Weighs a lot less than Kevins

To be fair the bike shops have all been as helpful as they can, it does seem to be overcaution by the manufacturers. But to not have bike supply available at this time of year seems to indicate a bit of poor strategic thinking up the line somewhere.

I don’t know anything about the bike industry. But this is a problem all over at the moment. Trade is beginning to pick up for a lot of people. Cash-flow however, is still shoddy. Even the big companies are post-dating cheques or ignoring payment for months on end. And so putting money out for stock and whatnot is difficult, with the best sellers getting priority.

So I’m not sure it’s necesarilly manufacturers making odd moves – at least not by choice. More that they’re trying to keep afloat, perhaps?

A mate has recently been looking for a size L full suss. He’s had a hell of a time trying to track down anyone with any stock. Got sorted in the end, but he’s had to travel

Here you go- Ibis Mojo Special Blend

£2.5k complete build. Room in your budget for upgrades if you want. Give them a call- delivery can’t be far off.

Tracey, do you want to confess to your blueberry juice addiction?

Tracey, do you want to confess to your blueberry juice bike buying addiction?

FTFY

The situation isn’t helped by this obsession with bringing out “new” models every year, so dealers get stuck with out-of-date stock, then somebody like CRC buying the remnants from the distributors at cheap rates and undercutting the small guys. Still – everyone is happy when they get a bargain, eh?

Butcher – You are probably right, I guess the strategy would be to adopt a minimum production run to stay afloat, particularly higher end bikes in low vol sizes. Re-opening production mid-year would be a risk given need to produce sufficient volume to be economic and the frame builders are unlikely to have spare capacity for unplanned runs. Ulimately I think its a reasonable assumption for the bike companies that if someone like me doesn’t get a new bike this year they would be first in line when the 2013 stock lands.

But I also think that there will be a few sales directors at the odd bike company having a quiet word with their business strategists about unmet demand going begging!

Buy the juice when its on offer at Aldi, I dont drink it but Kevin and the girls do. At one point there was 3 times the amount there

As you can see from earlier pics most of the wine has gone

Are the direct sellers any better: Canyon & YT?

There’s one or two XL stumpjumpers left, and plenty of Camber 29ers. Any Spesh dealers nearby?

Thanks all, looks like quick drive up the A19 to check out some 2011 spesh is in order.

Don’t go today though cos theyr’e shut on Wednesdays, open till 20.00hrs Oclock tomorrow though.
Tell them Jim the Geordie Yorkshireman sent you!

Are the direct sellers any better: Canyon & YT?

problem is their bikes are on the small side, or the ones of interest to me anyway. The Strive and the Wicked looked great on paper except for the geometry, they are just too small for me at 196cm.

I’d say its the same direct. Canyon definitely have a backlog of orders at the moment

problem is their bikes are on the small side, or the ones of interest to me anyway. The Strive and the Wicked looked great on paper except for the geometry, they are just too small for me at 196cm.

<cough> yeti <cough>

I’ve demoed a camber 29, good bike but not what I’m after. I already have a 29 HT, looking for something more different.

Orange Gyro?

Well, Im a retailer in the Yorkshire region and im frequently frustrated at this industry with its out of stock situations, Im trying to build a covert but Mojo have sold out of 2012 36’s,
even worse Hotlines have sold out of the Zesty 314, but then this was sold out at the end of January.
so its frustrating from our end too.

This has been happening for years.

I tried to order a 22′ Kona Five-O a few years ago in September, just as they were being delivered to the UK from Kona. Sold out because Paligap only brought in 2!!!!!!!!!

It’s the same as the shops giving the excuse: “We don’t stock that / those. No call for it”. “Well, I want one! So there’s at least one person”!!!! FFS.