[Zoolaunder]

Hi everyone,

I’m sure this has been posted many a time, so, sorry about that. I am really lost and confused and need some advice, hopefully you can help. I am wanting to cycle to work as a 3 mile walk in very boring and long. I then want to try do 5 – 10 miles home each day for fitness and then build up my fitness and stamina over the weekends. So, I first looked at a hybrid bike but got told that they are’nt any good for longer rides and the position you sit in is not ideal – I have had lower back problems through sport. (one person said a road bike puts me in a better position)

 

Now, I scrapped that idea and looked at road bikes. Oh god, too many to choose from and look at and even understand all the differences. I am a novice to cycling but not in sport. I do believe in paying for good gear. But that being said – budget is circa £500 maybe more. I then read about these road bikes that have a more relaxed seating position but still a good fitness bike and with room for decent sized tyres and mudguards etc.

Also, in terms of drop bars and changing gears, is this a simple thing? It just seems awkward?

 

I have looked at Mango and they seem nice but once all the add ons and bits are added I was looking at over £600. Sitting on the fence there.  Then looked at Giant and I have now got into a position of total confusion.

I would like something fairly comfy but something that I can learn to cycle properly on. I am 6’2″ and 16st (looking to get back to 15 but I am quite broad) so I dont know if this makes a difference too? I am also wanting some advice on pedals – the thought of being a novice with my feet clamped in makes me nervous, but I like the fact that you get the upward power too – how easily do your feet clip in and out and is this doable for commuting in stop start traffic? What saddles are the the best and comfiest for a starter too?

 

If theres any advice you can share on what would be an option that would be great. I am hoping to have a shortlist of 3 – 5 bikes I can look at or choose from. In my mind, these are what I want –

 

1. Comfortable but sporty

2. Versitle for commuting and weekend rides (room for mudguards etc)

3. Easy to ride

4. Not Garish

5. Ideally sub £500

6. Pedals?

 

I hope you can all shed some light on this for me and make this easier. I am wary of going to a shop and speaking to some lemon that knows as much as I do and just wants to sell me a bike that he’ll make the most money from. That said, Cycle in Richmond have a brilliant guy there whom was impartial and just gave me some decent advice. But their bikes start at £700…

 

Thanks in advance,

Jason

Topic

[rjfrussell]

If you’ve got a good frame,

If you’ve got a good frame, 105 groupset and disc brakes for sub £500, can you come and negotiate my next purchase!  That’s some deal/ steal by the sounds of it.

 

Hope it all goes well.

[Zoolaunder]

I have been in and out of

I have been in and out of Evans and we finally sorted a deal. The first Norco had a large dent in the top bar (from handle to seat) and it was not a good look. So looked at the Sora hoping I wouldnt notice a difference. Annoyingly I did. I then kept and eye out and another S2 (105 gearset) popped up but this had a different fork for whatever reason, anyway, got it into the store and went for a ride. Felt good but the new fork meant was short and put me in an aggresive position. After some thought, this wasnt ideal for me. Had a chat and asked if they could swap the forks over… Anyway, have a good bike now at a silly price as it has some scuffs on the rear bar. Basically its sub £500 and it has disc brakes and the 105 gearset. I have a feelign this is a good offer to get me started!!

Hopefully will be on it next week and now just have to look at all the little things like locks and lights and lids etc etc.

Will keep you posted, but any info re gear and clothing for cheap will be swell

 

Peace

[Cumisky]

If you can find them, and it

If you can find them, and it isn’t easy as they are discontinued, these are a good first solution to the clipless pedal question.
My local shop still have a couple of pairs, but only in tiny sizes.
I have ridden a commuter with them and they were surprisingly good, not sure why they weren’t a bigger success.

http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/components/pedals/product/review-mavic-ez-ride-evolve-35104/

[matthewn5]

I’d suggest trying a lot of

I’d suggest trying a lot of bikes before you buy. My cycling history is littered with bikes I thought I’d love, and ended up hating.

[Zoolaunder]

bikebot wrote:

Zoolaunder wrote:

ive taken a punt and ordered the Norco Search S2. Going to have it ready for Monday and will test ride it to see how it feels. I got the one with the 105 and it has 28mm tyres on it. 

 

The reviews seem to be mixed and people have said that they’re quite heavy… After choosing now I’m a bit worried. 

