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Carrera TDF Limited Edition 2014 Reviews/Thoughts???

Hi guys,

looking a good value bike for entry level and seen Carrera TDF Limited Edition Mens 2014 Road Bike retailing for £269. reduced from £599.

This seems good value to me but obviously as I'm only a newcomer I'm not very educated in the area.

Is there anyone that has or knows of someone with this bike and could give me some info on it and their thoughts?

Can't find much info about it online, i.e. weight and stuff.

Also if anyone could recommend a good value entry level bike that would be great, budget is max £400.

thanks in advance!!

If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.

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18 comments

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vonhelmet | 8 years ago
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I bought a 2011 tdf second hand when I started cycling in 2012. The previous owner had replaced the chainset with a compact, put on a carbon fork, couple of other things. I've since out on handbuilt wheels, full Claris (plus long drop brakes), mudguards and had it powder coated in bright red. It's my winter bike these days, but I still like how it feels, maybe because I started on it.

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DavidBlaney1984 | 8 years ago
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My carrera TdF

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DavidBlaney1984 | 8 years ago
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Just if anyone is interested, I'd say the virtuoso and the vanquish are now the bikes you should be choosing if you go down the carrera route. You get Claris as a minimum. They are decent entry level bikes. I'd avoid the karkinos or the zelos.
As it happens I've been using my tdf for approx a year now (original half yellow half black model). It was on a turbo trainer in halfords, manager let me take it for £200! Been great in 12 months of use!! A very good & cheap eBay option for people looking

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sfeterpl | 9 years ago
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Ok, thanks for reply.

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sfeterpl | 9 years ago
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Just a quick one. What mudguards you have? I am thinking about cruds

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Kapelmuur replied to sfeterpl | 9 years ago
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sfeterpl wrote:

Just a quick one. What mudguards you have? I am thinking about cruds

I only use the bike when it's wet, so full size SKS.

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Kapelmuur | 9 years ago
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I have a full set of mudguards on my TdF as it's now my winter bike.

Worth checking, as advised above, in case the frame design has changed.

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TheHound | 9 years ago
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Does the TDF take full mudguards? Does the Triban for that matter?

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mistertaylor replied to TheHound | 9 years ago
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Pretty certain mine has mounts on the seat stays, forks and dropouts, but I think they've changed the profile of the frame tubes, so check with Halfords...

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adrianoconnor | 9 years ago
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+1 for the Decathlon Tribans, they are great bikes and you should definitely take a look. A very worthy alternative.

I bet the TDF would be a fine bike too, for the money, but they really aren't worth £599 so don't be fooled by that marketing trick. £599 would get you a very decent Felt bike, and come mid-August lots of £800+ bikes will be on sale for around £600 too.

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mistertaylor | 9 years ago
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I bought one of these as my first road bike back in 2011 and covered many flawless miles with it. As others have said its a bargain at £269, but definitely not worth £600. I still have it and (possibly) prefer it over my shiny new Giant Defy.

In terms of weight, its a bit heavy, but solid (I've even done some "off-roading" on mine!).

Just check the gearing though - mine has a 52/42 chainset and 12-26 cassette. I always struggled up hills compared to others, until I realised they had 50/34 - better for building fitness, but not ideal for an entry level bike.

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The_Otter replied to mistertaylor | 9 years ago
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I made the same mistake with my first road bike, I bought a second hand Orbea Asphalt and that had a 52/42 chainset 13/24 7 speed cassette, I used to struggle on even the smallest of hills riding it. I've since sold it rather than upgrading it and as the Asphalt would have been my entry bike I went 'whole hog' and got a carbon frame Bianchi Vertigo, compact 50/34 and 12/26 cassette. I cannot fault it although i still struggle on some steeper climbs, to mix things up a bit i've now bought an Orbea Aqua with a triple chainring on giving me 24 speed. I can use the Bianchi as a summer bike and use the Orbea as an all rounder.

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ch9houly | 9 years ago
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Hi guys,

my budget is £400 just for the bike. Everything else I shall purchase on top of that. I've been looking at the two following bikes...

BTWIN Triban 500

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/triban-500-se-road-bike-black-id_8306187.html

Vitus razor

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/vitus-bikes-razor-road-bike-2014/rp-p...

Which bike would you recommend between the above two?

Also Is the shimano claris groupset better or worse than the sora groupset?

Thanks in advance

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Simon E | 9 years ago
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At £269 the TdF is excellent value, but at £599 it would be a complete rip-off. You could upgrade the wheels but there's no hurry. Just get on and enjoy it.

There are very few decent drop-bar bikes below £400 but road.cc gave the £380 BTwin Triban 500 SE a 9/10 score this week:

http://road.cc/content/review/116333-btwin-triban-500-se-road-bike

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gdmor10 | 9 years ago
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Go to decathlon and look at the triban bikes, pretty sure they will beat what halfords offer in same price bracket.

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Must be Mad | 9 years ago
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Actually - just looking at the Halfords Website - The 'Carrera TDF Limited Edition' will weigh about the same as the other Carreras - so 11.5kg.

The bike is using the ' Tourney ' groupset, which is Shimano's bottom end groupset, however it does the job and is pretty bomb proof. With a 34/50 (compact) chainset, you should be able to get this bike up most hills (with a bit of practice)

The 'non limited edition' Carrera TDF is currently at £300, and includes the Sora groupset (the next one up in the range), however with a 42/52 chainset, you might struggle to get this up some big hills.

(Also - does your budget include money for Helmet, Gloves, Clothing, pump, lights, lock etc)?

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Must be Mad | 9 years ago
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The Carrera's are good solid bikes with decent quality components.

However Halfords pricing is a little .... As I understand it, Halfords recieve their bikes in batches - so the 'offer price' is the true price when they have plenty of stock, and the 'full price' is the price they charge when stocks are low.

At £260, the bike is VERY good value for money and a good buy (although arguably not quite as good value as the Triban 300 at Decathalon). However this is not really a £600 bike.

IMHO - One of the things Halfords are very good at is publishing weights - I just wish other stores would follow suit. Its quite fun to look at the Pinnerelos on the Halfords site as see just how heavy they are!

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Kapelmuur | 9 years ago
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For some reason they always refer to them as 'limited edition', even though they are in stock all year round.

I bought one for £260 as a newbie in late summer 2011 and have been very pleased with it. I don't know whether the spec has changed since but my medium sized model weighed 11.4kg, of which the wheels accounted for almost 4kg.

I've fitted mudguards (plus better tyres, pedals and brakes) and it is now my winter ride.

It's covered several thousand miles faultlessly and has only needed routine maintenance and cleaning.

There appears to be more competition at lower price points these days, especially from Decathlon, but I can't fault the TdF for the price.

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