- This topic has 20 replies, 12 voices, and was last updated 14 years ago by foxyrider.
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4" travel lightweight FS for £1000 (Cycle to work scheme content)
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listerFull MemberPosted 14 years ago
At the mo things are a bit tight, but hopefully by the autumn I could afford to lose a small amount of my pay packet for a new bike 🙂
Having lugged my 2001 Stinky around for years and loved the downs but not the ups, and then not really enjoyed my forays back into the world of hardtails I've decided that something light-ish and 4" would suit my riding most of the time…
Looking around there are FS bikes for less than £1k but not many and not fantastically equipped (obviously)…anyone got any secret bargains or top tips of where to look, I know there will be compromises so I guess the best frame and fork are the priority.
Ta.
jiFree MemberPosted 14 years agoThe obvious choice (and the one I went for) is the Boardman Pro FS. Excellent bike, light and well equipped – my only gripes were the saddle (awful) and the tyres (not really suited to my local conditions when wet).
listerFull MemberPosted 14 years agoHaven't been in Halfords for a while, what's the build quality on the Boardman frames close up?
cinnamon_girlFull MemberPosted 14 years agoWhat's wrong with a lightweight hardtail? You could get a nice Rock Lobster in 853 steel.
andyl46Free MemberPosted 14 years agoYou'll have trouble sourcing a boardman if you want a 17" (medium)
druidhFree MemberPosted 14 years agoI was gonna suggest a Cube XMS 100, but you'd need to find a dealer willing to "play" with the £1,000 limit.
listerFull MemberPosted 14 years agohardtails just don't float my boat, believe me I've tried, and I ride them at work, but FS off road just make more sense to me and my style of riding.
I've been biking since 91 and as soon as I could afford any form of suspension I went with it, flexstems (!) big tyres, elastomer forks, RTS suspension technology etc etc.
now, in the 21st century I believe that I should be able to ride offroad on a FS bike that works efficiently, weighs less than 30lbs and costs less than £1k…seems like Boardman might have a bike for me, anything else I could look at?
listerFull MemberPosted 14 years agocube looks good but over the limit and boardman is lighter and cheaper.
don't know much about cube, worth pursuing from a quality/warranty point of view?
DimmadanFree MemberPosted 14 years agoLister, there will be a huge surplus of 2009 bikes on the market in 3 months time when all the 2010 bikes are out so if you can hang on do so. But looking at Sram and Shimano's price rises, next years bikes will be more expensive with less quality fitted to them.
If you are going down the C2W scheme, make sure your company is not tied to one retail outlet so you get a better choice. If you want a descent 4" xc bike then a Giant Anthem X2 for £1600 is my choice (Some places are doing it for £1400). Great review, good spec and a top ride. You will save 40% off list so comes in at £960.
druidhFree MemberPosted 14 years agoYeah. We're punting out quite a few (across the whole range) and not seeing any problems. Paint finish tends to be very "deep" although some of the anodised finishes look good too. Might be worth a generic "what are Cube bikes like" thread?
Like I said, some dealers will let you "top up" over the £1,000 if that's an issue. Halfords won't – but then as by far the largest supplier, they're also under the greatest scrutiny.
Oh – I haven't seen the Boardman FS bikes but the hardtails look really nice.
druidhFree MemberPosted 14 years agoDimmadan – Member
Lister, there will be a huge surplus of 2009 bikes on the market in 3 months time when all the 2010 bikes are out so if you can hang on do so.
Wanna bet on that? Distributors are running out of stock on popular models/sizes with new stock (in some cases) not available until October. Oh – and with Cycle Scheme, you're normally restricted to buying at full RRP anyway.
DimmadanFree MemberPosted 14 years agoThere are only 2 manufacturers that I am aware of that are struggling to keep up with demand.
Boardman as they never expected such a fantastic set of reviews and demand for low cost bikes. Trek with the EX8 as it is the second fastest selling bike in their history and are just about to release the 2010 model so production has been switched.listerFull MemberPosted 14 years agogot to wait until autumn to see if my contract becomes full time instead of seasonal, was just doing some virtual shopping…some food for thought though, might go and pester the teenagers in halfords for 'a go on that bike mister, just round the carpark, honest!'
mtbmattFree MemberPosted 14 years agoFocus Super Bud Pro from Wiggle?
Reba fork, SLX & XT drivetrain and brakes.StrangeloveFree MemberPosted 14 years agoOh – and with Cycle Scheme, you're normally restricted to buying at full RRP anyway.
Nah. I got a discounted last years bike which still came in at over £1000 so I paid the extra and sent off a quote for £999.
Everything worked out nice and peachyjimbobrightonFree MemberPosted 14 years agoGiant anthem X3 £1100(would need to haggle but not implssible)
Giant Trance X4 £995
hitmanFree MemberPosted 14 years agoLister
At that price I would look at the specialized stumpjumper which I think has 120mm of travel. Specialized always have good value bikes and I think for around that price you can get a nice bike.Also check out the Giants which are having some good write-ups.
I think I remember that you're in my part of the world? In which case try Hobbs Bikes in Carmarthen for the Giants and Enterprise cycles in Neyland for the specialized.
I have a couple of 4inch travel bikes – if you want to try them out then let me know
CheersPLUGGERFree MemberPosted 14 years agoDimmadan,
most shops will not do cyclescheme and a sale price (cyclescheme take commission from bike shops)
The £1000 limit is because the employer is issued with a blanket consumer credit licence, so they can only offer upto £1000 credit.
Some shops will let you top-up though, but customers need to be aware that if they lose their job before the cyclescheme contract runs out, they could lose the bike and any additional money they've put towards it.
You don't get 40% off the list price AND then claim the cyclescheme discount off of the balance…
I phoned 4 shops about 2 months ago who were advertising Giant Anthem X 1 and 2 bikes at discount prices and NONE of them had stock and NONE of them could get any more stock.(at least one of these shops is still advertising this stock which they cannot get!)Lister, back on topic, Giant Anthem X3 at £1100 if you can top up the £100
or Giant Trance X5 if you don't mind 25mm more travel.
foxyriderFree MemberPosted 14 years agoCan you do the cycle scheme yourself – i.e. paperwork – thats what I did and then my boss payed fro it and then just took it out of my salary – I guess a bog company prob wont want to do this?
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