 

Guess ill ill have to find out on Monday 

Just took a look, and those reviews looked quite good to me.  Some people are just a bit obsessed about weight, but it doesn’t matter a fraction as much as they might think.  I own a few bikes of different weights, and the biggest speed difference comes about from simply swapping the tyres between them.

For the frame, you’re balancing the three choices of strong, light and cheap.  I can see on the Norco product page that the S2 and S3 are the same frame.  The S1 uses Reynolds 520 steel so it will be slightly lighter, but it’s your choice if you want to pay another £200+ for a slightly lighter bike.  There’s a rapid dimiishing return as the price goes up.  

http://www.norco.com/15search/

Anyway, the most important thing is to try it and see what you think of it.  I bought a Norco a few years ago because it was sat in my locan Evans and it was a a flippin bargain.  Didn’t know the brand, but gave it a try and it felt really comfortable.  It is easily the most versitile bike I own, and probably put in more miles than the other bikes in my stable last year.

 

Thanks for the info – I took it for a test ride but it had a nasty dent in the top bar so they’re getting another one in. I did like it. It felt good to me, but I really dont know what I am comparing it to.

So, what I have done is get an S3 in too – same bike, Sora set. I want to see and feel the difference. As theres £160 price difference. The disc brakes felt ok to me again, but some part of me was feeling that they werent set up correctly. Just a gut feeling. I am test riding the other two tomorrow so will hopefully be clearer. I think in principle its a good bike. It didnt feel that heavy to me, I guess I am working this against all these buzz words you hear…

 

I wont even look at the S1 – not spending that much. Maybe in a year or two if I get hooked. But not now.

 

Cheers

 

 

 

 

[bikebot]

Zoolaunder wrote:

ive taken a punt and ordered the Norco Search S2. Going to have it ready for Monday and will test ride it to see how it feels. I got the one with the 105 and it has 28mm tyres on it. 

 

The reviews seem to be mixed and people have said that they’re quite heavy… After choosing now I’m a bit worried. 

 

Guess ill ill have to find out on Monday 

Just took a look, and those reviews looked quite good to me.  Some people are just a bit obsessed about weight, but it doesn’t matter a fraction as much as they might think.  I own a few bikes of different weights, and the biggest speed difference comes about from simply swapping the tyres between them.

For the frame, you’re balancing the three choices of strong, light and cheap.  I can see on the Norco product page that the S2 and S3 are the same frame.  The S1 uses Reynolds 520 steel so it will be slightly lighter, but it’s your choice if you want to pay another £200+ for a slightly lighter bike.  There’s a rapid dimiishing return as the price goes up.  

http://www.norco.com/15search/

Anyway, the most important thing is to try it and see what you think of it.  I bought a Norco a few years ago because it was sat in my locan Evans and it was a a flippin bargain.  Didn’t know the brand, but gave it a try and it felt really comfortable.  It is easily the most versitile bike I own, and probably put in more miles than the other bikes in my stable last year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Zoolaunder]

bikebot wrote:

Zoolaunder wrote:

I’m going to call Rutland and see what they say. Seeing the Defy 5 at £299 is awfully teasing.

Going back to your spec at the top, the Defy frame doesn’t have much clearance.  Mudguards are awkward, many 28mm tyres are awkward.  For commuting as well, even getting a rack onto it can be difficult.  It’s exactly the sort of frame I advise people not to buy as mixed use and I own one!

JI’d suggest you take a closer look at the Norco.  That’s a good spec for the price, and Norco seem to do a good job of building bikes on which you can actually fit mudguards and racks for day to day use with very little faffing about.

If you’re trying to save money, they also have a 9 speed sora version – http://www.evanscycles.com/products/norco/search-s3-2015-adventure-road-bike-ec072577

Sora is still a perfectly good groupset, and replacing chains and cassettes as they wear out will be slightly cheaper than 11 speed parts.

 

 

ive taken a punt and ordered the Norco Search S2. Going to have it ready for Monday and will test ride it to see how it feels. I got the one with the 105 and it has 28mm tyres on it. 

 

The reviews seem to be mixed and people have said that they’re quite heavy… After choosing now I’m a bit worried. 

 

Guess ill ill have to find out on Monday 

[Dr. Ko]

Zoolaunder wrote:

Dr. Ko wrote:

– tyres 25 to 28 mm wide, you’re still in town so 28 mm is totally enough, Schwalbe Marathon are a good option

– ass savers

– saddle for a more relaxed position e.g. Brooks sometimes combined with a Caradice saddle back. 

