How Good Is An "Entry Level" Road Bike In 2023?
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- čas přidán 8. 06. 2024
- what do you get for £899 in 2023?
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For the same price you get the Triban RC520 with a 105 groupset from Decathlon! Big bike brands are getting ridiculously expensive.
Can’t imagine these guys buying from Decathlon…beneath them.
Yepp, I have the same and it has carbon forks, hybrid disc brakes, 105
@@ScrubbersGhost maybe they should?
@@ScrubbersGhost give over, they test stuff from Ali express ffs
@@AK-je7ns and?….they ain’t popping down to Halfords and picking up a bike for £500 are they?
It's great how passionate Jimmi is about bikes having easier gearing - it's such a blocker for new riders and they just assume they're unfit and bad at cycling, rather than it being the fault of the setup of the bike
It still amazes me that most entry level bikes that I've seen don't come with a 1:1 gear ratio. If I had a bike like this I'd slap a Sunrace 11-34T cassette on there right away for US$17, but I am a chunky monkey...so...
Yeah. Really, the 11-28 is fine, it's the 50-34 that's excessive for beginners. They don't need a 50x11 gear!
I only started riding in August last year and have a 11-28 and 50-34 and it's a relief to hear this haha
@@ellipticalsoul get yourself a bigger cassette if your rear derailleur allows it! (You might need a new chain too)
they indeed do, but i think the problem is that 50/32 is to big of a jump to have less chance to drop the chain. I do think that 48/32 would be high enough for most because 2 teeth in the big ring dont matter as much as 2 teeth in the little ring.
"It does look a bit budget." "Well, it does have all this cardboard over it." 😂😂😂 BEST LINE OF THE DAY!! 👏👏👏
I tend to buy second hand bikes. you can get a really nice mid range bike for that £900 these days. And if there is another £50 left over (because you managed to make a good deal) you spend that on a basic service at the local shop if you dont feel like you want to get your hands dirty and that way you supported the local community, got an amazing bike, saved some money and gave a second chance to a bike. thats a win win win win in my eyes.
Spot on!! Rgr
Mid range 900 quid ??????????????
@@stubbingtonmarigold3032 for 900 you can usually buy a bike that is only about 4years old and the original price of it was around 3k
Which on the grand scheme of things (compared to super bikes) is a mid range bike.
But of course this is true for all price ranges. If your budget is £200 then for that amount you can probably buy a second hand bike that is a few years old and used to be just under 1k. At least this is what i see on the second hand market :)
@@stubbingtonmarigold3032 I got a 2021 Roubaix with 105 for 900
💯%
I just came here to approve of Francis’s expression when he tossed out the reflector, also love the new format and the addition of Jimmi really adds to this new feel. Two cool folks chatting about bicycles, wins all around.
My first bike on my return to road cycling in 2016 was a B’Twin Ultra 720AF, new but ‘shop soiled’ which I paid £700 for-full Ultegra gearing 50x34 and 11 x 28-I changed the block for an 11 x 32 (because 11 x 34 wouldn’t fit) and rode it for 18 months before I bought myself a new Specialized Roubaix Expert for my 70th birthday in 2018-still got it, still love it.
Man it's so rare that people of your age are into mountain cycling. My grandpa is the same age as you
Second that for B'Twin. 2019 Ultra 900CF , costed 550GBP for full carbon, 105 Groupset and Mavic Aksium wheelset. It was end-of-line sale tho, can't get that price anymore.
Any reason why you decided not to just keep the btwin?
My first bike was a Btwin & cost £299 and it was brilliant. Didn’t want to pay too much as I was dipping my toe into cycling and now I love it. Should of taken up the hobby years ago. The perfect starter bike
I've got three Btwin including a 500SE.
I have 2 B'Twin bikes and my first road bike was the 500SE and cost me £300
Great bikes to start out on, and in fact its only this year that I have not used the B'Twin as it needs upgrading
I still ride a red Triban 3, and for the £300 i paid for it new back in the day it roflstomps this £899!! 'entry level' bike (of course its like Trigger's broom nowadays) :-)
Ridden nearly 7000 miles on my Triban RC120, an amazing bike for £329
using rc520 used rim brakes 565 size for 300€ sora 9 speed no problem,only terrak no brand brakes sucks but iam 65kg and rerely ride in rain or very wet so its alright ,i dislike disc brakek agenda new bikes are too heavy like 11kg for sora or even tiagra and pricing of most brands is way too high i feel like so if i am buying it will be probably Canyon with rims tiagra or 105 mechanical of course or from used markets
I love Jimmi, he is such an asset to the channel with the chemistry you have together.
