Ribble Cycles buying experience

I keep looking at The CGR ti and will find it hard to resist once I sell my outgoing a giant TCR. It’s not a like for like swap as I already have another roadie.

Despite being around a long time company wise I’ve not seen too much real world feedback regards buying from them. So please let me know good or bad on;

Bike set up, quality/finish.
Buying experience, delivery
Any issues. After sales?

Any feedback on the bike itself would also be welcome but it seems like decent value for TI and can tweak the spec.

Thanks for any feedback.

Bought a CGR SL frame last year.

Delivered really quick.

One small part missing and delivered within 24 hours of raising it with customer services.

Really happy with the built up bike , quality of the frame and the over all experience.

Great experience, I ordered a R872, and it was all hassle free and came pretty quickly. There was a scratch on the DS chain stay, and honestly they were more anxious to have the bike back and build it all onto a new frame than I was. Collected and returned within a week all for free without any hassle from my end. Very impressed.

I’ve had excellent experiences with them lately when things went wrong. I ordered two of the same bottle cage, and they sent one. While that shouldn’t happen they were exceptionally helpful and a second arrived the next day. I’d buy from them again.

I bought the steel CGR in 2019. Decent quality kit with good service. I asked them to set the brakes up “opposite” e.g. right rear, because that’s my preference, which they did without issue. Would happily buy from them again. Wouldn’t choose Sram apex again, absolute tat.

CGR SL here – arrived without a few things (seatpost, clamp, headset etc) – quick chat with them and they sent me the right parts, plus some spares – all very quickly.

Also had an issue with the seatpost recently (likely my fault) and they kindly sent a new one (and clamp), as well as a couple of the staff mailing me with suggestions.

The missing bits seems to be a bit of a thing, but they’re very keen to sort it out.

Bought a 653 steel road bike from them in 1992. Loved it, the first bike I bought for myself, still use it now.
Buying experience was great, custom paint was as I wanted, but I’m not sure this is the kind of feedback you were after!
Have used them for the odd bit ever since, no dramas.

#madeupname only 29 years of service, I guess that’s decent value.

Check what you want is in stock! Ordered a CGR725 GRX just before Xmas with a due date of March, that quickly changed!

Not Ribble’s fault and there communication has been great letting me know what’s going on, but they (as well as everybody else, natch) are chasing stock.

Wife bought an R872 Disc from them and was absolutely fine – no problems at all with it or the service. Very nice bike.

Madeupname – did your 1992 653 come with Campag? Has it worn-in yet? 🙂

A mate ordered one (CGR ti) along with an AL in a custom colour. He has a bit of a nightmare TBH, delays on the custom colour delayed the ti bike as Ribble planned to ship together (even though mate said he’d take them as an when either was ready). Comms from them was poor too.

Another guy I ride with had a faultless experience ordering a carbon road bike from them.

I had a good experience last year, mainly based on their customer service. Bought a R872 disc using C2W, whilst waiting for the voucher the price increased by £100 but they honoured the original price. Bike came about a week before they said it would, there was a missing bolt for the mudguard mounts, contacted Ribble who sent out a replacement very quickly, it was clear that the reason a bolt was missing was because someone had already threaded the nut… Now it should never have been sent out like that, but to their credit Ribble picked the bike up, replaced the frame and had it back to me pretty quickly, although it did rely on a little bit of pressure from me as I needed it for an upcoming ride.

Had a bad experience with them some years ago and haven’t used them since

Bought a Gran Fondo on the Cyclescheme, within a month the paint started cracking around where the carbon met the dropout

Sent back to Ribble after a month the bike was returned after being rebuilt with a new frame

One month later the paint started cracking in the same area again on the new frame

Bike sent back again, this time a lack of communication from them meant i waited 2 months for the bike to be returned, when it came back the paint was still cracked around the dropout, they had the bike for 2 months and hadn’t replaced the frame, it had just sat there and then returned to me

So back it went again, one month later it comes back built up with a new frame, then a month after that it cracks again!

This time i tell them Ive had enough and im returning the bike for a full refund under my consumer rights

They reply saying as i bought it the bike on the cyclescheme there is no way of issuing a refund

So then i have to involve the Ombudsman, soon after that Ribble take the bike back and repay the money to the Cyclecheme

Ive been tempted by the CGR Ti but that past experience really puts me off them them even though things may have changed since then

I bought an Endurance AL back in 2019. It was my first road bike. I’d popped into the shop in Preston beforehand and it was a nice setup. Order was placed and got a call a few days before it was due to say it was really for collection. When I got there, the guy showing me around the bike found the front axle to be faulty (can’t remember the specifics) and was very apologetic and got it replaced there and then. So, good all round experience for me. Have had the bike almost 2 years now with no issues.

They built mine with some wrong handlebars which was a pain as they internally routed the brake hoses through them too.

They also bodged the rear brake calliper by using half a dozen washers to compensate for a bolt that was too long. Said bolt was still too long and ultimately forced the calliper to snap off the brake mount. Silly and dangerous and no idea how it passed their QC.

I emailed them to tell them and they didn’t give a…

I have the previous model CGR Ti (without the dropped seatstays) and really like it. The frame itself is nicely done – given the price it has good-looking welds, for example. The finishing kit is fine; I went for the 105 build, and it all works fine, but there’s definitely room to upgrade as and when you feel the need. I’ve upgraded wheels, stem and seatpost; I could never get on with the Mavic straight-pull wheels, and I swapped the stem and seatpost for a better fit (and shaving a few grams).

For me the buying process was perfectly functional but not much more. I was somewhere between M and L in their sizing, so wanted to get some guidance on fit, but they really weren’t helpful in the way that (say) Cotic always would be. That said, v efficient, and when I needed to replace the mech hanger I ordered a couple and they turned up within a week or so. For the price and quality, it’s tough to look beyond Ribble.

Just received an email for a ti gravel bike at Planet X that appears to be available. Given the cgr ti isn’t in stock beggars another question.

ribble, wait for the cgr
Or Planet X earlier?

Is a bird in the hand worth two in a bush.