I feel the need for some fitness, so I’ve decided a road bike might be a good way to go.

I’ve never felt the urge to go road biking, but it’s far more convenient, so time to give it a go……I’m after something cheap and at 5″11, I’m thinking 56cm

Any help would be appreciated!

Merlin are doing one for £300 that’s getting some good press.

The usual answer are the £500 ish Board man from Halfords

Or the Tribane 3 or 5 from Decathlon

Online look at Ribble and Planet X

But this is also third hand. My road bike is a hard tail with slicks

Planet X RT-58 Alloy. Bargain.

Let me define cheap – under £300ish new or s/h is fine.
If I use it, I’ll upgrade to something nice, but it’s really just a training bike

The merlin looks good

If it’s for commuting then £300 is the bottom end. If it’s for proper riding then I wouldn’t go below £500 new personally. As above, Halfords and decathlon. Merlin cycles do good entry level roadies as well as do Ribble.

No commuting, not sure 50miles each way is feasible (at this point)

I’m after something cheap and at 5″11, I’m thinking 56cm

depends hugely on the manufacturer, and you want to be thinking about effective top tube length. I’m 5’10 and like a bike with a ~55cm ETT. I’ve had a 54cm Orbea, a 55cm Bianchi, now own a 52cm lapierre, and my Saracen Hack CX bike is allegedly a 56cm but measures more like 54 for both ST and TT.

I’d try a demo bike…like you I’ve never felt the urge to go road biking (I still don’t!) so maybe worth taking out a demo bike for a decent ride to see if road riding is for you before buying a road bike. Could help with assessing sizing as well.

That Merlin bike.
Alloy frame
Carbon fork
Decent wheels
Shimano groupset

£300 for that is awesome.

Decathlon. At that price point there is nothing better IMO.

I am selling my Triban 5a for £300

Triban 3 in a 54.

Used Giant Defy 4 if you can find one or 5 (alloy fork) in a Medium,

I’m your height and would recommend a slightly longer stem (120 mm).

I was looking at the Jamis Quest Sport recently. I was going to buy the Comp at the end of the month, but got offered a CX bike at a bargain price instead. Anyway, the Jamis looks like the best spec for the money in my opinion, especially as it is a steel frame. It was £400 in Evans, they have an ex-demo for £360.

Decathlon. At that price point there is nothing better IMO.

isnt the new Triban 3 not as good as the old one (possibly lost the carbon forks or something?). Worth checking as the T3 became the default £300 recommendation, but I’ve heard multiple times that the newer version is lower spec, and that merlin PR7 is closer to the old T3.

Cheers guys, am looking round – apart from fit what do I need to look for in a road bike, what’s most important (I’m finding I know less than I thought about the other side!)

Might I be better off with a CX bike – I’m just looking for a vehicle for getting fit for mountain biking!

Triban 5 is down to £320 I think.

Apart from the obvious stuff like how it fits, look to see whether it has eyelets for mudguards. I didn’t and have had to compromise with some that strap on to the frame.
Also see how much clearance there is around the rear wheel, especially if fitted with 23c tyres. Again, my road bike has 23c tyres and there is so little clearance between the tyre and the seat tube I don’t think a more comfortable tyre would fit in without rubbing the tube.

Second hand Specialized Allez, the frame gets rave reviews…it’ll likely have 9 speed but you wont notice, the review i bought mine on reckoned you could ride the frame to national level if you started racing, you’d need to upgrade parts obviously!
New they’re around £600 but i did it on 0% finance and paid it off at £50 a month for a year, barely noticed it to be honest…i road it for 18 months and then sold it for £450 which i was pleased with.
Ribble also do some good, honest cheap road bikes.

Decathalon or Merlin if it must be brand new at that price, secondhand will get you something much nicer. Personally I would stump up a bit more cash and look at £500 entry level as if you take to the road bike thing then you will probably be soon upgrading from a £300 bike anyway. As poster above says Spesh Allez is a good starting point, albeit a bit more expensive but upgrading as you go with the Spesh will get you a pretty nice set up.

I don’t think you’d find a new cross bike for your budget. For me its a no brainer, the Merlin pr7 is killer value 😯 56cm would be your size.

Just got back from merlins with the felt f95 for my daughter. £365 is a bargain. Loads left both colours. Nicer bike than their own.

I still enjoy riding my 2006 Allez as much as the sunday best carbon. Theyre brilliant bikes, mines a 54 btw but the carbons a 56 there both fine for me at 5’11”.

Second hand Boardman Comp Single Speed? Quite impressed with mine and being singlespeed there is less risk if you have to replace the drive train. It’s very light.

No commuting, not sure 50miles each way is feasible (at this point)

I wouldn’t do that in a car. 😯

If your 5’11” you’ll want a 56cm Tri-Ban.
(5’9″ here & 54 fits ok).
For some reason the Boardman 54cm feels a lot bigger.

Anyhow, you cant go far wrong with the red Tri-Ban 3.
(White one has a steel fork & frame made in somewhere other than Italy). Apparently.

You could do a lot worse than THIS that has just gone up on the classifieds…