My first bike was a Fuji Feather single speed, second hand, £125. Have since replaced almost all components and it's taken me all over Europe. Totally agree that some small upgrades can make a huge difference.
Just invested in a Ribble Endurance for £1400, which is mind blowing to me that it's still considered entry level, but I'm very excited to own it and it feels like a big step up for me.
Bike prices seem to have gone through the roof
As a proud owner of a £625 Giant Contend with Claris groupset from a few years back I really enjoyed this video. The bike has been my entry into road cycling from an MTB and have gotten me around London for about 5k miles so far. I sometimes think about upgrading to a £1.2-1.5k bike but really hard to justify it. The 3 year service it came with alone was worth £300 pounds and they've replaced parts for about as much so amazing value for money. I have a feeling I'll be keeping it for a really long time.
Claris is such an awesome groupset
@@diesel9677 Giant Contend 2 - currently £879 on the Giant site - seems to address to big concerns. 11-34 cassette. 40cm bars. Claris groupset. Approach saddle with cutout channel. Seems like it would have been a better choice to test.
@@jonathanforman5357 Think about a certain tester's relationship with a certain brand *cough* Scott, and not with another *cough* Giant, even if the Contend is very decent. Oh and Claris is quite good, but these days, with trickle down, Sora is really good. Something like 105 was in a previous 9 speed iteration.
My 2017 Giant Contend SL2 with tiagra groupset was £679 with a little discount. Bought in the UK and I flew it out to Taiwan where I'm living now. Such a great bike. I cycle around 1000km a month. Bike has over 32000km on it and it's still going strong.
The gaint content was my first road bike . Gears are smooth. Love it
My first road bike was a Trek 1200, from about 1992. Because standards haven’t changed all that much, I still ride it. I think the frame is the only original part left, and it’s on my trainer. I’ve put thousands of miles on it that way.
Claris is a huge bump up in ergonomics over Tourney. Claris also supports an 11-34 cassette. Maybe your next video should be: "How good is an entry level bike that you should actually buy?"
Yes, but maybe go for a less expensive frame brand ? So Still keeping it as low as possible. Maybe try the cheapest Claris bike you can find.
£899 for fucking TOURNEY is daylight robbery. Tourney is basically a groupset-shaped-object; Claris is genuinely quite good. You can absolutely get Claris bikes cheaper than that even in today's market. I paid £1080 in mid-2020 for 105, for an 8.5kg aluminium bike with welds so clean and well-hidden that all my riding buddies assumed it was carbon.
yeah the cheapest bike on canyon's website is $1500 and comes with tiagra 10spd 11-34 and hydraulic discs
@@themindgarage8938out of interest, what did you buy? You're happy with how it rides?
@@Kelso66 It's a Rose Pro SL (105 rim brake model). No longer sold in the UK, but still available in Europe for 1300 EUR. Really happy with the bike, rides very well. Only real downside is the rim brake version is only rated for 25mm tyres - if you want more you'd have to get the disc one.
My first bike that I purchased as an adult that wasn't just a leftover from my dad was a fixed gear that I built myself last year for around 500 pounds. This year I'm building a Mash SF steel All-Road with some fairly nice components as a light-duty gravel bike at a significantly higher cost because I realized I really enjoy cycling and building bikes so I figured I'd build something more adapted to the terrain around here.
I was in Halfords yesterday they had a Boardman SLR 8.6 Claris 2 x 8 sp 11-32 for £585. For most riders that will do everything that a bike at any price will do. Plus it'll be cheaper to fix, service and get bits for. And you won't need Castelli underpants in case you get caught short on your £12k Pinarello.