These commuter bikes are usually based on a used steel frame and used 10 speed Shimano Ultegra parts. Here a example with a new aluminium frame and a low budget: Budget bike of course for London it needs some add-ons London extras.

 

Dr. Ko

 

Hi Dr Ko,

 

Thanks for the info – I clicked on the budget build but only saw part 3 of your build. What commuter bikes have you got? And I wouldnt be against building, but saying that I also just want it asap so this may not be a good idea for now.

 

Mango have the team vision upgrade they offer for only 69.99 – are they good and light enough? I think I am going to try get the Canondale Synapse and go from there. Evans have last years model on a good offer and that seems good to me… Unless of course theres better options?

 

What are good tyres for commuting then? I see all these puncture resistant ones – are they what I should get? And the Canon comes with 25mm – should i get slightly bigger or are these good enough for the job at hand?

Thanks

 

My comments are more of a general type, rather than recommending a particular bike/frame. I’m 6’1″ myself, currently I’m using a Basso Gap, a Hertel (German steel) and a Reynolds 953 Stainless steel build by Norwid. 

Personally I use Conti Four Seasons 25 mm and Schwalbe Marathons 25/28 mm, if the roads are reasonable Four Seasons as the Marathons are pretty heavy. For Your route 25 mm are fine, if you have gravel roads 28 mm tyres might be better. Cheap, robust, light – pick two. I would place my focus on robust first.

Regards,

Wolfram

[bikebot]

Zoolaunder wrote:

I’m going to call Rutland and see what they say. Seeing the Defy 5 at £299 is awfully teasing.

Going back to your spec at the top, the Defy frame doesn’t have much clearance.  Mudguards are awkward, many 28mm tyres are awkward.  For commuting as well, even getting a rack onto it can be difficult.  It’s exactly the sort of frame I advise people not to buy as mixed use and I own one!

I’d suggest you take a closer look at the Norco.  That’s a good spec for the price, and Norco seem to do a good job of building bikes on which you can actually fit mudguards and racks for day to day use with very little faffing about.

If you’re trying to save money, they also have a 9 speed sora version – http://www.evanscycles.com/products/norco/search-s3-2015-adventure-road-bike-ec072577

Sora is still a perfectly good groupset, and replacing chains and cassettes as they wear out will be slightly cheaper than 11 speed parts.

 

[CXR94Di2]

Get a bike with room for 32mm
Get a bike with room for 32mm tyres. You weigh 15-16 stone. Running anything low as 25mm will require high pressure to keep from getting pinch flats

[MoominPappa]

gonedownhill wrote:

…  if I had to choose one to get rid of it would be the road bike as I can always put skinnier tyres on my ‘cross bike if I wish. … 

…  you can do things to raise the bars up … 

 

What he said, on both counts. 

Only consider the smaller frame if you are between sizes, not if you have frame matching your proportions.

Although no two humans of the same height are the same. Arm length and flexibility also need to be accounted for. Too large frame and you will need to put short stem. 

[MoominPappa]

Zoolaunder wrote:

How much of a difference is there with these Claris and Sora and 105 etc?

As pointed out you get what you pay for – longevity, quality and feel. But don’t go mad thinking the more you spend it would be proportionally better. Groupsets after Tiagra or 105 will only the give you psychological improvement if you are just beginning. I can spend a mint and buy DuraAce (no, I can’t afford it) but most people would still overtake me. And also I better go on a diet instead of buying the lightest groupset if weight was (and is) the issue. 

 

I am not going to start a flame war discussing pros and cons of 11, 10, 9 or lesser cassette capacity at the rear derailleur. Look at the actual deal on the bike as opposed to how many gears you get. I preferred to get 105 instead of Tiagra on my new bike but the deal on the bike was way better than sticking to wanting 11 speed cassette so I ended up with 10 speed cassette and I am happy with my choice. 

 

Also higher groupset specced bikes will have better components most of the time compared to the same bike with lower groupset. 

 

Another thing to consider is if you buy Internet instead of locally anything going wrong and you will have to ship the bike, probably at your expense. New bikes sometimes include free 1st service, sometimes free annual/half yearly minor service. If you buy it online and the shop is not nearby then you lose out. Evans is definitely not your LBS but if you live in London then there should be plenty near you. I considered buying from Tredz, we have office in Cardiff so I could always take the bike with me to their shop on the train but in the end decided it wasn’t worth (for me at least) the hassle. But remember YMMV, it might be better for you to buy online. 

