[rob_h]

Hi there,

I’m looking for some advice. After about a year of more and more cycling i’m ready to take the step up to my first carbon bike.

Generally it will be used for a) one or two 50-60 mile rides per week (club run etc.); b) a couple of longer 100 mile sportives; c) a few short time trials and d) perhaps a triathlon.

I realise that I’ll have to make some compromises as one bike won’t be a top performer for all of these. Generally I like to ride fast and would prefer something a bit more race ready than relaxed.

I have a budget of c£1,500.

My thinking so far is

Cannondale SuperSix Evo 5 or 6 (2014), available for c£1,110 and upgrade the wheels (e.g. Mavic Ksyrium for c£350)
Scott Solace 30 (2014), again avaliable for c£1,000 and add some wheels
Cube Agree GTC SL (2014) for c£1,300
Canyon Ultimate CF SL 7.0 (2015) for £1,400 (budget can’t stretch to the 9.0)

All are solid Shimano 105, with the exception of the Cube which is Ultegra.

Any advice? Am I missing anything?

Topic

[Shep73]

Try and go for the best
Try and go for the best carbon frame you can buy, I’ve just bought a new carbon bike, even though I’ve only had mine a year and half. But I wanted something a little bit more exotic and I can safely say that not all carbon is created equal. The new bike is in a different league to my older one. And my older one is high mod carbon so it’s not exactly bottom of the range in carbon quality. Could you go for just a frameset and swop the parts over, then do a gradual upgrade?

[Jem PT]

I bought a 2014 Cube Agree
I bought a 2014 Cube Agree GTC Race Road a couple of months ago, and this was my first carbon bike (first road bike even), so I’ve got nothing to compare it to apart from a Spec Roubaix and a Trek Domain that I tested before hand. For £1099 it has Ultegra gears and 105 brakes.

I’m very pleased with it, but if you go for the Cube remember the frames come up small – I’m 184cm tall and their 60cm frame suits me fine.

[tomstrak]

Rose do quite a few nicely
Rose do quite a few nicely spec’d models around that price range and I’ve heard excellent reviews.

[twowheeltoys]

Plenty racy and ideal for
Plenty racy and ideal for time trials and triathlon you could still go carbon and aero (if you are tall enough). Would be 2014 10 speed which does not seem to worry you but Westbrook have a some Scott foils left in larger sizes at £1300 leaving a couple of hundred towards new wheels.

[2 Wheeled Idiot]

For that kind if budget the
For that kind if budget the carbon frames are not going to be amazing, I’d say good aluminum over cheap carbon. Because of this I’d look at caad10’s or canyon ultimate al’s.
By using an ALU frame they will generally have better specs that will need less upgrading in a year or two…
For exactly £1500 you can get a canyon ultinate al slx with uktegra and kysrium’s, all with decent finishing kit.
For an extra £150 you can even get ultegra di2 with ultegra wheels on a caad10 frame.
Also rose bikes have some very good value aluminum bikes at around that price.
Finally get whichever fits you best and will make you want to ride it B-)

[Mombee]

I thought long and hard about
I thought long and hard about my dream bike last year, and was definitely heading down the steel (Condor Accacio) or titanium (Enigma/Qoroz), but the right builds were beyond my budget, so went down the carbon route… one Bianchi Sempre later and I’m smitten… and my ride profile isn’t a lot different to what you’ve put there… it’s a quantum leap from my old Cannondale R700. I went Bianchi for heritage and aesthetics, but a SuperSix would have been snapping on its heels in the wish list.
My only compromise has been buying a Cannondale CAADX for the winter to keep me riding through the worst of the weather and to avoid dropping some shiny celeste carbon down an icy road.
Aside from that it’s all the normal stuff about size and fit… good to see a list of race-type, rather than sportive, bikes BTW… I for one find that racier position more comfortable. Good luck with the search.

[Author]

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