Full park tool setup. I'm from St Paul Minnesota, I love seeing my hometown tool company across the world! You guys rock
My first bike was that bike but it was the speedster 60, 2013 model but it came with the tourney groupset. Ive now given it to my stepdad and he's put a flat bar on it and changed it to tiagra 4700 groupset. Still going strong nearly 10 years down the line. Great bike
I was given an old school 8-speed Greg LeMond by my dad for my first road bike. It's from 2001 or 2002 I think. Steel frame, rim brakes, granny gear, etc. I was only going to use it to commute to and from work, but I fell in love! It's because of that bike that I grew more fond of road cycling and now ride it more than I ride my mountain bike lol. I know eventually I will probably replace it with something more "modern", but I still love that thing. Ride it almost daily :)
I bought a road bike for £279 four years ago and its fantastic, no problems with it and i am a heavy guy 110 kg. No problems with the gears, wheels or brakesdd. I did have to change the front one due me standing on the front wheel. The wheel was fine but not the brake lol. I still have the same types, and inner tubes on them. Back brake is great, shifters excellent. Vitesse sprint.
My first bike was a 1981 Motobecane Grand Record that I got for my 16th birthday. It had Shimano 600EX (which became Ultegra at some point) and cost $499 new, but it was on sale for $349. It had presta valves, toe clips, downtube shifters, and skinny race tires. It was so euro, and I loved it!
Funny enough, I bough the same trek 1.2 bike on that year as a new cyclist. I still have it and works great, which I currently use it on my trainer. To your point, a good entry level bike will last you many years, and so happy I did. I have so many fond memories with my trek 1.2. I never had any issues I couldn’t resolved, including a crash on my first year of crit racing. Today, a few bikes later, makes me smile to see this bike on your video! 🤩
Great stuff guys, as always. My first road bike was CAAD12 with 105, which I highly recommend, that set me back 100$ CAD in 2018 which is about 920 GBR. Still, up to today, after so many bikes I've changed, is one of my favorite bikes ever. Didn't brake the bank, at first, and yet, made me fall in love with biking. I believe, you get what you pay for, so if you are ANY serious about biking, going couple of steps up in price, will only be for your advantage... Love your new place and your partnership with Jimmy and can't wait for new video to come out.
P.S. ADORE your tool kit by park tools...:))))
Considering inflation based on 2% from 2009-2019, that £599 2009 Trek already costs 599*1,02^10 = £730.
£899 in 2023 is not bad at all with all the crap that happend since 2020.
YES THANK YOU for covering these bikes. I’m a HUGE advocate for budget bikes because I personally was in a position in the past where I was priced out of simply buying a road bike and it felt so unfair. But I went down the route of vintage, new old stock, and budget bikes and I’m passionate about this catagory because with the alarming prices of new bikes, it is CLOSING doors on folks financially who are looking to ride bikes and that is absolutely not ok. It’s not fun saying “oh this bike costs as much as you would put down on buying a car” and their faces of disappointment is upsetting.
Also I agree Claris and Sora is literally better than mechanical dura ace from less than 10 years ago and ALL shift so incredibly well.
Loving this format. Great thoughtful reviews and discussion. Great having Jimmi onboard too.
Bought an entry level Jamis Ventura Sport for about £450 in 2015 with Claris. Been bomb proof - about 12K miles couple of chain/cassette changes but derailleurs or still fine. It’s been semi retired to the turbo for past 3 years but still going strong.
Bought an RC500 (back when they were £550) rode it for 5k miles, recently added some deepish section wheels, trp spyre front brake, carbon seatpost, cut out saddle & used 105 crankset. Cannot complain for the money to performance ratio!
My training bike is a Trek Domane 2.0 with Claris. Some Racing Quattro wheels on it, all in just over £800 with Gatorskins. She's heavy as hell to ride, but built for British country roads. Great to see the budget builds in your vids!
I bought my first road bike in 2008, it was a Scott Speedster S30 (entry level). Came with 105 groupset and a TruVativ Elite crank. I think it cost around $1,000. Replaced the wheels and saddle right away. Once set up, I loved it! Just last year it had to be retired because the headtube cracked.
proud owner of a boardman slr 8.8. had just over a year now. all good . Enjoying the new videos
Got my Trek 1.1 with Claris and Sunrace components back in 2015 for 700€. Since the I've upgraded quite a lot as the components wore down.
Changed tires to Conti GP5000, 42cm handlebars to 38cm, 11cm stem to 9cm one, one piece brakepads to ones where only the rubber needs to be changed, square taper BB to hollowtech and thus the crankset, wheels to shimano rs100.
