Im looking at road bikes and i havnt a clue what to look for with them. (this is all stravas fault and i have segments to win)
I thought searching for a racer would be simple cos they are all the same right? wrong. sportive,race,touring!.

correct me if im wrong-
Im assuming the mid range shimano gear is the 105 bits as the price seems to be between the sora and dura-ace with ultegra being the higher end stuff.

Ive got up to £750 to spend on a bike and looking at second hand as id like a high spec one. what brands are good and what should i avoid? am i right to want a race rather then a sportive,whats the difference?

Thanks in advance.

Pinarello are so sexy.

There aren’t any really bad bike out there, but for £750 (new) you will be looking at a Alu frame with carbon forks, going the new route you will be lucky to get 105 at that price point, but as the 2013 range is coming in, there are bargains to be had, 2nd hand will get you carbon, but no warranty.

Shimano road groups move in the same type of cycle as MTB groups, so old can = obsolete, most of the current range is compatible with the previous generation but there are exceptions, also road riding does wear parts out, so factor this into any 2nd hand purchase

The sweet spot for road bike pricing has been £999 for several years now, due to the Cycle to Work cutoff, with nice bikes being available for that price.

Racer vs Sportive, not a lot of difference depending on brand, maybe slightly longer stays & headtube, and possible mounts for mudguards

do you ever ride road bikes or xc race mountain-bikes at the moment ?

If not, a correctly fitting example will feel as follows:

touring bike – a bit more head down and stretched than a mtb
cyclocross bike – quite a bit more head down and stretched than a mtb
sportive bike – a lot more head down and stretched than a mtb
race bike – Jesus! You’ll feel like you can’t even reach the bars without falling off the saddle at first
TT bike – genuinely unrideable

There are variations within each type but IIRR that’s how it felt

I ride (not very often) a slightly racey frame (planet-x sl carbon) and I don’t think I could comfortably ride anything more racey for more than about 20 miles. I originally bought one that turned out a bit too small for me but when I first got it I put a medium length mtb stem on it to be vaguely comfortable.

People tell you fit is important for road bikes. I’m sure they’re right, if you ride for hours at a time and regularly. Otherwise you can live with minor niggles just like a mtb If you plan to ride loads you’ll prob end up needijg a very different bike to what seems to fit at first

IMO

I’ve just gone for a Sensa from Merlin at that price point, got a good review recently, and comes with 105. Not got it yet (2wks ish build time) though

specialised allez are cheap secondhand, good value entry bike, as has been said, its horses for courses, nothing wrong with steel frames– reynolds 531 tubing is good, do you know any roadies- any club people, they will give good advice — so will a proper LBS– not the chain stores.

The Sensa Romagna at Merlin cycles is fitted with 105. A new company on British shores so as a taster the price has dropped from ‘£850 to £750. Bargain for the finishing kit

at the moment im riding a whyte 905 single speed with racing ralphs as a road bike and as a crap weather trail bike, i had a carrea virtuoso year or so ago but i didnt get on with its clunky gears and it didnt really feel very quick at all, this new addition is mainly going to be used as a weekend/evening bike for 20-30 mile rides twice a week (currently doing 15 miles twice a week on the whyte) and smashing out times on strava. nothing serious just a bit of fun.

DaveT-is that a sensa romagna? ive just read the review on that in cycling plus and it does look good but my main reason for going for a used bike is incase i dont use it as much as im planning too and i need to sell it on with as little loss as poss.

just looking on merlins and the delivered price on the sensa is only £709! starting to look like a bargain im interested in.

ive just found a boardman road team locally for £675 and only 6 months old, this spec-

Approximate Weight (KG): 9
Brake Type: Dual Pivot Caliper Brake
Chainset: FSA Gossamer BB30 compact crank 50/34T
Forks: Full carbon uni-directional
Frame Colour: Grey
Frame Material: Alloy
Frame-: Ultra lightweight X9 triple butted aluminium frame with tapered headtube, internal rear brake cable and BB30 bottom bracket
Front Brake: Tektro R580 Dual pivot
Front Mech: Shimano 105
Gear Shifters: Shimano 105
Gender: Mens
Handle Bars: Boardman alloy anatomic
Headset: FSA 1.1/8 – 1.5 Aheadset
Number of Gears: 20
Pedals: N/A
Rear Brake: Tektro R580 Dual pivot
Rear Mech: Shimano 105
Saddle: Boardman black with cro-moly rails
Seatpost: Carbon Boardman 350mm x 31.6mm black
Stem: Boardman black alloy 31.8mm
Tyre size: 23c
Tyres: Vittoria Zaffiro 700x23c
Wheel size: 700c
Frame Size (cm): 53 – 54
Cassette: 12-25T
Exact Frame Size: 53cm
Geometry: Semi Compact

Ive got up to £750 to spend on a bike and looking at second hand as id like a high spec one.

How tall are you? Minor hijack, but for £500 I’m selling my medium sized Giant Defy right now, with Tiagra kit on it.

Anyway… Shimano Roadie groupsets go like this…

Dura-Ace = XTR
Ultegra = XT
105 = SLX
Tiagra = Deore
Sora = Alivio

Or along those lines at least…

For a first road bike, you’ll probably want a “Sportive” type bike (like my Giant Defy, a Spesh Secteur etc.) rather than a full on race position that you would get with many others. Main difference is usually a taller headtube and slightly more relaxed geometry, but we are talking slightly though, so if you’re happy with a raceier bike, don’t let me stop you buying one.

Oh, and it’s frame and then wheels that are most important, running gear and bars/stem/seatpost a lot less so. But most road bikes come with wheels at a much lower price point than you would expect for the money, so they’re usually the first thing to upgrade.

Bought a Cube Peleton Race for £750 a month ago and 350 miles in now and happy with it. Comes with Tiagra groupset including brakes ( some spec tektro stuff, so what out for corner cuts) looked at the Spesh Allez, Giant Defy ( rode it , too short and pretty ugly) Cannodale Synapse , but glad I got a Cube. Looks twice its actual cost.

ive just found a boardman road team locally for £675 and only 6 months old, this spec-

That bike was only £849 new, so even if it’s almost like new, it’s probably a little overpriced.

For reference, my Defy was £825 new, and is a 2 year old bike though its only covered about 700 miles in that time from new, and asking £500 for it including a few extras.

Ive got a giant trance so trying to avoid a giant road bike as im also getting a giant glory in the coming months, ill end up with a small giant collection if im not careful. going to have a look at this boardman tomorrow to seeif i can whittle him down a coulple of hundred 🙂 less i spend on the bike the more i have to spend on (more)pedals/shoes.

Got a wilier izoard xp for 1k. Worth the extra investment to buy new in my opinion. Top notch bike. Carbon frame and xenon groupset. Good place to start.

Pick up a quality second hand steel frame, columbus or something like this inc wheels. A 105, Apex or Veloce groupset is about #400 all that’s left are the bars, tape, seat post, saddle, cables, tube & tyres.

Might be a stretch but would last years.

Strava you say?

In that case you’ve missed a zero off of the end of your budget…

😉

I bought a second hand Boardman Team Carbon last week. Full carbon frame and forks, 105 groupset. The bike weighs next to nothing at all! Cost £950. You can get Boardman Team bikes with alu frame for c.£750.

Did my first proper ride on it yesterday – 40 miles and just under 3000 feet of climbing. Great ride. Took about 2.5 hours and came home clean!!!