Looking at buying a cheap road bike,I know absolutely nothing about them and have never even ridden one,but I fancy trying one to get me out the house and out pedaling when time is limited,my motivation to get out on the MTB is at an all time low at the moment.
Can anyone recommend anything for about £500?,I have been trawling the reviews and the btwin triban 520 seems to be the most favoured by the journalists , but I’m keen to hear the opinions of real users. It’s currently £479.Would the same money be better spent somewhere else?

I’ve had a triban, the older version of the 520 I believe, for a few years as my commuter and the odd club run, apart from a fairly uncomfortable saddle, great bike and would be an ideal beginners road bike. After a few years I’ve swapped the wheels for some better ones I had in the shed, changed the stem and saddle, the rest has just been normal wear and tear, good finish on the frame too.

If this fits, it’s a belter of a deal
https://www.merlincycles.com/kinesis-racelight-t2-complete-bike-63cm-79103.html
Doh, just seen out of stock…

How about https://www.merlincycles.com/merlin-performance-pr7-r-road-bike-2016-88021.html

i have a brand new never ridden full carbon road bike for £400 posted if you are interested 🙂 pm me for details ( its a 58-large)
🙂

See what Paul’s Cylces have in stock.

I got a Scott Speedster S50 from them a few years back for that sort of money and it does the job.

There was a good “not a stealth ad” on this forum this morning.

😉

Joking aside, I’d look for something secondhand. For £500 you should expect a nice aluminium or cheap carbon frame with something like 11sp 105.

I’d take a look at a Mango Point R. A fraction over budget but I’ve seen them offer discounts in the past. Great value for money as a no frills option.

http://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/road-bikes/mizani-ar7-mens-road-bike

Not bad spec, lighter than the Merlin.

I know nothing about bike specs but a few tips for a first road bike:

There are loads of variables with road bike setup, including things like bar rotation, lever position, the depth of the drop on the bars, the length of the forward bit and so on.

Saddle position fore/aft and tilt also make a huge difference, as does saddle – you spend far more time sat in it.

So if you can’t use the drops, your shoulders ache, your neck aches, your knob goes numb etc etc, don’t just give up – spend time fettling the position. You can adjust the positions of the levers a bit just by loosening them off and pushing against the tape, but if you need to move them more you can undo bar tape and re-wrap it a number of times. Just pay attention to how it comes off to put it back on.

A new cheap bar with a different shape could also make a difference – I have one road bike and a collection of (3) drop bars that I went through to get mine right.

Also if you switch between road bike and MTB over intervals of a few weeks each one will feel weird and short/long when you get back on it. Be prepared to deal with this 🙂

You could try a CX as a halfway house ? Arkrose can be had used in good condition for £500, ride some road and some trails

I’d be finding yourself a friend who knows at least a bit and be looking 2nd hand for that kind of money. 2nd hand road bike can be in a lot better condition than 2nd hand mtbs, though possibly hold their value a little better. If I was selling my 10yr old very pleasant summer carbon Issac with 9spd dura ace and Mavic Kryserium elite rims with top of the range finishing kit in used but cared for mint condition would go for about that and would be so much more pleasant than £500 worth of new aluminium and sora.

Some excellent replies thanks.
To be honest I would prefer a new bike although I will go and have a look if something used and interesting comes up local.Uts not easy when you don’t know what you’re on about/looking at though. I’m not too bothered about bling,for reference I have a calibre dune fat bike and a giant anthem full sus that I’m happy enough with.
The Merlin looks interesting but at 53cn would be too small I think, I’m a smidge under 5’10.
This year’s Merlin has been downgraded to claris? I believe if that matters?
I will have a look at the other bikes mentioned and I’m completely open to the idea of a gravel/cx bike.
Keep em coming please.cheers

https://www.rutlandcycling.com/361137/products/cube-attain-2016-road-bike-blue-frame-black-fork.aspx

I’m 5’10” with ~32.5″ cycling inseam (not trouser inseam), the 58cm Attain frame fits me great.

Get the B’Twin, it’s cracking value, really nice bike for the money.

I always think second hand road bikes seem to either hold their value well, or be overpriced depending how you look at it. I’d be getting something new because box fresh gearing always feels nice. BTwin always get good write ups. (I’ve been looking at the pricier models)

I would say consider spending £450 on the bike and £50 on some decent non OEM tyres.

I’ve had four different sets of tyres on my rarely used cheapo road bike. I’ve had in order…

the OEM Vittoria’s (23mm) heavy and harsh
Conti Gator Skins (25mm) better but sketchy in wet (hard rubber) and not especially compliant at much >85psi
Mavic Aksium (23mm) came with the wheels I bought after an accident. Nice and compliant and ok grip, fragile seeming
Conti GP4000 (I forget exactly which variant but about £30 each on sale and black chilli compound iirc). 😯 what a difference. Loads more confident on these descending and cornering and they are lighter and comfier. The gators would feel worse on a dry road than these do in the wet.

Molgrips comments on setup are bang on too and ffs ignore “the rules” when you are starting out.