Love the new setup.
Excellent video with great discussion and reasoning!
First bike was a Boardman ADV gravel bike, £800 in 2019 and comes with shimano sora groupset.
I still ride it today, as my winter / commuter bike and the only real upgrade it’s had is some Hunt wheels and better bar tape. I also changed the cassette size when I needed to swap out my first cassette so it’s 32/48T and 11-28T and that suits me fine.
And it took me from John O’Groats to Land’s End in just over 7days last year, faultlessly. 👍🏼
Glad I finally found your channel. Loving yalls content \,,/
HI Francis & Jimmi 👋. Great review, sensible upgrades. The Speedster 50 is a very canny "big brand" entry-level bike. Purchasers will have the reassurance of a good frameset warranty. My 1st road bike ( after a number of road ' converted' titanium frame mtb's was a cervelo RS custom build .....only sold last year. A superb bike 👍
Really good content. Loving the new format - you guys work really well together. My first bike was a Carerra (by Halfords) TDF. Cost me £250 in a sale and came with a Shimano groupset (I think it was 2300 - and probably 8 speed). I loved it and still actually reget selling it.
250 and on claris here 900 :/ crazy company for 900 you will get something on 105 or even cheap carbon i grate condition
My first bike was a Hercules. Single speed, but it did have a freewheel. Steel pipe tubing, steel mudguards, rod brakes, roadster handlebars like the old Raleigh (which was well out of his price range). My father probably got it from the tip, stripped the frame down, painted it with neat phosphoric acid to stop rust and finished it with Humbrol enamel. Entry level? I think it was black hole level.
I purchased a Scott Speedster s55 triple in 2012 from Damien Harris in Cardiff after 34 year lay off the bike felt phenomenal compared to my late 70s Peugeot Roubaix absolutely loved the bike in HTC colours great content again Francis and Jimmy.
My first proper bike was a Dawes Atlantis as a 15 year old . It took me around for years and at that time was my pride and joy .
Same! A €600 Wilier Montegrappa with a Sora 3500 in 2014. The stock cassette was 11-25, whereas 11-30 was available. The handlebars on the XL size bike were 44 cm wide.
I'm really enjoying the new content!! first bike I bought(not a hand me down), Was the 2009 TREK a1.1. I still have this bike and I'm currently up grading it to be my trainer bike. I now ride a 2017 TREK madone.
My first bike was a Mekk A1 Pinerolo AL 1.5 (bought on Cycle to Work Scheme). Great bike for the money at the time considering it came with carbon forks and tiagra for £800. Gradually upgraded components over the years as the frame was a great foundation
My first road bike was a Schwinn Phocus. Aluminum frame, carbon fork. Tiagra groupset. I paid $350 for it 4 years ago from wal-mart, but it was marked for $500 everywhere else. It's only problem, is that it says Schwinn on the downtube, otherwise, it's a fantastic bike for the price.
My first bike was an Miele(Italy) steel frame from 1988. Tange Infinity steel tubing. Shimano Ultegra 600 (6400) 7-speed with downtube indexed SIS shift levers. I added clipless pedals (Shimano look compatible) a year later. The original gearing was 52-42 and 12-24 cassette. It was a very good entry level bike. Cost was about 750 $canadian back then. In 1989, I swapped the gearing to 50/40 and 13-28 and went to the Alps. With young legs and decent fitness, the 40-28 got me up Alpe D'Huez, the Croix de Fer, Joux Plane, and a few other big climbs. There was no spinning up climbs back then! Terrific memories though.
this is banging man keep it coming
I bought my first road bike two years ago. It was a (not much) used Cube Attain SL 2017 with 105 and rim brakes for €800, almost half the og retail price. I luckily got a friend who's into road cycling which recommended me the bike.
I think if you have friends that can give you some advice (components, bike fit etc), you're better off buying a used bike as your first one.
I bought this one last year, it's my first road bike. Mine came with Claris groupset but looking to upgrade to 105 soon. Amazing bike.
My first road bike was an '09 Trek 1.2 also. :) A little bit of maintenance here and there throughout the years, and I'm still riding it now in 2023.
