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Boardman Urban Pro Ltd

8
£999.00

VERDICT:

8
10
Minor niggles aside, excellent frame, great ride, good price
Weight: 
9,400g
Contact: 
www.bikehut.com

At road.cc every product is thoroughly tested for as long as it takes to get a proper insight into how well it works. Our reviewers are experienced cyclists that we trust to be objective. While we strive to ensure that opinions expressed are backed up by facts, reviews are by their nature an informed opinion, not a definitive verdict. We don't intentionally try to break anything (except locks) but we do try to look for weak points in any design. The overall score is not just an average of the other scores: it reflects both a product's function and value – with value determined by how a product compares with items of similar spec, quality, and price.

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The Boardman Urban Pro Ltd is a very capable fast commuter with a high spec level and a responsive ride. It's light and comfortable enough for much, much longer outings than just the trip to work and would be a great sportive or Audax tool for riders who prefer the flats to the drops. Aside from a few niggles, it comes highly recommended.

Boardman Urban Pro gallery

The Urban Pro Ltd is a new bike in Boardman's range for 2009, sitting above the other hybrids and nudging under the £1k bike to work cap. For the extra £200 you'll shell out over the Pro there's plenty of upgrades. For a start it's a new frame: A super butted Aluminium offering with neatly filled and rounded welds. We thought it was Carbon the first time we saw it, and it's definitely a great looking bike. Hanging off it is a SRAM/Truvativ drivetrain, Ritchey OCR wheels and a full ship's complement of the excellent Ritchey Pro finishing kit. A set of Carbon-levered Avid Elixir R brakes take care of the stopping.

That's a very decent spec for your grand, and the result is a very light bike indeed, the lightest disc equipped bike, at 9.4kg (20.7lb), that we've seen thus far. The light weight of the bike is evident from the off. It feels perhaps a touch less quick than you'd expect as the wheels and tyres aren't the lightest, but certainly compares favourably with other £1k hybrids I've ridden, some of which sneak under the 20lb mark.

The frame is stiff but not at the expense of the ride, which is excellent. There's a bit of spring when you put the power down, not noticeable flex but just a bit of liveliness which is very welcome on a bike of this type. The large air chambers of the Maxxis Detonator tyres help with the comfort levels, and the saddle isn't bad either although I'd expect to see a carbon 'post on a bike costing a grand.

Climbing on the Urban Pro Ltd is a fuss-free affair, with the low overall weight mitigating against the slight weight penalty of the discs. The Ritchey WCS bar ends add negligible weight but a useful extra hand position. Going downhill the neutral steering means that the bike is well planted but I wasn't that impressed with the Avid Elixir R brakes – they're short on modulation on a bike of this type meaning that you have to be careful when you're braking, especially when you're out of the saddle. They're certainly no match for Shimano's new SLX units in terms of feel, Carbon levers or no.

The Urban Pro Ltd is best on longer rides, not because it isn't well behaved on a short commute but rather because it's such an assured ride that you'll be itching to widen your horizons a bit. The position is more stretched than some hybrids meaning that it's a slightly faster position which might not suit if you're commuting with a backpack. If you're looking for a machine to eat a few miles at the weekend or maybe try the odd Sportive or Audax than it's certainly a viable alternative to a fast tourer.

The drivetrain was with one major exception (see below) very well behaved, and the SRAM Double Tap flat bar shifters are brilliant. They use a similar action to the STI levers; although I like the road groupsets I think this is the best application of the system. They have a great feel and although they take some getting used to it's second nature after a few rides. The only criticism I'd make is that the release trigger is a bit light, so sometimes you can nudge the chain down a cog if your thumb is resting on the paddle and you hit a bump.

We had a few niggles with our test bike, the most serious being a loose bolt in the Truvativ Rouleur crankset that worked itself out after about 100 miles. The result was a bent inner chainring and a big scratch on the chainstay where the chainring rubbed before I worked out what the odd noise was. It's not something that I'd necessarily blame Boardman for but I'd be seriously hacked off if I'd paid out of my own pocket. Less serious but also annoying is the fact that the disc brake cable clips have all gone missing. I've replaced them with Velcro straps, but the clips really need to be stronger. There's no sign of the brake judder that plagued the 2008 bikes though, which is possibly down to the redesigned stays.

Verdict

There's much to like about the Urban Pro Ltd, most importantly the fact that the excellent frame gives a lovely ride, and you're getting a lot of quality kit for your money. It's not without its faults but it's a versatile machine over any distance, and well worth a look.

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road.cc test report

Make and model: Boardman Urban Pro Ltd

Size tested: L

About the bike

State the frame and fork material and method of construction. List the components used to build up the bike.