I bought a Felt F85 or 90 or something for £400 about 4 yrs ago and it’s amazed me as to what it’s done and put up with. Even the cheap Felts seem really well finished..

I have a Radon Sage 6.0 – Bike Discount own brand – which I could be tempted to sell.

Spec as follows:
– alu frame
– carbon fork
– full SRAM force 22 groupset inc calliper brakes
– CITEC 300 wheelset on CITEC hubs (DT Swiss 240 internals with CITEC shell); CRC were selling these at £600 a pair recently; run wonderfully and are absolutely silent.
– GP4000 4 seasons tyres
– Syntace finishing kit
– Ultegra pedals

Weighs sub 8kg.

I’m 5’9” and it fits like a glove.

Have a look at it online – but use the translate option for German to English.

It’s barely been used.
These were selling at about £1200.
Email in profile if you’re interested or have any questions.

I would say consider spending £450 on the bike and £50 on some decent non OEM tyres.

Not convinced by that. Iv’e got ‘Flakjackets’ on my Spesh cheapie Allez. Just ask Scotroutes, Tjagain & Ton what I rode in Scotland with those on!

If it’s for road riding rather than commuting, and you’re planning on doing even a moderate amount, I reckon a bike that feels like it fits you now won’t be right in 6 months time

You can fiddle with longer stems, more layback etc when you get used to the position but you might be better off at that point getting either a replacement bike or possibly just a frame.
I’d buy cheaper than 500 quid, second-hand. If you hate road riding you lose less and if you like it, well …

(Maybe ignore this if you race xc on a racy bike or something similar)

http://m.gooutdoors.co.uk/calibre-rivelin-2-0-road-bike-p383864&gclid=Cj0KEQjwkZfLBRCzg-69tJy84N8BEiQAffAwqnoldta4K1InNnU04TGQW6ivUf_AJYXfx3BVfFZMJfsaAsTt8P8HAQ&gclsrc=aw.ds
This looks good for £500, anybody care to comment.

Cube attain £599

I’d keep an eye on local second hand bikes you might get lucky. I bought a Merida with 105 groupset and Fulcrum wheels for £300 and it was like new! Seen other similar deals since.

Not-so-stealth ad:

Wilier Mortirolo from classifieds

I’d say you’d be hard pressed to find a nicer-looking, lighter, comfortabler road bike than this around your price range. I’m 5’10 and it fits beautifully.

Wheels and transmission have seen very little use.

Happy to take an offer on it nearer your price range.

Thanks for the offers of the very nice used bikes,but if I was buying second hand I would definitely like it to be local so I could go and have a look and try for size etc. I’m near Cannock by the way.

You’ll get a perfectly good new bike for £500.

Usual places Pauls, etc.

In a similar position 6 months ago I spent 200 quid on a second hand Giant Defy. Didn’t want to lose to much if I didn’t get on with the dark side, figured I could sell it on for about the same.
7 months on I’ve basically worn it out! But glad I did as it means I know it’s worth me spending a bit more on something better.

I have a very cheap road bike for sale. (See forum posts). USed as my winter trainer in 2016/17. Won’t make the roads come alive but it is comfy and I can bash out centuries on it no bother.

Otherwise – Decathlon isn’t a bad shout, neither is wiggle, evans or halfords. Second hand would be good if you can find a reliable seller.

Non-disc CX bikes are cheap as chips on ebay. You should get a bargain if you’re prepared to be patient. I picked up a lovely Ridley with good kit and a new drivetrain for £200 recently. I suppose it does help if you know a bit about what you’re looking for, though.

Evans for Pinnacle stuff, Halfords for Boardman stuff is where I’d be looking.

Well i was going to pull the trigger on the btwin 520 but they’ve got non in stock!
I’ve found this which looks good to me but what do you lot think of it?i am fully aware of planetx customer service reputation but i have had decent service from them myself in the past.
http://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/EBPX58SO/planet-x-rt-58-v2-alloy-shimano-sora-road-bike

I got a SH Giant TCR SL2 2013 for just over half your budget. Lighter than many cheap new carbon frames, decent group; very happy with it.

this one?

https://www.paulscycles.co.uk/m7b0s6p6961/GIANT-DEFY-3-2016

Giant Defy’s are well rated and thats seems decent for the price.

Hi, sorry to interrupt your bike hunting, however I have a 56cm Merlin Malt R road bike – it’s an aluminium frame with a full 10 speed Tiagra groupset with Shimano RS10 wheels and is basically brand new it’s been ridden 200 miles ! It has 23mm Michelin Lithion 2 tyres fitted. Also fitted are some Shimano M520 clipless pedals and a Cateye wireless bike computer. I’m asking £300 for the bike which is a bargain by any standards ! I can supply pics if required ? No obligation and no probs if you want to go the new bike route ! Seems a shame to miss out ‘tho 🙂 I’m located in Bradford, West Yorkshire. Thanks.

Hi , thanks for the offer,I can’t find much on line about the bike,is it an older model?it does sound good but unfortunately Bradford is further than I want to travel incase the bike doesn’t fit etc.cheers