My first bike I bought myself was a Lemond Tourmalet circa 2000. It had a Shimano 105 triple with the integrated computer that was just about $1100 new. I rode that bike for years and loved it, but it's so different from what I ride now in terms of geometry.
First road bike for me was a 2013 Specialized Allez Elite with Sora: 300 quid 2nd hand with a spare pair of wheels thrown in too.
Since rebuilt with mechanical 105 and still great fun to ride!
Nice video!
My first bike is a Companion G1.0
Great bike, with a 11-34T kassette and Sora gearset.
I do have plans to upgrade the gravel tires to some race. :)
First bike was a 2022 Trek Domane AL2 (aluminum) size 54cm. I did a few rides on it and went for a bike fit. Come to find out it was one size to small so I had to return it and the only bike my LBS had in stock was a Domane SL 6 (Carbon). Spent 4X more but, was very glad I did. The carbon bike felt so much more comfortable “smoother” then the aluminum bike. Also went from a Sora group set to an Ultrega group-set. Night and day difference.
What did I just read.
In 2014 I bought a brand new BMC GF02 (2013 model) with all 105 parts and triple crank + 10-speed cassette (11-28) for only £900. The original price was £1400. So I advise looking around in shops for a model from the previous year and paying less for a better bike. Looking forward to more 'outdoor' testing videos ;) cheers.
I'd consider it to be entry level for the enthousiast. Someone that already knows about cycling and maybe had an older road bike and now want to get a new modern bike but not break the bank.
Personally really love cheap/affordable/entry-level but good quality bikes that are upgraded.
I remember seeing someone put HED carbon wheels and sram red etap (11s) on an aluminium trek, totally awesome!
Treks top-level aluminum ain't bad.
@@rickdoehler502 No of course not! Never meant to imply that, it's just not "common" to see aluminium bikes get the expensive part treatment.
I have a mid range aluminium bike myself and I'd rather buy better components for it then get a new frame.
@@quintennn In 2019 I bought a aluminum CAAD12 with 11 Speed Ultegra r8000 and rim brakes for $1600. It weighs under 17 lb.s. I swapped out the crappy wheelset for Hed Ardennes. It's a midrange model but it's a hell of a bike and a great value! It's way better than any bike I've ever owned.
My first road bike was/is a Specialized Allez Sport 2021, 27 gears (Tripple) with Sora and had 23 tyres. Over the years I have upgraded wheels, tyres, levers. The bike is so fast. When i ride it (still) feels like I am flying. I can hold 31kmh on flats for days around where I live. I have also climbed some monster climbs. Love Sora.
First new road bike was an aluminum 2005 Trek 1000 with Sora. It was darn good first road bike and shifted very well. Carried me through a number of centuries.
Nice presentation Lads!
I remember my first road bike being a Carrera virtuoso from halfords which was sub £400, came with claris and I actually still have it! For £900 I'd definitely be looking at the second hand market. For example, yesterday I saw someone advertised a scott foil with first generation Ultegra Di2 for £750, no brianer to me!
My entry level bike was 80s steel Koga Miyata with modern handlebars, saddle and SRAM Apex 1x11 groupset that I built myself. Rode like a dream, and cost me around 500 EUR in total. Most of the budget was spent on groupset (brifters) and saddle, but it had everything right, from the beginning. Selle Italia boost green budget saddle. Silver Zipp service course stem and handlebars and rs100 Shimano aluminium wheels with Spesh Roadsport 28 mm tires. I had a pretty premium feel. On the long rides, it was so comfortable, but severely lacked stiffness during harder efforts. City bike crashed into me and bent whatever was to bent on the frame. Moved the components to a nice (TIME VXR) used carbon frameset and upgraded the wheels. Couldn't be happier with both.
My first proper bike was a ‘92ish Bridgestone MB-5. It was around $550 and had shimano deore dx components. I rode it all over the Pacific Northwest until it was stolen in 1999. Still miss that bike!
Triban is a pretty good brand, my first bike was a triban with shimano 105 rimbrake, alloy frame and carbon forks for 899 euro's (2017/2018 ish)
TRP Spyre are a fantastic mechanical disc brake, soo serviceable, can replace pistons with ease. Good modulation, not hydro level but can still stop on a dime and easy to adjust out on the road. I love em!
the quote from James about hard foam sitting.