Frame: Ultralight super butted Alu

Fork: Lightweight carbon fibre with alloy steerer

Headset: Semi integrated cartridge bearing

Spacers: Full carbon 4x5mm, 1x10mm

Stem: Ritchey Pro OS 31.8mm

Handlebars: Ritchey Pro Flat OS 31.8mm

Bar End: Ritchey WCS

Seatpost: Ritchey Pro 27.2mm

Saddle: cboardman, Cro-Mo rails

Brakes: Avid Elixir R carbon hydraulic disc brakes, 160mm rotors

Shifters: SRAM Rival Double tap 10 speed

Rear Mech: SRAM Rival

Front Mech: SRAM Rival

Cassette: Shimano CS-5600 12-27T

Chain: Shimano CN-5600

Chainset: Truvativ Rouleur Carbon compact 50x36T

Bottom Bracket: Truvativ GXP

Rims: Ritchey Pro disc rims

Hubs: Sealed bearings

Spokes: Stainless steel double butted black

Tyres: Maxxis Detonator 700x28c

Pedals: Alloy body, steel cage, toe clips & straps

Tell us what the bike is for, and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about the bike?

The Urban Pro Ltd is a lightweight fast commuter that tips the scales at only 20.6lb, so it's a super lightweight for a disc-equipped bike. For urban commutes to anything up t a century ride.

Frame and fork

Overall rating for frame and fork
 
8/10

Tell us about the build quality and finish of the frame and fork?

Very nicely finished triple butted frame, the filled welds are reminiscent of the Cannondale frames of old. The finish is smooth and tough.

Tell us about the geometry of the frame and fork?

the 61.5cm effective top tube makes it more stretched out than some of its rivals for a slightly lower position. 73/73 angles.

How was the bike in terms of height and reach? How did it compare to other bikes of the same stated size?

It felt quite spacious and slightly more stretched than most hybrids but was very comfy

Riding the bike

Was the bike comfortable to ride? Tell us how you felt about the ride quality.

The ride quality is generally excellent, the frame is more lively than most hybrids and the wheel and 28mm tyre combo smooth out the bumps too

Did the bike feel stiff in the right places? Did any part of the bike feel too stiff or too felxible?

Everything felt sturdy and there's no discernible flex

How did the bike transfer power? Did it feel efficient?

Power transfer is very good, there's a bit of spring but it's a nice feeling bike to put the hammer down on.

Was there any toe-clip overlap with the front wheel? If so, was it a problem?

none

How would you describe the steering? Was it lively, neutral or unresponsive? neutral

Tell us some more about the handling. How did the bike feel overall? Did it do particular things well or badly?

The bike is very well behaved, best on longer rides where the lower position and neutral handling combine with the light weight to make it a capable cruiser

Rate the bike for efficiency of power transfer:
 
8/10
Rate the bike for acceleration:
 
8/10
Rate the bike for sprinting:
 
7/10
Rate the bike for high speed stability:
 
7/10
Rate the bike for cruising speed stability:
 
9/10
Rate the bike for low speed stability:
 
7/10
Rate the bike for flat cornering:
 
8/10
Rate the bike for cornering on descents:
 
7/10
Rate the bike for climbing:
 
9/10

The drivetrain

Rate the drivetrain for performance:
 
8/10
Rate the drivetrain for durability:
 
6/10
Rate the drivetrain for weight:
 
8/10
Rate the drivetrain for value:
 
7/10

Wheels and tyres

Rate the wheels and tyres for performance:
 
7/10
Rate the wheels and tyres for durability:
 
8/10
Rate the wheels and tyres for weight:
 
8/10
Rate the wheels and tyres for comfort:
 
8/10
Rate the wheels and tyres for value:
 
7/10

Controls

Rate the controls for performance:
 
8/10
Rate the controls for durability:
 
8/10
Rate the controls for weight:
 
9/10
Rate the controls for comfort:
 
7/10
Rate the controls for value:
 
7/10

Your verdict

Did you enjoy riding the bike? Yes, shame about the minor niggles

Would you consider buying the bike? Yes, it's a good performer for the money

Would you recommend the bike to a friend? Yes

Overall rating: 8/10

About the tester

Age: 36  Height: 190cm  Weight: 100kg

I usually ride: Schwinn Moab, urbanised with 700cs  My best bike is: Trek 1.5 with upgrades

I've been riding for: 10-20 years  I ride: Every day  I would class myself as: Experienced

I regularly do the following types of riding: time trialling, commuting, sportives, general fitness riding, fixed/singlespeed, mtb, Mountain Bike Bog Snorkelling, track

Dave is a founding father of road.cc, having previously worked on Cycling Plus and What Mountain Bike magazines back in the day. He also writes about e-bikes for our sister publication ebiketips. He's won three mountain bike bog snorkelling World Championships, and races at the back of the third cats.

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