 

You mentioned Defy – I originally wanted one of those but changed my mind. With CX/Gravel grinder/Adventure bikes you can always add narrow road tyres (I bought set of slightly better rims shod with road rubber so I don’t have to change tyres but only swap rims) but you are limited if you want to put larger tyres on CX/Gravel/Adventure bike. If you commute mainly then the benefit of 32mm tyre in regards to comfort would be noticeable. If you want to go sportives and racing you can save up for road rims in the future. Speaking of racing and sportives do mind the size of the largest front chainring although that would make difference at higher levels of experience. 

 

HTH

[Zoolaunder]

gonedownhill wrote:

I recently got a disc braked cyclocross frame (very little difference between cyclocross, gravel and adventure as far as I can tell) for my commuter bike and I love it. Disc brakes and enough room for wide (32mm) tyres even with full mudguards fitted both make me more confident when riding in crap weather. I also have a pretty nice road bike for long rides (tend to do one or two 100 mile sportives a year) and if I had to choose one to get rid of it would be the road bike as I can always put skinnier tyres on my ‘cross bike if I wish. 

That Norco looks like a good buy. I was also looking at the Pinncale Arkose 3 (2016 model) which has full hydraulic brakes, but that’s £1000 so maybe more than you wanted to spend unless you can get cycle to work scheme.

Advice on buying a bike as a tall guy who gets lower back issues – make sure you get a big enough frame. I have previously had shops trying to sell me frames that I felt were too small for me. They told me that you can just put the seatpost up a bit more. This is true but will mean that the handlebars are relatively lower so you’re more bent over – although you can do things to raise the bars up, those are steps you might want to do on a bigger frame anyway to lessen the angle your back is at. I am 6’6″ so a bit bigger than you so maybe most regular largest frames will be okay for you. 

 

 

 

Left field shout on the cross bike… Sounds interesting. I will look at that too. But yes, £1000 is too much for me right now. I do somewhat have a scheme worked out with work so I will be getting a % off.

 

I am most concious about my back. Golf and cricket have done a number on it and I will not get something that isnt right – so thanks for that. Seems as though 60cm is the size for me. But one guy did say he is 6’2 as well and has a 58cm Cannondale. I will see what fits best but Im not one to roll over to a salesman. They are the ones that feel worked over when I leave.. ha.

 

I’m going to call Rutland and see what they say. Seeing the Defy 5 at £299 is awfully teasing.

[Zoolaunder]

MoominPappa wrote:

arfa wrote:

 the norco has an alloy fork instead

Not according to the Evans URL above or Norco’s website – it is chromoly. 

Now I absolutely agree about carbon having dampening properties compared to aluminium, but so does steel.

Which will be better – carbon fork and alu frame or all chromoly frame and fork – now I don’t know. OP clearly has no budget for full carbon setup. 

Alu frame and carbon fork should be lighter than full steel setup although that itself isn’t such an issue unless OP does a lot of hill climbing. 

As a matter of fact I was also looking at Caadx and Arfa is right about their frames. 

 

Safe to say hill climbing is not going to be happening early days. Chiswick and the surrounding areas are lovely and flat. The cars and traffic are enough to deal with for now.

 

What is this chromoly? Its just steel right? Or am I very mistaken..? (I turn to google…)

[gonedownhill]

I recently got a disc braked

I recently got a disc braked cyclocross frame (very little difference between cyclocross, gravel and adventure as far as I can tell) for my commuter bike and I love it. Disc brakes and enough room for wide (32mm) tyres even with full mudguards fitted both make me more confident when riding in crap weather. I also have a pretty nice road bike for long rides (tend to do one or two 100 mile sportives a year) and if I had to choose one to get rid of it would be the road bike as I can always put skinnier tyres on my ‘cross bike if I wish. 

That Norco looks like a good buy. I was also looking at the Pinncale Arkose 3 (2016 model) which has full hydraulic brakes, but that’s £1000 so maybe more than you wanted to spend unless you can get cycle to work scheme.

Advice on buying a bike as a tall guy who gets lower back issues – make sure you get a big enough frame. I have previously had shops trying to sell me frames that I felt were too small for me. They told me that you can just put the seatpost up a bit more. This is true but will mean that the handlebars are relatively lower so you’re more bent over – although you can do things to raise the bars up, those are steps you might want to do on a bigger frame anyway to lessen the angle your back is at. I am 6’6″ so a bit bigger than you so maybe most regular largest frames will be okay for you. 

 

 

[Author]

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