My first road bike was a 2017 Fuji Sportif 1.5 disc that I bought new in 2018 for $800. Aluminum frame/carbon fork. Tiagra 2x10 groupset. First thing I did was swap out aluminum seat post for a carbon post and swap out the stock saddle for better one with a cutout. It was a comfortable enough ride and got me into road cycling. I still have the Fuji, but now I prefer to ride my vintage steel-frame Lemond Tourmalet.
Doing a bit of conversion, my allez was around £830 thanks to the price hikes. Rim brakes and Claris but by goodness is it an amazing bike to ride and commute on. Even dies well in the rain and is pretty durable, so I’m happy with it
My "first" road bike was a Serious Valparola. Cost me a tad over 400€ in the last months before the pandemic. Six months on, and the same bike, same spec was 1000€, so I guess I got lucky. It came with a Claris group set and many of the same parts you had on this bike. Straight away, I made pretty much the same upgrades you made, too. Tires and saddle were the first thing, a little while later I swapped the handlebars. Then more modifications over time. A carbon seatpost, which makes a good difference, comfort wise. Changed the brakes to a set of 105s, then put in an actual hollowtech 2 claris crank, so I could get a left side powermeter, and I got a new, 35mm rim alloy wheelset. And the ultimate atrocity, as I got used to the position on a road bike more and more, I got a -25° stem to get into a bit of a more aggressive position. Not too many original parts left on the thing now, but it's still my only road bike. With prices what they are these days, anything that's a significant upgrade over this is pretty much out of my price range, so upgrading bit by bit was the way to go for me. It's got about 50000k by now, I reckon, and still going strong.
First bike was a Scott Speedster 20 in 2013. Great upper entry bike with 105 groupset and around 9kg. Only sold it last year after many miles.
My first road bike was a Carlton 10 from Loot! Stripped and repainted in my garden, it was stolen…
Went through various used steel bikes - all stolen…
First nice bike was a lugged Reynolds 531 frame and fork I got from my LBS - had it powder coated and rode as a singlespeed.
First real race bike was a Kinesis Racelight I built with 105 in the early naughties - still have it in the garage.
I got myself a Boardman Slr 8.9 rim last year for £1000. Possibly one of the cheapest full carbon road bikes available? It had a 105 groupset (FSA crank and Tektro brakes, though). Since then I've put the proper 105 brake calipers on, put some chinese 28mm deep carbon rim wheels on, and switched the bars and saddle.
I'm now looking to use what I learned from that bike to then build one from parts and make it more what I want from a bike, but I still love that boardman. It rides great, its light, and the price was unbeatable.
Raleigh Record Sprint, I think it was £199, but it was about 35 years ago. I loved it and kept it for many years
Great video review of all the aspects of buying a first bike. I like the idea that it does not have all the right components for you. The important bits, frame and gear set are good but you can change other parts seat, bars and tyres for a moderate cost.
So your first bike maybe not be the perfect bike, yet! Getting the feel and changing bits is the way forward is my way of getting the right bike.
My first bike, almost before you were born Francis, was and still is a 30yo Ridgeback hybrid with straight handlebars. Probably a tad small for me, but has been an old faithful on commutes and off road, not mountain tracks, alike. It cost £200 back in the early 90s and I have spent around double that on maintenance and spares, with no major issues.
I have just bought my second bike, a relatively cheap gravel bike - Whyte Glencoe. I will be the first to admit that I bought it almost on the way it looks, other bikes with the same or possible better parts were available. After watching your video I will give it a few months of riding and consider if I could improve the rides by changing one or two parts.
Keep producing these informative, entertaining and quality videos on all aspects of bikes, there’re great viewing 👏👏👏
My first road bike was a Merida scultura with claris, same ratio as that bike but 2x8, I replaced the shifters with the latest claris shifters as they have the cable routed under the bar tap not out the side of the shifter like the groupset your testing. Road hundreds of kms with no issues.
Thanks Francis and Jimmi. ...I knew nothing when I went to buy , and I spent $2,300 on a Specialized Camber as entry level . I am older , hadn't ridden in a long time , the guy asked " How are you at shifting " ? I said " I'm the best...........where are the shifters ?" OAF strikes again !
My first adult bike was a second hand specialized Allez sport 2012 which had a sora full group set (triple 50/39/30 and 11-25 9s cassette) which I picked up for £100. Frame was a 58 which was 2 sizes too big, which I didn’t know at the time. Was a great bike which gave me the bug. Picked up a second hand carbon mekk poggio next which had only been used twice for less than half its original price and still have it, though upgraded everything but the frame. Bought another Allez sport second hand to build up for my trainer, in a 54 this time and managed to build for a little over £125 running 10s sram axis. Second hand bargains are the way to go for me. Love your vids by the way. Been watching for a few years now.
My first bike was a cube radial, for 675 euro, had a tiagra triple groupset. loved it, never missed anything until i bought a bike with Ultegra.
My first road-adjacent bike (I guess it's a cross) was a Norco Threshold, I got it in an Evans sale as it was the last of last year's model.
I really lucked out - it was about 500 quid off the list price, the one frame they had fitted me, and they built it up nicely. 5-6 years on and clear 10,000km with a few upgrades (mostly new wheels, pressure relief saddle...) my first roadside disaster happened last year - snapped hangar, damaged spokes, ruined derailleur and broken chain. I rebuilt, recabled, re-bearinged and it's running better than new...
I'm now eyeing up a new groupset as cable disc brakes are driving me absolutely mad, but for someone who wants to grow a good frame is so important - the components and parts can grow with them, upgrades aren't out of reach and having/being perfect now is the enemy of just getting out and having fun!
thanks for the rec on bar tape
BBB flex ribbon is best bang for buck IMO. Silca incredibly good but much more expensive.
I had a Btwin Triban 520, bought 2016, which cost around £500. It replaced a much more expensive bike that I just didn't get on with, and it was superb. I rode it 11000 miles, and I've still got it, even after I bought a new bike because I couldn't bear to part with it.
the triban 500 and 520 are so much better value than the bike they got
1st bike was a 2007 Scott Speedster 30 with 105 on it. Bought at the end of the summer for the princely sum of £600. Brilliant bike that never put a foot wrong. Only got rid of it because I upgraded to an early Focus Cayo in carbon with Ultegra which was still only £1000. In truth, the Scott could have been a forever bike if I’d known enough then about swapping parts in and out.
My first bike was a Trek hybrid I pulled outta someone’s trash 🗑️ paid for a good servicing & loved it 🥰
Could you also make a video on how to choose the right bike size? Do manufacturers size recommendations fit? Compare that to your actual bike etc? Would be great!!
My first bike that I bought 2 years ago and am still riding (with some minor upgrades) is a Giant Toughroad 2021 SLR2
Back in 2016-2017 I got myself a Cannondale CAAD Optimo 105 that I paid $1080 USD, which comes close to £900 you paid for the Scott Speedster. Great bike, and I beat it up badly since I was a new cyclist and wiped out a few times on it. I still have it to this day, and it functions great. I still ride it, alongside the CAAD12 Ultegra I acquired later at a used sale.
Prices aren't getting cheaper, but there are still deals to be found if we're patient with the process.
Thanks for sharing your experience with this!
In 1988 I bought a Specialized Allez with Suntour GPX 7 speed groupset. Downtube shifting that featured indexed rear derailleur. Freewheel of 12-23 and the shop threw in a 12-25...USD 300.00.
My next entry...or re-entry...level bike was a 2016 Specialized Allez Sport with Shimano 105 11-speed groupset...USD 900.00. Replaced handlebars, wheels and tires within 1000 km. Tire width max was 28....maybe.
First bike was a GTR Sport (I believe manufactured back in 2008). Found it at a LBS and got it for $500 in 2019. I put around 4k miles on it before upgrading to carbon but boy do I miss riding it. Still have the bike, components have lasted well, and some day I’ll rebuild it!
My avatar is my first entry level bike 2015 Ultegra front & rear mech with 105 chain rings, levers & brakes, aluminium frame & seat post but a full carbon fork, compact 50, 34 with a 11-32 & Mavic alloy wheels, £850 from Tredz, fantastic spec for the money, i remember the Specialized Allez coting £650 at the same time but the spec was far lower then the Cube Peloton SL.
My first road bike was a Giant OCR that was about £600 came with shimano Tiagra, my second bike bought in 2013 was £1000 (aimed at the cycle to work scheme Buyer) that was a Trek Madone (alloy) and had predominantly shimano 105, so entry level bikes have got much more expensive or not as well equipped, depends how you look at it.
I would definitely class this as an entry level bike, and considering what's happened in the market in recent years, I'm glad that manufacturers are still offering such bikes. My first road bike was Specialized Allez Sport. Great bike and still going strong at nearly 8+ years.
Ha, my first bike was also a Trek 1.2 in 2009. I have to say, that bike is still going strong for my work commute and still holds its own on early season salt covered club rides. The only complaints I had with that bike was the finnicky indexing of the triple Sora and that annoying button shifter that could get annoying.
I have the 105 version of this bike and I love it
The first bike I bought is Reid Falco Advanced road bike in 2016. It is a Australian local brand I found it quite high in CP value. I got it for a discounted price for AUD$699 from $999 with free locks, pumps, bell and front and rear lights. It has 2x10 105 groupset (5600 series) front and rear and tektro brakes. I think it is a bit outdated with 5600 series in 2016 and that's why they're doing the discount. But for a beginner perspective, I didn't see any disadvantages. Although I haven't ride it after a year of buying it, I still love my bike and started riding again recently and it still feels wonderful to me!
My first road bike, a 2013 Vitus Zenium ZR (I think), was cheaper than that with a 105 group set and a carbon fork (with carbon steerer), still going strong a decade later with mostly original components
My first road bike was a Trek Domani AL2. Cost me just shy of a grand and had Shimano Claris. Big fan of the bike even though I went too big with it. Seeing it’s now 1200, it would be hard for me to say get it over another bike.
As I mentioned on Monday, you might look at a nice looking _retro_ bike for
My first one and still riding now is the specialized Allez e5, its great for me, changed the tyres to gp.. all good
Nice vid. 6 years ago I bought a Pinnacle Laterite 3 as a winter / commuting bike, new from Evans but on eBay and paid about £400!!! It came with alloy frame, Shimano 105 groupset, rim brakes and carbon forks and weighed about 9.5kg. Cracking bike. Only issue was the headset which failed after lots of wet rides and was an odd size so I couldn't get replacement sealed bearings to fit. I now have it set up on the turbo for Zwift. I have a Specialized Tarmac costing nearly 10x as much, but I had just as much fun riding the cheap bike tbh.
I bought my girlfriend a used 2005 Jamis Comet for $140 USD. I put around $150 in part upgrades, $40 for a full tune by my local bike mechanic that included everything from truing wheels to making sure all of my wrenching was done correctly, and around 6 hours of sweat equity to make sure it is cleaned, the paint touched up, and the thing was properly greased. That road bike was around $1,900 USD when it came out and still packs a punch in terms of weight and geometry. What would I need to buy a $900 - $2000 brand-new "entry-level" road bike for? I could buy a car that runs and drives for that price.
When I dipped my toe into road cycling during the summer of '21 (so, still quite recently), I bought a $300 "bike" from Walmart (an unbranded Kent) and rode that for 9 months before buying a $2000 Trek. I set myself the target of completing a 100 mile ride before buying a "real" bike, and it worked out brilliantly for me. I did upgrade parts piecemeal on the Kent as I learned what features I cared about and which I didn't, and learned what specific aspects of the cheap bike were limiting factors in long rides.
Being completely straight here - if the minimum bar of entry for me had been $1000+ i may never have given cycling a go. It's a lot to spend when you have nfc.
My first and current road bike was a Felt FR50 2018 for around £800. Only things changes so far are lower geared cassette, new narrower bars, different stem, shorter cranks and clipless pedals all as a result of a bike fit.so far it's a great first bike. However with all the accessories, clothing and zwift Hub I've spend more than I paid for the bike. Bike fit was the best investment, maybe followed by the zwift Hub.
I’m 6’3 my first bike was a women’s specific 54cm Dioara with tiara gearing, I upgraded to a 2012 Trek 2.1 and currently ride a 2019 Trek Emonda SL6 in 60 cm
My first bike was a cannonade caad12 with 105 rim break and was probably the best bike I’ve ever had. Got stollen at a coffee shop. They really don’t make bike like the use too. I got mine for 1,200 dollar and while that’s definitely on the higher end of eatery level it was def worth it. The bike was on sale as well when regular price is around 1,800